TAYFORTH FIVE
The students of Stirling and Dundee recently contested the fifth annual Tayforth Championships at Stirling under the patronage of Carronvale Homes, one of Scotland's Leading housebuilders. A full programme of men's and women's races were held, both selected and reserve crews. The men's reserve race was a close tussle, the visitors pressing on the hosts course to get the racing line. However with the firm intervention of the umpire, no blades clashed and fair play was maintained. A moment of comedy saw the launch struggling to keep up with the crews, so a passenger was jettisoned mid-race with the instruction to walk back to the club! A guest crew from the 'other' SUBC - Strathclyde - filled in for Stirling in the Women's Reserve race. The spots rowed neatly to give Dundee their only taste of defeat of the day.
The women's Tayforth race was a clash of the Doonhammers, with former club mates Laura West and Joanna Sarahs lining up against each other. The Dundee crew, featuring two former Scotland Juniors to Stirling's one, dominated this race to lift the Carronvale Rosebowl with an excellent display of precision and power. The Tay rowers were also victorious in the mens race, with the lightweights (the guts of last year's reserve crew) claiming the Carronvale Cup by a good margin. The organisers are indebted to the generous sponsorship of Carronvale Homes who agreed to support the event. Sales manager Graham presented the Trophies and Medals to grateful winners complimenting all the competitors on their efforts. Thanks again to Stirling RC who gave use of their facilities for the day, and especially John Deas, who acted as umpire.
Next year's race will be held in April 2008.
DUNDEE DOMINANCE
The Fourth Tayforth race was staged this Saturday. This was the first time there have been mens and womens reserve races, giving the second crews a chance to shine. The Womens reserves was taken by Dundee, with several strong oarswomen taking a victory of three lengths over the course. The Mens reserves produced the race of the day. Stirling rounded the inside of the last corner to close dramatically on Dundee. The final hundred meters saw a desparate charge, but the visitors held off the hosts by just three quarters of a length.
Heavy conditions for the reserve races gave way to a faster stream for the Main Races. The Womens crews shot off to an impressive start, with the Dundee women taking an early lead and stretching it with every stroke, claiming the verdict of 'easily'. This bodes well for the Henley ambitions of this squad. The final race was the Mens crews. As DUBC ripped out an impressive margin over a powerful start, the face of the Stirling Cox apparently said it all. The big men simply sat on their opponents all the way home, to cruise to a solid victory. The clean run levels the series to two wins each, and leaves SUBC scratching their heads to find a way to break this winning streak.
The prizegiving conducted by SARA president Mary Massaro, awarded the laurels of victory to the Tay rowers, and also recognised the efforts of the many volunteers that have worked hard to make the day such a success, particularly the German Umpire and Chalky White of SABC. Then the ergo challenge commenced, with the teams taking 300M sprints on the rowing machine. Some scarily low splits were observed, and some potentially life threatening changeovers. Guess who won...? These Easterners again!
The racing over, the party could begin. After some medicinal sports drink and watching the last game of the six nations, the Stirling Students Union was treated to an assortment of Cops and Robbers, as well as a rather hirsute Goldilocks and the three bears.
Hopefully TAYFORTH IV has forged crews that will go on to make a real impression on the coming regatta season.
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MYSTERY PUNDITS CREW ANALYSIS
A guest expert - whose identity must remain a secret to ensure unbiased commentry - gives analysis on the respective merits of all teams on the crews and results page. However it is still all to play for as the clock ticks down to T-Day!
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ALL CREWS UP
All athletes competing in this year's Tayforth are now online. It is interesting to note the numbers of internationalists competing in this year's event from both clubs. In depth analysis from a guest pundit will appear on this site soon!
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DUBC THIRD IN WINTER LEAGUE
Dundee have achieved bronze medal position for the third time in the Scottish Unis Winter League, just pipped by emerging power Heriot Watt and winners Edinburgh. The Tay rowers beat last years winners Strathclyde and west coast powerhouse Glasgow.
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DATE FINALISED
18th March has been settled on as the date for the fourth TAYFORTH match by consent of both Universities. This happens to fall on St Patricks day, which promises big celebrations after the race. A good omen for Stirling, who race in Green...?
