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It began as just an idea and quickly it became a reality when seven rowers committed to the idea of travelling to Tasmania for the Australian Master’s Rowing Championships. We have not travelled interstate for any Australian Championships since 2011 and Australian Master’s Championships have been held interstate on many occasions but Nepean rowers have not attended. So this marked a big moment for the club. With only a small group we had a mix of experienced and less experienced rowers and they all were keen for the challenge ahead of them. We had Brisbane Waters Rowing Club join us for the trip and they kindly provided us with the opportunity to boat several composite crews together. A day of driving with an extra stop off to pickup a repaired boat from Sykes, an overnight ferry, an extended trip to the course due to an oversight in directions to the course and two practice rows all preceded the four days of racing before us. Thursday was wet and cold, just as we dreaded. Racing kicked off with Jacqui and Rachel in the A double. They had a good heat and progressed to the final where they rowed better than their heat and the new combination took out seventh and showed a lot of promise for future master’s racing in the years to come. One of our many composite crews for the regatta took to the water in the D coxed four with Fiona, Lorraine, Sue, Libby and cox Genevieve however the heat was too strong and they were knocked out. Sam and Lisa went out for the C double and the plan was to showcase there improved rowing however there start did not go to plan and they struggled to find a rhythm until the 500m mark. This was too late to contest the race but it was a step in the right direction. Jason and Flo progressed straight to the final in the A pair due to a scratching from another crew. By half way they were in the middle of the pack and it was only in the dying stages that they pushed into the medal race and were able to claim the bronze. Next up, Jason and Flo teamed up with Jacqui and Rachel in the mixed A quad. It was always going to be a tight race but the crew stuck to their plan and got off well and were neck and neck with the Shoalhaven/ADF composite crew at half way. A negative split in the second 500m saw the crew secure the gold and another gold for being the first non-composite crew to cross the line. The Brisbane water’s crew of Sean, James, Libby and Sue coxed by Genevieve went on to claim a bronze in the mixed E four. Friday was again wet and cold, oh and I forgot to mention the wind. It was really fun. First up was the D quad and Fiona teamed up with BWRC’s Di, Libby and Sue. A well-paced race saw the crew come in fourth and progress to the semi where they were subsequently knocked out. Jason and BWRC Sean teamed up for the A double. They raced their own race and came second in the heat to progress to the final. Another good performance from the crew saw them claim gold in the final. However, all three crews who medalled would face off the next day in the B double, so it was not over. Lorraine made her return to single racing and what better place to do it than on Lake Barrington. She got off to a slow start but she got more comfortable as the race progressed and placed eighth in the straight final in F grade. The A quad of Jacqui, Rachel, Fiona and Lisa placed fourth in their heat to progress to the final where they came seventh. Unfortunately, the women’s coxed B four did not make it to the start but their was still plenty of racing over the next two days to look forward to. The final race for us of the day was the mixed double of Jason and Jacqui. An early lead was held onto and a close to five second win was recorded with the crew claiming two gold’s (one for the win and the other as the first non-composite crew). At a subsequent dinner during the week a friendly competition for next year’s mixed double was agreed upon, and should result in an interesting race next season. Saturday was upon as and the rain had passed however the wind persisted and it was by no means warm. Up early again and this time it was Jason and Flo to the water first in the A single. With only two automatic qualifying spots up for grabs in each heat it was imperative to secure a top two spot so as not to leave anything to chance (with the two quickest times that did not place in the top two of their heat also progressing). Jason got off well and sat close to the Power House sculler who had the previous day won the C grade single, with the two placing second and first respectively. Flo fought hard and went on to place third but unfortunately it was not enough to qualify to the final. Jason knew he had to have a good race in the final to take it out. Early on in the race it was clear it was a three-boat race with Jason, Power House and Back Mountain (gold medallist in B single). Jason had another well executed race and another strong finish saw him claim the gold. Next up was the composite C eight with BWRC. The crew of Jacqui, Rachel, Sam, Lisa, Di, Libby, Lorraine and cox Genevieve gave it their best but a quick heat resulted in the crew being knocked out. It was a good effort by everyone involved in this eight and we are confident we will continue to build on this and be able to consistently boat eight’s in master’s racing in the future. Jason teamed up with Sean (Brisbane Waters), Sean (Endeavour) and Rhett (Manning River) for the C quad. The race was consolidated to a straight final. The crew got off well and before long they took the lead and a slight mishap with a lost oar did not stop the crew from pushing out and going on to claim the gold by a five second margin in the end. Jason and Sean were up again and this time it was the B double. Glebe were out for revenge and they claimed first in the heat with Jason and Sean taking second to go through to the final. Glebe came out strong in the final and they led the way for the majority of the race. A late surge by Jason and Sean saw them get their bow ball in front just at the right time and they claimed the gold by three tenths of a second. Next up was the much-anticipated women’s A singles. The wind had seemed to relax but unfortunately for Fiona, Jacqui and Rachel, the wind picked up dramatically shortly before their races. All three performed well and showed good signs of improvement but all were eliminated with Jacqui placing tenth overall. Sunday was promising with very little wind and no rain, things were looking up for the final day of competition. First up was the B quad of Jacqui, Rachel, Sam and Lisa. They had a good race but just feel short of qualifying to the final with only four spots up for grabs and they came in fifth. Jacqui and Rachel were replaced by Lorraine and Fiona and the quad competed in the