On 6th June 2009 Torquay Rowing Club introduced its inaugural Offshore Rowing Race. The race card scheduled three races, first the Ladies Race, second the Men’s Race and finishing with the mixed. Unlike our fine boat regatta the individual races contain all classes of boats from Quadruple, Double and Single Sculls which all started together.

We introduced the FISA starting regulations which consist of a Five Minute Gun, a One Minute Gun and then the Start Gun. This allows crews to hit the line at racing speed. The only problem being, if any crew happened to be over the line, they would incur a one minute penalty. Luckily no one managed to foul the fine before the start. The crews started from off Haldon Pier and the course took them easterly out to Thatcher Rock, around the rock and back westerly to Livermead, head along the coast northerly to Corbyn Head and back to Haldon Pier making a total distance of eight kilometres.

We had entries from Exmouth, Plymouth Mayflower, Torquay and Teign Scullers. In the Ladies race there were six entries with the eventual winners an Exmouth Quad followed by the Torquay Double of Polly Eldridge and Kerstine Gardner with the Torquay Quad of Sarah Vosper, Rima Bhattacharya, Sarah Baker, Emma O’Sullivan and cox Katie Cudmore in third place. The conditions for this race were near the extreme for offshore racing, they had an easterly swell with wind and rain. Never mind the weather the girls really enjoyed the race but were thoroughly wet through.

Half an hour later, Charlotte Smith, John Pascoe and Richard Cudmore were back on the start line for the Mens race. This was the same course and had five crews starting. Unfortunately Exmouth could not find a cox for their second crew as the cox did not want to turn out again in the rain. In the Quads we had Plymouth Mayflower, Exmouth, Torquay A and B with Teign Scullers in a Double. To prevent hanging around on the start the race was started with no minute gun. All crews rowed away in the relatively calm lee of the cliffs around the corner at Daddyhole and wow the swell had grown. This was now extreme offshore rowing. Coxswains found it difficult to steer a straight course as large waves were pushing the bows of course.

The picture shows the men’s race rounding the mark east of Thatcher Rock and does not show how big the swell was. You can only see the heads of the pair to the left of the buoy and the Torquay Quad, far right rowing up a wave. The rain at this point was very hard as you can see in the foreground. The way back was the exciting bit, all the crews looking to ride the waves home. The eventual winners were the Torquay crew of Maurice Dunn, Nick Cleasby, Mike Cresser, Ian Wilson and cox Ryan Dunn. Second were Exmouth and third the Torquay crew of Jamie Dawe, Carver Tedstone, Chris Akers, Gary Spencer with cox Katie Cudmore.

This was certainly a race to remember giving credit to all those who took part in the rainy conditions but enjoying the exhilarating sport of offshore racing. We cancelled the mixed race due to the rowers being too wet and cold to go around the course again. We would like to thank all those who took part and to those who helped lay the course marks and retrieve them after the races and to the rescue boats that followed both races.

Prior to the race Torquay Rowing Club held a naming ceremony for the three off shore boats, bought through the generous sponsorship from Beverage Brands and the matching of their money by Sports Match, and the club training Double and new rescue boat bought with the club's own money. The names chosen were for the Ladies Quad ‘Betty Luxton II’, the Mens Quad ‘Richard Cudmore’, the Double ‘Robert Smith’, the training Double ‘Harold Luxmore’ and the rescue boat ‘Uncle Bob II’.

For those who do not know the history behind the names, The late Betty Luxton was a lifelong member of the club who rowed in the 1950s and after rowing organised the teas and social events over the years and was a life member. Richard Cudmore first coxed for the club in a race forty years ago in August 1969 at Appledore and Instow Regatta at the age of fifteen. He went on to row and scull, joined and chaired the committee and is still coaching. Robert Smith joined the club in 1975. After rowing, he too joined the committee serving as Chairman, Secretary and is currently Chairman and Welfare Officer. Harold Luxmore was a founder member of the club 140 years ago in May 1869. Uncle Bob was the affectionate name given to the late Robert Pringle, another stalwart of the club who was Captain, Chairman, President and a former WEARA Senior Champion rower during the late 1940s.

by Richard Cudmore 6th June 2009