" T h e B u l l " T a u r u s N e w s l e t t e r Issue 3, March 2005 Website www.taurusboatclub.co.uk/ Email [email protected] Got any gossip? INDEX News, views, photos 2 Index and committee information and other evidence? 3 Chairman’s Welcome Can go online or in the 4 “Doing it blind” – Adaptive World Champs 2003 next newsletter. Long 5 Rowing the Kiel, Mike Green and active Taurus stories and photos 6 Stag nights, Wargrave frolics and Lake Geneva which don’t fit here can 7 Vet’s Head 2004 go on the website. 8 On scribble patrol... HRR 2004 9 ....and Taurus abroad We’re keen to be in 10 Recreating the first Boat Race touch with Taurus 11 A Hazy Recollection of Henley members from all 12 Treasurer’s Report generations, so don’t 13 Family news, Henley women, Kit update hold back, send us 14 Dinner, dates, Lord Mayor’s, etc. whatever you’ve got. 15 Pix 16 More Schinias photographs On active service TAURUS COMMITTEE Alumni in the military Chairman and Big Pete Lowe are getting more Cheese numerous – nearly Vice-Chairman Alex Gandon enough to have a Secretary Vicky Brierley Combined Services Treasurer Simon Speirs Taurus entry at a Social Team Nick Dagg, John Gelling, Ash regatta one day. From Glover, Ben Lewis recent Brookes Publicity Rachel Quarrell, Ben Lewis graduates alone we Rowing Secy Phil Baker know of Emma Kitmeister Danny Marett Woodhams and Al OBUBC rep (M) Henry Bailhache-Webb Heathcote in the Army, OBUBC rep (W) Caroline O’Connor Ed Gray and Aidan Committee members Dave Peill, Jane Macmillan, Phil Riley in the Navy, Campbell while Rob Edmondson is joining up as an Army physio. Any Friends Reunited more? There’s now a Taurus section on the famous website. See also page 5 for news of what the more To find it, go to www.friendsreunited.com and look at visible ex-Brookes and ‘sports teams’ on the left-hand side of the screen. ex-Poly boys and girls are up to. Pick ‘Watersports’, enter ‘Taurus’ and click on the Taurus Boat Club link to get the list of members. 2 CHAIRMAN’S WELCOME moment he got out of the boat, I tried to shout back. However, all the other Brit supporters What a couple of years Taurus have enjoyed waving Union Jacks and calling Steve a hero since the last newsletter. I apologise for the drowned me out. Amazing to think that he is time it has taken to get this out but can only just one of the lads who has gone through the thank the team who have put this together. Spratley training machine. Just shows how far Specifically, Rachel Quarrell (Telegraph a few 20-minute ergos can take you. rowing correspondent) supported by Ben “the scribe” Lewis, and the other contributors who Congratulations Steve and keep going. have spent a great deal of time helping. Thank you all and I hope you enjoy this issue. On behalf of Taurus I also extend our best wishes to our other Internationals including The Veterans Head is upon us again. Taurus Jonno Devlin (Olympic eight) and of course to is looking to notch up the hat trick this year. In Alex Partridge who had his Olympic hopes 2004 the 1st eight followed up their record dashed by a cruel injury just weeks before breaking 2003 win with a slightly tighter 1 Athens. We are looking forward to seeing you second victory pushing London RC in to guys at the next Olympics. Brookes and second for the second year in a row. Three in Taurus have many other individuals knocking a row would be the first time that has ever on the door of International duty and we look been achieved. In the 2004 race Taurus also forward to supporting you whenever we can. boated two further crews made up of “all stars” of past Poly and Brookes history. The One man who has however slightly lowered competition between the two was pushed to his standards I am ashamed to report is Joe the limit – as was the lycra – with Taurus 2 Von Maltzahn who has defected down the hill sneaking a 10 second victory over their elders to that “other” university and will be doing in Taurus 3. Watch out T2 in 2005! battle with the light blues in this year’s boat race. Sorry Joe, in all seriousness good luck th Rather belatedly I would like to mention for March 27 . another “first” for Taurus. This was achieved in the coaching capacity by Alex Henshilwood Lads – how about a Taurus Grand crew in who took the Pangbourne College 1st eight to 2009 after the next Olympics?!? (One last victory in The Princess Elizabeth