C grade event to place sixth in their heat to be knocked out. The mixed coxed A four saw a composite crew take to the water with Jason, Sean, Jacqui, Rachel and cox Genevieve. After taking out the mixed quad with a similar crew makeup the crew was confident but they knew the pressure was on to perform. They calmed themselves and inspired by a few words by Jason before the race tussled with the other two crews to eventually push out to a clear water victory, even though it wasn’t the cleanest rowing, they gave it their all. The final race of the day saw Jason back up from the mixed four to contest the champion of champion’s single after being invited by winning the A single. This was a great achievement by Jason and a first for our club. Jason pushed hard but was only able to bring back one sculler after a twenty eight second lead given to the eventual H sculler winner. We had some impressive results with crews obtaining seven gold and two bronze, placing thirteenth in the medal tally based on pro-rata rate and placed twenty third on the champion club point score. This is a great result for eight rowers, a coxswain and we can not forget the help of Brisbane Waters Rowing Club. Though the medals were nice and the accompanying points, it was the great team work and improvements in individuals rowing that was far more rewarding to see over the week. Something like this cannot happen without the hard work of many individuals. Thank you to everyone for helping along the way. A big thankyou to Mark for thoroughly (OCD like) packing the trailer both ways, towing the trailer to the course and rigging/fixing boats as required over the four days of competition. Also, a big thank you to Jason for helping coaching over the weekend while also competing himself and for towing the trailer back home. Racing has not finished yet for the season with the State Master’s Championship’s scheduled for the 26-27th May. I am sure we will again have some good results and see further personal improvements by everyone involved.  Back row: Di(BWRC), Libby (BWRC), James (BWRC), Jason, Fiona, Sean (BWRC), Rachel, Mark, Daniel Front row: Lorraine, Lisa, Genevieve, Sue (BWRC), Jacqui, Sam The NSW Grade Championships was upon us and we were ready for a big weekend. Having selected crews for the regatta we targeted particular events and were happy with the crews we could boat this year. Again, the eights were the key events for us in both the men’s and women’s racing. The women’s D grade eight saw Genevieve, Lisa, Sam, Rachel, Sienna, Aimee, Jacqui, Kate and Hugh (cox) take to the water. The crew had a good paced race that saw them move to second place quickly and they sat in that position to subsequently take the silver medal. One crew change was made with Pal replacing Kate and the crew competed in the C grade eight and placed third.  WD 8+ silver medalists- Sam, Lisa, Aimee, Genevieve, Rachel, Kate, Sienna, Jacqui and Hugh (cox) Smaller boats were also raced for the women and it was the D grade four of Lisa, Sam, Rachel, Genevieve and Alyssa (cox) who through a controlled race saw them slowly take to the lead in the early stages to go on and take out the gold medal. The men saw a C grade and B grade eight being boated. The C grade race was a rough race but none the less, successful with the crew of Miles, Jooya, Paul, Florian, Ian, Jason, Daniel, Angus and Hugh (cox) taking out silver. Like the women’s eights one crew change was made for the next race with the B grade race seeing Magnus replace Ian. The crew trailed the field in the beginning stages but were able to push through to pip Canberra on the line to take third.  MC8+ silver medallists- Hugh (cox), Angus, Daniel, Jason, Ian, Flo, Paul, Jooya and Miles Smaller boats for the men saw the B grade pair crew of Angus and Jason take out silver. They then teamed up with Miles and Daniel to take the gold in the B grade four.
To be able to again boat two eights in the men’s and women’s categories was a great achievement and to medal in all four races is something everyone involved should be proud of. We placed fifth on the medal table which is a good achievement given the number of rower we had competing at the event. A big thankyou to everyone who helped make the weekend possible and while this marks the end of racing for non-master rowers the season continues for masters while everyone else can have a well-deserved break before we start back up in preparation for next season. We were off to Iron Cove once more, but this time for a master's regatta. This is the second year we have taken rowers to this event and it is a great achievement in our quest to broaden our rowing program from our historical junior base.
We were greeted once again with great conditions which is always a surprise out in the city, which all rowers were very happy with. The day began with Mark, 'accidently' forgetting his seat for his single and causing him to being unable to race in the first race of the day. The next race on the program for us was the women's C quad which saw Lorraine, Sam, Rachel and Lisa take to the water. Given they had not trained together they gave it a good go but were unable to find the right rhythm and were beaten to the line by the St George composite. Later on Jacqui replaced Lorraine for the C coxless four. A lack of training in this boat did result in steering issues however the crew were able to have some good rowing in the middle of the race and it proved a good learning experience for the whole crew. In the small boat classes Lisa and Sam showed an improvement on past rows to place third in the C double. While Jacqui and Rachel made their debut as a double in the A category and placed third. Jason had an impressive day in winning the mixed A double with Jacqui, A single, A double with Sean from Brisbane Water's and the A quad with a composite crew consisting of Brisbane Waters, Endeavour and Manning River. The highlight of the day was in our ability to boat a composite women's C eight with Brisbane Water' rowers; Sue and Libby and Nepean rower's: Genevieve (coxswain), Jacqui, Rachel, Sam, Lisa, Lorraine and Pal. The North Shore crew were too quick for our crew but given it was a first outing the crew performed admirably and showed promise for the future. A big thank you to everyone who helped make this day possible and hopefully this sets us up well for the upcoming Australian Master's Championships that commences on the 10th May in Tasmania. Leichhardt regatta presented a good opportunity to boat grade based crews in preparation for the grade championships to be held at the end of this month. We were pleasantly surprised to have good conditions all day. With a squad of twelve rowers we were able to boat a few different combinations with sculling being the dominant discipline for the day.
