M1 Day 2 – Dominik Koller & Simon Martina-Peréz

Dominik: Day two was a day of firsts. First time this M1 raced in their full kit (note the missing uni in two seat the day before..), but more importantly the first bump for every member of the crew! That says a lot – some of our more ancient members have been at HCBC for years now. Thus, with pride we declare that March 3rd, at 4:01pm, was the moment HCBC M1 turned itself around. In choppy waters, chasing a clearly inferior John’s M1, came along the first tangible results of months of hard work: St John’s concession was quick, clear and unavoidable. The most observant onlookers may have noticed a sigh of relief going through our boat before it was drowned by shouts of celebration and the ensuing commands by the cox to row on out of the way and keep the cheers for when the race was over. Landing at Longbridges with smiles on our faces, we felt the first taste of vindication. But we had to remember – one does not count one’s bumps before they hatch. There were quicker boats than John’s on the river, tougher challenges ahead. First victory left us hungry for more.

Simon: Thursday marked our first bump of the campaign, and the hard fought end of a previous losing streak in Torpids!!! After a silky start sequence, our tenth stroke was blessed by our coach Graham’s angelical whistle sounds, signalling we were within one length of St. John’s. With a rapid victory in sight, and Mansfield comfortably behind us, our cox decided there was no time to stride and the deer galloped on at a frisky rate 38.

With the frequency of the whistling increasing, a slightly manic push after Donny bridge delivered the fabled bump, which was followed by Lincoln M1 giving us a little tap as they also cleared the racing line after their similar early race success. After some screams of triumph, we rowed through the Gut and landed to an off-key (but nevertheless heartfelt) rendition of Happy Birthday for our bowman Richie B. With the whole team agreeing that 45 seconds of rowing was disappointingly short, we decided that actually, the deer quite likes a quick victory with enough energy left to row back to the boathouse. Jesus, watch your hides. Big things ahead, but for now it’s time to sleep and enjoy the day’s returns.

Fear the deer!!!

W1 Day 2 – Phoebe Baggott

Entering day two with rougher weather did not deter the Hertford women. After the first ever experience of Torpids for many on the previous day, nerves had settled and heads were in the boat. The start was still not perfect, with more stream causing lots of adjustments for Sophie and Eve. We got off to a much stronger start and held our own, cumulating in a row over to finish the day. Keble were behind us and made sure we kept pushing for the entire course but we still managed to hold them off. It was an enjoyable race which leaves us much more confident for day three.

M2 Day 2 – Radoslav Dimitrov

After not getting our well deserved +9 bump, we had to row in the lower division. However, all of us were extremely motivated to regain our lost position in Div. 5. We first rowed on in front of St John’s, and it felt amazing – we didn’t even catch a crab. Now we only had to get a bump in Div. 5. We were after Trinity, and were gaining on them, but unfortunately when we were closing on them, they got a bump. Still, it wasn’t over. We continued pushing and were able to reach Wadham, and got a bump on them. Immediately after that we hear a klaxon, but we had already secured our place in Div. 5. It was pretty close, but overall I think it was the best day of Torpids we had.