2009 Season

The Viking Shield

Once again Herne Bay held the Viking Shield Regatta thanks to Darren Ingram and Ryan Hosking, who won the trophy last year for the tenth year in a row. The pair failed to hang on to the trophy, however, losing out to Andy Cooper and Ashley Epps. Congratulations to Andy and Ashley for winning the trophy on their fourth attempt.

Our novice and junior rowers are showing lots of promise this season. Amanda, Phoebe, Will and April took first place in the J16 quad scull. Continuing last year’s good form Sam, Phoebe, Amanda and April took 3rd place in the Ladies Junior 4 event. In their debut Novice 4 event Ed, Mike, Henry and Saeed took third place. In the Men’s Junior 4 race Herne Bay was represented by a crew from Kings School, who came second despite most never having rowed in coastal boats. Novice sculler Trevor Iddenden came 3rd and Junior sculler Ben Smissen came first.

In the ever-competitive Veteran event Herne Bay’s A crew of Trevor, Stuart, Jim and Mark came 2nd. Thanks to Jim for coming out of retirement at short notice to replace the injured Keith.

And in the final event of the day, the Men’s Senior 4, our A crew of Ryan, Ashley, Andy and Ben scored an impressive home victory. Let’s hope this is just a taste of things to come. Good luck to all of those crews competing in regattas this season.

Off the water, thanks to all of the volunteers from the club who help to run our regattas: to those who sell refreshments, flip burgers and run the bar, to the safety boat and umpires boat crew, and to jeff for putting the whole thing together. It would not be possible without your help. 

Worthing

HBARC was greeted by flat waters at Worthing regatta, it was on these waters that they were to do very well on. The first race was J16 Quad won by April Towner, William Campbell, Amanda Waters and Phoebe Shilling coxed by George Holness. Next were the ladies junior pairs; Samantha Epps and Phoebe Shilling came an impressive 2^nd. The junior ladies were up next and scored 3^rd place with the usual crew of Phoebe Shilling, April Towner, Amanda Waters and Samantha Epps. The Veteran fours then raced and came 3^rd and 6^th; The A crew of John Cox, Mark Simmonds, Mark Davies and Stuart Web (coxed by Phoebe Shilling) achieved 3^rd and the B crew of Harry Roberts, Dave Marman, Roy Iddenden and Nikki Towner came 6^th (coxed by George Holness).

The Junior Sculls was successful with Ben Smissen coming 1^st, John Cox coming 5^th and Trevor Iddenden coming 6^th.Will Mihr and Jamie Ross-Cumming earned an impressive 1^st place in the Junior Pairs. The Junior four crew of Jamie Ross-Cumming, Alex Farrant, Simon Mount and Will Mihr (coxed by Phoebe Shilling) qualified in the heat and came close 2^nd in the final.

The senior pair of Ahsley Epps and Andy Cooper came a well-earned 2^nd place.

The novice crew of Mike Banks, Ed Acteson, Alex Farrant and Will Campbell came a disappointing last.

The senior fours presented good results; the senior A crew of Ryan Hosking, Ben Smissen, Ashley Epps and Andy Cooper came 1^st, coxed by Samantha Epps. The Senior B crew of Lewis, Mark, Fred and Trevor, coxed by Phoebe Shilling came 5^th. The senior ladies came 1^st with Mandy Munro, Sue Cox, Liz Taylor and Nikki Towner coxed by George Holness. Next up was the Ladies Senior pair, Liz Taylor and Nikki Towner came 6^th. Finally the senior sculls that Ryan Hosking came 3^rd.

To round off the day Samantha Epps was awarded Coxswain of the day!

Eastbourne

On Saturday 27^th of June HBARC arrived at Eastbourne ready for rowing. The water was rough but the sun was still shining and spirits were high.  The day started with the J16 Quad won by Phoebe Shilling, Amanda Waters, April Towner and Will Campbell coxed by Will Cox.

The Veteran crew of John Cox, Mark Davies, Mark Simmons and Stuart Webb came 3^rd coxed by Phoebe Shilling. The B crew came 6^th of Harry Roberts, Dave Marman, Roy Iddenden and Nikki Towner coxed by George Holness. Jamie Ross-Cumming and Will Mihr came 3^rd The men’s junior scull was fairly successful with Ben Smissen earning a 2^nd place, Ashley Epps scoring a 4^th and John Cox finishing in 6^th. The men’s novice scull had Luke Towner finish in 5th place. April Towner finished in 2^nd place out of the ladies sculls. Both of the races were combined as one. The next race saw the senior ladies beaten by the junior girls in their own category. The senior A crew of Mandy Munro, Sue Cox, Liz Mills and Nikki Towner came 4^th whilst the B crew of Samantha Epps, April Towner, Amanda Waters and Phoebe Shilling came 3^rd. The ladies senior pair wasn’t as successful as the four as the A crew of Liz Mills and Nikki Towner finished in 7^th place and the B crew of Samantha Epps and Phoebe Shilling came 8^th. Ryan Hosking and Darren Ingram rowed the men’s senior pair and achieved a respectable 2^nd place. The senior sculls were also rowed by Ryan Hosking; earning the club a 3^rd place.

