What does your rowing club mean to you?
Clubs are the lifeblood of our sport, providing a space and facilities for rowing, but they’re also much more than that, as rowers of all ages reveal below
Rowing at Yare Boat Club
In the April/May 2019 Rowing & Regatta magazine, rowers from around the country talked about what their club means to them.
“It is my insanity and my sanity. The insanity of willingly completing those tasty ergs that really hurt, getting up at an hour that shouldn’t exist on a weekend morning to face a freezing wintry dark session on the water, enjoying the sprints sessions during the summer that make you feel just a little bit nauseous. However, all this apparent insanity is my sanity. Being able to just nip down to the club, see my friends, my squad, and release some stress out on the water or on the erg truly keeps me sane.”
Katie Sparks, 24, Pengwern Boat Club
“I joined Yare Boat Club as a non-rower who had barely even been in a boat before. But our members showed lots of patience as I got to grips with technique. Before long, I was cruising along the river in a single scull. Now I go down to the club on Sunday mornings, just as the sun is rising, and can’t wait to get out on the water. The sport is great for my health and being part of our club is great for my soul.”
Mark–Moore, 41, Yare Boat Club
“The club is an extended family to me.”
Adam Curtis, 39, Bideford Amateur Rowing Club
The sport is great for my health and being part of our club is great for my soul
“The club means everything to me! It is virtually my second home, as during the last 30 years or so I have spent many happy hours there with other members, and still do. I have a very personal relationship with the building – my great-uncle was a member in 1881 and was a partner in the company that built the original clubhouse – so it could not be more meaningful, and I am proud to be a member.”
Gerald Lindner, 89, Pengwern Boat Club
“The club has been a lifeline for me, especially last summer. I moved back to the area following a divorce and it has been a fantastic way for me to meet a huge range of new people, make new friends and be part of a very accepting community.”
Suzi Richer, 37, Lakeland Rowing Club
“My club means a great deal. It was my gateway into a sporting world I had never considered before starting university. My club inspires me. I am reminded of its many achievements every single day I walk into the boathouse, with rows of photos of those who excelled before my time. My club gave me the great friends with whom I spend a good deal of time training and having a bit of fun outside of the boathouse! My club allows me to keep fit and healthy – not only physically, but crucially, mentally.”
Bazil Saiq, 20, Imperial College Boat Club
The club means everything to me! It is virtually my second home
“I get to row (exercise) on a beautiful stretch of the Thames (being out in nature) with a wonderfully diverse, generous and fun group of people (socialising) who help me develop my rowing, coxing and boat maintenance skills (learning). What more can you ask for from a club?”
Liz Palmer, Goring Gap Boat Club
