News

Torpids 2022 Roundup

Wednesday-Saturday of 7th week (2-5 March) Worcester College Boat Club took part in Torpids (Hilary term bumps racing). It was an extremely successful week for WCBC with all three crews bumping up. W2 bumped Pembroke on day 1 and Wadham on day 2. On day 3, an equipment malfunction lead to them being bumped Osler house but they still managed to bump Mansfield. On day 4 they bumped St John’s. They were so good they bumped out every day before we could see them from Boathouse Island and we look forward to seeing them racing again in Summer 8s. W1 were equally successful, also going +3 over the week. They bumped Queen’s on day, rowed over day 2 (nearly getting the triple over-bump on Merton), bumped Merton on day 3, and bumped St Hilda’s on the Saturday. M1 rowed over on days 1 and 2 (getting very close to the crews ahead and far away from chasing crews). They got their first bump on day 3 on Corpus Christi and then bumped again on Saint Peter’s (who they had chased days 1 and 2) on the Saturday in front of the boathouse. Unfortunately they have since been awarded two penalty bumps following a crash after the bump. Overall it was a great week for everyone involved in WCBC, being the most successful campaign in over a decade. Thanks to everyone who came down to support this week and we look forward to seeing you soon for summer 8s (from 25th May). For more detailed daily roundups, photos and videos, and future updates, please follow our Facebook and Instagram where we regularly post.

WCBC bumps chart (before penalty bumps).
By , ago

Eights 2019 Friday

Summer 8s Day 3:

W1: ⬇️Today’s start was better for our ladies. However Brasenose proved to be a lot faster than expected and our beloved W1 was caught by the start of the gut once again. Will they get spoons tomorrow *for the 4th year in a row*? Will they be saved by a magic Swan? We don’t know… But they’d sure enjoy some cheering from the boathouse on the last day!

M1: ⬇️ The men’s squad unfortunately ran into technical issues when a footplate came off during our warm-up, and we weren’t able to fix it sufficiently before the race got under way. So it came off once again a few strokes after the start and our fate was quickly ended by the chasing Merton crew.

By , ago

Eights Thursday 2019

Summer 8s Day 2 round-up:

M1: ⬇️The men’s crew had quite a short race today, St Hugh’s catching up to them under Donnington Bridge, but today was a very fun day of racing, so let’s see what tomorrow brings!

W1:⬇️ With a bit of a rough start, W1 managed to avoid the bank with some great coxing. However, this made rowing a bit tough for our ladies, so Merton managed to catch them midway through the gut.

By , ago

Eights 2019 Wednesday

Summer 8s Day 1 round-up:

W1: ⬇️ W1 had a strong start and seemed like they could hold St Hugh’s off for the whole course. However, coming to Donnington Bridge Hugh’s women started to gain on us, thanks to a strong push. They were caught just as they were approaching the middle of the gut, making W1 top of Div 3 tomorrow.

M1: ⬇️ While the men’s boat didn’t go into the race with very big expectations, they had a fairly strong start and had a good attempt at holding off the quick Queen’s crew. That is until Donnington bridge, where Queen’s finally caught our crew and bumped them out of the race. However, it was an enjoyable race today and we are looking forward to the other three, perhaps with slightly better luck!

 

By , ago

Torpids 2019 Saturday

Torpids Day 4 Roundup:

W2: ⬇️⬆️A strong start from the Univ W2 crew saw an early concession from our girls, allowing them to avoid a boat slowing collision. They then rapidly went on to bump Hertford 2 in the middle of the gut. A brilliant ending to the week for these girls! 

W1: ⬇️Being chased by St Hilda’s who were on for blades, W1 accepted their fate, but went down with a fight, holding them right up until the end of the gut due to a punchy start initially giving them ground. After this there was a long stretch of clear water between us and Teddy hall, giving the girls the confidence to row it beautifully up to row over. 

M1: ⬇️🥄 As the tannoy announced “we’re not hearing reports of anything so far, this is good news for Worcester “ cheers erupted from the boathouse. Sadly, this was not to last, and M1 were caught by Linacre before the exit of the gut. They then rowed it strong and proud past the boathouse, easily avoiding an overbump. 

Final results:

W2: ⬇️⬇️⬇️⬇️

W1: ↔️

M1: ⬇️⬇️⬇️⬇️⬇️⬇️

87 days until Summer Eights, bring it on!!!

By , ago

Torpids 2019 Friday

Torpids Day 3 roundup:

W2- 12:30 – ⬇️Some good looking rowing from the crew today, but sadly not enough to hold off Hughs who managed to secure the bump along greenbanks. Digging deep, Worcester valiantly held off Corpus who were chasing for the overbump along boathouse island and into the finish. W2 may have dropped one place, but spirits are still high for the final day of racing tomorrow!
W1- 2:30 -⬆️First bump of Torpids 2019 for Worcester! W1 set themselves up for the bump with a punchy and powerful start, closing quickly on Teddy Hall and securing the bump before the gut. Two terms of hard work rewarded with a nice early bump! This moved them to the sandwich boat for WDiv2
W1 – 3:30 – ↔️ As sandwich boat, W1 had to race again. A strong row saw them closing on Linacre who started 3 positions ahead. The gap was too big for W1 to achieve the triple over bump, but a good effort all round
M1 – 3:00 -⬇️ Very good rowing seen from the M1 crew today. They sadly got bumped by St Hugh’s at the exit of the gut, but St Hugh’s have a very strong crew this year so it’s nothing to be ashamed of. All their eyes are now focused towards tomorrow, when they will be looking to rowover on the final day to avoid spoons. It’s looking possible!

