Univ approaching Temple Island on the Henley stretch

The year started with a baptism by fire for a brave group of UCBC rowers and coxes, who rowed 165km from our boathouse in Oxford to Vesta Rowing Club in London. We did this across 3 days – the first day to Reading, then to Windsor. We are very grateful to all the clubs that hosted us for our breaks; we feel very lucky to have visited so many different clubs. Some highlights include the row down the Henley stretch, as well as past Windsor castle, and many many historic locks and bridges!

The crew celebrating at Vesta R.C.

Thanks to everyone who supported us, including Nick and the lock party, who drove our minibus and helped us with opening the locks. Most importantly, thank you to everyone who donated to our fundraiser! We were able to raise over £2,700 for our training camp in Gloucester. We hope you enjoyed the reception at Vesta – we certainly enjoyed the celebration.

An ergo demonstration at Gloucester with head coach Jono

With only a week for our hands to recover, we started the term on the lovely Gloucester stretch, where we were able to have outings of over 14km while only spinning once. We had 6 outings across 3 days, building the foundations of our technique for the term. We were also able to try a variety of boat sizes, with many members having their first time in the pair / double / single. This was a great way to start the term and reunite after summer, setting the expectations for the year and getting off on the right foot. We then moved to Oxford for another week of preseason training, including outings in a variety of boat sizes, group steady ergs, and the UCBC triathlon – a team challenge involving a bike in Univ gym, a run to the boathouse, and an erg, followed by a social in the club room! This certainly set the senior squad up for a great term, and we are very grateful to everyone who helped make this possible.

Amber Ford
Women*s Captain 2025-26

Fours Head B Crew

MT25 has been an excellent term for the UCBC senior women. With unprecedented conditions allowing more water time in Michaelmas than in recent memory, the 30-person squad has truly made the most of it, with 13 outings per week at the beginning of term while the sun times allowed. We began our training in the 4+, preparing for Autumn Fours and Fours Head as well as learning vital technical skills in the less stable shells.

IWL-A was a great practice opportunity for the racing fours – 4 boats were entered, 3 of which came in the top 4, and 2 of which came in the top 2. The top 4+ were faster than many 8+s and men’s boats. 3 boats were entered into Autumn Fours – an A boat and two matched lower boats. One of the lower boats made it to the quarter finals, and the A boat made it all the way to the final, coming second to a speedy Wadham 4+. Fours Head saw an equally strong performance, with two boats entered. The A boat came 13th out of 25, making them the fastest Oxford college there and even beating an OUBC boat. The B boat were not far behind, also faster than all of the other colleges and only 8 seconds behind said OUBC boat.​

W1 at the Fairbairn Cup – Photo by Ben Piper

Pushing off this amazing momentum into the back end of term, we shifted our focus to the 8+s in preparation for Fairbairns. IWL-B again provided a great opportunity for practice, with the first 8+ laying down the fastest time of all women’s crews. This puts us at the top of the IWL leaderboard going into the New Year, with 37 points. Two boats were entered into Fairbairns, both of which performed very well. W2 was entered in the Invitational category due to some substitution rules (many thanks to the subs for their support), and completed the 4.3km course in 19:27, placing them 7th of 13 boats. W1 raced in the college eights category, and came joint 8th of 36 crews with a time of 17:23, despite having to wind down and even pause due to catching the boat in front before overtaking was allowed. They were the fastest college there and we are very pleased with such a strong performance against the Cambridge crews. Looking ahead to Torpids, we have built a huge amount of momentum and are excited to take our places on bunglines 3 and 34. A huge opportunity is certainly dangled in front of W1. We also look to enter several lower boats and are excited to welcome the novices to the squad.

Amber Ford
Women*s Captain 2025-26

Shockingly good conditions on the Isis meant that 2025’s Michaelmas proved to be the busiest in years, allowing our men to get in mileage on the water as well as plenty of valuable racing experience.

