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Pembroke College Boat Club (Oxford)
Encyclopedia
Rowing club
A rowing club is a club for people interested in the sport of Rowing. Rowing clubs are usually located near a body of water, whether natural or artificial, that is large enough for manoeuvering of the shells . Clubs usually have racks to store boats and a dock to put them in the water...
for members of Pembroke College, Oxford
Pembroke College, Oxford
Pembroke College is one of the constituent colleges of the University of Oxford in England, located in Pembroke Square. As of 2009, Pembroke had an estimated financial endowment of £44.9 million.-History:...
, and is one of the top boat club
Boat club
A boat club is a sports club based around boats, especially rowing and yachting, but also canoeing, motor boats and other small boats....
s in Oxford
University of Oxford
The University of Oxford is a university located in Oxford, United Kingdom. It is the second-oldest surviving university in the world and the oldest in the English-speaking world. Although its exact date of foundation is unclear, there is evidence of teaching as far back as 1096...
with regular success for both men and women. In 2003, Pembroke achieved a historic victory in the Oxford Summer Eights competition by becoming the first college to win the 'Double Headship' - having both men's and women's first boats end the week at the 'Head of the River'. Double Headship has yet to be repeated by any college in the Summer Eights competition, although the competitive years since 2003 has seen both men's and women's boats remain within striking distance of the Head of the River. Consistent ambition to go Head has been the goal: the Men's First Summer Eight (M1) has remained within the top 5 since 1992 and within the top 3 during that time in all years except 2008. 2010 is no exception: M1 torpid is 2nd on the river, M1 eight is 3rd. The Women's First Eight was the first to gain Headship from a mixed college in 2000 and held that position for four straight years. Lower down in the club, Pembroke's development program is one of the most successful in Oxford College Rowing, and has produced more Blues
Oxford University Boat Club
The Oxford University Boat Club is the rowing club of the University of Oxford, England, located on the River Thames at Oxford. The club was founded in the early 19th century....
in the last 10 years than any other college. This depth is indicated by the high placing of all PCBC crews; M2 is the only 2nd boat crew placed in Division 2 in Torpids, some 7 places higher than the next 2nd boat. PCBC is supported by the Friends of PCBC who strive to support rowers at all levels, particularly through their scholarship programme. PCBC is currently sponsored by Oxford Contrast.
History
Although the exact date for foundation of PCBC is unclear, the club was competing in Eights and Torpids as early as 1842 and had adopted its modern day flag with the "Rose Gules" (Red Rose) taken from the Pembroke heraldic shield by 1846.Amongst the giants in PCBC history, two leading Pembroke oarsmen of the 1870-1873 period were the three times President of the Oxford University Boat Club, Robert Lesley, who came up from Radley College
Radley College
Radley College , founded in 1847, is a British independent school for boys on the edge of the English village of Radley, near to the market town of Abingdon in Oxfordshire, and has become a well-established boarding school...
and R S Mitchison, an old Etonian. Rowing historians indicate that sliding seats were first used during the Fours racing at Oxford in 1872 by PCBC and that “the new system of sliding seats was first used in Oxford by Lesley’s crew and also by the College (Pembroke) Eight at Henley “. Burnell writes of Pembroke being the first known crew to use seats with wheels and Dodd states that London Rowing Club and Pembroke were the first to use the sliding seat at Henley. Whilst historical rowing literature has a tendency to lead from a sole source, it would seem that the Pembroke College Boat Club Minutes provide reliable original source evidence of the truth of the statement that the Pembroke crew were the pioneers of the sliding seat at Oxford, using it in the Fours before they left for Henley, and of the seat with wheels for the first time worldwide.
Jackson’s Oxford Journal of 1872 described Pembroke’s win of the Visitors’ Cup at Henley as “one of the best races of the whole Regatta”. Pembroke won by approximately half a length from University College Dublin, who were using fixed seats. The Dublin crew were regarded as one of the best ever sent to Henley. What is also significant is that Pembroke were using wheels, which were soon discarded by boat builders in favour of greased glass or steel grooves or tubes, but wheels were to return to favour again in 1885. Pembroke then, were not only early adopters of the sliding seat, ahead of others in Oxford, but also pioneers in terms of the materials being used, as they anticipated the later wheeled models of sliding seats which did not become current until 1885 and remain until the modern day.
Equipment
The club has a reputation for good equipment and coaching. The men's side of the club has three EmpacherEmpacher
Empacher is a manufacturer of boats, especially for the sport of rowing. Originally building sailing yachts, it was founded by Willy Empacher in 1923 in Königsberg, East Prussia. In 1952 they started producing racing rowing shells, an enterprise that has become their main business today...
