By Mrs Reeves (Director of Rowing)
Saturday 11th May 2024 was a very exciting day for the Boat Club. Bedford Regatta, founded in 1853, brings competitive rowing to the picturesque River Great Ouse in Bedford maintaining its position as one of the largest single day river regattas in the country. Racing takes place through the heart of the town over a 1,200-metre course with races every two minutes. Competitors come from far and wide representing Schools, Colleges and Clubs.
Organised by a Committee with representation from all the rowing clubs in Bedford, including Bedford Girls’ School, the event continues to be one of the key social events in the Town’s calendar with parents, supporters and competitors enjoying the atmosphere and hospitality.
For Team BGS, 2024 was our best year to date! With almost 100 students racing across the day, we were delighted that all our current rowers were able to compete on the course.
BGS entered eight racing categories, and reached an impressive seven finals representing every age group. The final races were tightly contested against top crews from all over the country
Huge congratulations to our J15 Quad and Senior 1st IV who brought the silverware home winning their events. A particular mention to our J15 Quad; Zena Breed, Rosemary McGregor, Rosie Palmer, Kara Farquhar and Olivia Danks who raced over the course eight times to reach their final! The Senior 1st IV rowed exceptionally hard to beat BMS in a very competitive final.
The fun and excitement did not stop on the water! It was fantastic to see so much BGS support on the riverbank, and I would like to take this opportunity to say a huge thank you to everybody that came down and supported our crews, and to the Friends of the Boat Club and The Alumnae for keeping the refreshments flowing. We could certainly hear the ‘BGS Roar’ as we approached the embankment for the final stage of each race!
After such a wonderful weekend for BGS rowing, we now look forward to this weekend’s ‘double header’, with crews racing at Blenheim Palace this Saturday and on the Royal Albert Docks at Poplar Regatta on Sunday - two very exciting venues!
