Home rowers are amongst the gold

Following success at the British championships a new format was piloted for singles and pairs aimed at raising awareness of the event and providing a better, more competitive racing experience for all participants.

It meant that all singles and all pairs from Junior 16 through to Open would compete in a time trial and then be seeded into semis and finals.

A number of Strathclyde Park Rowing Club members, aged 15 – 51, took part picking up plenty of medals.

Following successful time trials in the women’s single event, both Gillian Connal and Natalie Irvine reached the A Final and came fourth and fifth respectively (out of over 50)

Then in the pairs event, Irvine joined up with Sam Fowler (Molesey) and Connal with clubmate Ailie Ord as both crews reached the A final which was won by Irvine and Fowler.

The women’s Veteran B-D Quadruple Scull of Ailie Ord, Eva Rankin (Loch Lomond), Julie Marshall and Liz Davidson took gold ahead of a composite Strathclyde Park and Castle Semple crew.

The Women’s Open Quad saw Ord, Connal and Irvine joined by Edinburgh University rower Liz Crighton to add another title.

Tom Hewitt joined up with Clydesdale’s Les Johnston of Clydesdale to take silver in the Veteran B-D Pair and gold in the Veteran E-G Double Scull, while Hewitt was also part of the victorious Veteran Eight crew.

A new crew of Cara McSherry, Emily Weir, Rosie Payne and Castle Semple member, Elspeth Grant, coxed by Rebecca Scott, took silver in the WJ14 Coxed Quadruple Scull.

Payne, representing Hamilton Grammar, then won the WJ14 Singles event to add to her recent victories at the Strathclyde Park and Clydesdale regattas.

In the Veteran double sculls event, Ord and Davidson gave away their age handicap to start alongside the younger Veteran C crews, but still won.

The final gold of the regatta for Strathclyde Park saw Irvine and Connal then reunited for the Women’s Double Scull and recovered from a poor start to retain the title they’d won in 2013.

Although there was a lot of success on the water, the club was having success in the tea tent catering for the regatta and providing hot and cold food and drink to the Scottish Rowing Community.

They wish to thank the huge number of volunteers, Jamie Chapman Butchers and Scotmid for their support with over £3,000 to help pay for water use fees, storage and equipment to keep the club going from strength to strength.