VIIIs (2008 ,2003, 1994), two Janousek
Janousek
Janousek Racing Boats Ltd is a British-based manufacturer of rowing boats. The boats are made of a honeycomb-sandwich laminate and Janousek was one of the first rowing boat makers in the world to offer this method of rowing boat construction...
s (2000, 1990) and a Sims. The top women had a Stampfli VIII (2005) which was written off at the Women's Eights Head of the River Race
Women's Eights Head of the River Race
The Women's Eights Head of the River Race is a processional rowing race held annually on the Tideway of the River Thames in London on the 4¼ mile Championship Course from Mortlake to Putney....
2007 after being crashed into Putney Bridge. This has now been replaced and was used by the Women's 1st VIII to gain blades from the bottom of Division I in Torpids 2008. They also have an Eton Phoenix (1996), a Janousek and an Aylings. In small boats the club maintains a fleet of one Empacher coxless four (2008), three Janousek coxed-fours, a Janousek coxless-pair and a single scull. In addition there are two Eton
Eton College
Eton College, often referred to simply as Eton, is a British independent school for boys aged 13 to 18. It was founded in 1440 by King Henry VI as "The King's College of Our Lady of Eton besides Wyndsor"....
coaching launches for the men's and women's 1st VIIIs. In general the top boats are replaced every 4 years, with purchases alternating between men and women every 2 years.
Pembroke is also lucky to have a well stocked gym at the boat house, and is one of a very limited number of clubs to possess a fleet of 10 Concept D ergos (2008), conveniently situated adjacent to the weights gym.
Coaching
Pembroke benefits not only from good equipment but also good coaching. Recent coaches have included Ben Lewis, current Molesey Boat ClubMolesey Boat Club
Molesey Boat Club is a rowing club on the river Thames in England.-Location:The Club is situated on a stretch of the River Thames between Molesey Lock and Sunbury Lock...
coach; Wallingford RC high-performance GB coach Rob Dauncey and GB lightweights Chris Bartley and Simon Jones. The Men's 1st VIII is currently coached by John Gearing (former-South African international and Master in Charge of Rowing at Radley College). The college has also recently created one of the only permanent college coaching staff positions in Oxford to further increase the quality of our training system.
Training Locations
Novice and development crews train on the local Isis river by the boathouse but senior crews train further afield. The men use the facilities generously provided to them at Abingdon SchoolAbingdon School
Abingdon School is a British day and boarding independent school for boys situated in Abingdon, Oxfordshire , previously known as Roysse's School. In 1998 a formal merger took place between Abingdon School and Josca's, a preparatory school four miles to the west at Frilford...
's boat house and at Radley College
Radley College
Radley College , founded in 1847, is a British independent school for boys on the edge of the English village of Radley, near to the market town of Abingdon in Oxfordshire, and has become a well-established boarding school...
's boat house, whilst the women have been known to train at St Edwards
St Edward's School (Oxford)
St. Edward's School is a co-educational independent boarding school located in Oxford, England. The school is located on the Woodstock Road in the north of the city close to the suburb of Summertown. In 2007 it was voted by the Country Life Magazine as number one in the top ten schools in the UK...
, Abingdon town
Abingdon, Oxfordshire
Abingdon or archaically Abingdon-on-Thames is a market town and civil parish in Oxfordshire, England. It is the seat of the Vale of White Horse district. Previously the county town of Berkshire, Abingdon is one of several places that claim to be Britain's oldest continuously occupied town, with...
and Wallingford.
Rivalries
Although tension began to ease off as of 2006, Pembroke and Oriel, historically two of the best performing crews of the past 30 years, have had a strong and at times heated rivalry, and now with the events of Eights 2008 this rivalry has come to the fore once again. In 2009 Pembroke's Eights M1 achieved a particularly emphatic bump on Oriel, further fueling the rivalry. St Edmund Hall, whose boat house is adjacent to that of Pembroke, are also rivals, particularly on the women's side. The traditional Pembroke rivalry with Christ ChurchChrist Church, Oxford
Christ Church or house of Christ, and thus sometimes known as The House), is one of the largest constituent colleges of the University of Oxford in England...
permeates to rowing as well. Recent strong performances at the Fairbairn's Cup in Cambridge has led to new rivalries with some Cambridge colleges such as First and Third Trinity; however Pembroke have not succeeded in being the highest ranked Oxbridge college at the Fairbairns races.