Regatta season makes cautious start
A month into the relaxation of lockdown measures most members are enjoying the return to rowing and the gym has reopened for personal exercise, while the beer garden and caravan site have resumed business and are starting to bring in much needed income. The summer regatta season traditionally starts in April following the Boat Race.[…]
Beer Garden to reopen on April 12th
Prime Minister Boris Johnson confirmed today that the move to Step 2 of the Government’s roadmap out of lockdown will go ahead as planned on April 12th, enabling shops, gyms, hairdressers and beer gardens to reopen. We are therefore very pleased to confirm that after the success of our beer garden last year we will[…]
Rowing to return from March 29th
British Rowing has given the go-ahead tor rowing to return to clubs from Monday, March 29th. A lot of work has taken place in the background to develop procedures to make this possible and to ensure the health and safety of members. Crew boats of all sizes are allowed to go afloat from Monday –[…]
City Regatta falls to Covid-19 for a second year
A year into the Covid-19 pandemic it has been decided that the 2021 Durham City Regatta will not go ahead. Restrictions to travel and accommodation will remain in effect on May 8th and 9th when the regatta was due to take place. Coupled with the risk of unrecoverable expense another consideration is that most people[…]
Virtual events to the fore as Lockdown 3 continues
Last weekend would have seen the first of the 2021 Tideway Heads contested on the River Thames, had the lockdown and the closure of Hammersmith Bridge not construed otherwise. The Women’s Eights Head of the River Race (WEHoRR) therefore took place on Saturday, March 6th in a fashion never previously witnessed, which saw over 600[…]
Silver for Roger at World Rowing Indoor Championships
Roger Stainforth of Durham ARC rounded off another successful indoor rowing season with a magnificent silver medal-winning performance in the finals of the 2021 World Rowing Indoor Championships held between February 23rd and 27th. The Championships attracted 935 finalists from 63 countries who over the preceding three months had come through five Continental Qualifiers to[…]
Roger wins at Canadian Indoors
Without leaving home in Durham, Roger Stainforth continued his preparations for the 2021 World Rowing Indoor Championships by sealing victory at the Canadian Indoor Rowing Championships on Saturday, February 6th, recording a time of 7.35.9 for the 2km distance in the Masters 75-79 age group event on his Concept2 Model C ergometer. The Canadian Championships[…]
Durham Virtual Small Boats Head
As no rowing events are allowed to take place during the lockdown the 2021 Durham Small Boats Head, due to run on Saturday, February 6th, has had to be cancelled. In its place the Club organised a free to enter Virtual Small Boats Head on the same date, to which members, friends and families were[…]
Mick Downworth 1967-2021
Members and friends were shocked and saddened to learn of the death of Mick Downworth on Saturday, January 16th at the age of 53. Mick joined Durham ARC from one of the early Learn to Row courses under the Explore Rowing scheme in 2012 along with his then wife Carol. He quickly embraced the sport[…]
Club closure for Lockdown 3
The Prime Minister announced on the evening of January 4th that nationwide restrictions in light of rising numbers of Covid-19 cases will come into effect immediately. The club is therefore now closed in order to follow the Government’s National Lockdown rules. All access to the club building and boathouse will be closed and the key[…]
2021 starts in Tier 4
In response to a rapid rise in infections attributed to the spread of a new variant of Covid-19 the Prime Minister announced the introduction of a new Local Alert Level Tier 4 (Stay at Home) on December 19th 2020. The next UK Government review of Tiers on December 30th moved the whole of the North[…]
Lifetime Achievement Award for Charly Curtis
Congratulations to Charly Curtis on receiving a British Rowing Lifetime Achievement Award in the 2020 British Rowing Awards. The award is one of several made for contributions to the sport of Rowing in 2019 which were intended to have been presented at the inaugural British Rowing Awards ceremony in London in March 2020, but because[…]
Bill Parker awarded Beryl Crockford Medal
Congratulations to Bill Parker who was one of two recipients of the Beryl Crockford Medal at the British Rowing Awards for 2020. The medal is awarded for outstanding contribution to junior rowing over many years. The award was set up by Duncan Crockford in memory of his late wife Beryl, who passed away in 2016[…]
AGM takes place via Zoom
2020 has been a year of firsts and the Club’s first virtual Annual General Meeting was another. Expected to have taken place in July the lengthy delay was unavoidable because of the lockdown and enforced closure of the clubhouse, so the only option was for it to take place online as has become the norm[…]
Phil Metcalfe (1951-2020)
We are saddened to learn of the death of Phil Metcalfe on December 15th at the age of 69. The Club had been the centre of Phil’s life for half a century. A fine oarsman he rowed with the Senior and Veteran Fours and Eights in the 1970s, 80s and 90s, winning with the Vet[…]
