A CREW from Grosvenor Rowing Club won the chance to race against rivals from across the world at Henley Royal Regatta.
The internationally renowned event is so popular it requires crews to qualify in advance as all the various races are heavily oversubscribed.
The Grosvenor’s senior men’s crew – Richard Mehrtens, Rob Lawrenson, Warren Shickle, Alex Redman, Kirk Tickle, Jim Graves, Phil Hill and David Blackham with Juliet Machan (cox) – qualified for this week’s Thames Challenge Cup.
When the action began they were unfortunately eliminated by local club Marlow.
On the previous weekend, Grosvenor’s women’s senior squad to raced on the Thames at Women’s Henley.
The crew of Sarah Dutton, Yvonne Wharton, Helen Rowland, Cheryl Tonkinson, Jess Fowler, Laura Antrobus, Leanne Ratcliffe, Tanith Allwood and Lou Tobias (cox) won their first heat but lost their quarter-final race against eventual winners Lea Rowing Club.
All the Grosvenor crews which raced at the Ironbridge Weekend Regatta came home with silverware.
Racing took place side-by-side on the River Severn, over a 1,000m course on the Saturday and a shorter 500m sprint distance on the Sunday.
The highlight performance for Grosvenor came from the club’s novice men. The crew of James Moss, George Moir, David Peake and Stuart Campbell, with Gemma Welsh coxing, sailed through their four rounds, including a close race with their team-mates in an all-Grosvenor semi, to win their novice pots in style against City of Bristol in the final.
Grosvenor’s masters had started the club’s medal haul, with both the Masters E 4x (Colin Morris, Mike Allwood, Brian Chapman and Paul Larby) and Masters C 4x (Jem Lush, Jez Perkins, Tim Howe and Rich Maclean) winning with ease.
For the senior women, the crew of Katie Irwin and Lucinda Roberts, competing for the first time in a sculling boat, won their pots in style in the novice double category.
Becky Read, Cheryl Tonkinson, Hannah Roberts, and Roxi Woodward, with Lucinda Roberts coxing, were entered in the WIM3 4+ category and won in style by two lengths against Bridgnorth Rowing Club in the final.
After missing out on a win on the Saturday, Grosvenor’s senior men’s crew – James Roberts, Gary Madoc-Jones, Dave O’Toole and Robert Mulvaney with Gemma Welsh coxing – claimed a win on the Sunday.
The crew of Moss, Moir, Peake and Campbell, with Martin O’Connor coxing, then enjoyed a confident win over three rounds at the higher standard IM3 4+ category.
