Ryde Rowing Club’s crews, although depleted due to holidays, performed well at Southsea Regatta last Saturday (21st July).
Southsea is the country’s largest one day regatta where Hants & Dorset ARA and Coast ARA clubs race together. This gives a useful guide to the club’s and association’s prospects at the South Coast Rowing Championships, to be held at Deal in September.
Holidays had forced a change for the club’s Men’s Coastal Junior Four with novice Oarsman Paddy Kearney deputising in the boat alongside Ben Sanderson, Tom Starkey, Tye Cameron and Cox Dan Sanderson. They finished 7th in their heat – failing to gain a place in the final.
Tom Starkey, Tye Cameron and Ben Sanderson were joined by Freya Drage – with Dan Sanderson coxing again – to compete in the J16 Fours event, where they finished in 6th place – racing against all male opposition.
Ben Sanderson and Tye Cameron then competed in the Men’s Coastal Junior Pairs event and raced well to finish 4th in their heat and qualify for the final, where they found the going tougher in the deteriorating conditions, and finished in 6th place.
The club’s young J14 Mixed Coxed quad of Dan Sanderson, Emily Davis, Poppy Starkey and Bonita Hunnybun – coxed by coach Graham Reeve – performed particularly well to finish in 3rd place.