 Genevieve, Jacqui, Tallara and Aimee pushing through in the final stages to take out the win in the B Grade quad We had 5 rowers represent the club at this year’s event. Kate had another very successful National’s campaign. She won the para single, double and coxed four. She then, representing NSW, convincingly won the interstate para single. Kate's impressive performances put her in a good position as Australian trials quickly approach. Miles and Jooya contested the under 17 double and raced well to make the semi-final but were subsequently knocked out. Miles also contested the under 17 single in which he narrowly missed out on a spot to the semi-final. Jason and Angus contested the club men’s double. The boys had a good heat to progress straight to the final. They then had a good race in the final that everyone was happy with, which earned them fourth place. Shortly after the race, it came to light the third placed crew was disqualified due to breaking a rule. Subsequently, the boys were moved up to third and given the bronze medal.
 Kate Murdoch rowing to victory representing NSW in the Interstate regatta Another opportunity for rowers was upon us and three Nepean rowers, Sarah Berechree (St Paul's Grammar) Letisha Hopton(Cranebrook High), Aimee Wagner (Blaxland High) took to the regatta centre to represent their schools. Sarah came away with the bronze in the year 8 single while Aimee claimed silver in the year 9 single.
On Monday 26th February Aimee Wagner, representing Blaxland High and Johnathon Imber, representing Nepean High took to the regatta entre to represent their schools at the NSW Combined High schools regatta for public school students. This was the first year for close to ten years since Nepean has had rowers competing in this event. Both rowers performed very well on what was a good day for racing but poor for spectating with rain being present on and off throughout the day. Aimee won the under 16 single and Johno came second in the under 17 single.
NSW State Championships: 16-18th February
A small squad of eight Nepean rowers represented the club at this year's State championships. It was one of our most successful State championships in many years and all competing rowers should be very proud of their results. This year's championships was one of the strongest to date with numerous interstate rowers competing. Kate Murdoch dominated the para events by taking out the single, mixed double and mixed four. Miles and Jooya placed fourth in the under 17 double. Miles placed ninth in the under 17 single. Jooya took out silver in the under 16 single. Aimee Wagner placed fifth in the under 16 single. Angus Harrold came eighth in the under 19 single and ninth in the schoolboy single. The final regatta at SIRC before State Champs always presents as good last chance race practice. Great racing conditions were in play for the majority of the day and saw some good times. Overall we had some good success and we hope to build onto this for State.
 Lisa and Sam in the master's double Camp Our annual camp ran form the 2nd to the 11th January. It was another successful camp with around 25 rowers taking part both young and old. A big thank you to everyone who helped out and made this possible. Taree 12-14th We had another successful year. With a large squad we were again able to boat an array of crew boats that are not possible at normal regattas. Unfortunately due to high winds we were not able to complete the entire regatta, with the most part of Sunday racing cancelled. The highlight again was the mixed eights. We had a handicap of twelve seconds this year, compared to four seconds last year. We did not have as high expectations but we went out there and gave it our best shot. We had a great race, even with a minor collision, and came away with second with UTS claiming the win for the second year running. A big thankyou to the many people that made the weekend a big success. 1st: 17 2nd: 15 3rd: 11
We headed out to SIRC for two days of racing and it marked the two final regattas of the year. Reindeer Regatta 2nd December
 A storm came in and caused some racing to be cancelled and others postponed. We called it a day and went home to get ready fro the next day of racing. NSW Sprint Championships 3rd December Better weather was predicted for the day, and it did not disappoint. A cross/head wind persisted during the day but the day ran smoothly and we had some good results.
 Aimee and Victoria took out the under 17 double
 A big thankyou to everyone who made the weekend possible and congratulations to everyone on their results.
We headed off to Newcastle for the Central Districts Rowing Association’s Sprint Championships. This was our first time at the event and we were excited to get some sprints in to break up our usual racing schedule and also provided good practice for the upcoming State Sprint Championships.
Championship events Championship events saw heats where necessary take place with the top rowers progressing if this was the case. In the singles we had three wins with Johno taking out the under sixteen single, Victoria the under seventeen single and after assuming she did not win her heat, Tallara after a less than ideal race preparation rushed out for her final in the open’s single to take out the event. In the big boats we claimed the women’s coxed four with the crew of Alyssa, Fiona, Jacqui, Victoria coxed by Aimee and also the men’s coxed four with Henry, Jason, Erik and Daniel coxed by Hugh. Non-championship events Grade events saw straight finals for all racing. Alaaddin and Johno both took out their C grade races and Johno also teamed up with Hugh to win the D grade double. We again teamed up with Brisbane Waters Rowing Club as we have a few times already this season and claimed two wins in our composite crews. The men’s D grade four of Alaaddin, Madon, Erik, Henry and coxswain Hugh and the men’s D grade quad of Sean, Alaaddin, Madon and Hugh both won their respective races. Linwood Throsby Gift Relay The big event for the day was the Linwood Throsby Gift Relay. The event consisted of a mixed double, mixed four and mixed quad with no composites allowed. Five hundred dollars was up for grabs but it was the opportunity to be part of such an exciting event that sparked our interest. Due to five club’s entering the event we had to race a heat first. We drew Newcastle Uni and Newcastle Grammar. The first two legs (double and four) went seamlessly with Newcastle Uni gaining a lead but we were still in contention. The quad started rowing but due to a non-racing crew accidently venturing on the course, our crew collided. This caused us to be unable to finish the race, have damaged equipment and have some hurt rowers. The crew were all thankfully able to continue racing and the equipment repaired or replaced with spare equipment we had brought. We thought it was over, and not in the way we would have ever had thought, knowing we were not able to showcase our best race. Due to the generosity of Newcastle Rowing Club, we were gifted a spot in the final and we would once again face Newcastle Uni and the winners of the other heat, Hunter Valley Grammar School. We knew it would be a hard race but we wanted to put our best foot forward and give it a good go. The double got off to a good start and were holding with the other crews when Newcastle Uni caught a crab that held them back with Hunter Valley. The double of Genevieve and Daniel crossed the line in first with over a length lead which was no surprise to them, but was to many others who doubted them (there were many). The four of Jason, Erik, Tallara, Jacqui and coxswain Hugh capitalised on the lead and pushed out further to give the quad of Henry, Miles, Victoria and Aimee a lead which they pushed out further, leading to our overall victory. Winning this event was great but it was the lessons we can learn from this that are far more important than a cup or money. Being able to move on from bad situations and sticking together as a team were fundamental in our success and attributes everyone involved should be proud of displaying. Another regatta at Berry Park was upon us. Normally the wind creates issues but today we were welcomed by great conditions. With over twenty rowers competing it presented a good opportunity to boat plenty of crew boats which saw some good results.The first race of the day for us saw the women’s C grade quad’s take to the water and it was the composite crew of Aimee and Jacqui teaming up with Brisbane water’s rowers Kristy and Maggie who took out the win in their division. We had a few composites with Brisbane Water’s over the day and another win was achieved by Jason teaming up with Sean to take out the men’s seeded double.  Single’s results were strong with Tallara taking out the women’s seeded single, Henry winning the men’s seeded single, Aimee winning the under 15 and 17 single, Johno winning the D grade single and Jason taking out the master’s single. Kate won her first single race after an exciting finish which saw her ability to stay relaxed coming into the final stages ensure her win and she even celebrated with an unexpected swim. She later backed this up in teaming up with Marie in the seeded double to take out another win.
