Boat: WinTech International | Photography: AllMarkOne
Team WinTech provided yet another resounding statement as to why we are so often the choice of champions with a category win in the W1x, 2nd place in the M1x and numerous top-25 finishes at the GBRT U19 Early ID Trials. Around 25% of athletes across both events elected to row in WinTech Racing Boats.
Catherine Gardner of Hartpury College – a silver medallist at the 2024 National Schools’ Regatta and U19 World Rowing Championships – won the girl’s category by a stunning 30 seconds to cement herself as the country’s premier female sculler. After a fantastic season as a J17, Gardner will likely have her eyes set firmly on both domestic and international triumphs, and her row in Boston came in a WinTech International.
Other highlights on the women’s side included Olivia Hodgson of Royal Grammar School Worcester, who finished 21st; Amy Clarke of Sir William Borlase Grammar School, who finished 23rd; Maddie MacGregor of Sir William Perkins School, who finished 25th and Lowri Cawdell, of Marlow Rowing Club who finished 26th.
On the men’s side, we had four finishers inside the top ten, with our highest-placed athlete – Joe Wellington of the Windsor Boys School – coming home second overall in a WinTech Cobra SE. Wellington was an integral part of the Mark Wilkinson-coached quad that won both the National Schools’ Regatta and The Fawley Challenge Cup during the 23/24 season.
Behind him, Elam Hughes of St Edward’s School placed sixth, Henry Day Clark of Shiplake College was eighth and Isaac Thornton of the Windsor Boys School finished ninth.
Alexander Judd of Wycliffe College placed 14th overall, slightly ahead of George Coates of Hartpury College, who was 16th. His teammate, Louis Sheasby, was 19th before the Windsor Boys School’s Adam Elliot finished 23rd to land three of their scullers into the top 25.
With 12 athletes finishing across the top 50 male and female athletes and around 25% of athletes choosing to compete in our boats, Team WinTech is once again pitching at the very highest level. We look forward to continuing to support these athletes over the coming months and hopefully seeing many of them take to the water at the Fours Head of the River in a few days.
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The fastest WinTech finisher was Cam Buchan, who placed seventh overall in a WinTech International his fastest ever trials time. Racing under the colours of St Andrew’s University, the Scotsman is building a strong domestic profile after securing victory at both the Metropolitan and Marlow Regattas in 2024 before a showing in The Diamond Challenge Sculls at Henley Royal Regatta and the Championship 1x at Head of the Charles Regtta.
A few places back in 12th was Levin Graf, who competed in a WinTech Cobra SE under the flag of Leander. Byron Richards – also racing for Leander – finished 17th in a WinTech Cobra SE before Max Bird – the former Windsor Boys Henley Royal Regatta winner turned Marlow Rowing Club oarsman – was 28th (WinTech Cobra SE). Ruben Taylor of the Windsor Boys School placed 37th (WinTech International) with Alex Knighton of Notts County Rowing Association in 39th (WinTech Cobra) and Abdelrahman Farag of Grange School in 40th. William Buckingham of Reading University placed 48th (WinTech Cobra) and Alfie Dean of Durham University was 64th (WinTech International).
On the women’s side, we secured another top-ten finish via Angharad Broughton of Molesey Boat Club. Racing in a WinTech International, she placed eighth, just ahead of clubmate Olivia Cheesmur in 11th, who raced in a WinTech Cobra SE.
Megan Knight of Reading University was our next-fastest finisher, placing 26th in a WinTech Cobra ahead of Isy Hawes of Leander Club, who raced in a WinTech International to 36th. Sophia Issberner of St Andrew’s University was 39th (WinTech International), Lucy Webber of Newcastle University was 46th (WinTech Cobra SE), Daisy Jackson of Durham University was 53rd (WinTech International), Emily Downing of Leander Club was 61st (WinTech Cobra SE), Addy Patient of Leander was 64th (WinTech International) and Anna Crowe of Notts County Rowing Association was 69th (WinTech International).
It is always exciting to see a new generation of talent take to the water in pursuit of international glory. Although the field lacked the bulk of the athletes who raced in Paris, this was still a roster of incredibly skilled scullers, and Team WinTech is proud to support so many impressive candidates for British selection. We look forward to watching their progression over the coming months.
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Team WinTech opened their 24/25 account with a great showing at the Pairs Head of the River, placing 18 crews in the top three of their respective categories and winning four pennants outright. With the season already marred by a series of cancellations, it was pleasing to see so many boats take to the water and shake off the summer cobwebs ahead of a long winter of training.
Our highest-ranked win came in the women’s championship double, who also set the fastest female time of the day. Nottingham Rowing Club – racing in a WinTech Cobra – secured the headship emphatically, beating out their closest competitors by nine seconds.
We also secured a victory in the women’s intermediate pairs, as Lea Rowing Club (WinTech International) saw off the attention of Cantabrigian Rowing Club, who also raced in a WinTech International.
Next up. Cantabrigian Rowing Club claimed the pennant in a WinTech International in the Women’s J16 2x’s.
Our fourth and final win came in the women’s masters D championship doubles, where Falcon Boat Club (WinTech Cobra) won their category by five seconds over Mortlake Anglian and Alpha Boat Club.
Elsewhere on the women’s side, we were third in the championship pair whilst riding with Nottingham Rowing Club (WinTech International) and matched that result in the women’s intermediate double with City of Oxford Rowing Club (WinTech International) and the women’s junior 16 double with City of Bristol Rowing Club (WinTech International).
Third-placed finishes were also secured in the women’s lightweight pair with Newark Rowing Club (WinTech International) whilst we picked up both second and third in the women’s masters B double via Fulham Reach Boat Club and Poplar Blackwall & District Rowing Club (WinTech Internationals).
Fulham Reach Boat Club also placed third in the women’s masters D club doubles, whilst Maidenhead Rowing Club were second in the women’s masters E doubles (WinTech Internationals).
On the open side, our boats placed second and third in the senior pairs via the efforts of Hereford Rowing Club and Nottingham Rowing Club (WinTech Cobras), whilst Southampton Coalporters ARC finished second in the open intermediate doubles (WinTech International).
Fulham Reach Boat Club – who had an impressive all-around day – were third in the open masters C pairs (WinTech International) before Putney Town Rowing Club finished second in the open masters F pairs (WinTech International).
With such strong performances, this was a hugely encouraging start to the season for Team WinTech. We look forward to supporting clubs and athletes throughout what is sure to be a busy season.
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Team WinTech and King had a hugely successful weekend at the 2024 British Rowing Junior and Senior Club Championships, securing 58 medals (17 gold) across a range of boat classes and emerging by far the most-decorated boat-builder across the course of the four-day event.
Held for the first time as a joint event in July, the newly revamped British Championships attracted entries from across the UK, including recent Henley Royal and Henley Women’s Regatta winners.
Starting us off on the Friday were two medals in the open club coxless fours. Derby Rowing Club took gold (WinTech International) with Kingston Rowing Club taking silver (WinTech International). In the women’s equivalent, Nottinghamshire County Rowing Association took silver (WinTech Cobra). Nottinghanshire County Rowing Association also secured a bronze in the open club single.
In a succession of junior events shortly after, medals flowed for WinTech shells; we won bronze in the open junior 18 singles via Shanklin Sandown (WinTech Cobra) and then took gold and bronze in the quad via Lea Rowing Club (WinTech Cobra) and Royal Grammar School High Wycombe (WinTech International) respectively. Gold was also secured in the women’s junior 18 double as Lea Rowing Club continued to flex their muscle in the junior community (WinTech International). Shanklin Sandown reprised the open junior 16 doubles title they took at the National Schools’ Regatta two months ago (WinTech International) whilst Exeter Rowing Club were silver medallists, also in a WinTech International.
Continuing the junior theme, we won bronze in the women’s junior 16 single with A B Severn RC (WinTech Cobra) before Sir William Perkins took an impressive gold in the women’s junior 18 pair (WinTech International). The final three races of the day were also littered with WinTech medals; the Windsor Boys School – featuring several of the crew that won the Fawley Challenge Cup – took bronze in the open junior 18 coxless four (WinTech International) before Calpe RC of Gibraltar won gold in the women’s junior 16 pair (WinTech Cobra SE) alongside Marlow RC who claimed bronze in the same final (WinTech International). Finally, silver and bronze were collected in the open junior 16 coxed four as Windsor Boys and Claires Court School (WinTech Internationals) rounded out a hugely successful Friday for Team WinTech.
Saturday was another warm and pleasant day, and medals begun to flow shortly after 5pm. Bronze was collected in the open club quads thanks to Shoreham Rowing Club (WinTech International) before Nottinghamshire County Rowing Association (WinTech Cobra) took silver in the women’s equivalent. Claires Court School were silver medallists in the mixed club coxed fours (WinTech International) before Hartpury College won gold and Lea Rowing Club took silver in the women’s junior 18 singles (WinTech Internationals). Rob Roy BC also won a strong silver in the women’s junior 18 quads (WinTech International).
Our next set of medals came about 30 minutes later and begun with a phenomenal one-two-three in the women’s junior 16 doubles; A B Severn retained their national title from Dorney Lake two months ago (WinTech Cobra SE FLX) whilst Tideway Scullers School took silver (WinTech Cobra) and Calpe RC were in bronze (WinTech Cobra SE). We also won gold in the following race, as Shanklin Sandown took the win in the open junior 16 singles (WinTech International).
We collected a further five medals on the Saturday, starting with a brilliant win from the Windsor Boys School in the open junior 16 quads (WinTech International) – this crew have swept all before them in 2024 and head into their senior seasons as strong contenders for national titles. Hinksey Sculling School were bronze medallists in a WinTech Cobra. The Windsor Boys School collected yet another medal in the open junior 18 pairs, winning silver in a WinTech International. Our final medals of the day came in the women’s junior 16 coxed four, when Great Marlow School took bronze (WinTech International), before Claires Court School rounded out the day with gold in the open junior 16 pairs (WinTech International).
Sunday saw us add a further 14 medals to the growing collection, starting with a succession of silvers: Nottinghamshire County Rowing Association in both the open and women’s club pairs (WinTech Internationals) plus Derby Rowing Club and Oxford in the open championship coxless fours (WinTech International). We also won bronze in the women’s club pair courtesy of Calpe RC (WinTech Cobra SE). Windsorian Rowing Club added a bronze in the open championship doubles (WinTech Cobra SE FLX).
In the women’s adaptive 1-2 single, Sudbury RC and Guildford RC were silver and bronze medallists (WinTech Explorer 24 and 21 respectively) before Deeside Scullers took gold in the open AR3 single (WinTech Competitor).
We collected another six junior medals to close out the day, including bronze for Nottingham & Union RC in the women’s junior 14 coxed quads (WinTech International) and silver for Marlow Rowing Club in the open junior 14 doubles (WinTech International). Another podium sweep was stacked in the women’s junior 15 doubles as Cantabrigian RC secured gold, Calpe RC took silver and Hereford RC managed bronze (WinTech Internationals). Windsor Boys A won silver in the open junior 15 coxed quads to complete the set (WinTech International).
12 medals were won on the final day of competition, including four victories, as Team WinTech completed their total haul of 17 golds. In the first final of the day, Tees Rowing Club won gold in the open junior AR-O single (WinTech Competitor) whilst Stratford-upon-Avon BC took silver (WinTech International). In the open beginner double, Windsor Boys/Windsorian were silver medallists (WinTech Cobra SE FLX) and Surrey University took bronze (WinTech Club Racer).
Berwick ARC took bronze in the open junior 14 singles (WinTech Competitor) before Henley RC and Falcon RC collected gold and silver respectively in the open junior 14 coxed quads (WinTech Internationals). In addition, gold was secured in the following two races as Exeter RC & Hexham RC won the open junior 15 doubles (WinTech International) and A B Severn BC won the women’s junior 15 single (WinTech Cobra). Hereford RC added silver in the former (WinTech International).
Finally, City of Bristol won bronze in the women’s junior 14 double (WinTech International) before Marlow Rowing Club took silver in the women’s junior 15 coxed quads (WinTech International).
The 2024 British Rowing Junior and Senior Club Championships rounds out the domestic season for Team WinTech in what has been another hugely successful year, featuring top-level wins at national events plus Trophies at the prestigious Henley Women’s and Royal Regattas. We are already excited to return to competition in the ’24/’25 season.
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Team WinTech recorded five wins at the 2024 edition of the Henley Masters Regatta, reaffirming our spot as one of the country’s premier boat-builders across age groups and capabilities.
Held over two days on the same stretch of water as both the Women’s and Royal Regattas, 2024 marked the 30-year anniversary of this historic event and was celebrated by entrants from across the world.
All of our nine wins came on the Saturday, starting in the Op.MasI.1x, when Sowman of Dart Totnes Amateur Rowing Club beat Doody of Hexham Rowing Club in a WinTech International. Shortly after, the Tideway Scullers School beat Rob Roy Boat Club to the Op.MasB.2x title in a WinTech Cobra.
The W.MasE.4- was won by Nottingham Rowing Club in a WinTech Cobra, in a race they secured easily over Putney Town Rowing Club. Our next win came in the W.MasE.1x, as Cassini of Mortlake Anglian & Alpha Boat Club triumphed over Hickmott of Tideway Scullers School.
Finally, we also won the Op.MasC.2x as Nottinghamshire County Rowing Association beat Tribesmen Rowing Club, Ireland by a canvas in one of the last races of the day in their WinTech International.
Team WinTech also had four additional crews appear in respective finals. Brown of Monmouth Rowing Club was a beaten finalist in the W.MasF.1x whilst Eton Excelsior Rowing Club lost out to Schweriner-Erster Kieler Composite in the Op.MasD.2x.
Elsewhere, Nottingham Rowing Club were defeated by Hexham Rowing Club in the final of the W.MasB.4x by just under a length before Lester of Monmouth Rowing Club lost to home favourite Bromilow of Upper Thames Rowing Club in the W.MasJ.1x.
With innumerable WinTech shells on display throughout the weekend, it was a pleasure to see so many of our crews performing strongly and competing for premier titles. The completion of this Regatta draws to a close the Henley series as all eyes turn to Nottingham and the British Rowing Junior and Senior Club Championships. WinTech will be there in force and look forward to closing out the domestic season in style.
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The Windsor Boys School collected their fourth Henley Royal Regatta title in eight years in The Fawley Challenge Cup at this year’s edition of the event, racing to a stunning victory in their WinTech Cobra (the same shell that has carried them to victory in the past three too).
The state school – who arrived into Henley as national champions and winners at the recent Marlow Regatta – were relatively untroubled throughout the week, winning their final by nearly three lengths against Marlow Rowing Club.
“This was the most special Windsor Boys quad of them all,” commented Mark Wilkinson, Director of Rowing. “Sadly, Henley’s conditions did not allow them to show that. That boat is the quickest a WBSBC quad has ever gone, including the 2018 crew, and had they had the same conditions would have broken all the records.”
Elsewhere, King shells were used right at the very top end of The Prince Philip Challenge Trophy. The three fastest American crews from US Youth Nationals descended on UK shores to take on the best of the British and all chose to race in King racing boats, indicating how highly-regarded these hulls are in the USA. RowAmerica Rye – winners of the youth women’s eight at the USRowing Youth National Championships – were beaten finalists, coming up against a Headington School unit who took the title at both the Royal and the women’s regatta.
Alongside them were Newport Aquatic Centre, who fell to Headington in the semi-finals, and Marin Rowing Association, who were beaten by Rye on the Saturday. They were silver and bronze medallists respectively at the USRowing Youth National Championships.
Karina Feitner and Katy Flynn – competing for the Advanced Rowing Initiative of the Northeast, U.S.A. – were beaten semi-finalists in a WinTech Cobra, having raced all the way to the Saturday of The Stonor Challenge Trophy.
Elsewhere, Whitemarsh Boat Club took part in one of the races of the Regatta on the Friday of The Fawley Challenge Cup, running Marlow Rowing Club all the way to the line in their WinTech Cobra. They were eventually beaten by a quarter of a length, before Marlow went on to lose in the final to the aforementioned Windsor Boys.
