South Coast Championship 2016
Posted by Rowland Karl on 15 September 2016
I think it fair to say that all those who where there enjoyed one of the best South Coast Championships on coastal waters in memory, and those who weren't may reflect on what they missed and what might have been! The conditions were as we predicted back in March i.e. extremely fair and rowable, this was demonstrated from the very first race of the day the men's J14 quads which was won in fine style by Bideford Blues.
The weather treated us kindly and a great day was had by all. Blues also finished a creditable 3rd in the Men's Junior championship. Both the Bideford clubs Reds and Blues deserve accolade for making the 500 mile round trip from the West to ensure that WEARA were at least represented in what I am sure will go into the history books as a showcase regatta. The Bideford Bowl for the men's Senior Championships was without a doubt the best race of the day providing the home club with a richly deserved win over the best opposition that could be put out by attending clubs.
The sporting atmosphere generated from the reception on the Friday night right through to the presentation of the trophies by Greg Searle on the Saturday was a credit to both the Herne Bay club and the organising committee. It was very good to hear what Greg Searle had to say about the obvious passion and great enjoyment that was clearly generated by all those who took part.
I was also pleased to see that in addition to our delegates and officials, both Alan Gillespie as WEARA president and Chris Moyse as WEARA chairman made the extreme journey and represented us in a truly ambassadorial manner.
As I said at the start, those of us that were there will remember the weekend with pleasure, but the future success of this regatta as a tripartite event will depend on the support of all the clubs and not just the dedicated few.