The crew boats showcased some exciting racing. The men’s seeded quad had Angus, Erik, Joel and Henry in a tight battle with Newcastle Grammar with the boy’s coming out on top with a margin of four tenths of a second separating the two crews. Henry teamed up with Miles later in the day to take out another close race in the open double. Joel had a more comfortable race at the conclusion of the day in the seeded coxed four racing with Angus, Jason, Daniel and coxswain Alyssa.    Mixed racing is always fun and CDRA regattas present numerous opportunities. The highlight event of the day was the mixed eight. Three school crews were entered along with us and we knew it would not be an easy race. Aimee, Angus, Henry, Joel, Erik, Tallara, Jacqui, Maral and Genevieve got into their rhythm early and slowly got out to a lead to take a one boat length win. We were also able to boat a second mixed eight crew which we were very happy to be able to do, the crew consisted of Bonnie, Kate, Marie, Dot, Xavier, Sean, Eli, Johno and coxed by Alyssa. Other mixed crew victories included Angus, Joel, Tallara and Jacqui in the mixed quad, Miles and Aimee in the double and Bonnie and Sean also in the double.  
 A big thankyou to everyone who made this day possible. As always it was great to see everyone helping each other get out on the water and cheering each other on as they came down the course.
This weekend presented an opportunity for us to race our bigger boats. The largest contingent of rowers we have had to date for this regatta of thirty seven competed over the two days. We were able to mix the young and old rowers together and it resulted in some great racing. The big focus for us this regatta was our men’s and women’s C and D grade eights. This was the first year that we were able to boat all four eights at this championship regatta. First up was the men’s C grade eight. The crew of Elizabeth, Angus, Joel, Jason, Magnus, Ian, Daniel, Henry and Paul were confident of a good performance. Having placed fourth in this event last year we were out to improve on this. With a few new additions and everyone else improving from the previous year we knew that a good race would put us in contention. The crew got off to a good start though a few crews had beaten us off the line. The crew continued to get into a rhythm and by the 500 metre mark we took the lead. Late pushes from Newcastle Grammar and Sydney were too late and we went away with the win.  Angus, Joel, Jason and Daniel along with coxswain Alyssa raced in the C grade four final shortly afterwards after having comfortably made the final earlier that morning. It was Newcastle Grammar who lead through the 500 metre mark but a big push from the crew saw us take the lead in the final 250 metres and claim the gold. Jason and Joel then teamed up for the C grade pair the following day. The plan was to step up from last year’s silver however it was not to be with some technical issues and they had to settle for the silver.   The women’s D grade eight saw a good mix of older and younger rowers. Though as usual the crew had not had a lot of training together they were all keen to get out there and give it a go. We were unable to boat any women’s eights at last year’s regatta so we were excited to have two entered this year. The crew of Lara, Maral, Victoria, Tallara, Jacqui, Fiona, Pal, Sienna and Elizabeth got off to a good start however MLC had taken the lead and remained there for the entire race to take the win. Newcastle Grammar pushed through to take second place with the girls crossing the line in third however due to a rule violation the girls were promoted to second and consequently claimed the silver.  Pal and Sienna raced in the D grade double the following day and after progressing through their heat they got off to a good start in the final however it was there consistent speed through the entire race that saw them claim a very close second place. Sienna then went on to race in the D grade single to again row a well paced race which saw her claim gold. Jacqui and Tallara backed up shortly after the eight to race in the C grade pair. Though they do not regularly train the boat they have proven to work very well together and together took away a silver which was a step up from the bronze Tallara earnt in the same boat class the previous year.    The next day saw the women’s C grade eight take to the line. The crew of Lara, Maral, Genevieve, Tallara, Victoria, Eleanor, Jacqui, Alyssa and Aimee were not going to be out done by the boys of the previous day and got off to a quick start. This was bound to make the crew pay as the race progressed but the lead just kept extending as the other crews faded and they went on to claim the gold.  Tallara, Jacqui, Eleanor and Victoria along with coxswain Lara competed in the C grade four. This again was a dominant performance by the girls which saw them lead from start to finish. The D grade four of Maral, Genevieve, Fiona and Alyssa with Elizabeth as coxswain had a tougher race. Newcastle Grammar pushed off early and were just too quick however the girls pushed off from the remaining crews and claimed silver. We only boated two quads over the weekend. The girls C grade quad of Maral, Victoria, Genevieve and Aimee progressed through their heat but they had to work hard for it. The final was a tough race with the girls pacing the race well and seizing the opportunity to takeover crews as they faded in the later stages in the race and went on to claim the bronze.    The men’s D grade eight was the final eight for us for the weekend. The crew of Aimee, Angus, Daniel, Will, Erik, Airtarn, Johnathon, Miles and Alaaddin were keen to bring home a fourth medal and continue on from last year’s victory in this boat class. Leichardt pushed off early but Newcastle Grammar, St George and ourselves were neck and neck in the dying stages. A push for the line was not enough and the crew had to settle for fourth.   The parra events once again featured Kate and again saw her dominate in her class. She won the single on the Saturday and then teamed up with Paul to take out the double on Sunday with Peter and Ben following in second.