Other highlights included Leander Club taking a famous win in The Remenham Challenge Cup against The Ivy Club of Princeton, before falling on the Friday to Hollandia Roeiclub of the Netherlands.
Despite the rainiest conditions in recent memory, fierce and frantic racing meant that Henley Royal Regatta 2024 was not dampened in spirit. Stunning finals on a kaleidoscopic Sunday saw the University of Washington hit the booms in the final of The Grand Challenge Cup, Oxford Brookes secure six Trophies including the premier open and women’s eights and Thames retained all three club events that they won in 2023.
With the Olympic and Paralympic Games looming large on the horizon, we can’t wait to watch the fastest athletes in our sport take each on in pursuit of ultimate glory. Team WinTech and King will be attending both the Henley Masters Regatta and British Rowing Championships and look forward to meeting many of our athletes and clubs as the season comes to a close.
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Team WinTech and King enjoyed another successful weekend in the Thames Valley at the 2024 edition of the Henley Women’s Regatta, collecting three category wins and making a further five finals. With a record entry, both domestically and from overseas, the quality has never been higher at this iconic event, and we were delighted to see so many crews in WinTech and King shells performing admirably. Our UK dealer Oarsport were present in the athlete enclosure supporting athletes and coaches all weekend along with colleagues from WinTech & King North America.
Our first win came in the newly created Grosvenor Cup for PR3 singles. Samantha-Louise Gough of St Andrew Boat Club took the victory in impressive style, racing in both the semi-final and final to comfortable wins in a WinTech Cobra. This category is a wonderful springboard for future adaptive participants, and we look forward to watching the entry list grow, supported by our shells.
Following that, Durham University took the win in aspirational academic coxless fours. The ladies in palatinate had to race through a time trial plus three rounds before facing up against A.S.R Nereus in the final. The Dutch, who had a bye in their respective semi-final whilst Durham battled it out with Boston University of the USA, were renowned for their fast start but were unable to ever really achieve terms with Durham. With three first years on-board, this boat moved away to secure victory by an impressive 2.5 lengths again in a WinTech Cobra
Our final win came in the championship single for the George Innes Cup. Sophie Egnot-Johnson of Waikato Rowing Club, New Zealand traveled some distance to compete on the Henley stretch but it became a worthwhile trip after she finished her final two lengths up on Sarah McKay of Grosvenor Rowing Club in a WinTech International. Sophie will now turn her attention to the World University Rowing Championships.
In the final of the championship lightweight double scull for the Haslam Trophy, Nottinghamshire County Rowing Association lost out to Dart Totnes by a length and a half, with 2023 Henley Women’s Regatta champion Laura Macro on-board the crew in black. Headington School were on the losing side of their race for the West End Amateur Rowing Association Trophy (junior 16 coxed fours) whilst an A B Severn/Stratford-upon-Avon composite – featuring national champions from A B Severn in the stern pair – narrowly missed out on the Nina Padwick Trophy for junior 16 quads.
Lea Rowing Club came up against the national champions in the Rayner Cup for junior doubles after progressing to the final in impressive fashion (including a dispatch of in-form Wycliffe in the semi-final). They did not have enough to stop Hartpury, who also won the national championship title four weeks ago. Finally, the Dutch composite of D S R Proteus-Eretes and H.S.R.V Pelargos were also beaten by an impressive Hartpury crew in the the Rosie Mayglothling Trophy for aspirational doubles.
We were exceptionally proud of all of our athletes racing this weekend and with so much excitement to come over the next few weeks, we’re really looking forward to supporting a range of boats on the Henley course at both the Royal and Masters Regattas.
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At the USRowing Youth Nationals we saw an outstanding performance from Team King & WinTech, clinching an impressive 34 medals across various categories, reaffirming our dominance on the water.
It started off with our first win coming from the small boats with Concord Crew winning the Men’s Youth 2x. We also had great racing from First Coast(M) and River City (W), pulling out a 3rd place finish, and securely the bronze medal in the men’s and women’s 2-.
Next, we moved to the fours and there was the outstanding performance from SA Rowing from Roswell, GA crushing the field by 7 seconds in the Women’s Youth 4+.
SA Rowing: Women Youth 4+ ( King SE 4+)
We moved on to the quads where we saw Whitemarsh and Texas RC fighting it out the entire way to the finish to be beat out of the top position. Whitemarsh boys secured the silver while Texas RC took come the bronze. We would see Whitemarsh also showing off their depth of program and having their second varsity 4x secure a top place finish, claiming the bronze medal.
Next up was Oakland Strokes in the Men’s Youth 4- claiming the gold with an exciting finish but they lead it wire to wire. RowAmerica Rye women captured the silver in the Women’s Youth 4-.
Oakland Strokes: Men’s Youth 4- (WinTech Cobra 4-)
RowAmerica Rye continued to show their depth of a program as we moved into the 8+s. The first was the silver for the boys in the Men’s Youth 2V8+, missing first but .21 seconds. The RowAmerica Rye girls showcased their dominance by not only winning the Women’s Youth 2V8+ but their “B” boat in the event finished right behind them claiming silver.
RowAmerica Rye: Women’s 2V8+ (King SE 8+)
RowAmerica Rye : Women’s 2V8+ “B” (King SE 8+)
Then was the premiere event of the morning, the varsity eights. We started with men and this was a packed field of the best of the best from scholastic and clubs. Eight lanes across with 5 yellow boats and 3 Kings charging for the finish line. At the end of the race it was RowAmerica Rye that was on top for gold for the second year in a row, with Oakland Strokes earning that final podium spot for bronze.
RowAmerica Rye: Men’s Varsity 8+ Back to Back Champions (King SE 8+)
Up next was the Women’s Varsity 8+ final and this is the event that King has dominated for years! This year was very special as it not only added to another gold to the RowAmerica Rye team tally, but King sweeps the event for the second time, with silver going to a close Newport Aquatic Center who edged out Marin Rowing Association, who took the bronze. We also had Saugatuck Rowing Club who is no stranger to the final in the event who took fourth.
RowAmerica Rye, Newport and Marin sprinting to the line. (King SE 8+)
Full recap of all our medalists.
Gold Medal Winners 🥇:
Silver Medal Winners 🥈:
Bronze Medal Winners 🥉:
Team WinTech and King had a stunning weekend at the 2024 National Schools’ Regatta, collecting 15 gold and a further 21 minor medals across a range of categories, more medals than any other boat brand. With three full days of racing on the iconic Dorney Lake, thousands of young athletes took to the water in contestation of prizes ranging from junior 14 through to 18.
The Friday saw us win five golds. The first came in the open junior 14 coxed quads, as Henley Rowing Club sculled home to secure victory in a WinTech International. Behind them, Yarm School were silver medallists in the same shell. Our next gold followed immediately afterwards as Hampton School won the open junior 14 second octuples final in a WinTech International.
Marlow Rowing Club took the open junior 15 second coxed quads category (WinTech International) whilst long-time supporters Windsor Boys won the first category in the same shell. Our final gold of the day came in a race where we also secured silver and bronze; Great Marlow School won the girl’s junior 15 coxed quads ahead of Marlow in second and Headington in bronze. All three raced in WinTech Internationals.
On Saturday seven medals over the course of the day in our boats. In the second final of the afternoon, Great Marlow School won gold in the open junior 15 coxed fours category in a WinTech International whilst Hampton School secured silver in the open junior 15 second eights (WinTech International) in the following race.
Two bronzes followed in the shape of Windsor Boys in the open junior 16 coxed fours (King) and Kingston Grammar School in the girl’s equivalent (WinTech International). Our second gold of the day came courtesy of Headington School, who secured top honours in the girl’s junior 16 second eights (King) whilst a pair of bronze medals rounded off the day via Great Marlow School in the girl’s second quads (WinTech Cobra) and Canford School in the open championship coxed fours (King).
Sunday was a deluge of afternoon ‘A’ finals and brought it with 17 medals including eight golds. The first three finals of the day were all WinTech winners across the open junior 16 second quads (Windsor Boys in a WinTech International), open junior 16 quads (Windsor Boys in a WinTech International) and girl’s junior 16 second quads (Walbrook Rowing Club in a WinTech International). The first of those three also saw us win bronze riding with Claire’s Court in a WinTech International.
Our next gold came thanks to a stunning sprint to the line from AB Severn, who rowed down Sir William Perkins in the closing stages to win the girl’s junior 16 doubles in a WinTech Cobra SE FLX. We then won five medals on the bounce, starting with a bronze in the same race with City of Bristol (WinTech International), followed by a one-two-three in the open equivalent; Shanklin Sandown took gold in a WinTech International, Exeter were second in the same shell and Bewl Bridge secured bronze in a WinTech Cobra. Finally, we won gold in the open championship pairs as Nottinghamshire County Rowing Association took their final by the scruff of the neck, rating 40 in the opening exchanges and leading by an order of magnitude at the halfway point. They raced in a WinTech International.
A slew of silvers followed as we finished second in the girl’s championship doubles (Tideway Scullers in a WinTech Cobra SE), open championship doubles (Windsor Boys School in a WinTech Cobra SE FLX), open championship coxless four (Nottingham and Union in a WinTech International) and the girl’s championship single (Hartpury College in a WinTech International).
Our final three medals of the day were gold, bronze, gold. Open championship quads was won by a resurgent Windsor Boys crew, who saw off the heated attention of Marlow Rowing Club to win their third successive gold, with Hinksey winning bronze in a WinTech Cobra. Finally, Headington School won gold in the girl’s second eights category as the only second eight to make the ‘A’ final of championship eights.
This was a phenomenal weekend of junior rowing, underlining what rude health the sport is in approaching an Olympic summer. With the Henley series now looming on the horizon, we cannot wait to join clubs and athletes on the banks and out on the water in pursuit of glory.
Come and join #TeamWinTech & #TeamKing today! Our value goes beyond that of just a great product for a great price.
BUCS Regatta 2024 was another huge success for Team WinTech & King, with our athletes and crews collecting 16 medals over the course of three action-packed days of racing. Hailed as the student national championships, Nottingham’s Holme Pierrepont played host to thousands of rowers from across the United Kingdom, with a wide variety of ambitions on show. For some, this marked their first competitive foray into the sport and simply boating onto the lake was a show of strength. For others, last weekend’s racing was the first fixture in a series of contests leading into the all-important Henley series in a couple of months’ time.
The Saturday saw us collect six medals in a range of categories. We won back-to-back bronzes in the open intermediate lightweight single and women’s beginner single; Aberdeen claimed the former in a WinTech whilst Edinburgh, the dominant force in beginner rowing, finished third in a WinTech in the latter. The following race saw us win silver in the women’s intermediate pair, as Durham finished second behind local rivals Newcastle in a WinTech Cobra. Shortly after, Nottingham secured silver in a WinTech International in the open intermediate single. Our final two medals of the day came in the women’s intermediate quad (silver for Durham in a WinTech Cobra) and women’s championship quad (bronze for Durham in a WinTech Cobra).
The Sunday started in the best possible way with a brilliant gold in the women’s intermediate lightweight single. Birmingham University took first and second here and their ‘A’ sculler Erin Meredith raced home to the top prize in a WinTech Cobra SE. In the following race, we claimed a bronze in the women’s championship lightweight single courtesy of Leeds University in a WinTech Cobra FLX. Our next medal came in the women’s intermediate single, as Hartpury College secured both silver and bronze with the latter medal featuring a WinTech International. Our next gold came in the open championship lightweight double, as Nottingham were roared home by vocal local support; their victory was delivered in a WinTech Cobra.
Monday saw us collect a further six medals, with a flurry in the middle of the day as WinTech and King shells won three medals in two races between the women’s championship coxed four (silver for Durham in a King) and the open intermediate pairs (gold for Durham in a WinTech International and bronze for Exeter in a WinTech International). Our final three medals came in the open championship quad, as Durham took bronze in a WinTech Cobra, and women’s intermediate double, where we collected silver and bronze thanks to Durham (WinTech Cobra) and Exeter (WinTech International) respectively.
BUCS Regatta was another superb weekend of racing and sets us up for a phenomenal summer of rowing, capped by an Olympic and Paralympic Games in Paris. With so much to look forward to, Team WinTech & King cannot wait to be bankside throughout, supporting athletes and clubs in achieving their sporting ambitions.
Come and join #TeamWinTech & #TeamKing today! Our value goes beyond that of just a great product for a great price.
The 2024 Junior Sculling Regatta was a roaring success for Team WinTech and King as our shells collected 27 medals including 11 golds. Held at Dorney Lake just 24 hours after Wallingford Regatta, the event provides ideal preparation for athletes ahead of the National Schools’ Regatta in just two weeks’ time.
Our first golds came in the women’s single events from junior 15 to junior 17. King’s School Ely took the WJ15 prize whilst City of Bristol claimed the WJ16 title and Hartpury College won WJ17, all in WinTech International shells. On the open side, we collected two silvers and a bronze in the equivalent events, courtesy of Exeter Rowing Club in the J15 category (silver), Tideway Scullers School in the J16 division (bronze) and City of Bristol Rowing Club in the J17 race. Our final singles medal came thanks to Nottinghamshire County Rowing Association, who finished third in the women’s junior 18 race.
We won gold in nearly every open double category except for junior 17. Marlow Rowing Club took the J14 win (in a race where we also won silver and bronze whilst riding with Maidenhead and Guildford respectively), Windsor Boys claimed the J15 title whilst their older team-mates won the J18 race in a WinTech Cobra. We also secured bronze in the same race, again via Windsor Boys in a Cobra. Our fourth gold came with Shanklin Sandown Rowing Club, who won the open junior 16 doubles whilst Bewl Bridge finished second (both in WinTechs).
On the women’s side, we managed a silver in the J15 category alongside Nottinghamshire County Rowing Association (WinTech) plus a silver and bronze in the J16 final (Hartpury College and Sir William Perkins respectively). Royal Grammar School Worcester won gold in the J17 race (WinTech Cobra).
In the quads, Henley Rowing Club won the open junior 14 coxed quad race (whilst Yarm School took the bronze) whilst Windsor Boys School collected yet another gold in the J16 coxless race. Lea Rowing Club won the bronze (all in WinTech shells).
On the women’s side, we won a further three quad medals, including a brilliant one-two-three in the J15 coxed race. Great Marlow School took gold, ahead of Marlow Rowing Club in silver (both in WinTechs) whilst Headington School won the bronze (King).
Our final medal came in the women’s junior 14 octuples, as Marlow Rowing Club collected a well-earned bronze.
We were super excited to see such strong racing at junior level after a blockbuster weekend at Nottingham for BUCS Regatta. We’ll be bankside for all the major summer races and look forward to supporting all of our clubs and athletes.
Come and join #TeamWinTech & #TeamKing today! Our value goes beyond that of just a great product for a great price.
Team WinTech opened our account for the 2024 regatta season with ten excellent wins at the Junior Inter Regional Regatta at Holme Pierrepont in Nottingham last weekend. With hundreds of junior athletes converging on the course to try and secure bragging rights for their region, we were one of the most successful boat-builders throughout the entire event and were delighted to support so many young rowers, who will now be eyeing up national titles in the coming weeks.
Our first win came in the opening final of the day, when Thames London took the win in the AR-O single (WinTech). This category was a WinTech washout on the podium as North West and West Midlands also secured silver and bronze in WinTechs. Following that, victories were staked in the open junior 15 and 16 single (both WinTech shells) for West and Eastern regions respectively. The latter category was another WinTech-only podium, thanks to Thames Upriver and North West in second and third respectively (WinTech). We also snagged silver and bronze in the women’s junior 15 single for the North West and Eastern regions (both WinTechs).
Our next gold came in the open junior 16 pairs category for the Eastern region (WinTech), who defeated two Thames-based boats. Two bronzes followed in the women’s junior 16 pair (East Midlands in a WinTech) and open junior 14 doubles (Northern in a WinTech). Two back-to-back golds were secured in the women’s junior 15 double and open junior 16 double for East Midlands and Wessex respectively, who both raced in WinTechs. The latter category also saw us take the silver medal courtesy of Thames South East, which amounted to our fifth silver of the day thus far, given the fact we also collected second place in the open junior 15 double category with Thames Upriver (WinTech).
