RGS Worcester BC welcomes back Cambridge cox in triple boat launch

Worcester Boat Launch

RGS Worcester Boat Club marked the arrival of new Chief Coach Joe Lyons with a row-past and a boat-naming ceremony on Saturday 26th September in which three boats were given the traditional treatment.  Former Alice Ottley pupil and Cambridge cox Carole Burton was top-of-the-bill, spectacularly smashing a bottle of bubbly over the bows of the coxed quad which bears her name.

Earlier in the day, fifteen boats ranging from VIIIs, through coxed and coxless quads to single sculls rowed past the RGS and Worcester RC boat-houses; the flotilla was led off by the Year 9 beginners group in an Octuple, and the final boat was a single scull manned by ex-RGS pupil Tom Clark, who won a Bronze medal racing in the Great Britain U23 VIII at the World Championships in the summer.

Tom’s mother Sarah later named the new state-of-the-art single scull after him, and a coxless pair was then named in recognition of Roger Tarry, who coached for 20 years at RGS with great success; this time it was Roger’s wife Jenny who did the honours.  Finally Carole Burton, who made history in 1986 by becoming the first girl to cox a Cambridge Boat Race crew, spoke of how she learned to row at Evesham Rowing Club as there was no rowing at the Alice Ottley School; she was impressed to see some thirty RGS girls were now able to enjoy the sport of rowing and compete at a high level.

Back inside the boat house the Club welcomed new Teacher i/c Rowing Joe Lyons who took over at the beginning of the month from Mike Vetch after a twenty-two year stint in charge.  Joe was an international canoeist who represented Great Britain in many different disciplines; he then had huge success as chief coach at Canford School in Dorset: he led them to many national triumphs and several boys and girls achieved international vests under his tutelage.  In a brief address, Joe spoke of the huge commitment required by rowers who wanted to succeed, offset by the rewards that come to the dedicated.