Girl on the River

The more observant amongst you will have noticed that things have been a bit quiet lately over at Girl on the River. It’s not that I’ve abandoned my lovely readers; it’s just that I’ve been a bit busy with other stuff. Now, obviously rowing is important. Very important. And rarely more so than at the [...]

Read Full Post »

This is how most of us felt when we heard the news that the weekend Heads of the River races had been cancelled. It wasn’t entirely unexpected – the rumours had been flying round Twitter for hours, and the weather forecasts for once agreed that it was to be perishingly cold, snowy and windy to [...]

Read Full Post »

So this weekend it’s finally happening:  I shall be rowing the Tideway for the first time, at the Vesta Vets’ Head – four long miles of the Thames, following the Boat Race course downstream. Like everyone else, we’ve invested a fair bit of time and sweat into this event, and have a shiny new race [...]

Read Full Post »

Rowing is, without a doubt, one of the hardest things I’ve ever done. It challenges me on every level – mental, physical, emotional – and I am endlessly in awe of those who row at elite level. But if that kind of hero worship weren’t enough, now I discover that elite athletes aren’t just good [...]

Read Full Post »

There was a time when completing an endurance event for charity was Big News and would have people immediately reaching for their wallets. The fact is, though, that rarely a day goes by when news of yet another person or crew embarking on a tough challenge to raise money for a worthy cause. Heck, when [...]

Read Full Post »

“Never give in, never give in – never, never, never, never – in nothing, great or small, large or petty – never give in.” This uncompromising quotation, from a wartime speech by Sir Winston Churchill, is pinned to the wall of our rowing club gym, and has kept me going through many a tough erg [...]

Read Full Post »

Over the last few chilly weeks, when our outings have involved biting winds and chapped hands, our women’s squad has been motivated by one thing (other than the naked desire to win): the prospect of reviving ourselves with coffee and cake when we debrief in the clubhouse afterwards. Taking it in turns to do the [...]

Read Full Post »

I am delighted to announce that the winner of my BNY Mellon Boat Race Which Blue Are You? competition to win a dark blue or light blue scarf is … (*drum roll*) … Cambridge supporter, Lydia (aka @scullinggirl), who wins a light blue, Cambridge scarf! Although I chose the winner at random (assigning each entrant [...]

Read Full Post »

I’m getting pretty excited about this year’s Boat Race, which is taking place on 31st March. For a start, exactly a week earlier I shall be racing the full four mile course (in reverse) for the first time myself, at the Vets’ Head (on the same day, incidentally, that the women’s Boat Race is taking [...]

Read Full Post »

As most of you will have guessed by now, I’m a little prone to overdoing it. True to form, when I was invited to a running event to roadtest a brand new trainer, I accepted without a second thought. No matter that I’d been released from physio a mere two days before the event. No [...]

Read Full Post »