TOP SPOT OUT OF REACH BUT PLENTY OF PODIUMS FOR RYDE AT SWANAGE

Ryde Rowing Club took a large group of competitors and supporters to Swanage Regatta on Saturday (29th June) with 4x Fours crews, 2x Coxless Pairs and 4 Scullers competing. Once again Swanage proved to be one of the most popular events in the Hants & Dorset ARA fixture list with a record entry of nearly 180 crews and scullers that required a record number of races to complete the program. The regatta is staged over a 1,500m course, with a racing turn, in Swanage Bay. With no Hants & Dorset ARA Club in Swanage, the regatta is organised by volunteers from the Association’s Clubs with Ryde playing their part by providing all the packed lunches for the Race Officials and safety boat crews, as well as the Regatta coordinator Steve Bull and a Race Official Mick Jenner. The highlight for the Ryde Club was the performance of their Men’s Novice A Crew of Ben Robotham, Yogi Ashworth, Joe Roberts and Joe Bird – with Harry Watts coxing – who dominated both their heat and the final finishing first in both and gaining promotion to Coastal Junior status. Although that was the club’s only win at the Regatta their crews and sculler achieved 4x 2nd places to add to the 19x 2nd places the club has achieved at Hants & Dorset Regattas so far this season! The Men’s Junior Senior Four of Ben Sanderson, Charlie Watts, Paddy Kearney and Will Hall – with Mia Read coxing – were beaten into 2nd place by a canvas. The Boys J16 Coxed Quad of Max Locke, Fin Diffy, Joe Bird, Charlie Watts – with Ruby Reid coxing – also finished 2nd in their final, as did the Boys J16 Coxed Four of Joe Bird, Max Locke, Finn Diffey and Lottie Pettitt – coxed by Harry Watts. Another Ryde Crew to finish in 2nd place was the Coastal Junior Pair of Charlie Watts and Joe Roberts who finished 2nd in their heat and in the final. The Ladies Coastal Junior Pair of Maggie Sanderson and Alexis Owen, making their competitive debut in this event, rowed well to finish in 5th place in their heat – failing to make the final. In the single sculling events the coastal junior sculler Ben Sanderson finished 3rd in his final and Paddy Kearney racing in the Men’s Novice Sculls finished 2nd in his heat, but such was the competition in this event only the heat winners qualified for the final. In the Ladies Novice Sculls Ryde’s 2 young scullers – Lottie Pettitt and Mai Read – both finished their heats in 3rd place, qualifying for the final where Lottie finished in 5th place and Mai in 6th. Finally, the club entered a crew of Alesis Owen, Mai Read, Dan Sanderson and Ben Rowbotham – coxed by Ruby Read – in the final event of the day, the Mixed Fours, who finished in 5th place.