The junior ladies came 2^nd rowed by Samantha Epps, April Towner, Amanda Waters and Phoebe Shilling; coxed by George Holness. The mens junior four came 4^th rowed by Jamie Ross-Cumming, Alex Farrant, Simon Mount and Will Mihr coxed by Phoebe Shilling. The Novice men also came 4^th rowed by Mike Banks, Ed Acteson, Will Campbell and Alex Farrant coxed by Samantha Epps. The senior men’s four was won by the A crew of Ryan Hosking, Ben Smissen, Ashley Epps and Darren Ingram coxed by Samantha Epps. Coming in 4^th place were the B crew of Lewis Iddenden, Mark Simmons, Stuart Webb and Trevor Iddenden; coxed by Phoebe Shilling.

Herne Bay

Herne Bay Regatta proved to be a fairy successful regatta with many firsts, seconds and thirds. The day started bright and early (at 8.45 the earliest regatta of the season) with flat waters and barely any wind. It was Will Campbell’s birthday on the same day so he was wished a Happy Birthday by the club by receiving a fully clothed cold shower by his older ‘friends’ around 7.30am. The first race of the day was the quad scull composing of April Towner, Amanda Waters, Phoebe Shilling and Samantha Epps coxed by Will Cox. They won this race starting the day off with high hopes. The next race up was the Veteran fours. The A Crew of Trevor Brown, Mark Simmons, John Cox and Stuart Webb coxed by Phoebe Shilling who finished 4^th and they were followed by the B crew of Jim Campbell, Roy Iddenden, Dave Marman and Harry Roberts coxed by George Holness and also the C crew who consisted of Nikki Towner, Sue Cox, Liz Taylor and Andy coxed by James. Jamie Ross-Cumming and Will Mihr competed in Junior pairs and finished a close 2nd.

Men’s novice fours was next with the A crew of Will Campbell, Mike Banks, Ed Acteson and Henry Weldon (who had only just been let out of hospital) coming fifth. The B crew of George, John, Layton and Robert coxed by Kelsey coming in last.

The junior sculls event was won by Dan Ritchie, closely following was Ben Smissen who finishing 2^nd.

The senior pairs was rowed by Ashley Epps and Andy Cooper who scored a close second place, just after Bexhill. James Campbell and Guy Campbell also completed this race in memory of their father who passed away earlier this year.

The ladies senior fours then commenced with the A crew of Nikki Towner, Liz Mills, Sue Cox and Mandy Monroe coming 3^rd and the B crew of Phoebe Shilling, Amanda Waters, April Towner and Samantha Epps coming 6^th.

Next up were the Novice sculls; This was rowed by Luke Towner and Trevor Iddenden. Less then half way up the course Trevor decided to turn back, however Luke went on to score a fourth place.

The senior A crew of Andy Cooper, Ashley Epps, Ben Smissen and Ryan Hosking came first with superior coxing from Samantha Epps. The B crew compromising of Darren Ingram, Dan Ritchie, Mark Simmons and Guy Addington came 2^nd. The C crew of Trevor Iddenden, Stuart Webb, Jamie Ross-Cumming and Lewis Iddenden coxed by Phoebe Shilling came 4^th.

The ladies senior pair was then rowed by Samantha Epps and Phoebe Shilling who came a reasonable 4^th who beat the A crew in their own league who came 5^th composing of Nikki Towner and Liz Mills.

We had 2 crews in the Junior four event the A crew consisted of Jamie Ross-Cumming, Alex Farrant, Simon Mount and will Mihr coxed by Phoebe Shilling. They scored a 2^nd place even though being rammed on the turns (check the pictures). The B crew came 5^th rowed by Will Campbell, Luke Towner, Ed Acteson and Mike Banks. Luke Towner then replaced Simon Mount in the Junior Senior race where they went on to come 3^rd.

The junior ladies then came 3^rd in their race, this crew consisted of Phoebe Shilling, Amanda Waters, April Towner and Samantha Epps coxed by George Holness.

Folkestone

On Sunday 6th July was Folkestone regatta, where the sea started off calm but then became rough and choppy.

The first races of the day were Junior heats, both crews which consisted of A: Jamie Ross-Cumming, Will Mihr, Alex Farrant and Luke Towner coxed by Phoebe Shilling and B: Will Campbell, Ian Baker, Ed Acteson and Nick Cox coxed by George Holness qualified for the final.