River closure to continue into January
Last week the club was informed that, apart from a Christmas break between December 18th and January 4th, the river will continue to be closed at New Elvet Bridge from Monday to Saturday each week between the hours of 0730 and 1700 until January 23rd 2021 while bridge repairs are ongoing. This will come as[…]
Roger takes silver at BRIC 2020
Following his gold medal success of 2019 Roger Stainforth rounded off the year with a silver medal at the 2020 British Rowing Indoor Championships (BRIC) on December 5th, adding to the silver he won at the Scottish Rowing Indoor Championships two weeks earlier. Because of the Coronavirus pandemic both events took place online with entrants[…]
Club set to reopen after second lockdown
On December 1st MPs backed the introduction of the tougher system of Covid-19 tiers for England, announced by the Government on November 26th, which placed the north-east into the Very High alert level Tier 3 as the second national lockdown ended on December 2nd, having entered it in the High alert level Tier 2. As[…]
Memories of Clive Hole
Clive Hole’s nephew has created a website at http://www.clive.life/ on which memories can be gathered together to celebrate his life. Please take a look and feel free to register and add your own thoughts, memories and any photos you have of Clive. Clive was a long serving member and had been a stalwart of the[…]
Club closure during second lockdown
As a result of the Government statement on October 31st 2020 announcing a second national lockdown to counteract the spread of Covid-19, and legislation passed by the House of Commons on November 4th, British Rowing has confirmed that all rowing clubs must close from Wednesday November 4th. The fob system has therefore been disabled and[…]
Clive Hole 1940-2020
Tributes have been flooding in from the rowing community in memory of long time member Clive Hole who died on Thursday, October 29th at the age of 80 following a short illness. Clive was a true gentleman and an endearing character whose interests were many and varied He lived life to the full, devoting much[…]
Winter timetable introduced
As the clocks go back and the hours of daylight shorten the club has made some changes to the timetables for members using indoor training facilities as well as to on-water schedules, so as to accommodate as many members as possible within Covid-19 guidelines. Eights can now return to use and on Saturday, October 24th,[…]
Learn to Row courses 2020
The first of the Club’s Learn to Row courses this year was completed successfully in September. The course has had to adopt a different approach from that of previous years because of Covid-19 restrictions, and coach Tim Morris has therefore devised a series of 2-hour sessions using the club’s Glide One single sculling boats that[…]
Phased reopening of the Club
Since the outbreak of the Covid-19 pandemic and the closure of the Club on March 17th there have been joint meetings of the Management Committee and the Captain and Vice Captains of the Rowing & Coaching Committee which have focused mainly on the financial management of the club and preparations for a phased reopening following[…]
Cancellation of Autumn Small Boats Head and LDS Series
Following the cancellation of Durham Autumn Sprint Regatta on September 26th the club has taken the decision not to go ahead with Durham Autumn Small Boats Head which was scheduled for November 7th 2020. There were a number of reservations about the feasibility of staging such an event during the Covid-19 pandemic, including the need[…]
Scullers face test on the Tyne
After 6 months without competition fifteen scullers from Duham ARC were among 111 starters in the Tyne Single Scullers Head on Sunday September 20th. Organised by Newcastle University Boat Club the time trial was contested in 3 divisions each over 3000 metres of the River Tyne between Blaydon and Newburn. The event was chosen as[…]
Partial river closure
We have had confirmation that the river will be closed under New Elvet Bridge from September 1st to September 30th 2020. All rowers will therefore have to turn after Baths Bridge and will not be allowed to proceed any further. There may be days where we can row through Elvet Bridge but we are not[…]
Opening of the beer garden and caravan site
Thanks to a relaxation of Coronavirus lockdown restrictions announced by the Prime Minister on June 23rd, and with the support of the City of Durham Parish Council, the Club is pleased to announce the opening of its new riverside beer garden on Saturdays and Sundays from July 4th, between the hours of 1pm and 7pm.[…]
Glide One singles
The Club has recently acquired four Glide One single sculls that are ex demo boats available at an exceptionally good price. The Glide One is a training boat but has the advantage that it has more of the ‘feel’ of a fine single scull. It is durable but also has a design that is as[…]
Durham Regatta takes place @Home
The 2020 Durham Regatta was another victim of the Coronavirus after an early decision on cancellation was taken by the organisers in order to limit costs. Instead a virtual regatta was arranged over the weekend of June 13th and 14th. Durham Regatta@Home involved individuals and teams of four competing against the clock in ergo, cycling[…]