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INVITATIONAL TRIALS
DUBC Graduate, Niall Darroch, has been invited to the closed trails for the Scotland team. These will be held in Inverness in February, with the next hurdle after that being the final trials at Strathclyde Park in April
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2nd SCOTLAND TRIAL
Athletes from DUBC and a graduates of both clubs were at the SARA Trial for the Commonwealth Regatta held in Inverness. Three of the Dundee mens squad were in attendance, with Seb Plant producing the strongest performance, finishing mid table in the heavyweight scullers category. Stirling Graduate and ex-president Charlie MacDonald competed in the Womens Pairs, rowing for St Andrew of Edinburgh. DUBC old boy Niall Darroch competed in Lightweight pairs for Clyde.
This race forms the last of the open events - the next set of trials are by invitation only. Full results are available on the SARA newspage (see LINKS)
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UNIVERSITIES WINTER LEAGUE
Dundee have moved into 3rd place in the Universities winter league after the third of four events in the series, as reported in the SARA newspage (see below). Third is the highest position Dundee have ever achieved in this competition - can they take on Edinburgh and Glasgow and do one or two places better?
Universities Winter League: League results after the Glasgow RC Fours Head. Please note that there were mistakes in the results following the Inverness Head. With one event to go it is still wide open as to who could win.
| 1. Edinburgh |  | 209 | | 5. St Andrews | | 112 |
| 2. Glasgow | | 167 | | 6. Strathclyde | | 96 |
| 3. Dundee | | 157 | | 7. Aberdeen | | 59 |
| 4. Heriot Watt | | 151 | | 8. Robert Gordon | | 27 |
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GLASGOW 4s HEAD
Some interesting results came out of the Glasgow 4s head at the weekend. The Men's Stealth Crew dropped one place to finish 13th overall from 68 (finish order includes quads) in a highly competitive Res 1 field. This big crew show a lot of potential, and are probably the heaviest in Scotland. The boat 'Flying Toaster' finally has a crew of the right weight!
Their R2 Girls claimed second place in category, only 30 seconds behind the winning Open Women's 4+. They climbed from 34th in the start order to 21st finish. It is probable that some of the winning WR24+ were Nat Champs medallists.
Racing recommences in the new year, with the eights season.
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ERGO RESULTS
DUBC had an excellent bag of results at the Scotland Trial Ergo.
- Tom Ellis - 3rd Hwt Men - 6.22.6
- Helen Black - 4th Lwt Women - 7.39.4
- Lizzie Aitkin - 5th Hwt Women - 7.21.8
- Ali Black - 8th Hwt Men - 6.33.2
The Glasgow Rowing Club 4s head is this coming weekend, and there are several high level entries from Dundee, including the inaugural race for the men's open crew.
Stirling are keeping their powder dry, as they have not entered this event.
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Dundee continue a good run in the head season with a win for their WR2 crew against stiff opposition, and their Novice men finishing second in category. The womens novice 4+ finished in the bottom half of their class, as did the men's R2 crew.
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SCOTLAND SQUAD ERGO TEST
Two members of Dundee UBC - Tom Ellis and Ali Black - are taking part in the upcoming 2km test that forms part of the Scotland Selection process for the upcoming Commonwealth Games. Both are known to be capable of producing good scores, and must be determined to shine amongst so many other good oarsmen.
Although no current members of Stirling UBC are involved, Alumni Charlie MacDonald is taking part. She now rows in Edinburgh.
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FASCALLY TRAINING WEEKEND
Crews from both universities took part in the Loch Fascally Training weekend which is run by SARA every year. Stirling have been attending this training camp for several years now, and it is a firm fixture in thei9r preparations for TAYFORTH.
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ABERDEEN RESULTS
Dundee UBC made a strong start to their winter season at the Aberdeen fours head. Stirling UBC did not attend, so comparisons are impossible to make.
DUBC's women's squad continue their glittering form following on from their strong showing at Women's Henley. They won WR2 from seven other crews of the same category, and beat the winning Women's open crew by over half a minute.
The men's side gave a strong showing in the Novice category, claiming second of eight in a widely spread field. Although they were one minute adrift from the winning Aberdeen Uni crew, they managed to beat several higher status R1 crews.