Tomorrow’s race timings:
W2: 12:30
W1: 2:30 and potentially 3:30
M1: 3:00

By , ago

Torpids 2019 Thursday

Thursday Race Rundowns:

W2- 12:30- ↔️📣Race one saw W2 holding off Corpus nicely through the gut and onto greenbanks but a klaxon ended the race early, leaving the legs fresh for race two….

W2 – 13:30 – ↔️📣 Race two began with a quick start, W2 were gaining on Christ Church fast with bow on stern overlap. Sadly, another klaxon ended the race just a few strokes short of the bump. Let’s catch them tomorrow!

W1- 14:30 – ↔️📣A strong, clean and punchy start saw W1 gain on Mansfield, but through the gut, the gap widened again. Whilst holding off Exeter from behind on the approach to boathouse island, the steering cord snapped, but this was nothing our star cox couldn’t handle. Set for a real chase to the finish, yet another klaxon ended the race earlier than anticipated, leaving W1 hungry for bumps!

M1 – 15:00 – ⬇️⬇️⬇️M1 had a decent start again today, but Somerville didn’t get scared by it and caught up to them at the exit of the gut. The M1 then directed all their efforts to rowing to the finish line, but a late surge from Queen’s caught them off guard a few strokes from the end.

Friday Race Times:

W2: 12:30 and potentially 13:30

W1: 14:30 and potentially 15:30

M1: 15:00

By , ago

Torpids 2019 Wednesday

Day 1 roundup:

W2 –  A disappointing race for W2 following a coxing mishap and a broken seat at stroke. After being bumped more than once, they continued to row valiantly for the whole course. W2 have most certainly got the legs to bump their way back up so let’s see what tomorrow can bring!

W1 – A solid row over for W1. Exeter closing in the gut but were held off by a big push from Worcester as the race progressed. Worcester even stretching the gap out once hearing the cheers from the boathouse. Hoping for some bumps later in the week!

M1 – Today we didn’t see the start M1 wanted to have, instead they dropped a place to St Anne’s. It was looking promising though after a solid start saw them keeping up with Corpus Christi. However, St Anne’s boat was closing in, which caused a few unfortunate errors, and after one of their blades got stuck in the water slowing us down to a halt, were forced to concede. The potential is there though, even if it’s hard to see after today, and that’s positive news going into tomorrow!

By , ago

Eights 2018 Saturday

Day 4 roundup (Alex Nevin):

M2 – a rampaging Exeter M2 and an unfortunate crab rapidly put paid to M2’s hopes of a row-over. Down 3 over the week – but 2 weeks ago we weren’t expecting to even have an M2, and it’s thanks only to Jáchym Solecký that we got a boat out. So well done to all of them.

W2 –  they held St. John’s off with relative ease, long enough for New to catch John’s and guaranteeing a straightforward row-over. Spoons avoided. As with M2, this crew suffered from severe depletion at the hands of exams – congratulations to them for avoiding the spoons that would have awaited a less dedicated crew.

W1 –  a blading Green-Templeton proved too much off the start, and W1 had earned their spoons by Donnington Bridge. A shame for the women’s side that they had such powerful crews behind this week , but Bumps isn’t always fair. We await next year’s sequel, Revenge of the Martlet.

M1 –  this was always going to be the hardest race of the week, and it was. Merely on station with Queen’s at Longbridges, a powerful pair-by-pair build on the Green Bank, slowly reeled them in. We crossed with half a length between us at Univ, and a final push broke a running Queen’s about 100m upstream of Worcester boathouse. This ex-Cantab thought he’d done Bumps racing, but the phenomenal roar of Boathouse Island on the Saturday of Eights is now seared in my memory. And Worcester College Men’s 1st VIII has won its blades! It has been a great pleasure captaining this group of men this term. WCBC is back.

Thanks to every spectator, supporter, marshal and umpire for making our week possible. See you in 9 months time, when Worcester goes to Torpids 2019.

By , ago

Eights 2018 Friday

Day 3 roundup (Alex Nevin):

M2 –  rapidly caught by a fast Queens’ M2 on the entrance to the gut. Exeter M2 chase them tomorrow, they’re currently on +1 but we’ll just to see what speed they’re packing.

W2 –  we wanted to hold Linacre off long enough to be caught by St. John’s, but unfortunately John’s soon dropped back. Linacre caught rapidly, yet a superb show of determination kept Worcester moving fast even as Linacre got 8 feet of overlap. The protracted bump finally occurred as they went to cross over on the Greenbank. St. John’s chase them tomorrow – can W2 manage a final-day row-over?

W1 –  Wolfson W2, packed with rowers displaced from their W1 by 6 returning blues, were always going to be fierce. And, sadly, they were. Worcester were bumped shortly before Donnington Bridge. Green-Templeton chase them tomorrow.

M1 –  Mansfield did their best, but Worcester reeled them just as fast as expected. 1 whistle a few strokes in, 2 whistles by the bridge, and it was all over by the entrance to the Gut. Tomorrow, Worcester chase Queens’ M1. Will it be +4 for Worcester?

By , ago