The Junior four final was an interesting race; the sea had become quite rough, therefore the race started after 10 minutes of lining up on the line. The A crew were leading the race by 4 lengths until the last 300m when a very large wave swallowed the boat within its trough and span the boat right round causing Luke to come off his seat. The A crew were unable to hang on to their lead and came 2^nd by half a canvas. The B crew however (in 2^nd to last place) gradually filled up with water during the race and sunk whilst crossing the line.

The men’s novice fours race consisted of 2 crews; The A crew consisted of Will Campbell, Ed Acteson, Alex Farrant and Mark   coxed by Samantha came 5th whereas the B crew of Charlie, Layton, George and John coxed by Kelsey came last.

The junior ladies A crew of Samantha Epps, April Towner, Amanda Waters and Phoebe Shilling came 3rd and went on to coming 5th in Senior ladies.

The senior ladies crew of Mandy Monroe, Sue Cox, Liz Taylor and Nikki Towner came 3rd.

In the veterans race the A crew of John Cox, Mark Davies, Stuart Webb and Trevor Brown coxed by Samantha came 4th with the B crew following 3 lengths behind of Harry Roberts, Dave Marman, Roy Iddenden and.......... coxed by Phoebe.

The last race of the day (and by this time the sea had become very rough) was the men’s Senior Fours. The A crew of Ryan Hosking, Ben Smissen, Ashley Epps and Andy Cooper coxed by Samantha Epps continued being undefeated by coming 1st. The B crew of Lewis Iddenden, Trevor Iddenden, Stuart Webb and Darren Ingram coxed by Phoebe Shilling had an incident whilst launching where the rudder was critically damaged, and then during the race tore off, however they still managed to earn a 4^th place.

In Junior pairs, Jamie and Will finished a close 2nd, in Senior pairs Ashley Epps and Andy Cooper finished a respectable second after having crashes throughout the race. In Novice sculls John Cox finished his best result yet by coming 2nd, in Junior Sculls Ben Smissen came 2nd and in Senior Sculls Ryan Hosking failed to finish the race as he decided to go for a swim.

After 4 regattas we are currently in 3rd place for the grand aggregate where we are 8 points behind 1st.

Southsea

Herne Bay attended Southsea regatta on 11th July, which lasted just under 12 hours! The sea was rough; it was very windy and raining! Yet Herne Bay ignored it all and performed at it’s best, this effort resulted in the club being awarded the Grand aggregate and also the Portsmouth Grand (A very sought after trophy!)

The best result of the day was from the Senior Four A crew for winning and returning the Portsmouth (Pompey) grand back to its rightful club! The crew consisted of Ryan Hoskings (set a new record for most amounts of ‘Pompey’ wins in the club - 3), Ben Smissen, Ashley Epps (set a new record for youngest oarsmen to win it down the club) and Andy Cooper coxed by Samantha Epps (set a new record for the 1st coxswain to win it 2 times). 

During their heat they started sinking, however they still finished 1st even though by the time they crossed the line they were completely under. By the time of the final the sea had calmed right down, and the crew finished 1st by 3 lengths! The Senior B crew consisted of Lewis Iddenden, Trevor Iddenden, Stuart Webb and Jon Sliney coxed by Phoebe Shilling, they finished 3rd in their heat and then went on to finishing 7th in the final.

Herne Bay also finished 1st in the Veterans 50+ category, the crew consisted of Harry Roberts, Trevor Brown, Graham Dawes and Roy Iddenden coxed by Lydia who went on the win coxswain of the day!

The Junior ladies crew which consisted of Samantha Epps, April Towner, Amanda Waters and Phoebe Shilling coxed by George Holness finished 2nd! The same crew went on to come 7th in the senior ladies event!

The Junior crew which consisted off Jamie Ross-Cummings, Will Mihr, Alex Farrant and Luke Towner coxed by Phoebe Shilling unfortunately got disqualified after a crash at the turn. However they went on the finish 2nd in the Junior senior event but 1st out of C.A.R.A, where they had to re-row the race 3 times, due to collisions from other clubs!

Unfortunately both Men’s Novice crews did not qualify for the final, however the A crew of Ed Acteson, Mike Banks, William Campbell and Alex Farrant coxed by Samantha Epps did encounter their first experience of sinking and therefore could not finish the race! The B crew consisted of George, Leyton, Robert and John coxed by Kelsey.

In small boat events Ben Smissen finished 1st in his Junior scull heat however he did not compete in the final as it was to close to the Senior 4's event. In junior pairs Jamie and Will came 3rd.

Dover

Saturday 1^st of August was eagerly anticipated as many of the previous regattas had been cancelled due to bad weather; The likely hood of Dover being cancelled because of this was minimal as Dover regatta takes place within the shelter of the harbor. 