The next fours event is in Inverness, although the fact that the Commonwealth/HIR ergo test is the following day may make for a limited entry amongst aspiring Scotland athletes.
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DATE SET
The fourth annual Tayforth Race will take place on the 5th March, 2006. This date has been chosen to avoid exams, and to allow for fuller crew development. It also allows followers of Tayforth to check the form of the respective crews throughout the Head season.
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COVER GIRLS!
TAYFORTH claims the cover of Rowing Action, official magazine of SARA. This has a circulation of around 2,000, so the fame of TAYFORTH is set to spread. The image in question was of the DUBC women's first four powering towards Stirling Rowing Club. There is also a full race report inside the edition.
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SEEING RED
The third race in the TAYFORTH series was held last Staurday, and the outcome had been long debated, with several of the opinion that Dundee could perform during the main season, but lacked the focus early in the year to be successful.
The event expanded to encompass a womens second fours race, indicating the development of both clubs. The reigning champions SUBC boated strong crews, despite losing long serving coach Kevin Watson, and were determined to retain their unbeaten run.
No less focussed were DUBC. They too, had been hit by setbacks, albeit of a more dramatic sort. With just three days to go before the race, half of their mens crew were lost to injury. The entire crew order was changed to accomodate the replacements, and the new crew weighed in at an incredible 10kgs less per man. Also their two womens fours were so evenly matched that designation of the top boat was decided on the flip of a coin!
The first race, womens 2nd fours, was a dramatic start. The Dundee girls, who had won the toss and elected to row on the Rugby Club station (a pattern repeated for all the races), started solidly and pulled level within 100M. Stirling, seeking a to cut the first corner in their favour, wandered into dead water and their boat speed was cut dramatically, whilst Dundee stayed in the stream. By the time the final corner swung in DUBCs favour, they were already 2 lenghts up. The bend took them further still into the lead as the Stirling girls faded.
Women's 1st four was a much more closely contested race. An even start saw the crews vying for position. The fight in this race was tremendous, with the Dundonians struggling to make headway after creeping level. A hard fought coxing battle was joined with blades within inches of clashing. The Umpire, David Plank ensured that the crews kept separate. The Striling Girls dug deep to fight off the challenge, and held DUBC convincingly untill the final corner. The red and black crew took the shorter line their station entitled them to and ate up the parity which SUBC fought so hard to maintain. Crossing the line to wild cheering from their supporters, fists were held aloft in celebration.
The Men in Green now had something to prove. Their stern features spoke of their resolve. This crew, containing 2 of last years winners, boated purposefully, feeling the weight of expectation of their club. Dundee, too, had a point to make, with Captain Ali Black sporting a swollen and discoloured ankle but choosing to carry on. The power both these crews posessed was obvious from the start, as oar shafts flexed under the pressure and the bows hissed through the still water. Stirling took the first corner, holding the Inchyra charge that had proved so effective in the previous two races. "I kept looking back and thinking 'are we going to be able to take them on the corner?' " Black later said. SUBC held the advantage of half a length at the final bend, but was it enough? To the crushing dissapointment of the home crowd, it proved to be insufficient, and Dundee surged round the bend and past their ecstatic club mates to claim a famous victory and the TAYFORTH title.
The prizes were presented by SARA President Mary Massaro. She praised the winners, but also all that had taken part in, as well as the organisers. She was presented with a fragrent bouquet of flowers as a token of the student's thanks for her honoring of thier event. The final act of the day was the incoming captain of SUBC, Ric, throwing down the gauntlet to DUBC to bring the best crews they have to match their might with Stirling at next years TAYFORTH.
Anything to add? Any quotes from the competitors about how the race went for you, email them to the Tayforth Contact you can find in the homepage.
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DUBC MENS CREW LOSE WEIGHT
Last minute changes ensure that DUBC will boat a crew, but at a staggering average loss of 10kgs per man! 2 lightweights join the remaining survivors in a last ditch effort to win the mens title.
DID WE SAY THE PARTY WAS SORTED?