A flurry of minor medals followed, as two silvers were collected in the women’s junior 16 double (Thames Upriver in a WinTech) and open junior 16 eights (Thames Upriver in a WinTech) whilst a bronze was also added in the former event thanks to East Midlands’ WinTech crew.
Gold was the order of the day in the open junior 14 coxed quad, as Thames Upriver won the event ahead of Thames London and North West (WinTech). A bronze in the women’s equivalent event followed (East Midlands in a WinTech) before Thames Upriver won silver in the open junior 15 coxed quad (WinTech). Two golds in the women’s junior 15 coxed quad (Thames Upriver in a WinTech) and open junior 16 quad (Thames Upriver in a WinTech) followed, alongside a silver in the latter event (Eastern in a WinTech). Silver was also secured in the women’s equivalent event courtesy of West Midlands in a WinTech before silver and bronze medals were won by Eastern and North West in the open junior 15 coxed four (both in WinTechs). The women’s version of this category saw us collect the silver via WAGS and Wales in a WinTech.
Our final gold of the day came in the open junior 16 coxed four (Thames Upriver in a King) before East Midlands won our 31st and final medal of the day, finishing second in the women’s junior 16 coxed four in a WinTech.
With over 30 medals collected across the full spectrum of boat classes on offer, this was an excellent opening salvo for Team WinTech & King. The 2024 regatta season will only build from here and we are very excited to partner with so many talented athletes and clubs in the coming months.
Come and join #TeamWinTech & #TeamKing today! Our value goes beyond that of just a great product for a great price.
Team WinTech closed out the junior head racing season with a set of excellent performances at the Oarsport Junior Sculling Head, culminating in four category wins and a series of accompanying minor medals. Just 48 hours after the Schools’ Head of the River, hundreds of junior athletes took to Dorney Lake for two laps of the Olympic course and a tilt at sculling supremacy.
Our first victory of the day came from the Windsor Boys School, whose consistent strength in the quad is one of the most remarkable patterns in UK rowing. They collected the open junior 16 quad title (WinTech International) ahead of Lea Rowing Club, who were also racing in a WinTech shell (Cobra).
Our second win came from Great Marlow School, who won the women’s junior 15 quad title in convincing fashion ahead of Marlow Rowing Club and Headington. This was a WinTech one-two-three, as our shells collected every available medal (WinTech International, WinTech International and King SE respectively).
The next event on the docket yielded another gold, as the Windsor Boys school collected their second win of the day ahead of Marlow Rowing Club in the open junior 15 octuples. Both boats were racing in WinTech International shells.
Our final victory came in the women’s junior 14 octuples as Grange School secured the gold (WinTech International). Back in bronze were Marlow Rowing Club, who raced in the same shell.
Elsewhere, WinTech boats occupied positions two and three in the open junior quad category thanks to strong performances from Lea Rowing Club (WinTech Cobra) and Maidenhead Rowing Club (WinTech Cobra). The same pattern repeated itself in the open junior 17 race as Trentham Boat Club won silver in a WinTech Cobra and Kingston Grammar School snatched bronze in a WinTech International.
We also earned a silver medal in the women’s junior 15 octuples category courtesy of Marlow Rowing Club (WinTech International) and a silver/bronze pairing in the open junior 15 coxed quads via the Windsor Boys and Grange School respectively (WinTech International). Our final medal was won in the open junior 14 coxed quads division, where Henley Rowing Club finished second behind a strong crew from George Watsons College.
Overall, WinTech/King crews won 17 medals and finished as the leading boat-builder in terms of podium placements. With attention now turning to a hugely exciting summer season, we can’t wait to join our athletes and clubs on the banks of lakes and rivers across the country.
Come and join #TeamWinTech & #TeamKing today! Our value goes beyond that of just a great product for a great price.
Team WinTech enjoyed another successful day out on the Tideway at the Schools’ Head of the River 2024, collecting two wins and a further three podium placements. Despite challenging water conditions leading into the race, the event was able to get underway with relatively little issue (albeit the J15 events were scrapped a few days prior) and nearly 300 crews partook in another vintage (and record-breaking) contest.
Our two victories came in the mixed school eight and the girl’s third eight; Kingston Grammar School collected a convincing 11-second win as the fastest mixed eight (WinTech International) whilst Headington (King) saw off the attentions of Surbiton High School in the girl’s third eight category.
We secured a second place too, as Headington (King) continued their strong showing (in a race where they also took the female headship) by securing a silver medal in the girl’s second eight. Hinksey Sculling School (WinTech Cobra) took an impressive bronze in the open championship quads, behind pacy boats from the Tideway Scullers School and Marlow Rowing Club, whilst the latter also secured a bronze behind Headington in the girl’s second eights (WinTech International).
The Windsor Boys School (WinTech International) fresh from competing and breaking a course record at the Heineken Regatta in Amsterdam finished fourth in the open championship quads and will be determined to climb back onto the podium this summer as they seek to retain the quads title at the National Schools’ Regatta. Canford School collected a set of fifth-placed finishes in the open first eight (WinTech Cobra) and girl’s J16 first eight (WinTech Cobra).
WinTech & King shells enjoyed a further five top-ten finishes across varying events; places six and seven in the open championship quads were occupied by WinTech Cobra crews (Maidenhead and Trentham respectively), leaving our shells as four of the top ten in this category. Bedford Girl’s School were seventh in the girl’s first eight category (King) and repeated the trick in the girl’s J16 first eight (WinTech Cobra). Rounding out our top-ten contenders were Claires Court, who finished ninth in the girl’s championship quads (WinTech International).
We’re excited to see how all these crews develop over the coming months and look forward to watching many of these athletes join us at Dorney Lake on Friday for the Oarsport Junior Sculling Head sponsored by our UK distributor.
Come and join #TeamWinTech & #TeamKing today! Our value goes beyond that of just a great product for a great price.
Team WinTech kickstarted the 2024 racing season with a great display at the February GB trials with more WinTech Racing singles completing the 5k course than any other boat brand. Three top-ten finishes in the men’s single were among these plus a selection of strong performances across both women’s single and women’s pair, we’re now excited to watch how these development and U23 athletes mature into the season and begin to stake their respective claims for representation at this year’s bumper senior, U23 and junior world championships in Canada.
Our top performer was Rory Harris of Leander Club who came home second overall in the men’s single in a Cobra SE FLX (WinTech’s elite hull shape optimised for high stroke rates). Rory has a great pedigree of strong showings on both the domestic and international stage, with three Henley Royal Regatta titles to go alongside a bronze medal from the third senior rowing World Cup in 2021. Behind Rory, we had two further top-ten finishers in the form of Elliott Donovan-Davies of Hartpury College (WinTech International) and Charlie Warren of Durham University (Cobra SE). They were seventh and eighth respectively.
Bryn Ellery of Leander Club was 13th in a Cobra SE whilst Nat Gauden of Leander was 16th, again in a Cobra SE. Rounding out the top 20 for Team WinTech was Byron Richards, who was 19th for Leander Club (Cobra SE). Jacob Ioras was 22nd in a Cobra – racing for the University of London – whilst Monkton Combe’s Cameron Buchan was 24th in a WinTech International.
In the women’s single, Finnola Stratton was our top finisher. The Reading University sculler finished just outside of the top ten in 11th place, racing in a Cobra SE. Behind her, Poppy Baker of Nottingham Rowing Club was 14th (WinTech International) and Leander’s Kathryn Burton secured 17th in a Cobra. Chloe Sheppard was 23rd for Hartpury College in a WinTech International.
We had one crew in the women’s pair; Harriet Noyes from Hinksey Sculling School & Tess Peake from Tideway Scullers school placed 16th in a Cobra.
As the season begins in earnest and racing begins to take place with more frequency, we’re incredibly excited to watch the year unfold, particularly as so many athletes vie for so many different titles. Olympic, Paralympic, world, U23, junior and domestic titles lie in wait
Come and join #TeamWinTech. Our value goes beyond that of just a great product for a great price!
In the Britannica, the world’s oldest continuously published encyclopaedia, ‘infinity’ is classified as something ‘that is unlimited, endless, without bound’. It is this principle that underpins the boat club on Teesside that shares its name and to which community rowing is finding a Northern restoration.
Founded in 2022, Infinity Boat Club is a registered charity aiming to bring the sport of rowing to underserved communities of school children in Teesside. Their mission is to use rowing to help school children realise their full potential both on and off the water. Backed by Stephen Peel, who had a successful career as a rower before turning his hand to investing, the boat club has already begun waves on the circuit under the stewardship of Keith Brown, CEO and rowing enthusiast for the past 50 years.
“Stephen was searching for the right type of project for a little while before landing on Teesside as a location,” explained Keith. “Two things really struck him; the lack of facilities at so many schools in the area and the water at Teesside which allows people to use an interrupted 20+ km stretch all year round”.
The strategy was clear – to try and target schoolchildren who would not normally have any opportunity to row. “Tees Rowing Club have a flourishing junior section and we did not want to impinge on that, so our first challenge was finding a facility for these children that would work for what we needed,” said Keith. “I was wondering around and stumbled upon a facility that was set up with millennium funding for canoeing and kayaking but it’s been left for 12 years because no-one was sure what to do with it. After a lot of searching, we found the family that owned it, and they were quite happy to allow us to use the space.”
Fast forward a couple of years and the feedback for the first year of outreach and execution has been outstanding. “Care workers and parents have come into our feeder schools, stating that they have noticed a change in their child,” said Keith. “They’ve got motivation and they’re getting out. Stephen has seen this and witnessed first-hand the tangible impact a project like this can have on a local community.”
The Infinity team started going into schools towards the end of the 2023 school year, getting around 1200 children on indoor rowing machines. The involvement is completely free – Stephen is funding the entire operation, to the point that if he believes a child comes from a particularly difficult background, the boat club should supply meals at the end of the session too. “Stephen’s overarching mission is that the children should be vying for the same opportunities as people from more privileged backgrounds if Infinity stand behind them,” said Keith.
The benefit to certain individuals is already becoming apparent. “We were at one of our row shows and there was a 14-year-old who pulled a really impressive score,” remembered Keith. “When I asked him about it, he said ‘oh, is that a good score, I didn’t know what I was doing so wasn’t trying’. He’s just won BRIC U15 as a 14-year-old and he’s firmly got the bug now”.
Keith approached Oarsport to provide WinTech shells for the club quite early on, realising that our combination of high-quality build and affordability was a great proposition. “We wanted to be with one main supplier so we could have a consistent and interchangeable fleet and order spare parts where needed,” explained Keith. “We went to Oarsport & WinTech, and I had a great relationship with Andrew already, so it all made a lot of sense. They have been incredibly supportive and at-cause to help us build this.”
“We have been lucky enough to work with some of the leading youth rowing projects in the UK as their sole or primary boat suppliers and it has been a pleasure to be chosen by Infinity Boat Club as theirs.” said Jack Wilson, Commercial Director at Oarsport (WinTech’s UK dealer). “We have enjoyed working with Keith and the team. They have had a very clear vision from the start and it has been a pleasure working with them to source the right equipment to help them achieve their goals. WinTech offers a wide range of different boats at different price points which helps when suggesting equipment that is going to be most suitable for a club’s needs and budget. Working with clubs who aim to help introduce more people to our sport (especially those who may not have otherwise had the opportunity) is something that aligns with our own mission. We would like to thank Infinity BC for choosing Oarsport & WinTech Racing, look forward to working with them over the years to come and wish them the best of luck with this project”.
Now that the program is up and running, manned ably by a host of coaches, trustees and supporters, the dreams are growing and the ideas expanding. The plan is to provide a solid foundation for the local community but with a competitive outlook, so that one day kids from Infinity Boat Club might line up alongside the greats of schoolboy and schoolgirl rowing.
“No matter what background someone comes from, Stephen is a firm believer that rowing can and will save you,” said Keith. “Kat Copeland, who is one of our trustees, came to the boathouse and said, ‘so many dreams will be made in this place’. I can’t think of a more apt summary for what we’re trying to do.”
Get in touch today. We have a wealth of experience in working with start up clubs to help them find the best boats for their needs and budget whether high performance and elite equipment or more affordable racing, training and recreational shells to help grow rowing in a more inclusive way.
Team WinTech and King had a phenomenally successful weekend at the 2023 edition of the Head of the Charles. Hailed as one of the world’s largest rowing events, Boston was awash with crews from up and down the USA alongside a host of international entrants. Olympians rubbed shoulders with novices as the fastest athletes in the world took to the Charles to pit their wits against each other across a three-day festival of sport. All told, WinTech & King boats collected a staggering 42 medals in an incredible showing of athletic prowess. Furthermore, Team WinTech & King proudly provided handcrafted display singles for the incredible The Boys in the Boat exhibit, Eliot enclosure, and official Vineyard Vines HOCR store, as well as the wood-themed eight rowed by the 1936 University of Washington tribute crew.
In some events, medals were handed out for placings right across the grid depending on where you finished in your respective category/how many entrants there were in the division. On the Friday, we picked up a solitary medal via Bert Hoefsloot finishing fourth in the Men’s Senior Veteran/Grand Veteran Singles for Dutch club De Hoop.
The floodgates then opened on Saturday as WinTech & King crews collected 19 medals across the day. Our outright wins came in six categories; Endeavor wrapped up the Women’s Senior and Grand Masters Eights in King SE shells with the latter setting a new record in torrential rain. Molesey Boat Club from the UK collected the pennant in the Men’s Grand Masters Coxed Four, setting another new record in a King SE, and East Arm won the female equivalent in a WinTech, setting yet another record. Marin Rowing Association of California won the Men’s Masters 40+ Eight, setting an additional new record in a King SE whilst the Women’s Championship Double went to Blacksheep, who brought it home in a WinTech. Marin Rowing Association finished tenth in the Women’s Senior Masters Coxed Four but were the quickest 60+ crew in a King SE.
Our silver medals then came in the Men’s Senior Masters Coxed Four with Molesey Boat Club in a King SE, Women’s Grand Masters Coxed Four with Chinook in a King SE, Men’s Masters 40+ Eight with Fat Cat in a King, and the Men’s Club Coxed Four with Vesta in a WinTech, who finished sixth overall but were the second fastest club crew.
On the Sunday, the medals continued to pile up as WinTech & King crews collected six outright pennant wins and a victory in age category. Oakland Strokes won the Men’s Youth Coxed Four, defeating nearly 90 other crews to take the title in a WinTech. Windsor Boys School of the UK claimed the Men’s Youth Coxed Quad in a WinTech, cementing themselves as ones to watch back on the British domestic circuit. RowAmerica Rye secured a one-two in the Men’s U17 Coxed Four with WinTech shells whilst P3PE rowed a WinTech to victory in the Directors Challenge Quad. RowAmerica Rye continued their impressive victory trend by taking the Women’s Youth Eight title in a King SE, in a category where six of the top ten finishers were King shells. Saugatuck Rowing Club won the Women’s U17 Coxed Four and Norwalk River finished seventh overall in Men’s Youth Doubles but were the fastest U17 boat.
RowAmerica Rye in their WinTech were silver medallists in the Men’s Youth Quad, finishing behind the aforementioned Windsor Boys, whilst Saugatuck Rowing Club took a King SE to second place in the Men’s Youth Eight. Tideway Scullers School, current holders of the Diamond Jubilee Challenge Cup at Henley Royal Regatta, came second in the Women’s Youth Coxed Quad in their WinTech whilst NYAC came second in the Women’s Youth Double with their WinTech. RowAmerica Rye put in another strong performance to finish second in the Women’s U17 Coxed Four in another WinTech whilst the University of San Diego were second in the Men’s Collegiate Coxed Four. Alexander Auth of NYAC was seventh in the Men’s Youth Single but was the second fastest U17 athlete in his WinTech.
Team WinTech & King also collected nine bronze medals across the three days of racing; Marin in the Women’s Grand Masters Eight with their King SE, Longhorn Legends in the Women’s Alumnae Eight with their King SE, Windsor Boys in the Men’s Championship Double with their WinTech, Finn Putnam of NYAC in the Men’s Championship Single with their WinTech, Justin Schmidt of Conshohocken in the Men’s Lightweight Single in his WinTech, RowAmerica Rye in the Women’s Youth Eight with their King SE, the Danish Rowing Center in Women’s Championship Eights in their King SE, and NYAC in the Directors Challenge Parent/Child in another WinTech.
