Tracey Hancock (Johnston) has come up with a massive 24 new photos, so I decided to copy the first Early 80s post and add them in rather than keep on editing the original. I have also added some crew lists from Ken Drake’s Archive. This still contains my own photos of the early 1980s FCBC men’s crews, some photos of women’s crews from Kathryn Ogilvy, BCD menus with crew lists and a press cutting from Doug Webb, photos from Astrid Kopmels, and a Henley contribution from Riyad Insanally. New comments are in red.
I have now added 3 new photos from Paul Sansome, of the 1982 1st Novice Boat, 1983 Lents 2nd VIII, and 1983 Fairbairn 2nd VIII, new comments in blue.
I would like to add more to this post so if anyone else from that time has photos of other crews please send them and I will add them. In particular, it would be nice to have some more on the women’s crews of the period, and perhaps on the men’s 1st boat in 1979-81 – extensively mentioned in the record book but I have no photos.
Luckily, the FCBC record books have entries for the years 1980-81 and 1981-82, the only entries after 1973, so there are some scanned pages as well as the photos.
1979-80
At the Fresher’s Fair in 1979 I was somehow convinced to try rowing. I think this is the 1st Men’s Novice VIII for Fairbairn’s 1979. Some wayward heads.
I think the crew is Grey Giddens, Doug Webb, Bernard Szczeck (additional z courtesy of Doug’s menu), Pete Phippen, Richard Belger, Tony Geater, Mike Harrison, Dan George, Mike Tucker.
Here is Doug’s menu which does not, in fact, include the above novices or any women.
I remember as well as the Fairbairns and Clare Novices we did a Reading Novice Regatta and I thought it would be handy to go home to South Wales for Christmas straight from there. The bus dropped me miles from the station and I had a very big suitcase (no wheels in those days) so by the time I got on the train I was in a very bad mood.
Phil Bateman-Champain and Alan Ramsden join for this crew which I think is the 1980 Lent 3rd VIII. Heads remain wayward.
Doug’s menu claims 4 is Tony Geater, and includes a women’s VIII, coxed by S Brown (Mr).
This is possibly the May 1980 3rd VIII. At 7 it includes Paul Flood, who was JMA President in my first year.
The menu shows 6 men’s VIIIs and one women’s IV.
There is nothing in the record book for 1979-80 so the only record we currently have for the first year of women rowing at Fitz is the crew lists on the above menus, which show a lent VIII and a May IV. It would be nice to be able to add some photos or reminiscences, especially as it is the 40th anniversary.
1980-81
Though the women arrived in 1979 and were certainly rowing in 1980 and 1981, there is no mention of any women’s rowing in the record book. Perhaps the women’s rowing was separately managed? There are, however, two women mentioned as coxes of men’s crews – Tracey Johnston coxed the 2nd VIII in the Fairbairns and Lents, and Hilary Farnworth coxed the 3rd VIII in the Lents and 2nd VIII in the Mays.
1980 Fairbairns 2nd VIII, crew listed in the record book extracts.
Here are Tracey’s photos, which remind us that the Fairbairns used to start above the Fort St. George footbridge, and show how bendy the course is.
The menu is inaccurate for the above crew, the record book is correct.
and 1981 Lent 2nd VIII
and Tracey’s photos of us
George Chapman the boatman got his picture in the paper following the Lent 2nd VIII crash described here.
Tracey coxed the May 1981 2nd women’s IV
She wasn’t too busy coxing to get these shots:
May 1981 3rd VIII, a “gentlemen’s boat” which went up 3 and gets its crew listed in the record book above
May 1981 4th VIII, which went down 4, reflecting a “blend of incompetence and flippancy” apparently, crew is not listed.
Here is Doug’s May 1981 menu
Riyad Insanally sent this HRR programme
Riyad recalled: “for the weigh-in, I drank 5 pints of orange squash, wore two heavy jumpers and my wellies, and held my homemade cox box. No one asked me to divest myself of any kit. Hence, my weighing in at an impressive 8 st. 2 lbs. My racing weight was about 7 st. 10. Ah, the good old days… “
1981-82
Women are now integrated into the Boat Club – at the very beginning of the entry we see that there was now a Women’s Vice Captain – Sally Howes. There were equal numbers of men and women competing in the Fairbairn/novice term and the Lents saw 3 men’s VIII and 2 women’s. Representation was patchy though – the University Fours was men only, and in the Mays there seem to have been 4 men’s VIIIs but only one women’s IV. However, Kathryn’s photos below show evidence of another women’s IV which must have been competing, though perhaps not in the bumps, which I think had limited space for women in those days. At the University level, Sylvia van Kleef was the first Fitz woman to get a Blue, and two other women got into the later stages of trials.
The University Fours were the first races. Just in case it’s not clear from the last line, the Clinker IV lost by 32 secs beaten by Robinson in 7.30, so a time of 8.02, a little quicker than the Shell IV in their fastest heat. Just sayin’.