Due to the great results we claimed for the first time since the inception of this regatta the title of the point score champions for the weekend. A big congratulations to everyone who raced over the weekend. As always, the results are great however it is the help of everyone behind the scenes that make weekends like this possible, so a big thankyou to everyone who helped from rigging/de-rigging boats, coaching, cheering and everything in between. Results summary 1st: 7 2nd: 6 3rd: 1 The second day of racing for the weekend saw a smaller group of Nepean rowers competing. This gave rowers a good chance to see what their higher end speed is like coming into State Championships that is only just over two months away.
Under 16’s and 17’s Victoria made it through her heat comfortably in the single and then progressed through her semi to put herself in a good position for the final which she ended up placing 7th in. She then teamed up with Genevieve. They made it through the heat and had a good race in the final pacing themselves well however were unable to pull in Central Tablelands in the closing stages and went away with fourth. They both then teamed up with Alyssa, Maral and Elizabeth for the under 17 coxed quad. They had to work hard but they progressed through to the final which they then placed fifth in which is a good effort with most of the crew having another year in this category. Under 19’s and 21’s Joel had a hard race in his heat and knew he would have to give it his all in the final to be in contention. He raced his own race in the final and paced it very well and pushed through rowers as the race progressed however he was unable to pull in the three lead boats and went away with a fourth placing. He then teamed up with Angus in the double and after a good heat race they were confident for the final. They went off and started gaining on the other crews as the race went on but they had to settle for fourth with less than half a second between themselves and the third placing crew of Endeavour. Erik raced in a straight final in the under 21 single. Five rowers lined up and less than two seconds separated first and fifth. Erik got out hard but he was unable to hold off a mid-race surge from a Sydney sculler and he went away with second with only five hundredths of a second separating him from first. Erik then combined with Will for the under 23 double due to the under 21 double being cancelled due to insufficient entries. They lined up against one other under 23 crew and lightweight crews. They got off hard and took the lead early on and held it for the race to take the win. Tallara won the under 21 single last year but this year saw stronger competition however she had improved since last year and was excited to race the single again. She raced well to claim third place behind two UTS scullers. Masters and Para Paul raced in the masters single and had a tight race with a St George sculler however he had the better of him and took out the win. Mark put himself down to race the single and double once again and went away with a second in the single and claimed the win with Fiona in the double. A big thankyou to everyone who made it a successful regatta. We now move onto the last few weeks of training before taking a short break followed by the yearly camp which leads us into the second half of the season. Results Summary 1st: 3 2nd: 2 3rd: 1 The final weekend of racing for the year was upon us and first up was the Reindeer regatta. Boats were decorated for the festive season and we were welcomed with good weather for the first half of the day with the second half seeing an increasing tailwind develop.
Mark made his racing debut. He placed second in the para single and took out a convincing win with Chris in the para double. Chris also raced in the men’s C grade four with Jason, Airtarn and Will. However, that did not go as smoothly with the crew catching a crab with 250 metres remaining. Though their hopes of racing a perfect race were over they recovered quickly from the mishap and gave it all they had until the finish. The mixed quad event saw a Nepean crew in all three divisions. A first in two divisions and a third in the final division was a great effort. The first winning crew was Pal, Peter, Sienna and Paul and the second Jacqui, Airtarn, Tallara and Will. Victoria and Genevieve had a tight race in the under 16 double after the leading crew caught a crab with only 100 metres to go. The girls jumped at the opportunity but Kinross Wolaroi were too strong and took the win with less than a half a second margin. Victoria went on later in the day to claim first in the under 16 single after catching a crab herself mid race. The novice racing saw Jarrah and Lara making their debuts in their singles. Letisha and Will also contested the novice event. Letisha had a good race showing some good improvements from the Spring regatta earlier in the season though she unfortunately fell in with 250 metres to go. As noted in the four above, what is important is not making the mistake but rather what we do after it. Overall a great day was had and a big thankyou again to everyone who helped make the day possible. Results Summary 1st: 4 2nd: 5 3rd: 5 We were back to Berry Park for another regatta and the weather was much more pleasant than last time. Twenty one rowers represented Nepean on the day. Though we did not have any eights competing we did very well in the quads and four. The men won the D quad, C quad and the seeded coxed four. While the women took out the D quad, C quad and the under 17 quad. They also combined to take out two divisions of the mixed quads.  