Thank you to Lucy Fiddick for this brilliant write-up of Ilfracome Regatta.
“I must go down to the seas again, to the lonely sea and the sky…”
Ilfracombe Gig Club have had a bit of an unfortunate run of regattas in the past, having to cancel four times before, and in the days before this weekend, unlikely though it sounded broiling in the blue calm skies in Bristol, we were receiving warning messages – it might not happen at worst, the racing may have to be truncated at best. But, on arrival, the organisers were optimistic, the tide was low and the sun was shining, and the water looked as if it had just a little bit of a bump – we were on for our fix of the sea!
Before that, though, it was bacon sandwiches (shared with a particularly agile seagull, taking brazen-beaked thievery to new levels) and Tai Chi on the beach where we learned who opts in, who is impressively bendy and who isn’t brilliant at swapping left from right or taking instruction (hmm…any guesses?)
Then Women’s A were off in Concorde. It turns out that sitting under the motorway for weeks of the driest, hottest weather and a slight crack in the bow does not make for the staunchest of boats. The crew returned with very wet feet and very wide grins, reporting that the calm of the harbour was deceptive. It was definitely not Bristol water, and this meant for an excellent and exhilarating row. Men’s A who raced second concurred!
“…and all I ask is a windy day with the white clouds flying,
and the flung spray and the blown spume, and the seagulls crying…”
As the day wore on, Concorde became a little more watertight, and the sea got bumpier with rearing white hrses visible from the viewpoint on the Quay near Damien Hirst’s Verity. Masterful coxing from Jean, on her racing debut for Women’s B, meant that Concorde stormed past three boats stuck at the first mark and kept their position in 4th. Surfing home on the last leg, the waves seemed enormous – I’m not sure the rowing was pretty, but oh the joy of it!
The men, seeing the fun to be had chose to race in Men’s B and the Super Vets crews followed with Becky gaining her Bristol racing cox stripes and Suzanne her first race cox experience. By this stage, the conditions were worsening – afternoon races were shortened and the Vet’s races were cancelled completely, meaning sadly that some people did not get to race at all. They had been generous in coxing, lifting and launching for other crews and were incredibly gracious about it – thank you Polly, Jean and Helen!
Once Concorde was snug and all the ratchets ratchetted, we had Suzanne’s delicious cream tea on the beach which added so much class that by happening just once, it has become tradition. Then it was swimming for some and pints for others – what a wonderful day!
Thank you to Ilfracombe Gig Club, our wonderful coxes, the racing captains and selectors, and Suzanne who co-ordinated.
“…and all I ask is a merry yarn from a laughing fellow-rover,
and quiet sleep and a sweet dream when the long trick’s over.”
Excerpts from John Masserfield’s Sea-Fever