Spring Martlet 2017

BOAT CLUB
BEN NORBURY (2014, ENGLISH), UCBC PRESIDENT
UCBC had much to celebrate at our annual
post-VIIIs dinner. Not only did we have 63
Univites involved across seven boats, but
not a single one of those crews suffered
a bump making us joint most successful
club overall. It is incredibly gratifying to see
the spirit of participation and personal
development in the club result in universal
intercollegiate success.
After a Hilary of flooded rivers and long
gym sessions had paid off in Torpids, both
top crews achieved excellent results at
the top end of Division One. W1 bumped
Magdalen on the first day and held off a
series of determined challenges from behind
to finish third on the river, matching the
record of the 1993 crew. M1 produced two
dominant bumps on Trinity and Magdalen
before the gut to finish sixth on the river.
Our lower crews managed to match the
senior VIIIs’ performances. W2 bumped
twice to solidify their position in division
three whilst M2 achieved revenge for their
Torpid’s spoons by bumping Linacre and
holding their position for the rest of the
week. Our M3 and W3 moved up two and
three places respectively, and Univ’s mascot
beer boat: ‘M-X’ narrowly missed out on
blades in division seven, but rowed with
characteristic vim.
Being the joint most successful boat club at
VIIIs leaves us in a challenging and exciting
position for the coming year. W1 will have
the headship in their sights and M1 will
aim to further consolidate their position.
More importantly, the whole club shall
aim to further entrench the source of our
prior successes: our spirit of openness
and willingness to get as many people out,
enjoying rowing, as possible.
42 THE MARTLET | SPRING 2017