A solid pre-season training block, first at Gloucester and then back on home water in Oxford, set the term up well. Our strong returning senior squad was bolstered by the arrival of 2 new faces: Oskar Grenmark-Pittaway, who joins us from Westminster, and David Land, the college’s new Finance and Investment Bursar. Both bring with them a wealth of experience and have been welcome additions to the squad.

The first half of the term was largely spent in fours, with Autumn Fours and Fours Head the key dates on the racing calendar. We entered three crews into Autumn Fours and were faced with some tough early round draws. Autumn Fours “A” were able to progress to the quarter final before a narrow loss to a strong Lincoln crew. The following weekend saw two crews head down to the tideway to tackle Fours Head. These crews finished 19th and 22nd in the Academic 4+ category, with Fours Head “B” putting in a particularly impressive performance and finishing fastest of any Oxford or Cambridge college crew.

Attention soon turned to our annual trip to the Cam for Fairbairn’s, where we would be entering an eight and a four. First up, it was the eight, where a strong effort saw us come home in 10th place and a huge improvement on last year’s performance. A very scratch four (including Rory back in a rowing rather than coxing seat) then outperformed expectations in the afternoon, finishing 12th and the fastest of any Oxford college four. Looking towards Hilary, we can be very excited about the men’s prospects as we build on the strong foundations laid in this term. The squad boasts great depth, as well as the potential to climb even closer to that elusive Torpids headship.

Charlie Towle and Rory Proudfoot
Men*s Co-Captains 2025-26

WNA at Tamesis Regatta (formerly known as Michaelmas Novice Regatta)

This term has been a huge success for the women*s novices with over 20 women learning to row for the first time and two brand new crews WNA and WNB training both on the Isis and in the erg room.

Spirits were high going into Week 7 with the Tamesis Novice Regatta running for the first time in three years, and it proved to be a very exciting ordeal. WNA smashed the first day, beating the Christ Church novices (following a klaxon!) Unfortunately, they lost their second race on the second day to a strong John’s side. Lots of racing was done though with 6 women*s side subs for an 8 person MNC crew on one of the days.

WNA at the Fairbairn Cup

In Week 8, WNA also made the trip down to Cambridge, racing at the Fairbairn’s Cup and coming in  at a very respectable 23rd!

All in all, it’s been a great term. Massive well done to all the rowers, and huge thanks go to Jocasta for being a wonderful coach! With so much momentum and potential going into Hilary, I’m super excited to see our new rowers integrating with the seniors and joining UCBC Torpids campaign!

Ellice Chen and Ella Allen
Women*s Co-Vice-Captains 2025-26

M1 at the Fairbairn Cup donning their distinctive “rhubarb and custard” base layers – Photo by William Connolley

It has been an exciting first term to be Men*s side Vice-Captain. This was the first time in some years that the Red Flag didn’t appear until the end of term, crucially after all the novice events on the Isis. We had particularly strong recruitment this term and came away with three novice boats; MNA, MNB and MNC, all of which performed extremely well in their first term of rowing.

In only six weeks, the novices faced their first event. On Saturday of Week 6, Univ’s MNA and MNB entered the Lion and Chough Regatta. In torrential conditions, both crews won their first-round ties. In the quarter-finals, both crews faced a tough draw. MNB lost to Oxford Academical’s (Accies) “A” by a length. MNA were also unlucky, losing to eventual winners Magdalen “A”, partly due to an unfortunate crab.

MNA at Tamesis Regatta

Nevertheless, the main novice event of the term, Tamesis Regatta, ran from Wednesday to Saturday of Week 7. MNA, MNB and MNC (with some generous help from WNB) all progressed through the early rounds despite some hurdles.

MNC faced John’s “A” with some last-minute super subs from the seniors in the round of 32. John’s headed to an early lead, however MNC rallied and, with a crab caught by John’s halfway up Boathouse Island, drew level. At the last moment, John’s unfortunately surged ahead to win by a canvas, bringing MNC’s campaign to an end.