Women’s under 17 quad: Genevieve, Victoria, Maral, Alyssa  Women’s C grade quad: Tallara, Jacqui, Fiona and Aimee  Men’s D grade quad: Daniel, Will, Airtarn and Johno  The small boat classes also saw some good results. Victoria and Genevieve stepped up to racing in under 17’s in their double and took out a good win. They then went on later in the day to take out their respective divisions in the C grade singles. The D grade women’s single saw a close race with Aimee claiming the win with less than a three second lead over an Endeavour sculler. Maral took out the win in the under 17 single. Tallara and Jacqui were coming off a win in the pair in the Spring regatta earlier in the month and looked to replicate this in the C grade double this regatta. They worked well together and took out the win. Tallara then teamed up with Jason in the mixed doubles and though some would say their technique was ‘rough’, they got the job done and went away with the win. A big thank you to everyone who helped make the day possible and it was once again great to see fellow rowers support each other both on and off the water. Results Summary 1st: 15 2nd: 6 3rd: 5 A great day was presented for the first SIRC regatta of the season and the rowers took the opportunity to row on a buoyed course in good conditions with both hands. We have begun competing more and more in sweep oar events over the past couple of years. This has given a platform for rowers of varying levels and ages to compete together which has proven beneficial for everyone involved. This has continued to see success and this was once again displayed in this regatta.  The men’s D grade eight of Eli, Angus, Joel, Will, Chris, Airtarn, Henry, Johnathon and Miles pushed out early and took out a convincing win. Angus, Joel, Will, Henry and Eli later in the day combined to race the C four and had a tight battle with St George, but in the end they prevailed with the win. The women’s D grade eight of Aimee, Maral, Genevieve, Tallara, Jacqui, Bianca, Victoria, Alyssa and Eli race did not go so smoothly with crews crashing within the first 100 metres. The officials made the decision to restart the race. The girls backed down to the start and were ready for another go. They started well and before long they took the lead and stayed in front the entire race to take the win  Tallara, Jacqui, Maral, Bianca and Eli raced in the D four against a Leichardt crew who came from the eight they had previously raced. The girls were too strong and lead from start to finish. We were able to boat two pairs in Tallara and Jacqui along with Victoria and Maral. The experience of Tallara and Jacqui shone through and they lead from start to finish with Victoria and Maral taking out third.  In the sculling events, Paul took out the C single, Sienna and Pal took out the D double and Erik won the B single.
Thanks to everyone who contributed to making the day run smoothly. The final of Nepean’s three events was upon us and it saw an increase in numbers from previous years. We had perfect conditions and some great racing was showcased over the day. The day was opened up with David and Sean putting on a display for the crowd as they went for a swim with less than 250 metres to go in their open double. The boys took the mishap in their stride and had a good performance in their D grade quad where they teamed up with Elijah and Awtel. Single racing saw some good performances. In the under 16’s Victoria and Miles won their respective divisions, Maral won in the under 17’s, Erik took out the under 21’s, Paul won masters and Sienna took out the novice single.  The doubles saw Joel and Angus win the under 19’s while Victoria and Genevieve won the under 16’s. Jooya and Miles had a tough race against Newcastle Grammar in the under 16 event however it was not to be with Newcastle taking it out with the boys settling for second. The big crews saw some different combinations than usual and provided some good racing. The men’s and women’s C grade quad events were both taken out by Nepean crews with Genevieve, Victoria, Tallara and Maral taking out the women’s and Angus, Joel, Henry and Miles taking out the men’s. The mixed quads are always some fun racing and they led to two more victories with Pal, Peter, Sienna and Paul taking out the first division while Angus, Joel, Tallara and Victoria took out the second division.  One of the major highlights of the day was boating men’s and women’s D grade eights. The women’s crew of Alyssa, Fiona, Bianca, Victoria, Jacqui, Tallara, Genevieve, Maral and Elizabeth were the only crew in the D grade event but raced alongside the C grade UTS crew. UTS took out the race but the girls showed some promise for future racing in this boat category.  The men’s eight of Miles, Will, Henry, Airtarn, Daniel, Jason, Joel, Angus and Elizabeth only had one D grade crew they were competing against in Glebe but were out to give it their best. Coming through the bridge in second overall with the C grade eight of Newington leading convincingly the crew caught a crab. Sydney took this opportunity and pushed through Nepean but with everyone pulling together they brought Sydney back and came second overall, and won the D grade category.  Leading on from this race I think it is worth reflecting on how important it is to remember it is not about getting down on yourself or on others when mistakes are made in a race but rather more important how you react as this reflects on your character as an individual. To the credit of the eight the issue was addressed in the race and then everyone got on with it and finished it with all they could and no hard feelings were felt towards anyone after the race.
A big thankyou to all the helpers that made this event possible. It was great to see rowers, parents and directors helping with many spending all day helping out. A thank you must also go to the boat race officials who helped on the day. That wraps up our events for another season. Again it must be said that the help provided by everyone over these events is greatly appreciated and has led to another three great events. Results summary 1st: 14 2nd: 6 3rd: 6 After a big attendance at the previous week’s regatta in Newcastle, we again had god numbers with nineteen rowers putting their hands up for the 400 metre sprint racing at Shoalhaven. With larger numbers we were able to boat a lot of different crew boats and with many having not trained together this presented an exciting element.
