Madog off the mark in Celtic Challenge
MADOG MYC Rowing registered several wins in the opening WSRA Northern League races of the 2017 season, with boats from Conwy to Aberdyfi taking part.
Conditions on the Menai Straits opposite Beaumaris Castle, where all the races started and finished, were nigh-on perfect.
First off were the Ladies, with a total of seven boats entered.
As there was only one boat entered in the Novice race, Madog MYC’s Ysbryd Eryri, this vessel raced alongside the ladies.
Madog MYC’s ladies veterans in Fleetwing got off to a great start, but a youthful Ynys Môn Ladies crew were in hot pursuit.
Madog led at the buoy turn, but Ynys Môn stepped up the pressure and finished in first place in a time of 29 minutes 36 seconds.
Fleetwing crossed the line in 30:35, winning the Ladies Veterans race, with Beaumaris third in 31:05.
Madog MYC’s novices, including four debutants, clocked a very competitive time of 32:10.
Madog MYC’s ladies supervets crew in Madog came second in category behind Beaumaris.
In the Men’s race, with 10 boats entered, Aberdyfi Senior crew were comfortable winners in 37:22, with Ynys Môn Senior Veterans second (39:18), and winning their category, followed hot on their stern by Madog MYC senior supervets in Fleetwing in 40:12, also topping their section.
Meanwhile, further back the battle between Madog and Beaumaris was hotting up.
With less than half a mile to go, Madog finally caught up with Beaumaris and took a lead which they would maintain to the finish, coming second in the senior Veterans race.
With less than a 30-minute break, several of the participants of the men’s race were back in their boats for the mixed.
The course again headed towards Bangor pier, but this time turned back about half a mile short of this point, giving a three and a half mile race.
With a total of 11 boats this was the most contested race of the day.
Once again it took a good half mile for the race leaders to start to emerge, with two Ynys Môn boats and three Madog MYC boats taking the early lead.
There was not much between the leading boats all the way, with some jostling for position on the buoy turn as some boats fared better than others.
As they crossed the line there was just two and a half minutes separating the first five boats, and six minutes between all 11.
First home was Ynys Môn mixed team in 28:04, with their mixed veterans crew in second place (28:44), winning the veterans category.
They were followed by three Madog MYC boats, the mixed team in Fleetwing in 29:33, the mixed supervets in Madog (30:01), winning the Supervets category, and the mixed veterans in Ysbryd Eryri in 30:34.
Lawrence Washington of club sponsors Purple Moose Brewery congratulated the Madog crews.
MADOG MYC claimed their first victory in the arduous Celtic Challenge - the world’s longest true rowing race.
Fleetwing came third overall, and were first mixed boat home in 23 hours and 25 minutes.
The mixed crew were: Christine Bloor, Sarah Thomas, Gavin Buckley, David Jones, Leslie Thomas-Pugh, Elaine Hackett, Simon Pendrell, Lawrence Washington, Bob Chamberlain, Richard Gloster, Elaine Bloor-Walsh and Sophie Marcillac-Perry.
Terry Birch, Mike Davies, Geoff Wood and Rodney Morgan were on the support boat and RIB, with Gill Gloster and Steve Perry providing ground assistance.
The Celtic Challenge normally takes place every two years between Arklow on the east coast of Ireland and Aberystwyth, a distance of 90 miles or 80 nautical miles.
The last Challenge in 2016 had to be cancelled due to bad weather in the Irish Sea, which saw the next Challenge brought forward to 2017.
The race is scheduled for 4pm on Saturday of the first May bank holiday weekend, but can start any time between Friday afternoon and Sunday afternoon depending on the weather, with the crossing taking anything between 16 and 28 hours.
This year’s Challenge went ahead starting at the earliest possible time at 1.15pm on the Friday, just as the high tide was turning at Arklow.
The ladies, mixed and miscellane- ous teams all set off together, while boat or yacht. the men’s teams started two hours As daylight faded to dusk the forelater. cast southerly winds grew stronger,
Conditions at the start were fairly whipping the waves up to 4-5ft swells, benign, with moderate swells, and all and making rowing that much harder. boats made good time in relatively During the night the swells slack waters. increased further to 6-8 feet, mostly
Madog Rowing’s mixed team in hitting the boats sideways on. their Celtic longboat Fleetwing were The crews battled through, trying to first to the buoy, with the other leadmake every stroke count, but the coning boats hot on their stern. ditions forced a number of withdraw
On turning east, theals.flotillaspread out as each boat sought tactical With some improvement in condiadvantage either from taking a more tions but fighting a strong southerly direct line, or by following the tides all the way, the men’s crew from Varsouth and later back north. try in Ireland crossed the finish line
Each team comprised 12 rowers, first in 18 hours 54 minutes, followed with four rowers and a cox in the rowby Aberystwyth Men 19.24, Madog ing boat at any one time, whilst the MYC third in 23.25 and Dun Laoghaire others caught a few moments to Ladies were last of the finishers in recover on the accompanying support 26.01.