Happy 75th birthday boat club

FIFTY boats took part in a flotilla from Wargrave Boating Club to mark its 75th anniversary.

More than 100 members rowed from Henley Sailing Club and back in canoes, rowing boats, skiffs, racing punts, kayaks, dinghys and paddle boards on Sunday afternoon.

Boaters enjoyed taking part despite high gusts of winds causing extra work to paddle and row the hour-long course.

The event began with an autumn swim test where 13 children learned about river swimming and safety.

They were taken in a rowing dinghy before they were instructed to climb into the river from the boat wearing life jackets, swimming a short distance to and from the club to acclimatise to the conditions and get used to the current.

The oldest member of the club, Patricia Templing, 83, joined the flotilla in a rowing boat where she was sat in the cox seat.

She was signed up to the club aged 13 after her parents encouraged her to find a new hobby and she has been a member there on and off ever since.

Mrs Templing said: “I used to do a lot with the club when I was much younger. I was once told, ‘when you’re a member, you’re always a member’.

“I have two sons and one is very keen on the Wargrave and Shiplake Regatta but he won’t let me enter the events at my age. When I said I was coxing today, he said: ‘you shouldn’t be left in a boat’.”

Mrs Templing decided to give up her cox seat on the flotilla’s return to the club because of the strong winds.

She said: “The wind was blowing so strongly coxing would have been a bit too difficult for me.” Mrs Templing’s father was on the committee that set up the club in 1950 but he was forced to leave because of work commitments.

On first joining, she said: “My parents wanted to send me down to the boating club.

“I punted on my own when I was a member and I got drifted along to the other side of the river and there were five fishermen and I got muddled up with somebody else’s line.

“They got so angry with me. In my agony, I happened to drop the punt and hit the dog on the head.

“I went back to punting about 10 years ago to learn properly.”

The club was set up by a group of enthusiastic boaters in the village who wanted to set up a club which they could represent at regattas and down the Thames. It began with about 30 members and there are now more than 350.

Matthew Gordon, 59, from Hare Hatch, has been a member of the club since 1997.

He joined the flotilla in one of the club’s punts alongside Rufus Neville, 14.

He said: “It’s great to do something for the club. It keeps the traditional sport of punting and skiffing going.

“It’s such a peculiar sport but it’s brilliant. It’s barking madness because you expect the boat to go straight by pushing it with the stick at the bottom of the river. But you have to know the bottom of the river because you can’t see what’s happening and it has a huge effect on how you go.

“On the way back it was very difficult to steer but Rufus managed it. He is a very good little punter.”

Mr Gordon said he has seen a “resurgence” in members joining since the covid pandemic.

He said: “The numbers have swelled. It’s a great way for families and individuals to enjoy the River Thames as it goes right past our homes.”

Tina Presnail, from Waltham St Lawrence, was part of a group of solo kayakers who took part in the flotilla.

She said: “There was a lot of fun and laughter. There were children all the way through to retired people from all different backgrounds.

“It was extremely well organised and everyone was given boats which were safe and they were capable of using.

“When I joined the club 10 years ago it was completely accidental and I had no water-based skills at all.

“We took out a family membership so my children could learn to kayak and row

“I learned to kayak at the club, it is lovely to meet people and it’s great for your mental health.” Johnny Wyld, chairman of Wargrave Boating Club, said he was impressed with the turnout.

The committee was keen to plan the large scale flotilla with at least 75 members involved to coincide with the anniversary.

Mr Wyld, of Station Road, said: “We regularly run Sunday evening social paddles which is more casual. Because this is our 75th year, we wanted to do a special one.

“It was a blustery event but part of the challenge was about getting so many different types of boats in the river at the same time.

“It’s fantastic to see such great participation on the water.”

Mr Wyld said the windy conditions were part of the fun.

He said: “Having some quite challenging meteorological conditions made it a much more interesting outing for all of our members.

“No one got into any trouble and we had plenty of help if they had but it felt like a proper workout for people struggling to stay in a straight line in a canoe or a punt.

“It’s quite a short course but that way it makes us feel like we’ve all done something.”

He added: “We got a lot more people than we hoped for which was fantastic.”