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The Tideway, Sunday 27th March 2005
Don't annoy the Royal Engineers...
The Devizes to Westminster canoeists have been sliding past all morning - many encountered the Henley Boat Races yesterday, so they must be fed up with rowers. Apparently anyone reaching Mortlake after a particular time today will be stopped for the duration of the races and their stoppage time credited back afterwards, so that they don't lose out. However, two poor canoeists were balked by a different problem: surging downstream towards Putney, they were dunked unceremoniously in the water by the RNLI boat, which whizzed past them, sirens wailing. The duo, who have not been named but were both Royal Engineers, were rescued, cursing and spluttering, by boatmen from Chas Newens Marine Ltd. Heaven help the RNLI if they decide to take revenge....
Jumping the gun?
The Guardian and Observer love-in with Andrew Triggs Hodge continues, yet another article on the golden-boy of the Oxford crew from the inimitable pen of Dan Topolski this morning. You'd think there was nobody else in the Dark Blue eight, let alone anyone at all rowing for Cambridge. Don't mistake me - I'm not going to knock Hodgey, who's a superb oarsman as well as a great guy, but this is getting just a shade over the top. To cap the frenzy the Observer's website editor has added the following as an introduction to Topolski's piece on the internet sports page: "Win or lose the boat race, Oxford's Andrew Triggs Hodge, has been selected to replace Matthew Pinsent in the national side." Wonder what Jürgen has to say to that, with two weeks still to go before final trials. And in any case Hodgey got his international place two years ago, so is hardly a Pinsent replacement. Bloody journalists.
Boat Race preparations started early this morning, with the spare pairs match.
Spare pairs race report from Ali Oyston
Today saw Oxford take first blood in the Oxford-Cambridge contests. Early this morning the spare men for the squads raced from the Mile Post to the University Stone at Putney Bridge in pairs. Oxford's Reuben Johnson and Nick Thomas-Peter won comfortably over John Goulet and Mark Richardson from Cambridge. 'Our boys got left for dead' said Cambridge coach Donald Legget. After a poor start the Cambridge pair closed the gap as they came past Putney Embankment to raucous cheering from their respective squads, but it wasn't enough and with a nippy rating lift to the line Oxford won by clear water.
Speedy Gonzales
Mid-morning on Thursday the Tideway waterfowl were shaken out of their customary torpor when the launch which will ship Her ITV Highness Gaby Logan from start to finish on Sunday did its speed trial. The launch, a gleaming white affair with a powerful engine, is due to whizz her upstream from Putney on Sunday afternoon so that she can reach Mortlake in time to interview the crews post-race. Once going, it didn't throw up much wash, but the bows took a while to drop, and it belted the first few hundred metres at a worryingly vertical angle. Putting Crackers (Logan's co-presenter) in may just solve that problem - or, alternatively, so could pulling the drain bung out: muppets.
Veteran Light Blues dominate
For the tenth Veteran Boat Race (and, if he can find some sucker to take it on, organiser Chris Dalley's last), holders Cambridge did a real number on the Oxford vets. With average ages for both crews around 46, the Light Blues showed what a bit more time in the boat can do, whipping out an early lead and walking away with the win by three and a half lengths. Boat Race umpire Boris Rankov refereed the match, from the main race's start over a 2-miles course to Furnivall, and got in a bit of early flag-waving practice as the two crews disagreed about sharing the stream in the first fifteen strokes. After that, however, boat-speed told, and Oxford could not prevent Cambridge dominating the race.
Final verdict: Cambridge veterans beat Oxford veterans by 7:44 to 7:54.
Launch misery
It turns out that the poor Goldie parents may not get to watch their sons battle it out on Sunday in the reserve race. CUBC normally provide a launch for them but they have withdrawn it this year and ITV will be following BBC tradition and just televising very brief highlights of the race from fixed cameras. Unless the Goldie supporters can muster alternative transport, it looks as if they'll have to rely on reports from the Isis parents who will be in the OUBC launch!