Cup at coxing duty Rowley?) Henley in 2003. Alex has now moved to teach at Eton and has already made his mark this season with his crew – the Eton 1st eight – Changing the subject entirely I am aiming to winning the Schools Head. stand down at the end of this year after the dinner which we will be holding in the autumn. Henley 2003 did not produce the sort of I will be proposing to the committee that the results we have come to expect from Brookes Chairman stands for a maximum of 2 years but 2004 saw the Visitors return to Brookes – with a view that new blood is regularly although I felt the crew should incorporate introduced in order that the position does not Taurus in the name with three of the crew become stale. paid up members. In addition to the Visitors, Taurus members featured in many of the I don’t even know how long I’ve been going events with winners in the Ladies, Stewards, for! I believe that with a regular change of and Wyfolds. leadership we will be able to encourage more new members with new ideas and there will Of course in the International arena Taurus be regularly renewed enthusiasm to organise members continue to feature prominently. To events and “publish newsletters”. have been on the finish line in Athens watching on as Steve “The Terminator” Please keep coming to the events, supporting Williams won gold with the coxless four was the Taurus cause and catching up with old an amazing moment. When Rowley Douglas mates. (Taurus and Olympic gold 2000, also watching from the stands) shouted to tell me Pete Lowe he had Steve on the mobile phone the 3 Doing it blind flew out we learned we had lost our original stroke Mark Pollock (LM2- Commonwealth Paul Askham-Spencer was in the successful adaptive silver medallist) due to illness. Hugh Huddy coxed fours who won gold at the last two World stepped in at the last minute, and without Champs (2003 men’s 1000m and 2004 mixed 1000m). having rowed together in Britain we We asked him to describe his experiences in Milan rearranged the seating, swapped the rigging 2003. The adaptive fours race with visually impaired around, and had a good five-day stint before athletes – all the rowers have relatively high levels of impairment and to even the field all (except the cox) we raced. During this time our coach Simon wear masks to reduce sight to zero. Goodey and cox Loretta Williams worked a miracle with us, blending our different styles “During the heat we had won by around 25 together. seconds, which gave us a fairly good idea we would win the event. With this in mind we Despite our weaknesses we had a fantastic decided that during the final we didn’t want row, all hooked up and following together, it any info on where our rivals were, because, if felt easy. About 300 to go however alarm all went to plan, it would be irrelevant. bells started ringing, because I heard movement off to my right. As our cox wasn’t Sat on the start with our masks on (hideous giving us feedback from other crews I had no blacked out ski masks), I could hear the idea who or what it was, later it turned out to sound of the other crews to left and right. be an umpire launch heading up the lake in There were two either side, and I could hear the far lane, but at the time I felt under them taking strokes, their coxes giving pressure. We had been going well, but put a commands, and the umpire instructing the lot in, and if someone had come back at this coxes. Usually you feel nervous at the start, point we could not have done much. Luckily but all I had to worry about was Loretta’s that wasn’t the case and we wound the rate voice (the masks helped concentrate the up and crossed the line first. When Loretta mind). With blades squared and buried we screamed “GOLD GB!” I was more heard the go and off we went. As well as a concerned with where the next crew was, visual impairment our stroke man Alan thinking we had been chased almost level. Crowther has a slight hearing impairment, so Later it emerged we had won by 24 seconds, the rest of us pulled, and he followed us for so after all Richard may have forgiven our the first stroke, squeezing when he felt our less then outstanding erg scores and dismal pressure. Despite our unorthodox starting rate. arrangement we had a clean start, and after 12 strokes I could no longer hear the other We met loads people going up for the crews’ blades.