MBC update, Winter Head to Head, Newnham Short Course and more!

There’s been lots of action in the last few weeks with various races both in Cambridge and further afield, so it’s probably a good idea to let you know what’s been going on!

Winter Head to Head

M1 raced in Winter Head to Head on the 27th January - this was a 2 x 2000m race (bridge to bridge in both directions) on the Cam. We finished 5th overall, less than 10 seconds behind the winners LMBC, with a combined time of 13:53. We were also fastest in the Lents 2nd division by 37 seconds, so earned a pot!

Newnham Short Course

W1, M2 and M3 all raced in Newnham Short Course on the 3rd February. W1 finished in a time of 8:59, M2 in 7:37 and M3 in 8:57.

Bedford Head

M1 and W1 both went to Bedford on the 11th February for Bedford eights and fours head - a quick 2km head race downstream. W1 finished with a time of 7:57, beating Lucy Cavendish and finishing 10th in their division overall. M1 logged a time of 6:06, finishing second in the division and third fastest of all the boats there, only four seconds behind the winners Downing.

Pembroke Regatta

W1, M1, M2 and The Mallory Club (MBC alumni) all raced in Pembroke regatta last weekend.

W1 raced Wolfson W1 in their first round, beating them by a decisive 2 lengths over the 1100m course, but then lost to Lucy Cavendish W1 in the next round, who didn’t have a first round race before (luck of the draw!).

M2 were drawn against a strong Jesus M2 crew in the first round. Magdalene held strong for the first 300m, but by the railway bridge the more experienced Jesus crew had pushed ahead and eventually won by a length. Nevertheless good result for M2 against a crew a full division ahead of them in the bumps charts.

M1 drew St Edmund’s in the first round, beating them by 3/4 of a length after getting ahead early but failing to get clear water. They then came up against LMBC M1 in the second round, a somewhat daunting prospect to be racing the headship crew, but after a good start and some solid racing came out as winners by only a canvas - a great result. They then beat First and Third Trinity in the semi-final by 1 1/4 lengths in a much more decisive race, and came up against Caius in the final. After 90 seconds both crews were level, but after three fierce races Magdalene started to fade and Caius walked away, in the end winning by 1 1/2 lengths. All in all a great result; looking promising for bumps.

The Mallory Club (MBC alumni) also fielded an eight to enter into the MAlum division. It was great to see alumni back at MBC from the eighties all the way to graduating last year, and despite losing to a stronger (and much more youthful) Caius alumni crew in the first round a great time was had by all. We hope to see more alumni back for City Sprints next term, as well as supporting us in both Lent and May bumps.

Finally, here’s a fantastic photo of W1 out on the Cam early in the morning as they continue to prepare for Lent Bumps.

I hope everyone is having a great week, and you’re all looking forward to Lent Bumps! There really isn’t long to go now so let’s keep the focus and improvements coming right to the end, and I look forward to supporting, racing, and celebrating with everyone.

By James Richardson, MBC Captain of Boats & Men’s Captain