First up was the women’s under 16 singles. Victoria was first off and though she favoured an unconventional course that lead to her taking out the buoy on the far side of the course, she took out the win. Staying in a straight line proved to be an issue many rowers faced, however after their first unsuccessful attempt they improved in their following races which was good to see. Genevieve was the second race and she took out another win in the under 16’s. Victoria and Genevieve combined to take out the under 16 double, open quad with Alyssa and Tallara, and the C grade quad with Elizabeth and Maral. The other C grade quad division was won by the other Nepean crew of Aimee, Jacqui, Alyssa and Tallara. Alyssa and Genevieve along with Victoria and Maral took out their respective divisions in the C grade doubles. The C grade single saw Maral and Victoria face off and Victoria came out with the win but shortly after Maral backed up in the single to win in her under 17 race. The men’s racing kicked off with the under 16 singles and Jooya pushed out early to take the win. Single victories continued in C grade by Alaaddin, under 17 by Angus and under 19 by Joel. Quad crews were different than usual but this did not stop some good racing being displayed with both open quad divisions being taken out by Nepean crews of Johnathon, Will, Jason and Joel, and the other crew of Miles, Jooya, Henry and Angus. The C grade quad event saw two Nepean crews pushing each other to the line but it was Johnathon, Jooya, Miles and Henry who beat Sam, Jason, Joel and Angus to the line. The 19 double was won by Henry and Joel with Joel then going on to take out the open double with Angus. The other open double division was won by Will and Daniel, with Daniel earlier in the day taking out the C grade double with Jason. Jooya and Miles took out their division in the C grade double also. In total we had twenty two wins for the day which is a credit to everyone involved. However, more important than how many medals we attained is how we held ourselves in victory and that we always remember that success is not based on how many wins we may attain but rather about each of us doing the best we can. A big thank you to everyone who made the day possible and once again got in and helped where required. The teamwork in the past two regattas in loading and unloading, rigging, cheering fellow crews and so on has been very good and is something everyone who has been involved in should be very proud of. Results summary 1st: 22 2nd: 9 3rd: 3  The JB Sharp series has become a regular regatta series we attend now and though it does not attract a large number of Nepean rowers it presents an opportunity for the keen rowers to get out and participate in some racing during what is normally a time of just training. The first regatta of the series was the Glebe regatta which meant only 500 metre racing which was a shock to everyone's body after doing very little race pace work in the last couple of months. The under 16 women's singles was first up and this saw Victoria push out to an early lead which she held to the end to take the win. The under 16 men's single saw Jooya and Jonathon take to the water. Both boys got off to a good start however Jonathon misjudged his line and took out a bouy only a hundred or so metres into the race. Jooya went on to claim second behind a Sydney sculler.  The men's pair of Jason and Joel took to the water and after no training in the lead up performed very well. They were able to take a comfortable win after the chasing Glebe crew died off in the final stages of the race. The handicap singles saw Victoria place first, Maral second and Jonathon fifth in their respective divisions. The scratch quad of Daniel, Joel, Jason and Jooya got out from the start well however Sydney took the lead early. Pushing hard in the later stages allowed the Nepean crew to prevail as winners.  The final race of the day was the women's intermediate double which featured Victoria and Maral. They lead from start to finish.
The results were great, but more importantly all rowers learnt something from their racing. It was a great day of racing capped off by a good feed at the fish markets. Thanks to everyone who helped make the day possible. The NSW Grade Championships was upon us again and marked the final regatta for the season for the majority of our rowers. It allowed us to race big crew boats that are not possible in aged racing and allow the mixing of experienced and less experienced rowers to compete in different grade events.
Singles took to the water in the Novice, D, C and B categories. Miles went off hard from the start in his D heat and held on to make it through to the semis in a personal best time however he was unable to progress further. Erik and Magnus both progressed to the final in the B single where Magnus then went on to win the silver. The men’s eight has been a work in progress for a few years now and this year we had the numbers and depth to warrant entering both a C and D eight. The C eight of Elizabeth, Chris, Joel, Jason, Angus, Henry, Daniel, Will and Erik, though competitive were unable to hold onto the top three and went away with fourth. This crew split up into fours with a couple dropping out and Matt and Airtarn coming in and both coxed by Elizabeth. The C four of Jason, Joel, Will and Angus had to back up with less than an hour passing since the C eight. The boys got out well however through the later stages were unable to lift and had to settle for fourth. The D four of Chris, Henry, Airtarn and Matt had a longer rest and with two fresh rowers were keen for the race. After last year’s steering issue by an experienced coxswain who will not be named, they claimed the silver. Henry and Chris were part of that crew and were ready for redemption. The start was rough, and the rest of the row was just as rough, but the boys gave it their all and claimed the gold. Tallara and Raquel after having their first row in the pair only a matter of hours before the race performed very well. The girls got off the line in a controlled manner and given their lack of work together in the pair it was always going to be through the middle where they could make ground. They both worked very hard together and pushed through to go away with the bronze. The day’s racing showed much like the next day of racing, that the lack of crew familiarity can be overcome with a positive attitude and everyone giving it their best. Sunday began with the men’s C grade quad of Joel, Angus, Henry and Miles. Due to the boys moving up grades, the usual quad with Chris had to be altered and Miles was put into the hot seat. They had to work hard in the heat but progressed to the final. The final was a very tight race with third to seventh only being separated by two seconds. The boys just missed out on the podium and came in the same position as the crew of last year did, fourth. Next up was Raquel and Tallara in the more familiar double. The girls had a comfortable heat coming in second with Leichhardt pushing off early. The final saw the same unfold with Leichhardt pushing off early with the others having to fight out for the other positions. They were able to settle into second position early and they maintained it for the duration of the race to claim silver. The men’s D grade eight was up and after two prior attempts in this event that saw a fourth and a third in past performances, we were ready to step up a spot, or two. The crew saw a late change with Joel being replaced by Jason. Elizabeth, Chris, Henry, Jason, Angus, Airtarn, Matt, Will and Pat pushed off