Former policeman reunited with rower who stole his helmet

WHEN an American rower ran off with Peter Smart’s police helmet during the royal regatta in the 1973, the last thing he expected was to be reunited with the prankster more than 30 years later.

But that is exactly what happened after his daughter, Jane, released a documentary called The Henley Regatta Through The Generations in 2005 in which Mr Smart told his tale.

A friend of the miscreant, university oarsman John Maslowski, recognised the story and put them in touch.

This is one of many funny anecdotes from Mr Smart’s 30-year career as a police constable, although he didn’t think so at the time.

He was controlling traffic at the main Henley crossroads on July 1, 1973 when his helmet was plucked from his head.

Mr Smart, of Elizabeth Road, Henley, recalls: “Suddenly I had a strange feeling that my bald head was much cooler than before.Then I realised this great big, tall, lanky American crew boy had run off down Duke Street with my helmet.”

He chased after the thief but it was 16-year-old John Ballanger, a pupil at Henley Grammar School, who caught him first by rugby tackling him to the ground outside the old post office in Reading Road.

Mr Smart retrieved his helmet and arrested Maslowski when the rest of his crew mates from Northeastern University in Boston suddenly appeared.

He warned them not to get involved and marched the American to the police station, which was then on the corner of Market Place.

“The sergeant saw the funny side of it but I certainly didn’t,” says Mr Smart. “I was still cross with him.

“After a while he asked me whether I wanted to take the matter any further and I said no because I didn’t want all that paperwork and the boy was in a race that afternoon.

“The sergeant then left us for a short period and he came back with an old helmet which had been knocking around for a while and was wrapped in a big brown paper bag.

“He said to him, ‘take this but don’t ever take this out in the UK or you’ll be down here again’.”

Mr Smart found out later that Maslowski had visited the station earlier that day and asked the same sergeant, John Walker, whether he could buy a helmet. “The sergeant had told him the only way you can get a helmet is if you manage to get one off a policeman’s head and run like hell,” says Mr Smart. “That explained why he thought it was so damned funny.

“In my day it was kind of expected that crews around the town collected trophies. You just let it go by but of course my helmet was a different thing altogether.”

It was Bill Miller, who was Maslowski’s best man at his wedding, who recognised the story from the documentary and told his friend. The pair then made contact with Mr Smart via email and arranged a reunion at the River and Rowing Museum during the regatta of 2006.Members of the 1973 Northeastern eight presented Mr Smart with a special gift.

He recalls: “To my surprise, John took this box out from under the table and inside there was an old Metropolitan police helmet.

“It was given to me as custodian and if Northeastern come across here and win a final the helmet is handed back to them.”

The helmet has been on display at the museum and the Americans visit almost every year in order to visit the regatta and see their friend. This year was no exception and they met up again at the museum on Saturday, together with Mr Ballanger.

Mr Maslowski admitted that his brush with the law didn’t curb his mischievous behaviour.

A few years ago, he told Mr Smart that he needed a new “trophy” and set his sights on a Derby bowler hat which he had spotted in the stewards’ enclosure at the regatta.

Mr Smart decided to buy his friend a hat instead, warning him: “I don’t want you getting arrested again!”

lThe police helmet will now be going to America as a Northeastern crew beat Galatasaray in the Ladies’ Challenge Plate at this year’s regatta — their first Henley victory since 2006.