Mr Wells (Director of Rowing)

On Saturday 11^th May, the Bedford riverside was transformed into a hive of activity with over 300 boating crews taking part in the 155^th Bedford Amateur Regatta. This year, BGS had an impressive 64 girls racing in 10 crews throughout the day.

This regatta was the first time the Year 9 and some of the Year 10 girls had raced side-by-side, and no matter how much training preparation, this does not prepare them for the experience of a real race. Credit to the girls on how they responded and came away from the experience with points to improve on.

Some crews came up against extremely tough opposition especially in the WJ16 4+ (Year 11 girls four), who had the South African National Squad in their heat.  They did push well against them only losing contact with them in the closing parts of the race. The WJ16 4+ was up against stiff opposition, having no school girls to race, they found themselves in the open women's event against the Oxbridge colleges. Giving a few years and experience away to their opposition, the girls worked hard and gained invaluable experience.

At these regattas, we always pick a Girl of the Match, one who has shown the desired traits of a BGS rower. This time the coaching team were unanimous to award this to Isla Ness (Year 9) for her resilience following a clash of blades with the opposition’s oar but continuing to race to the end. Then having a short break before jumping back into the quad for a second race. The Senior Girl of the Match goes to Grace Younger (Year 11) for stepping into the second four at short notice and producing a strong performance.    

A massive thank you to all the parents and supporters of BGS rowing who put in a monumental shift with supporting the running of the regatta. It was the first time that Year 8 girls had been involved with the regatta and 16 of them held the sterns of the boats from the stake boats from midday to the end of the regatta. It was fantastic to see the enthusiasm and dedication from the new group of girls.