Members of Durham ARC joined over 80 participants for the 30th anniversary British Rowing Tour between August 29th and September 1st, rowing along the upper reaches of the River Thames from Bablock Hythe to Mapledurham in a repeat of the 2018 tour, covering 71 kilometres in 3 days and passing through 14 locks along the route.
Seventeen crews took part in stable coxed quads, some loaned by British Rowing through the sponsorship partnership with Charles Stanley Wealth Management while others were provided by participating clubs which included Broxbourne, Maidstone Invicta, Falcon Oxford and Weyfarers. Caroline Scholl, Nicola Field, Julie Kitson, Linda Forwood and Julie Wilmore formed a Durham ARC crew, while George Adair and Helen Adair joined colleagues from Leicester Rowing Club.
Crews were based at the tour hotel in Abingdon for the duration of the event, with boats being transported to Bablock Hythe on Thursday and rigged ready to depart the following day. Friday included a lunch stop at St Edward’s School before arrival at Radley College in the afternoon, from where rowers were transported back to Abingdon for dinner.
Saturday included a stop at Clfton Hampden on the way to the overnight destination at Oxford University Boat Club at Wallingford.
On Sunday morning vehicles were transported to Mapledurham ready for the end of the tour, drivers returning to Wallingford for the final day of rowing which involved passing through 3 locks. A thunderstorm forecast on Sunday however meant the final 10km of the tour was abandoned.
An enjoyable time was had by all.
Thames tour 2024
British Rowing’s Recreational Rowing Committee has organised a national tour each year since 1994. A list of routes used over the past 30 years can be found here. Details of other tours are added to the Recreational Rowing website as they become available.