A few days after the Head of the River, 22 UL athletes headed to Aiguebelette in Southern France, for our Easter training camp. Despite the early start, the failure of one Henley finalist to book a ticket and a mad sprint (from a well known fast food emporium) to the plane by two members of the men’s squad, the journey to France was reasonably stress free. When we arrived at the rowing centre, which hosted the 1997 World Championships, we found a beautifully flat lake, bathed in sunshine and overlooked by the French Alps. When we awoke for our first day of training, however, we were greeted by overcast skies, occasionally interrupted by heavy rain and snow. Unfazed, Josh Pendry, one of UL’s newest athletes, predicted good weather after two days of rain based on ‘cracks’ in the cloud. Sadly he was wrong, but nonetheless, an optimistic spirit prevailed.
As we began to settle into training, it became very clear that this was going to be a highly physically demanding training camp. Long steady state sessions in the morning and 2000 meter pieces in the evening took its toll on the squad but they escaped with the normal bumps and bruises associated with a hard camp. Fortunately the women remained healthy, and were able to make vast improvements in their sculling. While they spent the majority of their time in singles and doubles, the men’s squad concentrated on sweep boats. Initially in fours, the men soon moved into an eight, firmly focused the main events of the summer. Alex Torbica and Geoff Reading, two of UL’s under-23 trialists, were able to use the camp to spend time in their pair. The improvements they had made were evident at GB final assessment in Hazewinkel last weekend, where they showed huge gains since Feburary trials. The Tyrian athletes were able to put out a four during much of the camp, working towards a boat for either the Wyfolds or the Britannia Challenge Cup at Henley. The members of Tyrian club bring a lot to the squad, both on and off the water. Dan Beaumont in particular had a very ‘interesting’ way of demonstrating how oversized his UL racing singlet was, wearing it as a dress to dinner one evening.
Although some questions had been raised about the quality of our accommodation when we heard that we were staying in a trailer park, we were pleasantly surprised when we arrived, particularly with the quality of the food. After a hard day of training we all appreciated being presented with more sausage than our bodies had room for. The dinner hall had a great social atmosphere, often ending with card games, using of the disco facilities or the confession of one athlete that he had had a dream about a naked coaching session from the men’s head coach.
Towards the end of the week we were joined by both Manchester University, and much better weather. Being observed by our competitors seemingly improved our performance, and despite physical exhaustion, the boats really began to pick up in the last few days of camp. Although we were dogged by slow conditions and general fatigue, the timed pieces on our last day showed not only how much we had progressed but also gave us confidence as we head into the regatta season. Special thanks must go to our coaches, Andy Metcalf, Brian Young, Pat Wright and Rusty Williams, who have helped us to continue to make steps towards a successful summer. (written by Will Thompson) |
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