This is a letter from Bryan Weir (MRC President), to let members know what was going on in the Club. It’s a longish letter - there is a lot to catch up on - so feel free to skip parts and to scroll down to the bits that interest you.

World Championships, Munich
First off, congratulations to Amy Ives, Zoe Uphill, Tom Laurich and Pete Hardcastle on some really mighty performances at the Worlds.

Zoe and Pete, our single scullers, performed extraordinary feats. After a nightmare preparation (involving a stress fracture and a full month out of the boat), Zoe finished 1st in the C Final (13th in the world) and along the way proved she is not far off the pace required to reach an A Final). Not bad for a first up effort! Pete Hardcastle, having missed the original selection, came back from Henley (where he had raced very well indeed) and took a month’s break - never imagining he would be going to the Worlds. Not exactly ideal preparation. Nevertheless he rowed fantastically and went on to finish 11th in the world and qualified the mens’ single for Beijing. A truly great effort.

Amy (rowing in the W4x) had a tough run through the preliminary races. The crew missed the A Final and was looking a bit ordinary for the B Final - but they rowed the race of their lives, storming home to win in the last few strokes and qualifying the boat for Beijing. Another truly great effort.

To Tom (in the M8+), what can we say? We know the Eight did not achieve the results you had hoped for, and we know there is not much we can say to make you feel better about that. However, we also know how hard you and your crew worked and the effort and commitment you all put into the program. From our perspective you have (once again) represented the country and our Club with distinction and we applaud your efforts. Forget Munich….roll on Beijing. We will be behind you all the way!

Congratulations also to Nick Garratt. You’ve provided the technical platform and the coaching environment for our rowers’ successes. I don’t know when an Australian rowing club last produced both the Mens and Womens Single Sculling representatives at a World Championships, but I’m sure it doesn’t happen often and I’m sure it isn’t just luck. And this from a Club which Rowing Australia refuses to acknowledge has an elite program!

Commiserations to Dan Noonan, who was selected as the single sculler but was forced to retire through injury sustained while training in Tasmania and returned to Mosman a few weeks ago. It was in fact Dan’s injury which created the vacancy which Peter Hardcastle filled so magnificently. Dan - you must have been terribly disappointed to have withdrawn from the team, but we all hope you will be able to bounce back for next year

Finally, by way of postscript, I think we all owe a vote of thanks to our rowing correspondent Will Liley, whose dispatches from the front line kept us fantastically well informed on our crews’ (and coaches’!) performances. Great job Will!

Canadian National Masters, Vancouver Island

More congratulations. This time to Anne Taylor. While travelling around the world watching her daughter (Pip) racing in Grand Prix Triathlon events, Annie took some time off to compete in the Canadian Masters and ended up winning the E Grade Single - beating a former Olympian or two I’m told!!

Well done Annie on a well deserved win. You are an inspiration. If the rest of the Mosman Masters squad trained half as hard as you do we’d be unbeatable.

World Masters Championships, Zagreb

Speaking of Mosman Masters (and inspirations), a crack unit of MRC veterans left Australia last week to take on the world’s best at the World Masters Rowing Championships in Zagreb.

The squad, comprising Peter Mayoh, Phil Titterton, John Hardy, John (Dasher) May, John Struick, Graeme Farrell, Kerry Braslin and Steve Gordon - and coxed by Rob Wright from Drummoyne Rowing Club - have their sights firmly set on winning the F8 Championship and grabbing as many smaller boat medals as they can lay their hands on.

First race is this Thursday 6th September and it’s all over by Sunday the 9th.

Good luck lads. I’m sure you’ll all wear the prawn suit with pride and we look forward to seeing the medals (and hearing the stories!) when you return.

Coaching Movements

As most of you will know, there have been some movements in the coaching group since the end of last season.

Mark Beer has accepted a position as Boatman at Jesus College, Cambridge, while Alfie Young has accepted the position as Diretor of Rowing at Queenwood School.

In Alfie’s case, the new appointment will see him have a continuing relationship with MRC - not only will we will see him at Pearl Bay regularly with his Queenwood crews, but it is likely (depending on his school commitments) that we will be able to find him a continuing coaching role at the Club. In Mark’s case, however, the change of jobs will come with a change of residence. Mark will be moving to Cambridge and we will not see him again until he returns to visit us.

Mark has been an essential part of Mosman Rowing Club for several years, and I do want to take this opportunity to thank him on behalf of all of us for the commitment he has shown and the work he has put in. He has been a reliable and extremely able deputy for Nick Garratt - particularly with our young oarsmen - and an exceptional club man. What few people in the Club would know is that Mark has done all this for very little financial reward.

Thank you for everything you’ve done for us Mark. Good luck at Cambridge. You go with our best wishes and we look forward to following your future and hearing from you as often as you want to drop us a line.

Appointment of Tony Blay as Vice Captain

….and while on the topic of people who have been wonderful club men, I am delighted to announce the appointment of Tony Blay as Vice Captain of the Club.

We have been managing without a vice captain for a while, but it has become clear to the Committee that we really need an extra hand to help out. The work load on Club Captain John Dollisson has been considerable and is only going to increase as we move into what should be a very busy rowing year.

Tony Blay, as most of you would know, has been a selfless servant of Mosman Rowing Club for many, many years and continues to be a tireless (sleepless?) worker at Pearl Bay. Apart from running a very successful recreational rowing program, he manages the Commonwealth Bank Corporate Rowing Program (the most important fund raising activity on our calendar) and is forever helping out with boat repairs, boat transport, kids coaching and numerous other tasks around the shed.