Due to unforeseen circumstances the Tayforth Boat Race Fancy Dress Party will now be held at the Queens Hotel in the Bridge of Alan stating at 7:30. Same Price: two pounds to cover room and DJ
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DUBC HIT BY 11th HOUR INJURIES
From DUBC Captian, Ali Black:
"Newsflash - we lost Richie and Adam to injury, can we get a crew together this late and still win??? I think we can!"
PARTEE
From SUBC comittee member Tanya Daley:
"It's only a week away now to the infamous Tayforth party- Saturday 9th October and once again we've decided to have a fancy dress party! there's not going to be a theme cos I dont want to restrict everyones artistic talents so instead just come in any fancy dress- the bigger and brighter and bolder the better!!
"Tickets are on sale from Tuesday and we need every single person in the rowing club to try and sell at least 3 to their friends from outside the club, everyones more than welcome.
"The plan is to meet back at the boat house at about 7.30. We'll be partying in the boathouse and then moving onto the Union between 11 and 11.30 (last entry is at 12) and there the party continues.
"Still waiting on a figure from Glow for ticket prices, unfortunately it looks like they cant help us out like the Med did last year but I'll let you all know on Mon/Tues!"
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ALL CREWS NOW ONLINE
The DUBC womens 1st and 2nd fours are up. There seems to be a mix of experienbce between the 2 boats, with the choice of which one would be first crew a tough one. Race day is just four days away.
Don't forget to vote in our online poll on the home page.
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SARA PRESIDENT TO PRESENT PRIZES
Mary Massaro, a long time SARA executive member and now President, is to act as Prizegiver. This is a real coup for TAYFORTH, and congratulations are due to SUBC president Neil Smith for getting Mary to take time out of her busy schedule to recognise our event.
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MENS CREWS UP
SUBCs Mens crew is up. Includes 2 winners from last year, in the same positions. It is known that Stirling are determined to maintain an unbeaten run, and should have the advantage being on home waters.
DUBC list is on as well, and they retain only one of last years squad. Weight wise, Dundee has the advantage again, with two 95kg bruisers. This crew can also produce some scary 2km times on the ergo, but will they be able to translate it to the boat?
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FIRST LOT OF CREWS ONLINE
SUBCs womens crews are online. Some familiar names, from the winning crew last year. Other crews should follow shortly. The possibility of a womens 2nd fours race to replace the invitational race against SRC is being looked into. SUBC are obviously keen on overall development, and have just completed squad wide 2km benchmark testing.
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SPONSORSHIP OPPORTUNITIES
After 2 years of supporting TAYFORTH, Subway have decide to end their committment. The organisers sincerely thank Naj for his sposnorship that helped get the race off the ground, and wish his franchise every success.
But to the future! Sponsorship opportunities are now available for businesses and individuals, including corporate hospitality, presenting the prizes, event branding and media coverage. To find out more, contact TAYFORTH through the LINKS page.
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INVITATIONAL RACE CANCELLED
Owing to unforseen difficulties, the invitational race between SRC and a composite Uni four has been cancelled. However, other ways are being sought to involve the Host Club in the day.
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INVITATIONAL RACE AGAINST STIRLING ROWING CLUB
Before the main races, a challenge match will take place between a Stirling women's four and the second crew of one of the universities (yet to be decided!). This will be rowed over the same course as the Tayforth Races.
RACE DISTANCE EXTENDED
Another recent development is the extension of the race distance. Instead of finishing at the clubhouse, the race will now finish towards the railway bridge, lengthening the course by some 250M. The decision was taken to enable spectators to be able to watch the race for longer, and to further test the crews!
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Tayforth Gets exposure at the Scottish Championships! The Race commentator described the three University Boat Races held in Scotland - Glasgow vs Edinburgh, Aberdeen vs Robert Gordons and of course Stirling vs Dundee. The most comment was made of our connection to SUBWAY, particularly the 6 foot sandwich offered as a raffle prize! Thanks to Terry McNeill for the kind words.
To be mentioned in the same breath as some of the highest achieveing rowing clubs in Britain is not a bad thing, and further justifies the faith of Race Sponsors Stirling SUBWAY.
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2004 race will feature the first ever Beginners Ergo Challenge! 2 girls and 2 boys from each club will race a total of 2km (or 500M each) on Rowing Machines to establish which club has the most pulling power.
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