TPA start with new Course B record
THE new TPA men’s quad started as they intend to go on with a dominant win and record in the Course B season opener.
Singles rower James Plumley also defied rough conditions to set a new class record on the 5.5km course, which consists of a looped route from Havelet to Fermain and back.
Those were two of the performances that caught the eye of Guernsey Rowing Club captain Ben Vaudin, who was pleased simply to welcome 15 crews after several weeks of adverse conditions hampered crews from getting into the water.
‘There were some really good performances on the water, but overwhelmingly, it’s just great to be back out there,’ he said.
Choppy waters and a tricky easterly breeze put the emphasis on finding a good racing line, so having Lloyd Le Page’s reservoir of coxing experience certainly did not hurt TPA.
Seasoned rowers Tom de Kooker, James Coquelin, Joe Paul and Simon Johns powered the cutting-edge racing shell around in 23min. 37sec., the fastest time recorded on a course that had its records reset in early 2021 due to a slight adjustment.
The Sark to Jersey hopefuls obliterated the existing men’s quads record, which was 27-05.
The Le Mont Saint Garage women’s quad also put in a solid row for second overall.
Rowing what was, until TPA’s inception, the premier domestic boat design, the slightly new-look quartet of Liz Beausire, Kristine Vavere, Ilze Briggs, Lisa de Kooker and cox Neil Brennan posted 27-36 to win their class by nearly 3min. from Ravenscroft.
Liz also took family bragging rights over husband Peter Beausire, who had joined Shaun Kelling in the LMS Pairs crew that won the men’s doubles in 27-44.
Imperium’s Dave Gilmour and Dan Cooper followed just 8sec. behind for second men’s double.
Marc and Dani – Marc Isabelle and Dani Barnett – won the mixed doubles and beat the 30min. barrier in doing so.
Plumley narrowly missed that barrier in his skiff, but his 30-12 clocking marked a significant improvement on last year’s effort and gave him a 13sec. victory margin on class rival Paul Pearce.
‘That looks really promising,’ Vaudin said in reference to what could be an exciting four-man singles class this season.
‘He has done really well, so that will be really exciting once we have got Monty [Paul Montague] and James Briggs out on the water.’
But the captain saved his best praise for the triumphant TPA.
‘There’s a very experienced crew in that boat. They have got proven pedigree of breaking records and winning championships in the various crews they have been in.
‘It will be really exciting to see what they can do with Lloyd’s guidance this season.’
The busy offshore season continues tonight and steps up the distance considerably with the Havelet Buoyed, a roughly 10km race, starting at 6.30pm.
