Arran Coastal Rowing Club wins Largs regatta honours
First away competitive event in almost two years
Arran Coastal Rowing Club headed to Largs on Saturday to compete in its first away competitive regatta in almost two years.
Five other Clyde clubs – Prestwick, Troon, Renegade, Cumbrae and Royal West – joined them at Largs Marina for an exciting day of competition at the Firth of Clyde Coastal Rowing Club’s annual regatta. Five of the six races were over a 1.2km course with port turns. There was one longer race of 4.5km.
Arran were unexpectedly down to a team of nine from the start but they managed to field strong capable crews in all the races they entered.
Sea conditions for the shorter races were favourable, with only a slight chop when going across the run of the tide. Conditions for the longer race, which took the skiffs over to Cumbrae, were a bit harder.
The increased distance and challenging conditions suited Arran and Troon as they left the pack well behind. Arran rowed hard, chasing Troon all the way, finishing only a boat length behind them for what was thought to be a second place finish. But Arran were demoted to third place as a result of a rule technicality. Arran were unable to field a crew for the novice race as they had no eligible rowers so missed out on points.
Despite this setback for Arran, final results confirmed how close the racing was, with Firth of Clyde, Troon and Arran all finishing with the same number of points. Arran were declared overall winners as they had two first positions, two seconds and a third. If anyone would like to try rowing, contact any club member.