Samantha Epps, April Towner, Amanda Waters and Phoebe Shilling coxed by George finished 1st in the J18 quad. The same crew, however coxed by Darren Ingram finished 4th in junior ladies. Samantha and Phoebe then went on to finish 5th in senior ladies pair.

The Junior A mens crew consisting of Will Mihr, Luke Towner, Alex Farrant and Jamie Ross Cummings coxed by Phoebe Shilling coasted to finish in 2^nd. The Junior B crew of Nick Cox, Charlie Simpson, Ian Baker and Will Campbell coxed by Lydia finished last. Alex and Jamie then went on to finish a comfortable 2nd in the mens Junior pairs. The Senior mens crew of Ryan Hoskings, Ben Smissen, Ashleys Epps and Darren Ingram coxed by Samantha narrowly missed out on first place by ¼ of a canvas after a very tight race with Deal.

The Veterans crew of Harry Roberts, Dave Marmen, Roy Iddenden and Trever Brown coxed by Lydia finished 4th. The Novice crew of George, Charlie, Robert and John coxed by Kelsey finished 5th, which is the crews best result this season.

Finally, Ben Smissen finished 1st in Junior Sculls with John Cox following in 5th place.

Deal

The first races of the day was the senior mens heat, where the senior a crew of, Ryan Hoskings, Ben Smissen, Ashley Epps, Andy Cooper coxed by Samantha Epps qualified for the final, however for the final they were drawn on the outside waters, and main rivals deal were drawn on the inside waters. In the final Herne Bay crashed at the 2nd turn with Deal B causing both crews to be disqualified for being off station. Ben Smissen however went on to come 1st in the scull.

The Junior crew of Will Mihr, Luke Towner, Alex Farrent, Jamie Ross-Cummings coxed by Phoebe Shilling finished 2nd in both the Junior Race and Junior Senior race 

There were 2 crews in the veteran race, the A crew consisted of John Cox, Nikki Towner, Staurt Webb and Mark Davies coxed by Samantha Epps finished 4th, and the B crew of Harry Roberts, Dave Marmen, Roy Iddenden and Trever Brown coxed by Lydia finished 6th.

The junior ladies of Samantha Epps, April Towner, Amanda Waters and Phoebe Shilling coxed by George performed well and came a close 2nd. They went on to race senior ladies where they finished 5th. Samantha and Phoebe then finished 5th in senior ladies pair.

The Novice mens crew of George, Rob, Charlie and John coxed by Kelsey finished 6th.

Dover/J16

Every rower from Herne Bay who rowed at this regatta went home with a medal due to their performances on the water, which showed a bright future for the club.

The first race was the senior ladies quad, the A crew of Phoebe Shilling, Amanda Waters, Samantha Epps and April Towner finished 1st, followed by the B crew of Lydia Potterton, Megan Rolph, Danielle Greeves and Lisa North. The A crew then went on to win Ladies J16 quad and the B crew went on to win Ladies J14 quad.

The mens J14 quad of George, Rob, Charlie and Lucas finished 2nd.

In senior ladies sculls, Lauren finished 5th and April finished 7th after a crash at the start line. However in Ladies J16 sculls, April finished 1st and Lauren finished 5th. 

In senior ladies and J16 double sculls Amanda and April finished 1st and Samantha and Phoebe finished 2nd. However in J16 mixed double sculls April and Amanda finished 1st, followed by Samantha and Phoebe in 2nd, followed by Charlie and a Kings school rower in 3rd, followed by George and Rob in 4th!!! 

In J14 double sculls Herne Bay once again finished 2nd, 3rd and 4th.

Shoreham

Congratulations to the Senior Mens A crew of Ryan Hoskings, Ben Smissen, Ashley Epps, Andy Cooper coxed by Samantha Epps for winning the C.A.R.A Championships. In the race they were leading from the start, and finished with a 3 length lead.

The Junior mens crew of Will Mihr, Luke Towner, Alex Farrent and Jamie ross Cummings coxed by Phoebe Shilling once again finished 2nd in both Junior and Junior Senior. Jamie and Alex then went on to finish 2nd in the Junior pair.

The quad which consists of Phoebe Shilling, Amanda Waters, Samantha Epps and April Towner still remain undefeated by finishing 1st after having to complete a 2k course! (normally 500m).

The novice boys crew of George, Rob, Charlie and John coxed by Kelsey finished 5th.

 The Junior ladies consisting of Samantha Epps, April Towner, Amanada Waters and Phoebe Shilling finished 2nd and then went on to finish 5th in Senior ladies.

 In Junior scull Ben finished 2nd, and Ashley finished 6th. In Novice sculls Luke Towner finished 3rd and Harry Roberts finished 6th.