Overall, it was another incredible rendition of the world’s largest and most well-attended rowing race with over 400,000 attentees. Team WinTech & King is honoured to have been the official boat partner and supplier for this legendary event, supporting over 600 athletes in 62 boats and 120 renting teams across three action-packed days. To all of our athletes from the USA, UK, Ireland, Holland, Denmark, France, Germany, New Zealand, Australia, and Canada, we hope to see you all back next year! Until then, with many programs turning their attention towards indoor training for the next few months, we look forward to watching programs develop in preparation for what promises to be a fantastic Spring season!
Come and join today! Our value goes beyond that of just a great product for a great price.
WinTech Racing Shells
King Racing Shells
Team WinTech had a great day at the Pairs Head of the River last weekend, recording six victories including the women’s headship. On a positively tropical October day, several hundred crews took to the championship course to race a shortened distance from Chiswick Bridge to Harrods Wall. Fast times in sunshine were expected and recorded and the event was another mark in a rapidly progressing season.
Racing in a WinTech Cobra under the banner of Nottinghamshire County Rowing Association, Lauren Henry & Liv Bates stormed down the Tideway as crew #1 to secure the female headship and place ninth overall.
Fresh off the back of a world championship gold, Lauren steered the boat – a task she admitted was a first for her – and Liv stroked a crew that will surely be one to keep an eye on if it progresses into the trials process. Liv raced at the 2023 World Rowing Championships too but caught COVID and had to withdraw from her final in the lightweight women’s single scull.
Three of our other wins came in female categories. The City of Bristol were victorious in the women’s club doubles, beating out boats from the likes of Crabtree, London, City of Oxford, and City of Cambridge. Wallingford Rowing Club had a great day, securing five wins, two of which came in WinTech shells; women’s club pairs and women’s masters B pairs.
Our final two wins came in open master categories. The Kings School Canterbury triumphed in the open masters D pair whilst Upper Thames Rowing Club secured the pennant in the open masters G doubles.
It was another fantastic day of racing on the Thames as the weather Gods once again lay out good fortune for the capital’s principal autumn events. We’re excited to watch crews progress into the season and will be watching results carefully as boats begin to form for the bulk of the winter racing season.
Come and join #TeamWinTech today! Our value goes beyond that of just a great product for a great price.
Team WinTech opened our account for the 23/24 season with two wins at the Vesta Scullers Head of the River. On a balmy London morning, several hundred scullers took to the reverse championship course in an attempt to emerge victorious across a range of different categories catering to ages, genders and abilities. Renowned as one of the UK’s most challenging head races.
Rory Harris of Leander Club was second overall, only losing out to nationally ranked lightweight Copus. Racing in a WinTech Cobra SE, he was seven seconds back on the headship.
Our second-highest finisher was Bryn Ellery of Leander Club, who finished ninth in the Men’s Championship division in a WinTech Cobra. He was 15th overall.Two athletes triumphed in WinTech shells in their respective categories. Laura Bates of London Rowing Club (WinTech Cobra FLX) took the win in the Women’s Lightweight category, beating out seven other scullers. She placed a full 30 seconds ahead of Wake of St Edmund Hall Boat Club in second place and was 98th overall.
Anna Ramsden (WinTech International) won the Women’s Masters D division, finishing over 25 seconds clear of her opposition, and securing the win for Mortlake Anglian and Alpha Boat Club. She was top of a seven-boat field and finished 271st overall.
Byron Richards placed second in the Men’s School/Junior category, 20 seconds back on Philip Wolfensberger of St Paul’s School. Fresh off the back of a win in the Fawley Challenge Cup at Henley Royal Regatta, Richards will be looking to kick on and build off the back of an impressive 22/23 season.
Jack Bates of Reading University Boat Club was also second in his category (Men’s Lightweight Singles) and finished 27th overall. Ethan Walters (WinTech Cobra SE) was 29th overall and second in Men’s U23 Singles whilst Sartin of Tideway Scullers School was second in the Women’s Junior 16 Singles in a WinTech Cobra.
We also had a smattering of thirds; Gibbs of Poole Amateur Rowing Club was third in the Men’s Novice category (WinTech International), Alex Watkins was third in Men’s Masters A Singles (WinTech Cobra), Nat Gauden was third in U23 Singles (WinTech Cobra SE) and Violet Holbrow-Brooksbank was third in Women’s School/Junior Singles (WinTech Cobra).
We’re delighted to be back up and running for the 23/24 season and look forward to supporting athletes across the country over the coming months.
Come and join #TeamWinTech today! Our value goes beyond that of just a great product for a great price.
Sophia Luwis has had a remarkable 2023 – and she’s only just getting started. Supported by Team WinTech, Sophia has established herself as one of the USA’s premier lightweight scullers and looks set for a fantastic campaign at the World Rowing Championships in September. After a major accident last year, it could all have been so different though. We sat down with her to discuss her rise to the top.
First, how has the 2023 season been going for you?
The 2023 season has been a whirlwind, to say the least! It started off with me getting Covid right after New Year’s Eve, just as I was barely starting to do a full week of training post-car crash. Not only was I still recovering from all my injuries and being very out of shape, but suddenly I also needed to recover from this respiratory virus. January and February were hard months. However, that block finished up with the USRowing Spring Speed Order where I came in fifth. While I was still feeling the effects of the virus, that fifth-place finish showed me a little light at the end of the long tunnel I felt like I was in and would still be in for some time. After a rough start to the year, I feel that I have been steadily trudging along, picking up speed, both figuratively and literally. The European racing tour I was on was the experience of a lifetime and taught me so much regarding racing and what it means to be a high-level athlete. Now the trick is to figure out how to continue this moment for the next four weeks and into the next year.
How did you enjoy competing at Henley Royal Regatta?
Henley Royal Regatta was a stark departure from the racing I had just experienced at World Cup II. The lead-up and actual days of racing put me in an interesting and frankly challenging head space. You have the party and extravagance that is the Henley Royal experience juxtaposed to people racing in tough and painful conditions. Overall, it was a fantastic week of figuring out how to manage that head space and, once racing was over, truly enjoy the spectacle that is Henley Royal Regatta.
You won the Third World Cup in the LW1x after a silver in Varese. How does that set you up from a preparation perspective for the 2023 World Rowing Championships?
Those two medals showed me that I can act on command in a race. As I was recovering from my lung injury, pieces and 2ks were simply about survival, not performance. I could not think about my level of performance or try and make moves mid-piece. I had to dumb it down and just focus on getting my legs and lungs to operate for the prescribed duration, and the times and performance would be what they would be. Racing at Lucerne specifically showed me that I did not need to operate in survival mode anymore. I now actually had enough fitness and experience by that point to strategize and race on command.
Talk me through Lucerne. How did you prepare, what were your aims going into the racing and how did you execute your plan?
My focus going into Lucerne was to not repeat my performance in Varese. Although I did get a silver in Italy, I felt like I really underperformed in the final. The preparation for Lucerne, regarding workouts, did not look all that different from Varese. However, technically we focused more on my deficiencies when rowing in more challenging conditions. More than anything else I worked on my head game leading up to Lucerne and how it needed to be vastly different from the head game I employed in Varese.
How did you first get into rowing?
I started rowing in college at The College of William & Mary for the club crew program. I had done one learn-to-row summer camp for a week in high school at my local boat club and decided I would never do it again. I had decided that rowing was a boring sport. However, once I got to college, the club crew team provided an opportunity to get off campus, and as a Freshman with no car, this was a really appealing proposition. Since then, it was and has been a pretty steady progression of enjoying the sport, realising I could go pretty fast, and dedicating more time and resources to it.
I understand you had a terrible accident last year. Tell me about the incident (in any detail you feel comfortable with) and how you found your way back onto the water?
In September of 2022, a week before we were supposed to fly out for World Championships in the Lightweight 4X, myself and my teammate were in a car crash on our way to practice. I spent eleven days in the ICU and ten days in a rehab facility dealing with a TBI/brain bleed, a collapsed lung, displaced rib fractures, pituitary gland malfunctions, nerve damage in both legs, PTS, and a slew of other bumps, bruises, and road rash. There was not any one moment when I decided I would row again; I just assumed I would and took the time after leaving the rehab facility to slowly progress from a wheelchair to walking for five, ten, and then fifteen minutes. From there I went to a C2 bike sitting upright just peddling for forty minutes and slowly increasing that number. Then I moved to an erg once every other day starting at just five minutes with the damper all the way down and progressed that until eventually, I felt I could manage oars and being on the water.
During your rehabilitation, what kept you motivated and interested to stay in the sport?
Simply put, I did not think too much about the road ahead and tried to simply do the next day’s workout, however brief it may need to be.
How have WinTech supported you on your journey so far?
WinTech supported me and my team when I/we really did not have all that much to recommend us. They first started helping our Black Sheep Racing Team back when we had no international titles or big first-place finishes. That early investment meant a lot and enabled our team to put critical meters in on the water in fast shells. As our team has progressed and has been able to put up international titles and first-place finishes, WinTech and their UK distributor Oarsport have continued to work with us in all the myriad of logistics that go into international and high-level domestic racing.
What about the WinTech shells do you enjoy?
I really like my Cobra SE FLX. The shorter hull makes it super responsive and fun to get going. The all-black paint job is also pretty swish.
What has been your sporting highlight, excluding your recent Lucerne win?
The NSR 2 race with Audrey in 2022 was probably one of my best sports memories because it was so unexpected. We had not been in the boat together all that long and all of a sudden, we were going really fast, easily, and going up against some really stiff competition. We were very much the underdogs and that lack of expectation and the speed we were experiencing in the boat mid-race makes it a fond memory.
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Liv Bates is one of the hottest prospects in world rowing. After a series of impressive domestic results in 2021 and 2022 – alongside appearances at the U23 World and European championships – she made her senior debut this season, picking up two bronze medals at the second and third World Cups in Varese and Lucerne with support from WinTech & Oarsport (WinTech’s exclusive UK distributor).
Liv is poised to take on her first senior World Championships alongside the support of her coach, Dec Gamble. We sat down with her to discuss her meteoric rise, the excitement of racing in Serbia and how WinTech & Oarsport have enabled her to become one of the world’s leading lightweight scullers.
First, how has the 2023 season been going for you?
It’s going well. I am pleased to have been selected for my first senior international races for GB which was my aim at the start of this year.
How did it feel to be selected for the World Rowing Championships for the first time?
I was thrilled to be given the opportunity to see how fast I can go compared to the rest of the world. I love getting stuck into some close, fast racing and can’t think of a better place to do it!
You won bronze at the Second and Third World Cups in the LW1x. How does that set you up from a preparation perspective for the 2023 World Rowing Championships?
I feel that racing at World cup 2 and 3, as well as Europeans earlier in the year, has given me valuable senior international racing experience, which I was lacking before. I learnt a lot about international competition and the importance of being able to continually elevate your performance throughout the regatta. Hopefully this will enable me to perform well at Worlds.
Talk us through Varese and Lucerne. How did you prepare, what were your aims going into each race and how did you execute your plan?
I came to Caversham to train with the senior GB team just after April trials, so have prepared with them for both regattas. This was a big change for me, as I had been training on my own up in Nottingham all winter. It was nice to be surrounded by other athletes that are so motivated and I think this really helped me push on in my training and prepared me well for racing. My aim going into both regattas was just to go as fast as I could, and have a good personal performance, regardless of where that placed me in relation to the other countries. Although I struggled with the conditions when racing the final in to Varese, I felt I was able to execute my race well in Lucerne.
How did you first get into rowing?
I first started rowing as a J14 at Trent Rowing Club. They gave me a great experience and really showed me the fun side of the sport! When I got to J16, we started to win at a lot of the local regattas and I decided I wanted to take rowing a bit more seriously, so I made the decision to move to Nottinghamshire County Rowing Association and I have been there ever since! Both clubs alongside the additional support from Nottingham University Boat Club since I started my degree, have been instrumental in getting me to where I am today.
Your rise over the past two years has been incredible. When did you first realise that you were moving quickly and in with a real chance of senior representation?
I think the first time I realised I was going quite well was at the U23 European Championships in 2021 where I came away with the silver in the lightweight single. This was my first international race, so I really wasn’t expecting to do that well. Since then, my results at trials have continued to improve and at the start of this season I knew senior representation was a real possibility, but my aim has always just been to go as fast as I can!
How have WinTech supported you on your journey so far?
I have been rowing in WinTechs since I first started rowing as a junior. In 2021 I was rowing in a lightweight Cobra SE and was the fastest U23 lightweight at GB trials and then went on to win at BUCS and Henley Women’s Regatta (setting a course record) in the same shell all with WinTech RDS sculls too. This gave me great confidence in the speed of the WinTech boats and drag reducing sculls. Before I raced U23 Euros, WinTech’s UK distributor, Oarsport, reached out and gave me the opportunity to try the super-lightweight boat for the Championships. This shell really worked well for me and enabled me to put on my best performance in this race. Since then, I have never looked back and both WinTech and Oarsport have provided me with incredible support during training and racing. I am so grateful for all they have done for me
What about the WinTech shells do you enjoy?
I think the most important thing about racing boats is that they enable you to achieve your fastest race. I firmly believe I can do this in my WinTech. I find they run very smoothly through the drive and recovery, and I can achieve great acceleration in the super-lightweight shell to get me up to speed quickly at the start of a race. I have raced and trained in WinTechs for most of my rowing career and have found them to be a great boat to push my performance on.
What has been your sporting highlight?
I think my highlight so far was getting a medal in Lucerne at World Cup 3. I used to watch the senior team race there on TV and always thought it must be such a beautiful place to race, so to get the opportunity to race there myself and come away with a medal was amazing!
From all at Oarsport & WinTech Racing we would like to wish Liv the best of luck in Belgrade as she competes in her first ever senior World Championships. We would also like to thank Liv for choosing to race in WinTech boats and are proud to have played a small role in her development from a junior athlete just starting out right the way through to becoming a World Championship athlete.
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Team WinTech enjoyed a very successful weekend at the USRowing Senior Trials last weekend, with wins in three categories. Held at Mercer Lake, the event serves as the last domestic stepping stone for athletes looking to compete on the international stage for the USA this summer.
Eliot “Finn” Putnam of New York Athletic Club won the M1x in a time of 6:50.7, finishing over seven seconds ahead of Andrew LeRoux of California Rowing Club. Eliot has ample international pedigree already, having finished fourth in the quadruple sculls at the 2021 World Rowing Cup I and fourth in the eight at the 2017 World Rowing Under 23 Championships. His performance bettered that of his showing at the 2023 Winter Speed Order, where he finished sixth overall.
Sophia Luwis, fresh off a win at World Cup III in Lucerne, won the LW1x by over seven seconds. Racing for Whitemarsh Boat Club, Sophia is building back after a difficult 2022 season where a serious injury prevented her from competing at the World Rowing Championships. This year, she has also raced at World Cup II (finishing second) and Henley Royal Regatta, where she was a beaten semi-finalist in the Princess Royal Challenge Cup.
Audrianna Boersen finished second behind Sophia. She also hails from Whitemarsh Boat Club. This represents an important step on for Audrey, who won the lightweight quadruple sculls and open weight quadruple sculls and finished second in the open weight double sculls at the 2022 USRowing Summer National Championships.
Athletes in our Cobra shells also finished first in the LW2- in an uncontested final. Solveig Imsdahl and Elaine Tierney won the race in a time of 7:31.61, racing for Penn A.C. Rowing Association. Solvieg is a seasoned international competitor, having finished second in the lightweight pair at the 2022 World Rowing Championships alongside bronze in the quadruple sculls and fourth in the pair at the 2019 Pan American Games.
The final WinTech result came via the pairing of Katherine Horvat and Karina Feitner, who placed fourth in the ‘A’ final of W2x. They were around 21 seconds back on the overall winners, racing for ARION.
We are very much looking forward to watching these athletes progress into the summer racing season and potentially represent USRowing at international events over the next few months.
Come and join #TeamWinTech today! Our value goes beyond that of just a great product for a great price.
