Inverness Rowing Club achieved success and many good performances at the two day Aberdeen North East Regatta last weekend on the River Dee in relatively calm but showery conditions but with only one win in Womens Veteran Double Sculls to show for their efforts.
On Saturday, Hazel Geddes and Carole Wells raced well in the Novice Double Sculls in beating their opponents from Aberdeen University Boat Club by two lengths but were unlucky in the final of this event to be beaten by a young crew representing Aberdeen Schools Rowing Association (ASRA)but were beaten by a faster crew from Aberdeen BC.
In the Womens Veteran Double Sculls event, the Geddes/Wells combination achieved their four length win in the final against another Inverness crew who were competing in their first regatta together (Sally Moore and Mary Clouston)
Success eluded all the Inverness single scullers. Alastair Duff recorded a fine three length win in his semi-final to be beaten by Wallace of ASRA in the final of the Restricted 2 event and in the final of his Veteran Single Sculls just lost out to by approximately one length to Thomson of Victoria Bridge Boat Club. Colin Sinclair had a good three length win in the semi-final of his Junior 16 Single Sculls but lost out to the fast finishing Lockhart of ASRA in a keenly contested final. Both Sinclair and Neil Wallace had close races in their Novice Single Sculls heats just losing out to the eventual finalists.
The Inverness Mens Restricted 2 Coxed Four of Duff, Sinclair, Duncan Alexander, Wallace (stroke) and Hazel Geddes (cox) raced well in the final of this event but were beaten by a highly competent Aberdeen University Boat Club crew which included Andrew Martin from Inverness.
On Sunday, Wallace and Alexander were narrowly beaten by ASRA in their Mens Novice Double Sculls final, whilst Wallace won through to the semi-final of the Restricted 2 Single Sculls to be narrowly beaten by the Wallace from ASARA in the final. Mary Clouston gallantly took on the younger Aitken of Aberdeen Boat Club in the final of the Veteran Single Sculls but did not have the pace to match the aspiring Scottish internationalist.
The next main season regatta at which Inverness athletes will be competing will be the Castle Semple Regatta which takes place at Lochwinnoch in Renfrewshire on Saturday 20th May when some of the Inverness club's youngest members will be keen to emulate their winning performances of last season's visit to this regatta..