The Radcliffe Observatory has recorded the wettest Oxford March since their records began (1767) and the Red Flag was up until 0th week (mid-April). Luckily the Boat Club had flown south for their Easter training camp. As you'll have noticed from Saturday's coronation, we're not done with the rain yet but the vegetation is now soaking it all up and hopefully the multicoloured bunting of the various river flags can safely be packed away for the summer.

After last term's results I think we're all approaching Eights with a fair degree of trepidation. However, I think I can convince myself that our 1st VIIIs should, give or take the odd shark, be venturing into safer waters this term.

And finally, after nearly 40 years of service, our boatman Jim Ronaldson is paddling off into the sunset. No, I don't mean in the metaphorical sense. He is literally planning to row across the Atlantic.

Veterans' Boat Races, 25th March
Women's Race
Cambridge bt	Oxford	5 L	9:24
Men's Race
Cambridge bt	Oxford1	5 L	7:31
1 Ante Kusurin (M.06) at Stroke

The Boat Races, 26th March
Women's Boat Race
Cambridge bt	Oxford	4½ L	20:29
Women's Reserves
Blondie bt	Osiris1	3 L	21:20
Men's Reserves
Goldie bt	Isis	1 L	18:53
Men's Boat Race
Cambridge bt	Oxford2	1⅓ L	18:18
1 Helen Nielsen-Scott at 3
2 Freddy Orpin at 3

The main Boat Races were rowed the following weekend in unusually rough conditions, particularly over the first part of the course.

In the women's Boat Race Cambridge got themselves ahead but then played a dangerous game crossing into Oxford's water far too soon. Oxford, naturally, made a big push for the bump, so attempting a win by disqualification, but Cambridge (subsequently backed-up by video evidence) just about got away with it.

In the Osiris-Blondie race there was a heavy clash soon after the start (with the umpire warning Oxford) but having disentangled themselves Osiris seemed to be having more problems with the rough water than Blondie who gradually began to pull away.

The Isis-Goldie race was hard-fought, with the lead changing several times until Goldie took control on the final bend.

Finally in the men's race Oxford, on the Middlesex station, took an early lead but as the crews hit the rough water, the Cambridge cox steered for the calmer reaches of the Fulham shore and by the time Oxford had decided to join them they were half a length down and never recovered (it was the exact same ploy used by Oxford in the '87, the year of 'the mutiny'). On another day, I think either of the men's races could have gone Oxford's way.

Looking at the bigger picture, Cambridge nowadays race as a single club, CUBC, and few would argue that this has been anything but beneficial for their women's and lightweight crews, and with no apparent detriment to their men's heavyweights. Simply on logistical grounds, this makes obvious sense.

Somewhat belatedly OUBC and OUWBC are now undergoing their own process of amalgamation and one hopes that the lightweights will also be included. I assume that Oxford's difficulties are financial rather than political — Oxford's University rowing is less well-endowed than Cambridge's, and simply cannot afford to fund 6 Boat Race crews at the same level.

After learning to row at a Catz training camp during the Trinity term of my first year, I caught the rowing bug and decided to spend my last year at Oxford trialling with OUWBC, which was been an immensely rewarding and surreal experience. Having dedicated around six months of training 12 times a week, it was of course disappointing to not get the win against Blondie in the Reserve Boat Race. Nevertheless, there have been many highlights to the season, including a Christmas training camp in Temple-sur-Lot, which was, by all accounts, a big improvement from last year's rather rainy camp in Wimbleball. I am looking forward to more summer racing (finals dependent!) and cheering Catz on in Summer Eights!

Before the start of Trinity Term, SCCBC again embarked on a five-day training camp on the beautiful Lago di Monate in Varese, Northern Italy. A solid core of the squad was in attendance, spanning athletes with several years of rowing experience through to newer members with just two terms. We were very fortunate to have the entire lake to ourselves for three sessions each day, and access to a full complement of shells. The majority of time was spent making use of an 8+ and 4-, with mixed experience levels (for example, a 4- with three more experienced athletes and one newer one). This was highly productive in terms of athlete development, with a large number of people showing significant development throughout the week, and this progress has been evident during the opening part of Trinity Term. Everyone also had a chance to gain some experience in sculling and small boats, which was also very worthwhile. All in all, it was an incredibly enjoyable and successful five days, and we are already excited and beginning to plan for another, very similar trip next year.

Catz men put out a scratch crew for City Bumps, a more polished version for ISL-A, but are still expecting a few more reinforcements. I'm less sure about the women's boat club — their only squad rower being 'finalised' — but, with a large number of novices, they should be going into Eights with almost twice the rowing experience they had at the start of Torpids.

Our men start behind S.E.H., who were encouragingly slow in Torpids and in City Bumps, but posted some quite respectable times at Bedford Regatta yesterday. Behind Catz are Magdalen, who are yet to race, but there is no reason to expect them to be particularly fast. Other crews are probably similar to their Torpids form, although I expect L.M.H. to replace Trinity after the first day. So, with slower crews ahead and faster crews behind, the first day may well determine the rest of the week.

The women's 1st Eight start behind St Anne's, who rowed well enough in City Bumps but haven't raced since. After the first day they could send down Hertford whom Catz might catch if they can keep ahead of Balliol, but Balliol are an unknown quantity. Behind Balliol are St John's, who were 8 s quicker than Catz in the ISL-A, but then G.T.C. and Linacre who were slower. Lincoln are probably the fastest crew in the division.

Jim Ronaldson has been the boatman for Catz, and several other colleges, since the late 1980s. If you thought it was the magic pixies that came in the night and repaired all the damage you'd inflicted on the equipment during the day, no, it was actually Jim.

Now pushing 70, instead of winding down, he's decided to take on the Talisker Whiskey Atlantic Challenge, the annual fleet of rowing boats that sets out from the Canaries each December, heading for Antigua, 3000 miles away. And Jim being Jim, he doesn't just want to row it, he's also after a record. In his case as one of the oldest pair to complete the challenge.

Naturally, as soon as I heard that he was on the lookout for any currently active rowers of a certain age to help meet that requirement, I did what any sane person would do, and kept well out of his way. But it seems he's now found a fellow traveller so I can come out of hiding.

Of course there are funds to raise and charities to support so I'll pass on the link:

I've made a contribution based on how much I would have paid someone else to take my place if Jim had managed to pin me down and persuade me to sign on. Quite a lot, it turns out.

If you do decide to contribute, please leave a message to say you're from Catz. Come the end of racing on the first day of Eights, when Jim comes back to the boathouse to survey the long list of damage requiring his attention, perhaps then he'll look more kindly on our own Captains' requests.

Ian Davies & Jim Ronaldson (on the boat) before the start of a 24 hr erg fund-raiser in Oxford's Westgate Shopping Centre a couple of weeks ago.

Diary