early and maintained the lead throughout the race to take the gold. Novice racing for the day saw Macleay and Liam row through for the silver in the novice double and Elizabeth after a hard fought race took away fourth in the Novice single. The long awaited ‘priority crew’ of Jason and Joel in the C grade pair took to the water. A comfortable heat saw the boys not lacking confidence as they approached the final. The experienced Glebe pair were always going to be hard to beat and given the boys were coming into the final only having been in the boat together four times including the final, they were going to have to pull a great race to get on the podium. They went off hard and held a high rate throughout the race but were unable to hold with Glebe and took the silver in narrowly holding out the Canberra crew who claimed bronze. The men’s D grade doubles saw four crews take to the water. Airtarn and Matt pushed hard in the later stages of their heat to make the semi but were unable to progress further. Alaaddin and Miles along with Daniel and Will progressed comfortably through their heats and faced off in the semi. It was tight to the line but both crews’ progressed, coming in fourth and third respectively. Conditions changed for the final too much rougher water than early on in the day, however both crews gave it their best. Alaaddin and Miles came in seventh while Daniel and Will took out the silver. The final race of the day saw Elizabeth once again in the coxswain seat. The women’s D grade four of Tallara, Victoria, Fiona and Jacqui did not have a good start and were at the back of the pack from the start. They fought hard through the entire race to eventually take the win by almost five seconds and claimed the gold which bettered last year’s silver. The teamwork exhibited over the weekend was again great to see. From loading on Thursday, unloading and rigging on Friday, cheering on of crews, jumping in new crew combinations and loading/unloading on the Sunday. It was once again a credit to all rowers and supporters alike who were a part of it all and it was a great way to finish off the 2015/16 rowing season (except master’s rowers who will continue to compete). We were welcomed with good conditions early on but the conditions changed shortly after and a big headwind faced all crews. Though the conditions were rough, the rowers performed very well.  The men’s C eight of Alaaddin, Pat, Matt, Airtarn, Henry, Will, Joel, Chris and Eli were first up. A lack of knowledge of the course cost the crew dearly, however it provided a valuable experience which helped them in their other races later in the day. The men’s C quad event saw a Nepean crew in each of the three divisions. The first division was won by Henry, Alaaddin Joel and Chris while Jooya, Pat, Campbell and Will took out the third division.
Pat teamed up with Chris in the C grade double and took out a win. Chris was able to build on this with a win in the C single shortly after. Pat raced later that day with Jooya in what was meant to be the men’s D double however they mixed up their event time and instead took part in the novice double which they convincingly lead from start to finish but were sadly informed of their mistake at the conclusion of the race. The men’s D four of Henry, Will, Joel, Chris and Eli were only one hundred metres away from the finish when they caught a crab and their three length lead was brought in very quickly by the St George crew. The boys were able to recover and pushed hard to the line to take the win with less than half a second separating themselves and St George. Victoria had another successful regatta, she took out the women’s B single, women’s C single and the women’s B double with Tallara who had earlier that day taken out second in the women’s B single.  This was the first year that has seen both regattas held on the same weekend. We had good conditions on both days of racing and it presented good weather for fast times The Saturday saw the girls take to the water. First up was the schoolgirl year 9 single which saw Elizabeth and Victoria both representing their school, Penrith Christian School. Elizabeth was unable to progress to the final, but was able to pull a personal best by thirteen seconds. Victoria claimed second in her heat to qualify for the final. The final saw everyone go out hard and Victoria got into second place early with the winner, who claimed silver in the under 16 single at State Championships a few weeks prior, pushing off early. Victoria was pushed to the line by a Hunter Valley rower, however she was able to push off in the later stages of the race, to claim the silver.  Raquel competed for Cherrybrook Technology High School in the schoolgirl single. Being a bottom age competitor, in being in year 11, Raquel raced well to place first in her heat and progress to the final, where she went away with sixth place.  The next day, was the boys turn. First up was Angus in the year 10 single. Angus had a well-paced race and claimed silver, and was just four seconds from a Kings sculler who claimed first place. The schoolboy singles were up next. Chris and Joel were drawn in the same heat, Chris and Joel were in the front pack, but Chris was unable to hold on as the race progressed and slipped from the important fourth place and was knocked out. Joel claimed third and progressed to the final where he took out sixth place. Ryan competed in the schoolboy single and Sam in the year 10 single and though both were unable to progress to finals, they represented their schools (Penrith Christian School and St Pauls Grammar respectively) for the first time and raced their first 2km singles. The final event for the day was Jooya and Miles in the year 8 double. Having to compete against older competition due to their young ages, this race presented them the first opportunity to finally verse rowers their own age. The boys pushed to a lead early, and held out St Augustines and St Josephs to claim the gold.  Racing began with the men’s D grade quads. First up was Daniel, Jooya, Sam and Ryan. After a good start, the crew was confronted with technical difficulties. Ryan fell off his seat early on in the race and Sam lost a wheel. However, regardless of the obstacles they faced, they went away with a fourth placing. Immediately following was Will, Airtarn, Matt and Pat who were able to hold with Leichardt early on but their fitness was not able to hold out for the duration of the race, and they took away second place.
The men’s and women’s 19/21 singles were up next in which Tallara and Chris claimed second placing’s in the under 21 and 19 singles respectively. The women’s C grade quad of Raquel, Tallara, Victoria and Elizabeth came out of the blocks in a paced fashion and though they worked hard through the middle section, the wining crew of St George had too big of a lead and they went away with third. The men’s D grade four saw Will, Pat, Airtarn and Matt take to the water with inexperienced cox, Jooya. They came out well and though they were unable to hold with the leaders through the second half of the race, they pushed to the line and claimed a fourth. The crew combinations were again ones that we do not currently consistently train due to other regatta’s taking precedence however all crews should be congratulated on their efforts. The racing was spread out for Nepean, however it was great to see many dedicated rowers stick around for the duration of the day and everyone’s help in packing up and unloading was greatly appreciated. The cheering of fellow rowers despite our small size was again, great to see. |