Team WinTech was at the Canadian Secondary Schools Rowing Association Championship June 2nd to 4th to support the Claremont Sports Institute team. The CSSRA has been held in St. Catharines Ontario since 1947, with 128 schools from throughout Canada and the US entered for this year’s running of the regatta. Claremont is a public high school in Victoria, BC, which offers special focus on rowing in addition to academic programs.
The 23 member Claremont team came away with 2 golds, 4 silvers, 4 bronze medals, and several personal bests in tough headwind conditions. The Jr. Girls 4x+ was won by Tiegan Szulc, Stella Graham, Olivia de Kleine, Tiegan Zecher, and Nuala Van Straubenzee. Callum Dutchak and Yechan Kim went on to win the Sr. Boys LW 2x.
The entire team is very appreciative of being able to race WinTech International and Medalist shells, as well as the service provided by WinTech North America’s CEO Dave Dickison and Olympic gold medalist Mike Forgeron. One of the athletes was overheard saying, “I’ve never rowed this good a boat before”.
The coaching staff (Greg Sedun, Maddi Holmes, Kyle Fredrickson, & Drew Harrison) is also very appreciative of the WinTech boats and support and liked the way these shells ran through the waves and whitecaps.
Come and join #TeamWinTech today! Our value goes beyond that of just a great product for a great price.
Few annual individual sporting contests in the world can match the continuous history of the Doggett’s Coat and Badge Wager, which was founded in 1715 by Thomas Doggett in honour of the accession of King George I. For more than 300 years, this race has run through the centre of London, from London Bridge to Cadogan Pier in Chelsea.
The 7.4km course is a trial of endurance and watermenship and is only open to watermen and lightermen in the first year of their freedom, which means competitors face the tough challenge of studying for their licence while training for the race. Competitors may enter a total of four times (or until they win!) and there are only six spots available.
WinTech Racing’s UK dealer Oarsport have been proud supporters of the race since 2015 and have provided WinTech Racing shells for each competitor to train and race in every year as they compete to win a Doggett’s Coat & Badge.
The Doggett’s Coat & Badge race returned to the spectacular River Thames in 2023, as it has done since its founding by Thomas Doggett back in 1715 to commemorate the coronation of George 1st. This year’s race took on a “coronation to coronation” theme with a particular focus on the ascension of King Charles 3rd, which took place earlier this year. To mark this special occasion, a pageant took place which included previous winners as well as boats including cutters, skiffs, and a Cornish Gig from many of London’s Livery companies, which all saluted the racers as they came through the nominal halfway marker in the course.
This year saw three competitors take to the water – Emily Hickman, Matt Brookes and Riess Ballard. 2023 marked only the third time in the race’s history that a woman has competed, which signified the historic nature of this year’s contest.
As many rowers and mariners in the Tideway area know, conditions out on the Thames change frequently and without warning. Racing this year was no different with conditions remaining overcast throughout the race, accompanied by spots of rain as competitors and dignitaries neared the halfway point around Westminster. There was also a relatively strong breeze throughout which did nothing to aid the rowers. Some delegates had predicted that this would have adverse effects on at least one athlete, which transpired to be eerily accurate as the race unwound.
One thing to highlight is how challenging the race is in its basic form. The distance is immense at 7.3km, making it one of the longest rowing races in the world. The entire course is tidal, meaning that competitors must cope with currents and weather systems. They are aided by the provision of WinTech single sculls, a long-standing partnership that Team WinTech has with this world-renowned sporting occasion.
Under the imposing struts of London Bridge, the three scullers lined up to take on the five-and-a-furlong mile course. With a variety of bridges and arches to navigate, competitors can take different routes to the finish line, meaning that almost from the very beginning, the racers spread apart from one another. Emily chose to go down the centre of the river whereas Matt and Reiss chose to focus on the left side of the water. As a result of this, it looked as though Emily was left behind in the early exchanges. She did however find speed and claw back some of the deficit on her opponents after Blackfriars.
Among the delegates and other dignitaries, Riess was a fan favourite but all of the early running was done by Matt, who took a lead of some three or four lengths before Waterloo Bridge that he then maintained beyond Lambeth Bridge. However, with the race twisting past the teeming metropolis of Vauxhall on the left-hand-side bank, Riess sculled himself back into contention and took the lead passing the American embassy. Perhaps flustered by his change in fortunes, Matt took a couple of askew strokes and ended up capsizing into an unforgiving Thames. In doing so, he confirmed the predictions that punters had made pre-race but also revealed the sportsmanship of this historic contest. Both Emily and Riess slowed to check on the welfare of their opponent but, once this had been established, they picked up the pace to close out the final 1000m.
Although it was not her day today, Emily should be highly commended for finishing just over a minute behind Riess, who completed the course in 32:10. All competitors should be congratulated on a wonderful spectacle and WinTech were proud to support this fantastic event once again. We look forward to the 2024 rendition.
Come and join #TeamWinTech today! Our value goes beyond that of just a great product for a great price.
Team WinTech & King had another fantastic weekend at the 2023 USRowing Summer National Championships. Held on Lake Harsha in Bethel, Ohio, the event catered to Juniors on the front half and U23/Senior on the back half from across the USA, with RowAmerica Rye claiming the overall points trophy. With 33 boat entries, they earned 22 medals throughout the weekend. All in all, WinTech & King enjoyed a phenomenal weekend, earning 19 victories alongside a further 32 minor medals to complete a 51-medal haul.
Ten of those wins came courtesy of RowAmerica Rye, whose golds included the women’s U17 quads, doubles and singles, the women’s U16 eights and coxed fours, the men’s youth coxed fours, the men’s U17 eights, quads, and singles plus the men’s U16 coxed fours. Additionally, the boat club from Rye, New York also stacked up several silver and bronze medals, including the women’s youth quads, coxed fours, coxless fours (both silver and bronze), women’s U17 eights and coxed fours, women’s U16 coxed fours and men’s youth quads.
Penn AC Rowing Association went on to take the men’s youth eights title, beating out boats from TBC racing and a US selection development group. Nevertheless, all three of these crews were racing in King SE 8+ shells!
Penn AC Rowing Association claimed several more wins in King & WinTech shells, climbing atop the podium in the men’s U23 lightweight coxed four and women’s open pair. California Rowing Club also won all three events they entered in WinTech boats, namely the men’s open single, double, and quad. Ready Set Row won the women’s U23 single as well, along with a silver in the women’s youth single, whilst the US selection development group claimed victory in the women’s open eight. Penn AC Rowing Association were silver medallists in the latter category.
The US Selection Development Team also made their presence felt by securing a few medals of their own. Namely, a pair of golds in the Women’s U17 eight and Women’s Open eight as well as a pair of bronzes in the Women’s Youth eight and Women’s U23 eight .
Other podium placements came from clubs including Oakland Strokes with their pair of silvers in the men’s youth pair and coxless four, CJRC with their silver in the men’s open lightweight eight and women’s U16 eight, Uni-Team USA with their pair of bronzes in the women’s U23 pair and men’s U23 eight, and Long Beach with their bronze in the women’s open single.
| Result | Race | Club |
| Gold | Women’s U17 8+ | US Selection Development Team |
| Gold | Women’s U17 4x | RowAmerica Rye |
| Gold | Women’s U17 2x | RowAmerica Rye |
| Gold | Women’s U17 1x | RowAmerica Rye/Claire Van Praagh |
| Gold | Women’s U16 8+ | RowAmerica Rye |
| Gold | Women’s U16 4+ | RowAmerica Rye |
| Gold | Men’s Youth 8+ | Penn AC |
| Gold | Men’s Youth 4+ | RowAmerica Rye |
| Gold | Men’s U17 8+ | RowAmerica Rye |
| Gold | Men’s U17 4x | RowAmerica Rye |
| Gold | Men’s U17 1x | RowAmerica Rye/George Dolce |
| Gold | Men’s U16 4+ | RowAmerica Rye |
| Gold | Men’s U23 LWT 4+ | Penn AC |
| Gold | Women’s U23 1x | Ready Set Row/Ana Holtey |
| Gold | Women’s Open 8+ | US Selection Development Team |
| Gold | Men’s Open 1x | California RC/Andrei Potapkin |
| Gold | Women’s Open 2- | Penn AC |
| Gold | Men’s Open 2x | California RC |
| Gold | Men’s Open 4x | California RC |
| Silver | Women’s Youth 4x | RowAmerica Rye |
| Silver | Women’s Youth 4+ | RowAmerica Rye |
| Silver | Women’s Youth 4- | RowAmerica Rye |
| Silver | Women’s Youth 1x | Ready Set Row/Ana Holtey |
| Silver | Women’s U17 8+ | RowAmerica Rye |
| Silver | Women’s U17 4+ | RowAmerica Rye |
| Silver | Women’s U17 1x | RowAmerica Greenwich/Clare Junius |
| Silver | Women’s U16 8+ | CJRC |
| Silver | Women’s U16 4+ | RowAmerica Rye |
| Silver | Men’s Youth 8+ | TBC |
| Silver | Men’s Youth 4x | RowAmerica Rye |
| Silver | Men’s Youth 4- | Oakland Strokes |
| Silver | Men’s Youth 2- | Oakland Strokes |
| Silver | Men’s U17 8+ | Penn AC |
| Silver | Women’s Open 8+ | Penn AC |
| Silver | Men’s Open 2x | California RC |
| Silver | Women’s Open 4+ | Penn AC |
| Silver | Men’s Open LWT 8+ | CJRC |
| Silver | Women’s U23 8+ | Penn AC |
| Silver | Men’s U23 4+ | Penn AC |
| Bronze | Women’s Youth 8+ | US Selection Development Team |
| Bronze | Women’s Youth 4+ | Penn AC |
| Bronze | Women’s Youth 4- | RowAmerica Rye |
| Bronze | Women’s U17 4x | RowAmerica Rye |
| Bronze | Men’s Youth 8+ | US Selection Development Team |
| Bronze | Men’s Youth 4- | RowAmerica Rye |
| Bronze | Men’s Youth 2- | RowAmerica Rye |
| Bronze | Men’s U17 4+ | RowAmerica Rye |
| Bronze | Women’s U23 2- | Uni-Team USA |
| Bronze | Men’s U23 8+ | Uni-Team USA |
| Bronze | Women’s U23 8+ | US Selection Development Team |
| Bronze | Men’s Open 8+ | Penn AC |
| Bronze | Women’s Open 1x | Long Beach/Hannah Debray |
Team WinTech & King thoroughly enjoyed supporting so many talented athletes on the national stage, and look forward to what the rest of the Summer has in store!
Come and join #TeamWinTech & #TeamKing today! Our value goes beyond that of just a great product for a great price.
Team WinTech rounded off the competitive season with 27 medals won by athletes and crews including 8 gold medal wins at the British Rowing Junior Championships. Across three days of racing at Strathclyde County Park, Scotland, thousands of juniors from across the UK – and even a few hailing from continental Europe – competed for honours on the national stage over disciplines ranging from J14 to J18.
Our first gold of the weekend came on the Friday, when Sir William Perkins (WinTech International) took the win in the women’s junior 16 double ahead of Trentham Boat Club and RGS Worcester. We rounded off the Friday with another victory in the open junior 18 quads, as the Windsor Boys School (WinTech International) reprised the title they won in 2022.
Saturday dawned bright and early and after a series of qualifying races, our first victory came in the women’s junior 15 doubles. Calpe Rowing Club of Gibraltar (WinTech Cobra) came in force for these championships and took the win in this category ahead of Lea Rowing Club and the City of Bristol, who were also racing in a WinTech.
In a stellar few minutes, the following race saw a WinTech crew finish first as the Windsor Boys (WinTech International) claimed victory in the open junior 15 coxed quads. Guildford, in bronze, were also representing the WinTech International shell. Our next win came in the open junior 16 coxless quads, as Grange School (WinTech Cobra) sculled home to a triumph ahead of Kingston Grammar School and the Windsor Boys School (also in a WinTech).
The following afternoon, our first of three golds came from Mark Wilkinson’s cohort as the Windsor Boys School (WinTech International) took the win in the open junior 14 coxed quads, which completed the set for male quad scull WinTech wins (75% of which also went to the Windsor Boys School).
In the following race, WinTech shells placed in gold and silver as Cantabrigian finished first and City of Bristol second in the women’s junior 14 doubles (both in WinTech Internationals). Our final win of the weekend came courtesy of yet another Windsor Boys triumph; they were winners in the open junior 18 coxless fours ahead of Great Marlow School and Aberdeen Schools’ Rowing Association.
WinTech crews were involved in a further 19 medals, including ten silvers and nine bronzes. Highlights included finishing second and third in the women’s junior 14 quads (Great Marlow School and City of Bristol in WinTech Internationals respectively) and open junior 18 pairs (Claires Court School and Nottinghamshire Counties Rowing Association in WinTech Internationals respectively).
Team WinTech have enjoyed yet another spectacular year of racing, culminating in a wonderful three days at the national junior championships. We look forward to supporting junior, U23 and senior athletes on the international circuit this summer and will be ready for another brilliant season from September onwards.
| Rank | Event | Class | Club | Boat |
| Gold | OJ18 4x- | 4x- | The Windsor Boys’ School | WinTech International |
| Gold | OJ18 4- | 4- | The Windsor Boys’ School | WinTech International |
| Gold | OJ16 4x- | 4x- | The Grange School | WinTech Cobra SE |
| Gold | OJ15 4x+ | 4x+ | The Windsor Boys’ School | WinTech International |
| Gold | OJ14 4x+ | 4x+ | The Windsor Boys’ School | WinTech International |
| Gold | WJ16 2x | 2x | Sir William Perkins’s School | WinTech International |
| Gold | WJ15 2x | 2x | Calpe RC | WinTech Cobra |
| Gold | WJ14 2x | 2x | Cantabirigian RC | WinTech International |
| Silver | WJ14 4x+ | 4x+ | Great Marlow School | WinTech International |
| Silver | OJ18 2x | 2x | Chester Le Street | WinTech International |
| Silver | WJ18 2x | 2x | Evesham RC | WinTech International |
| Silver | OJ18 2- | 2- | Claires Court School | WinTech International |
| Silver | OJ16 2- | 2- | Newark RC | WinTech International |
| Silver | WJ16 2- | 2- | Hinksey Sculling School | WinTech Competitor |
| Silver | WJ14 2x | 2x | Bristol City | WinTech International |
| Silver | WJ18 1x | 1x | Kingston Grammar School | WinTech International |
| Silver | OJ16 1x | 1x | The Grange School | WinTech International |
| Silver | WJ16 1x | 1x | Evesham RC | WinTech International |
| Bronze | OJ16 4x- | 4x- | The Windsor Boys’ School | WinTech International |
| Bronze | OJ15 4x+ | 4x+ | Guildford RC | WinTech International |
| Bronze | WJ14 4x+ | 4x+ | Bristol City | WinTech International |
| Bronze | OJ18 2- | 2- | Notts County RA | WinTech International |
| Bronze | WJ18 2- | 2- | Notts County RA | WinTech International |
| Bronze | OJ16 2x | 2x | Windsor Boys A | WinTech Cobra SE FLX |
| Bronze | OJ15 2x | 2x | Shanklin Sandown RC | WinTech International |
| Bronze | WJ15 2x | 2x | Bristol City | WinTech International |
| Bronze | WJ15 1x | 1x | Calpe RC | WinTech International |
Come and join #TeamWinTech today! Our value goes beyond that of just a great product for a great price.
Athletes and crews racing in WinTech & King Racing Shells rounded off the Henley series in style at the Henley Masters Regatta, taking home seven wins and eight further finalist spots over two action-packed days of racing. With 1,240 athletes from 170 clubs competing on the world-renowned course, the diverse entry represented a superb collection of rowers and scullers from across the world.
Our wins included City of Bristol racing in a WinTech International in the W.MasB 8+, who defeated Cantabrigian Rowing Club. Staying with the theme of eights, the Tideway Scullers School were victors over a Tyne Amateur Rowing Club Composite in the final of O.MasE 8+. They were racing in a WinTech Cobra.
