Winter training normally starts well – you actually look forward to a winter of training after either a good or bad summer of racing with optimism that this will be your year! Racing during the winter consists of Head of the River races – time trials where crews start at 10 to 15 second gaps and race of distances around 3 or 4 miles. The culmination of the winter racing season comes with the Head of the River race on the Tideway in London, where 400 crew race in the Men's' Head and over 300 in the Women's Head over the "Championship Course" (the same course as the Boat Race but from Chiswick to Putney).
At Wallingford we have what I regard is the best piece of river on the Thames. It is the longest stretch (between locks) upstream of Teddington. This meant rowing outings were on average usually 16k from the club to Cleeve lock (or 20k lock to lock).
On the river we were running one Head Race – Wallingford Long Distance Sculls, which started in the early 1970's. It was for sculling boats and run over a 4km course. It had a good healthy entry (although in 1995 it was less that half of what it is now), but with the entry all being small boats it was run to as a "service" to rowing rather than to help provide some fund raising income to the club.
I had joined Wallingford Rowing Club in 1993 competing in a "pub" regatta. I had not long returned from working in Indonesia and entered this event – not winning my first race – so spent the rest of the day having a few beers. But I was fairly hooked on rowing (which became my focus for several years). After the pub regatta I joined a beginner's squad for a 12 week course. At the end of the course in early December a time trial was held .This was my first real race – only around 3k, but lots of fun. From then on I ended up training and racing in a novice squad and having a really good time. And I ended up running the novice squad!
In 1994 Wallingford Rowing Club was attempting to transform itself. It had taken on debt via a debenture scheme to buy new boats and blades and adult squad rowing at the club was becoming very healthy. I was now running the senior men's squad – which was numbering over 30 people with the introduction of professional coaching.
The debenture scheme did indeed transform the club – new boats and blades and lots of people rowing. But the large number of people rowing meant further strains on equipment. But with no more money to pay for any new equipment – we were also paying for a professional coach.
At the end of the year another time trial was held at the club with entries from all the club squads as well as Oxford Brookes (who at time rented two racks at the club) and some Oxford colleges.
After that event I was thinking why we weren't running a proper head race – rather than one for 20 or so crews. I had just helped at my first Wallingford Sculls and was pretty driven at that time. So (on 25th November 1994) I faxed the Amateur Rowing Association (now British Rowing) to ask for the event to be put into the calendar. The contents of the fax were simply:
"We wish to hold a small boats head (Wallingford Small Boats Head) next year on Sunday December 10th, 1995. Could you please add this to the list of regattas/heads to be passed at the ARA council meeting on the 27th. If you require any further information please do not hesitate to contact me at work on the above number, at home on XXXX XXXXXX or by email at XX@XX.co.uk. Alternatively contact Pete Sudbury, the club captain on XXXX XXXXXX."Amazingly we were in the calendar after the ARA council meeting.
I'm not sure how I got the club to agree to do this – pretty sure it involved a conversation with the club captain at the time (Pete Sudbury) who probably said great idea and go ahead. Nor did I know what I had let myself in for.
You will note that the intention was to run a small boats head – the idea was to accept entries in sweep oars boat (to complement the sculling head) but not eights!
Next – the first Wallingford Head