MNB headed to their first race of the day against Hertford “A”. Mithu, an MNB rower, faced his twin brother’s boat and won by several lengths. MNB headed into the round of 16 against John’s “A” and, despite several super subs from WNA and WNB, lost by half a length. MNA continued their strong run and easily progressed to Saturday. In the quarter-final, MNA faced Pembroke “A”, a crew which looked particularly quick in the heats.

MNA gave it everything and, on a surge at the finish line, crossed in a dead heat. With uncertainty in the air over who won, we were told that there was to be an extraordinary re-row. With Pembroke up half a length at Univ Boathouse, MNA showed their superior fitness and pushed through, rowing the best they had to win clearly by half a length. In the semi-final against Queen’s “A” Univ won in a calm fashion by three lengths. In the final, they faced their previous foes, Magdalen “A”. Unfortunately, it was not to be. MNA absolutely backed themselves and flew out of the blocks, however it was Magdalen’s day and Univ lost out by half a length.

Tamesis Regatta 2025 was a resounding success. MNC were the most successful third eight, MNB the most successful second eight and MNA rowed the course eight times (the most of any crew) and came second overall. Univ showed their impressive depth at the novice level, and I was really proud to see them all do so well.

MNA at the Fairbairn Cup

It was not the end of training for the novices; after Tamesis Dinner, they faced their first 2k test. All of them performed extremely well, and I know a few seniors have taken note of their speedy times. Moreover, in Week 8, MNA and MNB went to Cambridge to represent Univ (and all of Oxford, being the only Oxonians there) at the novices’ Fairbairn Cup. They performed extremely well. MNA came 12th, and MNB came 17th over a 2700m course. A significant improvement on last year’s performance, which bodes well for the rest of the year.

The lower boats for Torpids are looking exciting – keep an eye out for the Beer Boat signups as we seek to beat the record for the most boats ever from UCBC rowing in Torpids!

Seb Collins and Fred Eccleston
Univ Men*s Co-Vice-Captains 2025-26

The term commenced with the introduction of many new rowers to the boat club, accompanied by a varied programme of social activities. These included several events held in collaboration with other college boat clubs, increasing the connection within the wider rowing community. A recently established tradition, the group hotpot also made its welcome return during Michaelmas term, offering an enjoyable opportunity for members across all year groups to bond in a relaxed setting.

Tamesis Dinner was inaugurated with pizzas served in Hall, followed by a series of awards recognising the novice rowers for their notable contributions to the club. The evening then progressed to the bar before culminating in the erg room, where friendly competition was actively encouraged and embraced.

Looking ahead, next term promises an exciting calendar of social events for both current and former members of the boat club. The annual Dino and Cassies Dinner held for previous first-boat rowers will take place on 31 January, alongside the Torpids Dinner, which celebrates the achievements of the club’s present athletes. The Torpids Dinner, held in the seventh week of Hilary Term on 7 March, serves as an annual occasion to acknowledge and commemorate the significant efforts made by UCBC in one of Oxford’s largest and most demanding rowing races.

Amy Welsh and  Alex Lake
Social Secretaries 2025-26

Key dates for next year

• Saturday 31 January – Dinos and Cassies Dinner for all those who rowed or coxed in the College Men’s and Women’s 1st VIII on all days of Summer Eights (invitations have been sent)

• Wednesday 4 March–Saturday 7 March – Torpids

• Saturday 28 March – Eights Head

• Wednesday 27 May–Saturday 30 May – Summer Eights

• Sunday 31 May – Martlet Regatta

In September, six Univ rowers and a coxswain began trialing for the university squads (a record?). After three months, only Paolo Cicuta (Isis 2025), Phoebe Forward and Olivia Pegge remain. I’m sure you will join us in wishing them all the best of luck in their Trial Eights races on Friday, 19 December. You can follow the live blog of the races here: https://www.theboatrace.org/oxford-trial-eights.

Phoebe

Paolo

Olivia