Switching to coxed fours, Monmouth Rowing Club (WinTech International) secured a win in the W.MasD 4+ over Milton Keynes Rowing Club whilst Endeavor Racing Alliance of the USA crossed the pond to win W.MasF 4+ over Marin Rowing Association, also of the USA. The two crews will doubtless have faced each other before but renewed acquaintances on fresh pastures. Endeavor Raced in a King SE & Marin in a WinTech International.
Wallingford Rowing Club won W.MasB 2- in a WinTech International, defeating a Strathclyde Park-St Andrew Composite. A composite from Hollingworth Lake and Newark won the O.MasG 2x, seeing off the keen interest of a crew from Norwich Rowing Club in a WinTech Cobra FLX. Our final win came in the W.MasB 1x, where Thompson of Upton Rowing Club took the prize in her WinTech International ahead of Anderson of Cantabrigian Rowing Club.
WinTech and King crews also made the finals in seven additional events. Marin Rowing Association were losing finalists in the W.MasD 8+, racing in a King, whilst Cimarron Rowing Club, also of the USA, lost in a WinTech in the final of O.MasG 4x. The Deben-West End Rowing Club Composite missed out on the top prize in the O.MasF 2x whilst Poole Amateur Rowing Club were defeated by Upper Thames in the final of O.MasF 2-.
On the single sculling side, City of Bristol’s Drew came up short in O.MasE 1x, Cassini of Mortlake Anglian & Alpha Boat Club was defeated in the W.MasE 1x and Sowman of Dart Totnes Amateur Rowing Club lost out in the final of O.MasI 1x. All of the above raced in WinTechs.
Our UK distributor Oarsport will be on-site at the British Rowing Junior Championships and look forward to supporting athletes through the close of this domestic season.
| Rank | Event | Club | Boat |
| 1st | W.MasB.8+ | City of Bristol Rowing Club | WinTech |
| 1st | O.MasE.8+ | Tideway Scullers School | WinTech |
| 1st | W.MasD.4+ | Monmouth Rowing Club | WinTech |
| 1st | W.MasF.4+ | Endeavor Racing Alliance, USA | King |
| 1st | W.MasB.2- | Wallingford Rowing Club | WinTech |
| 1st | O.MasG.2x | Hollingworth Lake-Newark Composite | WinTech |
| 1st | W.MasB.1x | Upton Rowing Club (Thompson) | WinTech |
| 2nd | W.MasD.8+ | Marin Rowing Association, USA | King |
| 2nd | W.MasF.4+ | Marin Rowing Association, USA | King |
| 2nd | O.MasG.4x | Cimarron Rowing Club, USA | WinTech |
| 2nd | O.MasF.2x | Deben-West End Rowing Club Composite | WinTech |
| 2nd | O.MasF.2- | Poole Amateur Rowing Club | WinTech |
| 2nd | O.MasE.1x | City of Bristol Rowing Club (Drew) | WinTech |
| 2nd | W.MasE.1x | Mortlake Anglian & Alpha Boat Club (Cassini) | WinTech |
| 2nd | O.MasI.1x | Dart Totnes Amateur Rowing Club (Sowman) | WinTech |
Come and join #TeamWinTech & #TeamKing today! Our value goes beyond that of just a great product for a great price.
Team WinTech & King had a superb week at the 2023 edition of Henley Royal Regatta. Across six days of fantastic racing and 26 events, WinTech and King shells were represented across a swathe of categories, and we had five semi-finalists and one finalist crew in the regatta.
Our leading boat was the junior men’s quad from Hinksey Sculling School. Selected in the Fawley Challenge Cup, they raced superbly to see off Leander ‘B’, Sydney Rowing Club, Australia and Los Gatos Rowing Club, USA to set up a Sunday showdown with Leander Club ‘A’. In the end, the boys from the pink palace were too strong for Hinksey but to progress that far into the premier schoolboy sculling competition in world rowing was a glowing testament to the strength of the program.
Bodo Schulenburg, Director of Rowing at Hinksey, expressed his satisfaction with the performance. “I thought the boys stepped on immensely,” he said. “We came into the Regatta knowing we were moving well and picking up speed and I knew that the Fawley had a range of dangerous opponents. For Hinksey to make a second Henley Royal Regatta final in three years is a fantastic tribute to the whole team, across our coaching staff and athletes. Hopefully we can make the final step in 2024.”
We also had four semi-finalists across various categories. Racing in a King shell, Winter Park Crew, USA just lost out to Deerfield Academy on the Saturday in the Prince Philip Challenge Trophy, a result that will naturally have been a tough blow for Mike Vertullo’s girls. They can take some consolation after setting a record in the event on the Thursday of racing against Hinksey Sculling School.
Henley Rowing Club, in a WinTech Cobra progressed to the semi finals of the Diamond Jubilee Challenge Cup where they were beaten by Wycliffe College whilst Sophia Luwis (fresh from her silver medal win in the Lightweight Women’s 1x at World Cup II in Varese racing in a Cobra SE FLX 1x) made the semi-final stage of the Princess Royal Challenge Cup, eventually losing out to Wieliczko of Poland.
Our race of the day on Saturday was a match-up for the ages in the Fawley Challenge Cup between the mighty Leander Club and Windsor Boys School, who were racing in a WinTech Cobra SE. The two tussled all the way down the course, with Leander prevailing by a matter of feet across the line.
We also had a smattering of crews who exited in the earlier rounds of other events; Nottinghamshire County Rowing Association and Nottingham University were beaten in the Princess Grace Challenge Cup by Edinburgh + Newcastle and DSR Laga + ASR Nereus respectively whilst Hereford Cathedral School were dispatched by Leander and Lea by Los Gatos in the Fawley Challenge Cup. Deerfield Academy USA who were racing in a King SE in a heat of the Princess Elizabeth Challenge Cup got knocked out by Shiplake College who went on to progress to the semi-finals.
Our UK distributor Oarsport was on site alongside our North American team from the week before the regatta supporting athletes and coaches from both sides of the pond as they prepared for and competed in this prestigious competition.
Oarsport & WinTech/King will also be in attendance at both The Henley Masters Regatta & The British Rowing Junior Championships and look forward to rounding out a fantastic 2023 season!
Come and join #TeamWinTech & #TeamKing today! Our value goes beyond that of just a great product for a great price.
Team WinTech had a fantastic weekend in the Thames Valley, taking in the sights and sounds of Henley Women’s Regatta. With the second-largest entry on record, the regatta threw open its doors to crews from across the United Kingdom and beyond, attracting competitors from Australia, Holland, Spain, Germany, Canada, and the USA. WinTech crews took home two wins and were beaten finalists in three races.
Laura Bates (WinTech International) was first off in the Aspirational Lightweight Single Sculls for The Fiona Dennis Trophy, a race she controlled from start to finish. Her opponent, Erin Meredith of Birmingham University, raced in a WinTech Cobra SE.
In the Championship Lightweight Doubles for The Haslam Trophy, Durham University (WinTech Cobra SE) swept all before them in a completely dominant display of sculling. They won the national title at BUCS at the beginning of May and put on a show at Henley Women’s Regatta, demolishing Reading in the final.
Our beaten finalists also include Marlow Rowing Club (WinTech International), who lost out to Wallingford Rowing Club in the final of Junior 16 Coxed Fours for The West End Amateur Rowing Association Trophy. Marlow were also losing finalists in the Junior 18 Coxed Four for The Groton School Challenge Cup (WinTech International), missing out to Glasgow Academy.
We had a range of crews reach the semi-finals; Nottingham University (WinTech Cobra) were knocked out by Reading University in Championship Lightweight Doubles; Headington (WinTech International) exited the Junior 16 Quads category for The Nina Padwick Trophy at the hands of Putney High School; Exeter University (WinTech Cobra) were beaten in Aspirational Academic Eights for The Colgan Foundation Cup by Newcastle University; Marlow Rowing Club’s Claudia Kerry-Roger (WinTech International) was defeated by eventual winner Jess Weir in the semi-finals of Junior 18 Singles for The Di Ellis Trophy; St Edward’s School (King SE) lost out to Glasgow Academy in The Groton School Challenge Cup for Junior 18 Coxed Fours.
Team WinTech & King had a fantastic weekend at Henley Women’s Regatta, taking in wonderful racing and wonderful weather in one of the most spectacular venues in the world. We’re very excited for the beginning of Henley Royal Regatta in a weeks’ time and will be cheering on all King and WinTech crews throughout.
Come and join #TeamWinTech today! Our value goes beyond that of just a great product for a great price.
George Bourne’s rise to the top of domestic sculling has been nothing short of sensational. After breaking through and winning gold in the U23 men’s quad for Great Britain in 2019, he emerged as the country’s fastest sculler at the most recent set of British trials – a placing he had been striving towards for several years.
Having taken up rowing in his final year at school, via the GB Start scheme, George is now primed and ready for the Paris Olympics after collecting a silver medal in his first World Championships last summer (only six years after he first picked up an oar). We spoke to him about his journey to date, his motivations and how WinTech have supported him in his ascension to the fastest male sculler in the UK.
I first started rowing in my last year at school when I was selected for the GB Start scheme. I had been a mediocre long-distance runner before I started rowing so I was enthusiastic about the endurance elements of the sport but had (and still have!) a lot of work to do on the more physical side of the sport. I was training once a week at Bewl Bridge Rowing Club down in Kent which wasn’t too far from my boarding school at the time and still enjoying my school sports including rugby, cross-country, hockey and cricket. I became great friends with a schoolmate, and we raced the National Schools Regatta together in early summer 2016, finishing 58th out of 63 in the double…
It wasn’t till I went home for the summer holidays in 2016 that I really started to give any sort of true commitment to rowing. My family were living in Nottingham for a short time, and I was able to cycle to and from the Nottingham-based Start centre in Holme Pierrepont every day throughout my summer holidays. I had a great group of scullers to look up to and I started to actively enjoy the training and progress in the same way I always had done with my running training. My summer finished with my first ever rowing win at the Beginners Sculling Festival, a tiny event with very few entries, but it was somehow enough for me to suddenly believe in my potential and develop a passion for the sport! I enjoyed winning that event as much as any event I’ve won throughout my career so far! I chose to take a gap year and reapply to Durham university in order to pursue rowing as effectively as I thought possible, and I haven’t looked back since.
I first rowed a WinTech when I arrived at Durham University in September 2017. The club had a small fleet of WinTech International singles, and I was assigned one for training and racing throughout my time at the university. The 2017-2018 season was my first year trialing and at February trials I came in as the fastest Under 23. That gave me good confidence that I could move well in the WinTech shells. After a few more great experiences in the Durham WinTech, including my first ever international vest at Under 23 Europeans in 2018, I decided that I wanted to upgrade to their elite racing shell as I tried to move towards selection for the senior GB team. I reached out to the guys at WinTech at the start of 2020 and came away with my first smart WinTech Cobra right before the start of the pandemic. As a result of the months away from rowing, I didn’t get a chance to race my Cobra until summer 2021 but its first season was an exciting one!
At the third World Cup in 2021, I lined up in my WinTech against the reigning World Champion, reigning Olympic silver medallist and the silver medallist from the upcoming Tokyo Olympics. I finished eighth overall with a time of 6:49. Not only was I finding the Cobra to be a world-class racing shell, but the support I also received from the guys at WinTech UK dealer Oarsport over the course of that summer, including repairs and cleaning jobs, especially at Henley Royal Regatta, was equally epic and I am incredibly grateful for their support! I have since upgraded my Cobra to a newer Cobra SE model and achieved further success including a win at final trials in 2023 and several top-three finishes at trials throughout my time in the GB senior team.
I think the important thing about racing boats is ultimately that they are fast and for me this is the biggest compliment that I can give the WinTech boats that I have raced in. I believe that the boats run incredibly smoothly through the water on the recovery, and they absolutely achieve the maximum run possible from the work that I put in. I have raced WinTech boats for a good number of years now and I am incredibly comfortable in them, across long sessions, full races, and short pieces. I have never had an issue with balance in the boats and they look smart too!
I am aiming to compete at the Paris Olympic Games in 2024. It is unlikely that I will be racing in a WinTech on this occasion, given the possibility that I will be in a crew boat as part of the senior set-up, but Andrew and Jack at WinTech should take massive credit from any results that I might achieve!
I certainly love winning medals, so it is hard to look past last year’s silver medal at the World Championships in the quad as a career highlight so far. However, I feel most fulfilled by the moments in sport that are a successful accumulation of a lot of hard work and passion and these often happen away from the glare of the spotlight. The third World Cup in Sabaudia 2021 was an epic experience for me to find myself lining up against the great scullers of this generation and I took huge satisfaction in having worked my way up to compete at that level (even if only briefly before they disappeared out of view). Finally, I think the Under 23 World Championships were my most enjoyable period in rowing so far which concluded with a gold medal alongside a brilliant group of guys.
Come and join #TeamWinTech today! Our value goes beyond that of just a great product for a great price. With WinTech you get a fair price and an unfair advantage!
WinTech & King enjoyed another stellar USRowing Youth National Championships, collecting 25 medals including seven golds. Held once again at Nathan Benderson Park in Sarasota, Florida, this year’s event was the largest ever with 835 entries from 225 clubs across the country bringing in just over 4,000 athletes. The event featured races in 36 different boat classes with the women’s youth eight being the most popular bringing in 32 total entries.
King shells delivered both the men’s and women’s Varsity Eights to glory in two hotly contested finals. RowAmerica Rye, based in New York, took home the men’s title, leading to every timing marker in a dominant display of junior racing. On the women’s side, Marin Rowing Association secured the victory ahead of long-time rivals Greenwich and Newport (who also raced in a King). Deerfield and New Trier were in King shells on the men’s side whilst RowAmerica Rye and Cincinnati followed suit on the women’s side.
RowAmerica Rye (King) also secured a gold in the Women’s Second Varsity Eight, holding off a late charge from Newport. On the men’s side, the same boat club managed a silver, losing out to Marin by just over a second.
Our gold rush began earlier in the day via the Oakland Strokes women’s coxless four (WinTech), who secured gold ahead of Los Gatos, RowAmerica Rye and Hockaday (the latter two of whom were also in WinTech shells). The excitement of the eights was then carried through via another gold in the Men’s U15 Coxed Quad courtesy of Maritime Rowing Club of Connecticut.
Saugatuck (WinTech) secured a famous one-two in the Women’s U17 Coxed Four before King shells claimed gold and silver in the Women’s U17 Eight (RowAmerica Rye took gold and Cincinnati finished in silver).
Our silver medals came across several other events. Cooper Hagan took silver in the Men’s Youth Singles (WinTech), representing SORA before NorCal took silver and Maritime took bronze in the Women’s U16 Coxed Quad (both WinTechs). RowAmerica Rye claimed another silver, this time in the Men’s U16 Eight, alongside Saugatuck in bronze, before Norwalk took second in the Women’s U17 Double. Norwalk followed this up with a silver medal in the Men’s U17 Quad before RowAmerica Rye finished second in the Men’s U17 Eight.
Bronzes were meted out in frequent fashion across a range of events and WinTech/King shells. Canisius took bronze in the Men’s Youth Pair before Great Miami secured third in the Men’s Youth Double (both WinTechs). Oak Neck won bronze in the Women’s Youth Quad before RowAmerica Rye won yet another medal, finishing third in the Women’s U16 Eight. Our final medal came in the form of Saugatuck, who claimed bronze in the Men’s U17 Coxed Four.
| Result | Race | Club |
| Gold | Women’s Youth 4- | Oakland Strokes Rowing |
| Gold | Men’s U15 4x+ | Maritime Rowing Club |
| Gold | Women’s U17 4+ | Saugatuck Rowing Club |
| Gold | Women’s 2V8+ | RowAmerica Rye |
| Gold | Men’s Youth 8+ | RowAmerica Rye |
| Gold | Women’s Youth 8+ | Marin Rowing Assn. |
| Gold | Women’s U17 8+ | RowAmerica Rye |
| Silver | Men’s U17 4x | Norwalk River Rowing Assn. |
| Silver | Women’s U17 2x | Norwalk River Rowing Assn. |
| Silver | Men’s Youth 1x | South Orlando Rowing Assn. |
| Silver | Women’s U16 4x+ | NorCal Crew |
| Silver | Women’s U17 4+ | Saugatuck Rowing Club |
| Silver | Women’s U17 8+ | Cincinnati Juniors Rowing Club |
| Silver | Men’s 2V8+ | RowAmerica Rye |
| Silver | Men’s U16 8+ | RowAmerica Rye |
| Silver | Men’s U17 8+ | RowAmerica Rye |
| Bronze | Men’s Youth 2- | Canisius HS Rowing |
| Bronze | Men’s Youth 2x | Great Miami Rowing |
| Bronze | Women’s Youth 4x | Oak Neck Rowing Academy |
| Bronze | Women’s Youth 4- | RowAmerica Rye |
| Bronze | Women’s U16 4x+ | Maritime Rowing Club |
| Bronze | Men’s U17 4+ | Saugatuck Rowing Club |
| Bronze | Women’s Youth 8+ | Newport Aquatic Ctr. Rowing |
| Bronze | Men’s U16 8+ | Saugatuck Rowing Club |
| Bronze | Women’s U16 8+ | RowAmerica Rye |
With the USRowing season now all but over for most juniors, eyes instead turn to Henley Royal Regatta and which American crews decide to make the trip over to compete at the world’s most famous rowing race. WinTech will be on-site all week and are ready to support all crews and athletes racing in WinTech and King shells!
