May Bumps
M1 went up 1, bumping Hughes Hall , remaining in the 1st division. M2 had a bad time, going down 4 in the Men’s 3rd division, while M3 did well, going up 3 having started as head of the men’s 5th division.
W1 were flat, bumping Magdelene on the first day but being caught by an oar winning Homerton on the last day. W2 went up 1, bumping LMBC3.
The Billygoats Osier Holt party could not have been more different from last year’s wet occasion, with the sun beating down and free water distributed to keep everyone hydrated.
The May Bumps supper was an excellent occasion, despite some shortage of wine.
Our President David Wright announced the John Adams Prizes.
The John Adams Fund was established in 2012 to recognise John Adams’ fifty years of service to the Billygoats Society and Fitzwilliam College rowing and supports both Bursaries to cover costs of rowing related activities for Fitzwilliam students and also one or more John Adams Prizes may be awarded annually to student members of the College who have done most to promote the wellbeing and success of the Boat Club.
The Billygoats are pleased to award John Adam’s prizes of £110 each, following some superb nominations we have four winners this year.
Firstly Pok-Man Ho has been at the club for the past 5 years, and is now finishing his PHD. Predominantly he’s a cox, but he’s rowed when needed, currently rowing in M2 and the M1 cox, he’s coxed every boat this term, he’s subbed in W1, W2, M1 as a rower when needed. Indeed one Saturday, he coxed M1, then coxed W1 & then rowed in M2 over a 6 hour period. A stalwart and doer and we hope too he will be around in the autumn to assist with coaching the novices.
Next Erin Price has been an amazing member of the club, her commitment to keeping W2 outings going even when numbers were scarce is a testament to her personal resilience and leadership skills. She has also often been moved between crews and has reacted to it positively and continued to give her all regardless.
And Oliver Fitzgerald has done an excellent job captaining the men’s side on his own, and has remained positive, resourceful, and resilient throughout this year. It has been a tough year for both sides in terms of numbers, bumps results and getting full crews out, however Oli has made sure both M1 and M2 are as competitive as possible, going beyond to enter a successful 4+ into Poplar Regatta in May, and planning to enter a 4+ into Henley Qualifiers.
And last but not least, Aurora Barrera James stepped up to the role of Captain of Boats at the last minute and has really made sure everything ran as smoothly as possible in the Boat Club. It has been a difficult year with coaching arrangements but she has done everything in her power to make sure that we got the coaching we needed and was instrumental in arranging the training camps amongst many other things. She never stepped back and has continued to give us all the support we could wish for.
The Henley Picnic was another triumph for Carole.
Thanks to Tony Moule, David Wright and Richard Hooke for the photos.
Thanks to all who helped with the events, especially Carole Burton Wright who has established the Billygoats Henley Picnic as an essential part of anyone’s HRR week.