The only time FCBC won at Henley Royal regatta was in the 1970 Visitors’ Challenge Cup. The victorious crew comprised: Stroke – Charles Lowe, 3 – Neville Robertson, 2 – Stephen Kerruish, Bow (steers) – Charles Bennion.
The crew planned to row over the course at this year’s regatta to celebrate the 50th anniversary of this tremendous feat (with Stewart Wallis substituting for Steve Kerruish), but coronavirus put paid to that idea. As some may know, HRR are planning some YouTube output for broadcast over the Regatta weekend this year and wanted to include the row past anniversaries as a part of this, so they asked the FCBC crew for some photos and reminiscences – “In this connection it would be really helpful if you were able to collate some memories of your regatta week, photographs, video (or cine film!), newspaper reports etc, notes on what crew members have gone on to do in the rowing world etc and, to save us having to check the records, the crew names”. As you know, I am never one to let FCBC rowing memories pass by without a post so here it is.
We have not come up with any photos of the crew racing at Henley but they can be seen in this photo of the 1970 1st May VIII.
Stephen Kerruish had this photo of the 1970 Ladies Plate VIII, with him rowing at 6. He says: The 1970 crew was really good. We won the Head of the Cam, Senior Eights at Cambridge Regatta and were Head of the River. We were knocked out of the Ladies Plate by a Dutch crew who went on to win it, I think. Four of us won the Visitors Cup at Henley Royal Regatta that year.
The crew compiled the below in response to HRR’s request.
Charles Lowe writes: Unfortunately we don’t seem to have any photo of the crew in the final configuration (with me at stroke) but here we are in a different order.
In answer to your question as to what happened next, all of us went on to be the stern four of the Fitzwilliam VIII that rowed over Head of the Mays at Cambridge for the third consecutive year in 1971. We also entered the Light IVs again at Cambridge in Autumn 1970 though lost to the eventual winners (Jesus). The same IV rowed in the Visitors’ at Henley too in 1971 where we got beaten in the semi-finals by the crew that went on to win: UL. According to the official records “Fitzwilliam started at 43 and were still at 40 at the Barrier… Fitzwilliam kept going hard…”. I’ll admit to having no memories of that race at all.
Of the four Visitors’ heats in 1970, I kicked myself afterwards for not memorising the Barrier and Fawley record times as on the Friday, which was an easy race against First & Third Trinity, we were only one second outside the record for both – we could have easily speeded up a bit to chalk up one or two course records at the time.
I went on row for Cambridge in Orio in the summer of 1970, and in Egypt in December 1970. I was elected Secretary of the CUBC in 1970/71 so elected to focus on that (which in those days involved singlehandedly organising all the University rowing events including the Lents and the Mays) and didn’t row in the Blue Boat. I don’t think any of us continued rowing after leaving university, though I did pick it up again in the late 1990s and rowed in various veterans event including Head of the Charles without distinction.
I recall my mother complaining that at prize giving we meekly took our medals and the cup and stepped off the podium, whereas other (as it happens mainly overseas that year) crews stopped and posed for photos with much jubilation. My happiest memory was drinking champagne out of the Visitors Cup itself. Rowing in that four was the height of my rowing experience – we were all good mates, we moved as one, we were very fit, we could go from paddling light to a racing pace in one stroke without the need for anything to be said at all, and our different personalities gelled so well: no other experience approached that level of enjoyment.
Charles Bennion writes: As for memories, I recall that at least 2 of the races were won easily after the competition steered into the barrier. Of all the rowing in the light 4, racing at Henley was the most challenging for steering. On all other races, there would be corners in the river, giving me a chance to navigate using transits on trees and other features when coming out of each corner. With Henley, the river is straight and the only transit was on Temple Island which rapidly became too distant to be helpful. Thank goodness we finished before any of the 6 lane 2,000m dead straight venues were built such as Holme Pierrepoint near Nottingham. But perhaps they have satnav nowadays!
Another memory was prize giving. We were presented with the Cup and then it was immediately taken from us to be returned to some secure vault until the following year. I think Fitz were left with responsibility for paying the insurance premium for the year but I may have made that up!
We were of course living on that leaky but glorious old houseboat on stilts on Rod Eyot. The four of us were also in the Fitz Eight that was competing in the Ladies’ Plate. The records will show but I imagine we were racing twice a day until the 8 was knocked out.
I fully agree with Charles L’s comment that ‘Rowing in that four was the height of my rowing experience – we were all good mates, we moved as one, we were very fit, we could go from paddling light to a racing pace in one stroke without the need for anything to be said at all, and our different personalities gelled so well: no other experience approached that level of enjoyment.’ and as for his magnificent trousers in the photo – I’m speechless!
Charles L remembers the Ladies’: We sadly were beaten on the Wednesday by the ultimate winner of the event, GSR Aegir, Holland by 1 2/3rd lengths in by far the fastest time of the day (7.02). GSR Aegir’s winning margins in subsequent races were also significantly greater than over us. On the Friday they set a new Regatta record for the competition.
Steve Kerruish writes: Charlie Bennion and I rowed in the 1971 Goldie crew which beat Oxford at Reading Head and were fourth in the Head of the River in 1971, only behind Leander and two Tideway Scullers crews. I coached KCS Wimbledon 1980 to 1989.
Charles L: They also beat Isis that year. Steve went on to get his Blue in 1972, again winning.
Neville Robertson adds: Rowing in this Fitz Visitor Cup IV was the peak of enjoyment of my rowing career, better than the Radley Third eight, better than the Fitzwilliam Head of the River crews over three years, and better even than rowing in the Blue Boat. I felt we were so well attuned to each other in mind and body, so well balanced in strength and stamina, possessing a brilliant steersman, and well supported by a brilliant boatman, George Chapman. We could have gone on to even greater things, if we had had the luxury of just concentrating on the IV!