Here is that University Fours 1981 Clinker IV
Here is the Fairbairns 1981 1st VIII
Women’s 1st Novices in Clare Novices Regatta 1981, coxed by Kathryn.
Meanwhile, Tracey was coxing the 1st women’s IV in the Fairbairns
Lent term
The Lent 1982 men’s 2nd VIII got their oars, coxed by Tracey Johnston.
They were well pleased,
but stroke (a notorious slacker already lying down in the above shot) was too tired to row home, so Tracey had to.
They rewarded her in the traditional manner,
and celebrated,
and celebrated,
and celebrated some more.
I believe the 1st VIII went down 2.
Tracey’s crew had a few more outings, including a sunny day out to Ely,
and this was labelled “informal outing with Robert, Martin, Brian and Graeme” .
Women’s 2nd Lent VIII 1982, coxed by Kathryn, with Hilary Farnworth (who also coxed a bit) at 2. The crew list in the record book (above) is not complete, but Doug’s menu comes to the rescue.
May term
I believe this is the Women’s 2nd IV May 1982, but there is no crew listed in the record book. Can anyone shed any light?
Kathryn Ogilvy (Spink), Jo Place, Sally Howes, Heather Shepherd, Nicky Rensten. The menu confirms the above 2nd womens IV, and also shows a 3rd IV, but their exploits are not recorded in the record book.
I was not in the 1982 Mays as I contracted “fat hand” from the filthy conditions in the boathouse. I believe a couple of others also succumbed. The benefits were an Early Warning in my finals and a lot of opioids.
1982-83
1982 Fairbairn Cup and Emmanuel Sprints Winners. The key to our success was short hair, as provided by Bernard The Man, and the coaching of Dave Seddon, whose outing plan was the same every day – paddle down to the P&E, firm to the lock, spin, firm to P&E, spin, firm to the lock, spin, firm to P&E, paddle home.
You will notice I was asleep for most of it.
After the race we sent our captain, Geoffrey Norman Bindley, to complain to Jesus that were were impeded while overtaking Pembroke on the approach to the motorway bridge, and ask for a time reduction. “You don’t need one” he replied through gritted teeth. We had beaten Jesus by 15 seconds, so there was no chance of a repeat of the 1968 result, when Jesus beat Fitz into second place by 2 seconds, after Fitz were given a 3 second penalty for jumping the start.
There was manly naked dancing in the changing room that day, and the singing of the crew song.
The photographer from Eaden Lilley told us this was the traditional method of taking photos of winning boats. I have never seen a similar photo before or since.
Astrid Kopmels arrived in 1982, and she thinks this was her novice boat.
Ken Drake’s archive has the Women’s Fairbairn Crews 1982 from the dinner menus Women’s 1st VIII Bow G Coates, A Hughes, C Gifford, M Rosier, K Gunn, J Elliott, S Talbot, Str H Shepherd, Cox S Swift, Coaches C Harbourne, S Van-Kleef, P Conman. Ladies 1st Novice VIII Bow S Wellesley, M Alexander, I Hockley, R Montague, L White, C Howe, M Fearnehough, Str A Kopmels, Cox A Hunt/E Cullis. Ladies 2nd Novice VIII Bow A Scholey, A Flint, S Done, J Kelly, S Neville, H Rees, S Thorn, P Sansome, Cox J Grubb. So Astrid’s picture shows the ladies 1st novices.
Here is Paul Sansome’s photo of the 1982 men’s 1st novice crew.
In Lent 1983 several members of the men’s 1st VIII were ill with a virus, so we lost the momentum of the Fairbairn win and went down 3.
Here are Paul’s pictures of the Lent 1983 2nd boat.
Here’s a posed photo of 1st May & Henley crew 1983
Here is a picture of the Boat Club in summer 1983
We went to Henley 1983, and beat another Cambridge College (possibly Christ’s?) on the Thursday before losing by 1/4 length to Harvard, who won it. The 1/4 length looked good until one checked the times – Harvard had gone 4 lengths up and dropped the rating to about 22. We paddled over the course behind them then went down the enclosure at 40 and very nearly caught them before they realised we were having a go.
More of Astrid’s photos, possibly Lent or May 1983 women’s 1st VIII (or 1984)?
From the archive it looks like the Lent 1983 1st Ladies VIII Bow A Scholey, R Montague, C Howe, A Kopmels, L White, M Rosier, J Elliott, Str H Shepherd, Cox A Hunt, Coaches P Conman, A Duff, A Greenway
1983-84
Fairbairns 1983 2nd boat stroked by Paul Sansome, reputed to be the second fastest 2nd crew on the river despite being impeded.
Here are some of Astrid’s photos. I think this is the Lent 1984 1st VIII at a head race.
May 1984
Astrid’s picture quiz: who are they, what are they doing and how did they do that?
