Introduction

Boat Race Results

The Lightweight Boat Race

Simon Risoe, centre, after his Henley win, with former Catz Lightweights Will Mulholland (left) and Mike Bull. The recent Oxford lightweight fashion for a 'no.0' racing haircut means that even mums have to consult the race programme to check which seat their son is sitting in.

Contemplating training for five hours a day, six days a week, for seven months just to compete in a race that doesn't last six minutes might lead one to question their sanity. Yet despite erging at dawn for ninety minutes in a frozen Teddy Hall boathouse, followed by 20 km outings on a windswept stretch at Wallingford in the afternoon, with some of my degree in between, the whole experience was well worth the effort. To have been part of a winning Boat Race crew is something few people have the chance to attempt, and was the most rewarding way to spend my final year in Oxford.

Persuaded to trial by Will Mulholland of Catz and last year's winning crew, I approached the prospect of enduring the demands of OULRC with a fairly apprehensive mind. Being lucky enough to go to Taiwan in the summer to compete in an international regatta was the first taste of the enjoyment and rewards to be made out of the Boat Club. During the training season our aim was to build on last year's success, creating a competitive and professional outfit under Head Coach Andy Nelder. During Michaelmas the squad produced the club's best results in the autumn head races at Wallingford and Fours' Head, and after a productive training camp in Switzerland over New Year the Lightweight Blue Boat and Nephthys felt confident of success come March, beating CULBC at Bedford Head.

40 Years Ago ...

Forty years ago Britain had its coldest winter in living memory and the rivers were frozen up for weeks but we were lucky to be in the only college to maintain running water systems. Towards the end of Hilary Term we started to emerge from the ice age and on one splendid day we skated on the Cherwell in the morning and punted on the Isis in the afternoon - a memorable combination of skills which on occasions I still practice separately (with the same skates for one). In a few weeks this was followed by pre-term training at Wallingford where we stayed in rooms above a tea shop. One crew member went home because it was his birthday so jokingly I said it was mine the next day. This resulted in a lovely cake bearing the iced legend 'Now we are 5' - my position in the boat, and the celebration of an 'official birthday'. Eights week results were not so remarkable and thus ended my first year of rowing.

I was one of those people who was addicted and rowed throughout my three years much to the dismay of my despairing tutors, one of whom greeted me by name at last autumn's anniversary dinner as the chap who gained a degree and rowed; he couldn't remember my colleague at all so I suppose that rowing has some social value!

Unfortunately I didn't have the opportunity to row after going down but some of it must have stayed in the blood. Our elder son won a pot at Nottingham on his 16th birthday and our daughter's blades decorate our hall. She stroked her (Cambridge) College crew which won the Fairbairn Cup and went Head of the River in Lents in 1999.

The 1972 1st Torpid. Chris Woolley (bow), Pete Knox, Ian Salisbury, Phil Rushbrook, Richard Forsyth, Pete Kelen, Chris Taylor, Pete Marx (str), Ian Pettman (cox).

My recollection is that the Friday racing of Torpids 1972 was postponed due to bad weather, so the Friday and Saturday races were rowed on Saturday when the weather was much worse! In the final race we had a very good row with Jesus College in the other lane [Torpids in those days was 'multilane']. Having gone behind somewhere near OUBC, we just managed to get ahead again by the finish line, and so ended up in 6th place overall - at the time I think it was probably the highest position Catz had ever been.

Eights week did not go so well! I think I was the only fresher that year who had actually rowed at school before going up. Chris Woolley (bow) and Phil Rushbrook (2) had taken up rowing in the previous term and Dave Rogers (6) had started in that summer term. I also managed to talk my brother Paul (7) into coming out of retirement to help out! We found ourselves immediately in front of some very fast boats, so we were bumped on each day. I did have the consolation, as captain, of attending to splendid bump suppers at Magdalen and Worcester.

Coming Up ...