Come and join #TeamWinTech or #TeamKing today! Our value goes beyond that of just a great product for a great price.
Team King & WinTech had a superb weekend at the 2023 edition of the Scholastic Rowing Association of America Regatta. Staged at Melton Hill Lake in Oak Ridge, Tennessee, the event attracts hundreds of scholastic athletes from across the USA to compete over 1500m. Overall, WinTech and King shells secured ten medals including four golds.
King SEs won both the Boy’s and Girl’s Varsity 8+ categories, securing King status as the premier boat-builder at the event. Winter Park, who will be returning to Henley Royal Regatta in 2023 to compete in the Prince Philip Challenge Cup after losing out in the final last year, swept home to take the girls title by nearly seven seconds ahead of New Trier and Walt Whitman
Nevertheless, Walt Whitman also raced in a KingSE shell and went on to secure the bronze! This result was particularly sweet for the crew from Maryland, who just a week prior did not even make the final at the Stotesbury Cup, losing out with a 4th place finish in the semis to Mount St. Joseph. The Vikings then made a last minute hull change going into the short week of SRAA, choosing the KingSE over their old hull, and the rest is history!
On the boy’s side, New Trier defeated Belen Jesuit and Loyola Academy by just under three seconds to take gold.
Our other victories came in both the Boy’s First and Second Varsity 8+ categories, where New Trier in their King cemented their place as the dominant boy’s sweep program by winning both trophies. Northville also raced in a WinTech and went on to win the Junior Varsity 4x events ahead of Girls Prep and Hockaday.
Additional medals came in throughout the day across various categories. Norfolk Academy in their WinTech secured silver in the Boys Junior Varsity 4x+ whilst more WinTech shells took silver and bronze in the Boys Varsity 1x (C. Gross of Bonner & Prendergast and R. Muldoon of Liverpool, respectively). We also secured a bronze in the Girls Junior Varsity 2x, courtesy of Germantown Friends, and a silver in the Girls Lightweight Varsity 2x via Bonner & Prendergast.
This event represented a fantastic showcasing of junior talent, and was our pleasure to be there to support crews in their efforts to win. We’re looking forward to seeing some of these boats racing at the US Youth Nationals in the coming weeks and possibly further afield at Henley Royal Regatta!
Come and join #TeamWinTech or #TeamKing today! Our value goes beyond that of just a great product for a great price.
Athletes racing in WinTech & King Racing Shells collected 31 medals in a stellar three days of racing at the 2023 edition of the National Schools’ Regatta. In glorious sunshine and a brisk crosswind, thousands of competitors took to the water in an attempt to be crowned national champion at Eton Dorney. 13 wins across a whole host of categories were achieved in our shells to re-establish ourselves as the UK’s leading junior boatbuilder.
The regatta opened with 1000m racing on the Friday to cater for the younger age groups. Amongst boat classes and clubs where WinTech have traditionally fared well, the opening salvo of the weekend delivered 12 medals including five golds. Our opening victory came in the Junior 14 Open Second Octuples, as the Windsor Boys School (WinTech International) won gold over St Paul’s and another crew from Windsor Boys. Following that, our next win came in the Junior 15 Open Coxed Four as Great Marlow (WinTech International) defeated crews from Mossbourne Academy and Kew House School. Headington raced in a new King shell to take the title in the Junior 15 Girls Second Eights and followed that up by winning the Junior 15 Girls First Coxed Quads in a WinTech International. Windsor Boys rounded out our day by triumphing in the Junior 15 Open First Coxed Quads, reclaiming their title ahead of Molesey Boat Club and Tiffin School.
Saturday’s ‘A’ finals started with a bang for WinTech as we collected two consecutive golds inside the opening two contests. Marlow Rowing Club (WinTech International) took the win in the Junior 16 Girls Coxed Fours before Great Marlow School (WinTech International) won the equivalent boy’s category ahead of Westminster School and Reading Blue Coat. The final gold of the day was achieved by St Edwards School (WinTech International) beating Godolphin & Latymer & Royal Shrewsbury School in what was the clubs first Championship Girls gold medal since 2003.
Sunday also began in lively fashion, as the Windsor Boys (WinTech International) began what turned out to be a very successful afternoon by winning Junior 16 Open Second Quads in dominant fashion ahead of Kingston Grammar School (who collected silver in a WinTech International) and Sir William Borlase. The Junior 16 Open First Quads ended in similar fashion, as Windsor Boys (WinTech International) streaked away from the field to win gold ahead of Molesey and Sir William Borlase. Our next win came from St Andrew Boat Club (WinTech Cobra SE); the Patton brothers returned to the domestic racing scene as their club’s only entry, winning Championship Open Doubles in decisive fashion ahead of Reading Rowing Club and the Windsor Boys, who competed in a WinTech Cobra SE FLX.
The Championship Open Singles title also returned to WinTech hands as Ben Mead of Cambridge 99 (WinTech Cobra SE) blew the field apart to record a commanding victory. For the 7th regatta in a row a WinTech has been used to win this event.
Our last win of the weekend was served up by Windsor Boys (WinTech Cobra SE), who recorded their fifth gold medal victory in retaining the Forest Cup for Championship Open Quads. Under intense pressure from both Marlow and Leander, Mark Wilkinson’s boys stay cool, calm and collected to scull away from their opposition and claim the win by two seconds.
As well as the 13 gold medals a further 8 silver and 8 bronze medals were achieved in our boats across the spectacular weekend of racing.
We thoroughly enjoyed meeting so many of you across the weekend and celebrating your successes. We’ll be continuing to attend all of the key regattas throughout the summer and look forward to supporting athletes, coaches and parents within the coming weeks.
| Medal | Race | Club | Boat |
|---|---|---|---|
| Gold | Ch 4+ (Girls) | St Edwards School | WinTech International |
| Gold | Ch 4+ (Open) | Windsor Boys | WinTech Cobra SE |
| Gold | Ch 2x (Open) | St Andrew BC | WinTech Cobra SE FLX |
| Gold | Ch 1x (Open) | Cambridge ‘99 | WinTech Cobra SE |
| Gold | J16 4+ (Open) | Great Marlow School | WinTech International |
| Gold | J16 4+ (Girls) | Marlow Rowing Club | WinTech International |
| Gold | J16 4x (Open) | Windsor Boys | WinTech International |
| Gold | J16 2nd 4x (Open) | Windsor Boys | WinTech International |
| Gold | J15 4+ (Open) | Great Marlow School | WinTech International |
| Gold | J15 1st 4x+ | Windsor Boys | WinTech International |
| Gold | J15 1st 4x+ (Girls) | Headington | WinTech International |
| Gold | J15 2nd 8+ (Girls) | Headington | King |
| Gold | J14 2nd 8x+ | Windsor Boys | WinTech International |
| Silver | Ch 2- (Girls) | Marlow Rowing Club | WinTech International |
| Silver | Ch 1x (Open) | Hereford Cathedral School | WinTech Cobra SE |
| Silver | Ch 1x (Girls) | Hartpury | WinTech International |
| Silver | J16 2nd 4x (Open) | Kingston Grammar School | WinTech International |
| Silver | J16 2x (Girls) | Tideway Scullers School | WinTech Cobra |
| Silver | J15 2nd 4x+ (Open) | Marlow Rowing Club | WinTech Inernational |
| Silver | J15 2nd 4x+ (Girls) | The Grange School | WinTech International |
| Silver | J14 1st 8x+ (Open) | Windsor Boys | WinTech International |
| Bronze | Ch4- (Open) | Canford School | WinTech International |
| Bronze | Ch 2x (Open) | Windsor Boys | WinTech Cobra SE FLX |
| Bronze | 2nd 4x (Open) | Claires Court | WinTech International |
| Bronze | J16 2x (Open) | Windsor Boys | WinTech Cobra |
| Bronze | J16 2x (Girls) | Sir William Perkins | WinTech International |
| Bronze | J15 2nd 4x+ (Girls) | Sir William Perkins | WinTech International |
| Bronze | J14 1st 8x+ (Open) | Hampton School | WinTech International |
| Bronze | J14 1st 8x+ (Girls) | Headington | King |
| Bronze | J14 4x+ (Open) | Nottingham & Union | WinTech International |
Come and join #TeamWinTech today! Our value goes beyond that of just a great product for a great price.
1,250 crews from 72 universities took part in BUCS Regatta, Europe’s largest student regatta over the bank holiday weekend staged at the National Water Sports Centre in Nottingham.
Athletes and crews racing in WinTech & King Racing Shells collected 12 wins and 21 medals establishing ourselves firmly as one of the UK’s premier boat-builders for student athletes. What was particularly pleasing was that our medal collection came from across genders, boat classes and abilities to demonstrate that if winning on a national stage is your ambition, WinTech & King are an ideal partner to help you achieve your aims.
Durham University took home the overall Victor Ludorum with 5 of their gold medal wins achieved in our shells.
Our first win of the weekend came in the third final off the blocks, where De Montfort University took gold in the Women’s Beginner Single (WinTech International). Close behind was the sculler from Edinburgh University, who also competed in a WinTech International.
The following final saw the University of Nottingham take gold (WinTech Cobra) ahead of two crews from Cambridge in the Women’s Intermediate Pair.
A few races later, Queen’s University Belfast ‘A’ took the win in the Men’s Intermediate Single (WinTech Cobra) shortly before the University of Nottingham secured a well-earned bronze in the Women’s Beginner Eight (WinTech Medalist).
Immediately afterwards, Durham University raced home to a gold in the Women’s Championship Lightweight Double (WinTech Cobra SE) ahead of Surrey and Reading. Our final medal of the day came in the Men’s Beginner Quad, where Bournemouth University finished third in a WinTech International.
Not to be outdone, Sunday’s gold rush began early too as Liv Bates from the University of Nottingham roared home to a dominant gold medal in the Women’s Championship Lightweight Single (WinTech Cobra SE) winning the event for the third year in a row!
In the following final, for the Men’s Beginner Single, Edinburgh ‘A’ won a silver in a WinTech International before De Montfort University added to the second-placed finishes with a silver in the Women’s Beginner Quad (WinTech International).
Reading University ‘A’ won gold in the Women’s Intermediate Single in a WinTech Cobra SE before Liv Bates, fresh from her lightweight triumph, carved open the heavyweight field to win another gold in her WinTech Cobra SE. A huge congratulations to her and coach Declan Gamble who was recently awarded Club Performance Coach of the Year at the British Rowing Awards 2022. You can read more about Dec’s coaching journey here.
Our next victory came in the Women’s Championship Lightweight Four, in which Durham University secured the win by over 13 seconds in a WinTech Cobra. Our last medal of the Sunday came in the form of a silver in the Men’s Championship Lightweight Double courtesy of the University of Nottingham.
The final day of racing begun with a bang as Team WinTech secured gold and bronze in the second final of the day; Durham University, resplendent in their WinTech Cobra SE, led the field in the Women’s Intermediate Lightweight Pair, ahead of Durham B and the University of Nottingham (WinTech International). The next win came in the Women’s Championship Coxed Four, as Durham squeezed home to win gold in a King. Durham also provided victory in the Women’s Intermediate Lightweight Quad a few moments later (WinTech Cobra).
Our final podium placing of the weekend was particularly special as WinTech crews crossed in first, second and third in the Women’s Beginner Double. The gold went to De Montfort University, who edged out Edinburgh in silver and Bournemouth University in bronze (all in WinTech Internationals).
As always, BUCS Regatta was a fantastic event for us to attend and we were delighted to see so many crews representing their boat clubs in WinTech shells. We look forward to watching these crews develop over the coming weeks and months.
| Event | Rank | Club | Boat |
|---|---|---|---|
| W Ch 4+ | Gold | Durham University | King |
| W Ch Lwt 4- | Gold | Durham University | WinTech Cobra |
| W Ch Lwt 2x | Gold | Durham University | WinTech Cobra SE |
| W Ch 1x | Gold | Nottingham University | WinTech Cobra |
| W Ch Lwt 1x | Gold | Nottingham University | WinTech Cobra |
| W Int Lwt 4x | Gold | Durham University | WinTech Cobra |
| W Int 2- | Gold | University of Nottingham | WinTech Cobra |
| W Int Lwt 2- | Gold | Durham University | WinTech Cobra SE |
| M Int 1x | Gold | Queen’s University Belfast | WinTech Cobra |
| W Int 1x | Gold | Reading University | WinTech Cobra |
| W Beg 2x | Gold | De Montfort University | WinTech International |
| W Beg 1x | Gold | De Montfort University | WinTech International |
| M Ch Lwt 2x | Silver | Nottingham University | WinTech Cobra |
| W Beg 4x | Silver | De Montfort University | WinTech International |
| W Beg 2x | Silver | Edinburgh University | WinTech International |
| M Beg 1x | Silver | Edinburgh University | WinTech International |
| W Beg 1x | Silver | Edinburgh University | WinTech International |
| W Int Lwt 2- | Bronze | Nottingham University | WinTech International |
| W Beg 8+ | Bronze | Nottingham University | WinTech Medalist |
| M Beg 4x | Bronze | Bournemouth University | WinTech International |
| W Beg 2x | Bronze | Bournemouth University | WinTech International |
Come and join #TeamWinTech today! Our value goes beyond that of just a great product for a great price.
Team WinTech enjoyed a great opening to the 2023 regatta season as hundreds of juniors descended on Holme Pierrepont in Nottingham to compete at the Junior Inter-Regional Regatta. WinTech crews achieved 10 wins alongside a further 17 minor medals across 28 categories.
WinTech boats were particularly prominent in the Women’s Junior 16 Pairs race, coming home first, second and third. Sir William Perkins (WinTech International) ran out winners, representing the Thames Upriver region, ahead of Kings School Worcester (WinTech Medalist) and Nottingham & Union (WinTech International).
A similar pattern emerged in the Women’s Junior 14 Doubles, where all three medaling crews raced in WinTech shells. Cantabrigian took home the gold for the Eastern region (WinTech International) with Great Marlow School (WinTech Competitor) and Nottingham & Union (WinTech Medalist) winning silver and bronze respectively.
Our other wins came in various categories across age groups and boat classes. Kings School Chester raced to gold in the Junior Adaptive Single in a race where silver went to Marlow Rowing Club – they were racing in the WinTech Club Racer and WinTech Explorer 24 respectively. Nottinghamshire County Rowing Association were winners in the Women’s Junior 16 Doubles in a Cobra SE ahead of Sir William Perkins School (WinTech International), in another category where WinTech took home both gold and silver.
Worcester Boat Club won the Women’s Junior 16 Single in a WinTech International whilst the Windsor Boys School (WinTech International) collected yet another victory in the Men’s Junior 15 Coxed Quads, a category they have dominated for years. Great Marlow School took home the Men’s Junior 16 Coxed Fours (WinTech International) and Windsor Boys collected their second gold of the day in the Men’s Junior 16 Quads (WinTech International) in a race where Lea Rowing Club, racing in a WinTech Cobra, took home bronze.