Tony’s appointment will allow him to have greater input into areas of Club operations which are presently under-represented on the Committee - recreational rowing being a prime example - and should allow better co-ordination of the rowing activities at Pearl Bay. I believe he will be an excellent Vice Captain and I thank him on behalf of the Committee for agreeing to take on the role.

Mosman Time Trial Regatta

The second “annual” MRC time trial regatta was held last Saturday.

With Nick Garratt and Alfie Young overseas at the Worlds, and John Dollisson away in Melbourne, the task of organising the regatta fell to Mark Beer and Tony Blay, who as usual stepped up to the task and did a great job. They were assisted by about 15 club members, and I’d like to thank all of them for helping out - especially Linda on the barbeque.

About twenty crews - fewer than last year - turned up to race over the 5k course and, despite the efforts of Mark and Tony and all our volunteers, I’d give us a mark of about 6 out of 10 for the way we ran the regatta. I think we need to decide if we really want to hold it. If we do, we need the whole club to support it and we need to make it a lot bigger. It has the potential to be a great day in the rowing calendar (and a good fund raiser for the Club), but we need to move it to a better time of the year and re-define our objectives.

It’s an issue the Committee will address over the next few weeks.

Pearl Bay Development

The Peal Bay development is proceeding, although a little slower than we would have hoped.

Jim Battersby and David Wear have agreed to act as an “owner’s sub-committee” to assist the Committee. Their involvement broadens the degree of expertise brought to the construction project and provides a “sanity check” to ensure that those of us who have been living with the project for some time don’t get carried away with it and start to make poor decisions.

We have received renewed commitments from Loreto, Queenwood and SCECGS Redlands, each of whom will occupy the new boatshed. Ascham has withdrawn to pursue a joint venture with Cranbrook School at St George Rowing Club.

Through Terry O’Hanlon, we have called for tenders for the first stage of the development. I’ll keep you posted.

Schools Rowing at MRC this Season

Starting in October, Loreto and Queenwood will return to the spit for the 2007-8 school rowing season. This year, they will be joined by about 30 boys and 30 girls from SCECGS Redlands. They will take up the space within our shed vacated by Ascham, and in addition move a container full of boats onto our “graveyard” area. We also expect to host St Augustines and North Sydney Girls High School.

Please make all the the kids and their coaches welcome. They are an important part of what we do.

Representatives on NSW Rowing Association

Few members will know that, for the past two or more years, Kerry Braslin and Jo Burnand (part time coxswain and wife of Craig Muller) have been MRC’s representatives on the board of the New South Wales Rowing Association.

Both have done an excellent job, with Kerry in particular keeping us appraised of the numerous and often confusing comings and goings of our illustrious State Association. However, with Craig and Jo now relocated in Canberra, and Kerry finding other, more interesting, things to do with his spare time, we need to find someone new to represent us on the Association.

It is easy for us to ignore the proceedings of the Association - but we do so at our peril. Decisions are regularly made which affect us, our rowers and the sport’s future. We need to have a voice.

The Committee will over the next few days be looking to find a new representative. If you are interested in taking on the job, please let me know. Otherwise, you can wait for the tap on the shoulder…

Mosman Rowers Limited (aka “the Rowers”)

Many members have asked me whether I know how the licensed club is faring.

So far as I am aware, the club is faring well. I have been in contact with their President (Gavin Hart) and Treasurer (Roger Williams) on numerous occasions (as have John Dollisson and Graeme Farrell) and I have also spoken regularly to Secretary Manager David Taylor. Relations between the two clubs remain friendly and co-operative - although we are having a somewhat frustrating time trying to finalise some financial loose ends arising out of the separation!

The Rowers have their AGM next Wednesday at 6 pm. They appear to have forgotten to send Notices of Meeting to any of the former rowing members (whose memberships remain current until 30 September), but would be happy to include any former rowing members who wish to attend. I shall be attending if I can.

Social Activities

We are keen to start holding some regular social activities for members. They don’t have to be major occasions - perhaps the odd film night or Sunday barbeque - and they certainly don’t always have to be fund raising events.

I have approached a group of senior club members (who will remain nameless at this stage) to see if they would be prepared to take on the role of devising an annual program (perhaps 5 or 6 events a year) and working out how it should be implemented.

Ideally the program will include some events which all members can enjoy - including recreational rowers and perhaps school parents and coaches - although there may be some (for example the “Skiffies Lunches” traditionally arranged by Peter Chapman) which are only convenient for those who are can sneak away from work for an afternoon. I would like to think the program will include a Henley Night .

Purchase of New Eight

Thanks entirely to the efforts and enthusiasm of Peter Chapman, a group of masters have clubbed together to pay for a new Eight.

It’s a Kirs boat, designed for a 95kg crew and has already been road tested (favourably) by the Australian Eight. It will be reserved for elite rowers, and will be the flagship of the MRC fleet.

Well done Chappo. And thanks to all your generous donors (including yourself).

Annual Subscriptions

Annual subscriptions and racking fees are due on 1 October. You’ll be sent a reminder. Please pay promptly - we need the money!

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That’s all from me. Apologies once again for the length of the letter!

Best wishes to all.

Bryan Weir
President
4 September 2007