A Pot and a Point – Girl on the River Finally Gets a Win

Already my most cherished possession.

It had been a long time in coming. 35 long, hard, disappointing races, to be precise. But when the Monmouth boat crossed the line in the final of the WD4+ at Ross Regatta yesterday all the blood, sweat and tears finally melted away. There it was. We had won. Actually won. Nobody stepped forward to say we’d been disqualified. Nobody ran over to say that it had all been a ghastly mistake. Nobody commiserated or said, “Never mind, it was a good race anyway.” We’d done it. I was no longer a novice. And finally – finally! – I’d earned that elusive first pot.

I can’t deny that the odds were stacked in my favour. Thanks to the fact that it was August and many of the MRC creme de la creme were on holiday – and perhaps because someone thought I needed a break – I’d been put in a boat with three of Monmouth’s strongest and neatest rowers, not to mention one of the classiest coxes in town. If I just could hold my nerve, not mess up and row like I’d never rowed before, then maybe – just maybe – we could pull it off.

Between me and my first point, though, there were three tough races. Not for us the luxury of a straight final. I won’t bore you with lengthy race reports – partly because the races are mostly a blur of sitting up, lengthening, pushing off, sitting back, lengthening again, burning legs and burning lungs – but I can say we earned that pot.

My only regret was that my novice-buddy Susy wasn’t there. Winning without her felt somehow incomplete after all we’ve been through together, and I can’t wait to fling her into the river, too. Watch this space, people, watch this space.