Clare Novice Regatta

NOVICE WOMEN

 Clare Novice Regatta delivered everything a novice crew could hope for: adrenaline, drama, near-collisions, actual collisions, and a level of chaos that can only be described as pure Cambridge rowing heritage. St Edmund’s NW1 arrived at the boathouse at 12:15 sharp, a perfectly balanced blend of nerves, excitement, and mild confusion about what a regatta actually is.
Cox Arminel led the charge down to marshalling with the confidence of someone who had fully accepted that whatever happened today, it was going to be memorable.
Our powerhouse crew — An Mei (stroke), Aurélie, Beth, Maxanne, Maddie, Gabby, Juliane, Mia (bow) — pushed off cleanly, blades shining, legs primed, and spirits high.

Heat 1: The Beginning of the Question
The girls rowed a strong opening race, staying composed, keeping it long, and powering past their opponents with impressive rhythm for a crew that’s been rowing for approximately five minutes (in rowing-development terms).
The moment they crossed the line, the first question was asked:
“Did we win?”
A theme that would return. Repeatedly.
Quarter-Final: Settling In
NW1 by now had fully embraced the chaos of side-by-side racing. With every stroke, timing improved, catches sharpened, and Armine’s calls grew increasingly dramatic. Eddie’s powered through another race and advanced onward — followed, of course, by the question:
“So… did we win that one?”
Semi-Final: The Bank Incident
This is the race that will be retold for generations. The start was clean. The enthusiasm was high. The line… less so. Within seconds, NW1 found themselves gliding gently — almost artistically — into the bank. Spectators winced. The crew collectively prepared their souls for defeat.
Someone may or may not have softly whispered “oh no.”
But from the towpath came the unmistakable sound of salvation:
the coaches and the women’s captain absolutely yelling at the crew to restart, reset, and GO. And just as Eddie’s shoved off and began moving again, the rowing universe delivered a gift:
The opposing crew caught a catastrophic megacrab, swung sideways, and crashed into a houseboat with the grace of a wounded swan.
Sensing the divine opportunity, the towpath erupted:
“SEND IT!!! LEGS!!! GO NOW!!”
Eddie’s NW1 accelerated, found their rhythm, and in a plot twist no Cambridge umpire could have predicted, won the race. Officials called it “unorthodox.”
The boathouse called it “peak novice regatta.”
The crew called it:
“Wait… so did we win??”
Final / Last Race
NW1 entered their final race tired but determined. Blades were sharp, timing connected, and the boat moved better than at any other point all day. Though they didn’t clinch the regatta title, they delivered a performance to be proud of — controlled, gritty, and unmistakably Eddie’s.
And yes, the question was asked one final time.
 
Final Thoughts
St Edmund’s NW1 walked away from Clare Novice Regatta with:
* A string of race wins
* One miraculous bank-crab-houseboat victory
* A crew catchphrase (“Did we win?”)
* And the kind of novice rowing stories that last a lifetime
Most importantly, they proved they could stay calm under pressure, recover from chaos, and race with heart.
This crew is going places — preferably not into the bank next time.

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novice men

 The gods of College rowing were clearly in want for some entertainment when they
elected to match up the Eddie’s novices with their opponents from the previous week,
Emma. And entertainment they did receive, as these two crews went stroke-for-stroke
down the 800m course, the lead constantly changing hands all the way to the line.
The boys flew off the start, not to be out-done by the always fast-starting Emma, and
moved out to a lead of half a length through 200m. As they made their way down the
Reach, however, Emma began to inch back into contention, and coming up to the
Railway Bridge, had moved into the lead.
Coming up to the finish, it appeared that all had been lost for Eddie’s, until Emma’s
stroke did us a massive favour and caught an outrageous crab a mere 50 metres from
the line. As each crew’s bank party bellowed them onwards from the bank, they came
down to the finish side-by-side in what had to be the closest race of the day. Yet again,
fortune was not on the side of St Edmund, as Emma were given the victory by a quarter
of a length.
A much stronger performance from NM1, and they were unlucky not to progress to the
next round. Onto the big one: Fairbairns!