Dear Everybody,
It has turned out to be a remarkable year for the Club. The headline news is the setting of a new record for wins in a season (52), with twenty members taking home pots from the twenty-one events at which we competed (full list attached). The season has also seen a significant expansion to the fleet. Two years ago a Sport England grant allowed us to increase our scope by two rowing seats with the purchase of two singles. This year we have increased the places by eight through the purchase of a serviceable medium weight Janousek coxed four (from our Derby neighbours), and a grant aided (total bid cost £14,600) purchase of a new Janousek lightweight coxed quad and blades, specifically for the use of the Junior squad. The year also saw the addition of five private single sculling boats (virtually all Stampflis – made by Janousek, of course). The sale of the bequested Sims, Ida May, freed up a bit of space in boat storage, but this still left only two racks available for five new singles. The solution was the construction of a storage shed, with space to house six singles (sans riggers) and the president’s kayak (!?!).
The Club has also moved forward organisationally. The Vice Captains, Sophie and Rob, have just completed their initial courses that will qualify them as Level 2 rowing coaches (the cost for which has been grant aided from several sources, with some additional assistance from the Club). The Captain will be undergoing the same process early in the new year, thus increasing the coaching staff total to a respectable four (John Partridge, a Gold Award coach, had previously been our only one).
I must offer my appreciation to the club officers for their support throughout the year. Gillian Lockhart as secretary has been handling all event fees and the senior entries (as well as her other duties), and Paul Beaman as treasurer has been looking after subs and the various inspections and technical requirements for keeping the club within the safety rules. On top of this has been the mammoth administrative burden required by the Club’s continuing attempt to qualify for the BR Clubmark scheme (soon to be completed). For all these efforts, they deserve our thanks. Assisting on the dockside, my thanks to Paul (again), President Alan Perry, and the group of Parent-Volunteers for relieving the strain at weekends and making the session numbers possible. My particular thanks to Estelle Leckie for the organising of the Parent-Volunteer Rota, not the easiest of tasks which she performs brilliantly. And my particular thanks to the Vice Captains, Sophie Payne and Rob Thornton, whose advice and practical support have been a large contribution to this year’s success.
Yours, Lewis
The Numbers:
Below is a breakdown of the statistics. We have managed to maintain the increase in sessions in line with the previous year, but it is unreasonable to expect this to continue. The log census turned up fifteen weeks of the year in which the weekly sessions topped a hundred, and only thirty-three days in which the club went unused.
2013 – Total Log Entries: 2,603 (15/01/13 to 18/01/14)
+927
2014 – Total Log Entries: 3,530 (19/01/14 to 22/01/15)
Juniors (Scheduled) 2,529
Seniors (Unscheduled) 1,001
+813
2015 – Total Log Entries: 4343 (01/01/15 to 31/12/15)
Juniors 2697 (2834 – session records)
Seniors 1567
Gym Members 57
Temporary Members 22
Personnel
Lost
Nathan Harries-Wood
Emily-Jane Rolley-Parnell
William Goddard
Tom Abbot
Kitty Meynell
Grace Taylor
Noah Clivery
Louise Fleet
Eliza Machell
Alexandra Stevenson
Rauriadh Stevenson
Steve Jones
Temporarys
Rose Talbot
Kevin Keogh
Ella Holloway
Came and Went
Clayton Perry
Daniel Leary
Jeremy Stuart
Emma Byrd
Jo Byrd
Jacob Jackson
Ares Kretsis
Barney Smith
Jeremy Wright
Gained
Poppy Brown
Jamie Carrick
Phil Cope
Harry Davies
Robin Delves
Grace Green
Sam Green
Florence Harvey
Jack Hobbs
Jay James
Chris Johnson
Tom Jesson
Alex Lewis
Jenny Marchant
Hannah Munns
Arabella Sayers
Gilbert Shama
Mary Williams
The Future
J14 boys and J13 girls quads
Women’s Novice Four
J12 Section Recruiting
Masters Recruiting