Bexhill target south glory

The CARA (Coast Amateur Rowing Association) league champions for the 14th consecutive year will travel to Swanage for the hotly-anticipated South Coast Championships this weekend.

Club treasurer Phil McCorry said: “Given that we’ve not raced for about five weeks now, I think people are looking forward to it and at the same time are nervous as well. Hopefully we’ll come away with some good results and finish on a high going into the winter.”

The South Coast Championships bring together the premier crews from the CARA (Kent and Sussex) and Hants & Dorset Amateur Rowing Association for a grand finale to the season.

Bexhill will have the largest representation of any CARA club with two crews in the main championship events and eight crews in the open events tomorrow (Saturday), plus three crews in the junior regatta on Sunday.

The club will be represented in the championship events by the men’s senior four of Mark Mitchell, Doug Holdaway, Matt Hellier, Kieran Cahill and cox Rachel Holdaway, and in the ladies’ senior fours by Rachel Garland, Katie Skelton, Maisie Hill, Emma Young and cox Phil Holdaway.

The men’s senior four will be one of the favourites for the last race of the day, the coveted Bideford Bowl. They will be going for the triple crown having already won the CARA Championship and Pompey Grand (at the Southsea Regatta which also involves CARA and Hants & Dorset clubs) earlier in the summer.

The ladies’ senior four - who will be on the water an hour before the men - have an outside chance of success at an event where they came fourth last year. They came second at Southsea this summer and have gained momentum over the second half of the season.

In the open events, Bexhill will be represented by an open vet 50 crew, an open ladies’ senior four, an open ladies’ junior four, an open ladies’ novice four, an open men’s junior four, an open men’s senior crew and an open men’s junior senior crew.

Hastings Rowing Club will also be represented at the championships. Paul Knight, Kevin Smith, Tim Ash, Ian Smith and cox Jack Dodrill will compete in the veteran fours tomorrow.