Wallingford Rowing Club (WinTech International) were winners in the Women’s Junior 16 Coxed Fours for the Thames Upriver region whilst our final win on the roster came from Shaklin Sandown (WinTech International) in the Men’s Junior 15 Doubles.
Other medals came in the Men’s Junior 16 Single, where WinTech Internationals collected silver and bronze courtesy of Hereford Cathedral School and Newark Rowing Club. Exeter Rowing Club were silver medalists in the Men’s Junior 14 Single (WinTech International) whilst the City of Bristol came home second in the Women’s Junior 15 Doubles (WinTech International).
We won bronze in the Men’s Junior 16 Pairs via a WinTech Cobra SE raced by Great Marlow School whilst King’s School Chester (WinTech Competitor) finished up third in the Women’s Junior 15 Coxed Fours. Great Marlow School (WinTech International) continued their strong form by finishing second in the Men’s Junior 15 Coxed Fours and City of Bristol collected another medal (bronze) in the Women’s Junior 14 Coxed Quads.
Nottingham Rowing Club were silver medalists in the Women’s Junior 16 Quads (WinTech Cobra) whilst City of Oxford (WinTech International) were second behind Trentham Boat Club in the Men’s Junior 14 Doubles.
This marks a phenomenal start to the summer racing season for WinTech and we look forward to watching these crews pit their wits against each other as the season unfolds. A full breakdown of all the results can be seen below:
| Race | Medal | Club | Region | Boat |
| J AR O1x | Gold | Kings School Chester | Chester | WinTech Club Racer |
| W J16 2x | Gold | Notts County RA | East Midlands | WinTech Cobra SE |
| W J16 2- | Gold | Sir William Perkins School | Thames Upriver | WinTech International |
| W J16 1x | Gold | Worcester BC | West Midlands | WinTech International |
| O J15 4x+ | Gold | Windsor Boys’ School | Thames Upriver | WinTech International |
| O J16 4+ | Gold | Great Marlow School | Thames Upriver | WinTech International |
| O J16 4x- | Gold | Windsor Boys | Thames Upriver | WinTech International |
| W J14 2x | Gold | Cantabrigian RC | Eastern | WinTech International |
| W J16 4- | Gold | Wallingford RC | Thames Upriver | WinTech International |
| O J15 2x | Gold | Shanklin Sandown | Wessex | WinTech International |
| J AR O1x | Silver | Marlow RC | Thames Upriver | WinTech Explorer 24 |
| O J16 1x | Silver | Hereford CS | West Midlands | WinTech International |
| W J16 2x | Silver | Sir William Perkins School | Thames Upriver | WinTech International |
| O J14 1x | Silver | Exeter RC | West | WinTech International |
| W J15 2x | Silver | City of Bristol RC | WAGS & Wales | WinTech International |
| W J16 2- | Silver | Kings School Worcester | West Midlands | WinTech Medalist |
| O J15 4+ | Silver | Great Marlow School | Thames Upriver | WinTech International |
| W J14 2x | Silver | Great Marlow School | Thames Upriver | WinTech Competitor |
| W J16 4x | Silver | Nottingham RC | East Midlands | WinTech Cobra SE |
| O J14 2x | Silver | City of Oxford RC | Thames Upriver | WinTech International |
| O J16 1x | Bronze | Newark RC | East Midlands | WinTech International |
| O J16 2- | Bronze | Great Marlow School | Thames Upriver | WinTech Cobra SE |
| W J16 2- | Bronze | Nottingham & Union RC | East Midlands | WinTech International |
| W J15 4+ | Bronze | Kings School Chester | North West | WinTech Competitor |
| O J16 4x- | Bronze | Lea RC | Eastern | WinTech Cobra |
| W J14 2x | Bronze | Nottingham & Union RC | East Midlands | WinTech Medalist |
| W J14 4x+ | Bronze | City of Bristol RC | WAGS & Wales | WinTech International |
Come and join #TeamWinTech today! Our value goes beyond that of just a great product for a great price.
Team WinTech had another successful weekend at Great Britain Final Trials, recording an outright win in the Men’s Single Scull alongside a host of A, B and C final finishes. These trials are a critical juncture for any athlete hoping to represent Great Britain on the international stage this summer and will form a key part of the selector’s decision-making process.
Our top result came from George Bourne of Leander Club, who came home as overall winner in the Men’s Single in his WinTech Cobra Special Edition. George has enjoyed a stratospheric rise to the top of domestic sculling, having only raced in his first World Championships last summer. In victory, George saw off fierce competition from the likes of Callum Dixon, Matt Haywood, John Collins and the Devereux brothers.
Racing for Leander, Rory Harris finished third in the ‘B’ final of Men’s Singles, behind Oliver Costley (also of Leander) and Aidan Thompson of Twickenham Rowing Club and the University of Surrey. James Forward of Oxford University Boat Club was third in the ‘C’ final whilst Sol Hewitt and Jacob Ioras were fourth and sixth in the ‘D’ final respectively.
Our top women’s result came from Liv Bates, who finished sixth in the ‘A’ final whilst representing Nottinghamshire County Rowing Association. Liv, who continues to scull her way into contention for the lightweight women’s squad, was behind Imogen Grant and Emily Craig in a final that was won by Lauren Henry of Leicester Rowing Club. Racing as a lightweight in an openweight field, Liv’s performance demonstrates how well-placed she is moving into the summer season.
Olivia White of Oxford Brookes University Boat Club was our other female competitor, finishing second in the ‘D’ final.
As always, Team WinTech are incredibly excited to see the finest domestic athletes taking our shells to the top of the racing pyramid. We’re looking forward to supporting these individuals on their journey to domestic and international glory.
Come and join #TeamWinTech or #TeamKing today! Our value goes beyond that of just a great product for a great price.
Team WinTech & King enjoyed a phenomenally successful weekend at the 2023 San Diego Crew Classic, recording 17 wins alongside eight second and six third-placed finishes. Hailed as the premier start to spring racing in the United States, the race was formed in 1973 and now attracts thousands of competitors from across the country – and often further afield – to compete over the 2000m course.
We took home clean podium sweeps in both the MPR3 Doubles and Mx Incl Doubles; Freedom Rows, USRowing’s national program dedicated to changing lives for disabled veterans and members of the armed forces, took all of the placings.
A large bulk of our wins came in King shells, which continue to prove their quality at the highest levels. Endeavor Racing Alliance recorded five wins and a second place finish as our most successful club of the weekend. Their victories across the Women’s Masters A, D, E and F 8+ events were all secured in KingSE shells, save for the WinTech in the Women’s Master Club 4x event. They were also runners-up in the Women’s Masters B 8+.
Club Nautico de San Juan also had a fantastic weekend racing in KingSE shells. They won the Men’s Alumni 8+, the Men’s Masters A 8+ and the Men’s Masters B 8+ alongside a third in the Mixed 8+.
Our other wins came from Clark University in the Women’s DII/III/Club 8+, Kent Michell in the Men’s Masters G 8+, Marin Rowing Association defending their title in the Women’s Youth 8+, Endeavor Racing Alliance in the WPR3 Doubles, Maritime Rowing Club in the Men’s U16 4x, North Dakota in the Men’s Masters F 8+ and the University of Washington reclaiming the Women’s Collegiate Novice 8+ title. All but the Maritime win in the 4x came in KingSE shells.
Additionally, our renowned success in the Women’s Youth 8+ was reemphasized this year. The teams of Marin Rowing Association, Newport Aquatic Center, and Saugatuck Rowing Club rowed King shells and dominated the podium with first, second, and third place finishes, respectively.
Other top-three finishes came from Maritime Rowing Club, who finished second in the Women’s U16 4x; North Dakota, who finished second in the Men’s Masters D 8+; Oakland Strokes, who were runners-up in the Women’s U17 8+; Rowing Canada, who were third in the Women’s Collegiate Varsity 8+; Saugatuck Rowing Club, who finished third in the Women’s Youth B 8+; Toronto Sculling, who were second in the Women’s Masters Club Championship 8+; and Maritime Rowing Club, who were third in the Men’s U17 4x.
The 31 top-three placements from this year’s Crew Classic represents a fantastic return for Team WinTech & King, and has poised us for an exciting spring racing season across North America. We look forward to supporting our countless crews and athletes on their respective journeys, and providing the shells in which they will achieve greatness.
Come and join #TeamWinTech or #TeamKing today! Our value goes beyond that of just a great product for a great price.
Team WinTech enjoyed a fantastic day at the Oarsport Junior Sculling Head 2023, collecting four gold medals across 14 divisions and 14 medals in total. Our UK distributor, Oarsport, are the principal sponsor for the event which attracts thousands of juniors from across the UK who race two timed laps of the Olympic rowing venue.
Our first win of the day came in the Junior 16 Men’s Quad in the form of Windsor Boys School, who retained their title from 2022. This trophy has so often been monopolised by Mark Wilkinson and his team and the 2023 edition saw Windsor finish top of a 50-boat pile. We also collected silver and bronze medals in this category as Trentham finished second and Great Marlow School placed third, all racing in WinTech shells.
Our next gold medals came just under two hours later as Headington secured victory in the Junior 15 Women’s Coxed Quad. In the largest roster of the day – an enormous 72 crews in total – the Oxfordshire-based club beat out closest challengers Henley and Surbiton High School.
Our third victory came in the Junior 15 Men’s Octuple (the result of which remains provisional pending a video review). Hampton School were top of a 13-boat pile by nearly two seconds ahead of the Windsor Boys School (also in a WinTech) in second and Royal Shrewsbury School in third.
Our final gold medal came in the Junior 14 Men’s Octuple, where once again Team WinTech secured both first and second steps on the podium. Windsor Boys School collected their second victory of the day, defeating Hampton (also in a WinTech) and Abingdon School.
Other medals came in Junior 17 Men’s Quads, where WinTech shells were responsible for silver (Windsor Boys School) and bronze (Lea Rowing Club); Junior 16 Women’s Quads, where we won bronze with Headington School; Junior 14 Women’s Octuples, where a King shell rowed to silver with Headington and finally Junior 14 Men’s Quads with Henley collecting a bronze medal behind George Watson’s College and Wallingford Rowing Club.
We were delighted to see so many young rowers take to the water and race what is firmly established as the most prominent sculling event in the country. We look forward to watching these crews develop in the coming weeks as regatta season approaches.
Come and join #TeamWinTech today! Our value goes beyond that of just a great product for a great price.
Team WinTech had 36 crews in action at the 2023 edition of the Schools’ Head of the River which took place against the backdrop of thickset cloud and sweeping showers. Spirit was not dampened though as over 300 crews took to the water in a record roster for the event. WinTech took home one win and a smattering of top-five finishes.
Our victory came in Girls School J16 Eights as Bedford Girls School took the win over Sydenham High School in a time of 20 minutes and 38 seconds the girls will now be turning their attention to a solid training period over the Easter break.
We had three second-placed-finishes; Norwich School were runners-up in the Boys School J16 Eights, finishing 14 seconds behind Bedford School. Marlow Rowing Club were second in Girls Second Eights behind an impressive boat from Henley Rowing Club whilst Fulham Reach Boat were second in the Mixed School Eights, finishing around 36 seconds adrift of King Edward VI School.
We also secured four bronze medal finishes; Canford School were third in Boys First Eights behind a leading duo of Bedford School and St Joseph’s College, Ireland. Canford also secured third in Mixed School Eights. Mossbourne Academy, regular users of WinTech, were third in Boys School J16 Eights, some twenty seconds back on winners Bedford School. Finally, Headington School were third in Girls Championship 15 Eights but very close to the leading pair of Henley and Surbiton. This should prove to be a fascinating battle heading into the summer months.
We had a further four crews in the top -five of their respective events. Reading Blue Coat were fifth in Boys School J16 Eights whilst Hampton School came home fifth in Boys Championship 15 Eights. Emanuel School were fifth in Girls School First Eights and Monmouth Grammar School were the last of the top five in the Girls School J15 Eights.
We’re excited to see how all these crews develop over the coming months and look forward to watching many of these athletes join us at Dorney Lake on Monday for the Oarsport Junior Sculling Head sponsored by our UK distributor.
Come and join #TeamWinTech today! Our value goes beyond that of just a great product for a great price.
Team WinTech athletes recorded some superb results at the US Winter Speed Order 2023, as the road to the 2023 World Rowing Championships’ squad began for 132 of the United States’ top rowers. Held at Nathan Benderson Park, Sarasota, Florida, racing took place in the men’s and women’s single sculls, lightweight single sculls, and pairs. The speed order not only served as an opportunity for rowers to test their speed ahead of next month’s National Selection Regatta but also gave them a chance to earn automatic invitations to the first Olympic Events Selection Camp scheduled for April 30-May 21 in Chula Vista, Calif.
Our fastest finisher was Lauren O’Connor of ARION Rowing (Advanced Rowing Initiative of the Northeast), who came home second overall in the women’s openweight single scull. An alum of the University of Wisconsin, Lauren beat out established names like Kara Kohler (Olympic bronze medallist in London) and Kristina Wagner, a Tokyo Olympian. She was only two seconds behind winner Sophie Vitas, who herself finished fifth in the double sculls at the 2022 World Rowing Championships.
Eliot Putnam was our fastest openweight male finisher, coming home third overall in the time trial and sixth in the A-final, 12 seconds behind winner Sorin Koszyk, who finished seventh in the double sculls at the 2022 World Rowing Championships. Eliot is a seasoned athlete in the US set-up, having competed in the quadruple sculls at the 2021 World Rowing Final Olympic Qualification Regatta. He also raced to fourth in the eight at the 2017 World Rowing Under 23 Championships. He will now have his eyes set firmly on national representation in the summer.
Audrianna Boersen finished third in the women’s lightweight single sculls, which marks an important step in her comeback after an injury rendered her unable to compete at the 2022 World Rowing Championships. Audrianna, representing both Black Sheep and Whitemarsh Boat Club of Pennsylvania, was around six seconds back on winner Michelle Sechser, who herself won a silver medal at the 2022 World Rowing Championships in the lightweight women’s double scull.
Our final performance of note was Veronica Nicacio, who came home 13th overall in the women’s openweight single scull after winning the ‘C’ final. Like Lauren, she was representing ARION Rowing and such was the proximity of athletes at the business end of this category, Veronica was less than 15 seconds behind winner Vitas in the time trial despite finishing 12th at that stage.
WinTech looks forward to supporting these athletes on their journey to national and international representation and are excited to watch this crop of talent develop over the coming months.
Come and join #TeamWinTech today! Our value goes beyond that of just a great product for a great price.
For the second successive weekend, Team WinTech recorded a stunning set of results at the Great Britain rowing trials. With the focus now on juniors, Boston in Lincolnshire once again played host to hundreds of the country’s most talented athletes. Twenty four scullers competed in WinTech shells and across men and women we recorded nine top-ten finishes.
Leading the way was Jack Cadwallader of The Windsor Boys School, who won the men’s event by seven seconds in a WinTech Cobra SE. After a stellar season for Mark Wilkinson and his team in 2022, this season continues to see the programme go from strength to strength. Jack, who raced in the ‘B’ crew for the Windsor Boys School last year, is yet another example of the incredible development curve on offer in Mark’s program and we’re delighted to support him in his efforts. Close behind was Bryon Richards of Leander Club, who also raced in a Cobra SE. Bryon won bronze at the National Schools’ Regatta in 2022, racing for Nottinghamshire County Rowing Association, and will surely be in contention to feature strongly come the 2023 edition.
WinTech athletes also occupied spots four and five, as Nathaniel Gauden (also of Leander Club) and Ben Mead of Cambridge 99 closed out the top five finishers (both in Cobra SE models). Our next fastest competitor was Sam Gater of Exeter Rowing Club, who finished eighth. Innes Jackson and William Morgan-Jones, both of Hereford Cathedral School, were ninth and tenth respectively and could only be separated by 0.4 seconds. Their quad – or perhaps even their double – promises much this summer. Overall, WinTech athletes featured in seven of the top ten spots.
On the women’s side, the event was won by Olivia Cheesmur of Molesey Boat Club, whose junior girl’s program continues to mark itself out as exemplary. Our fastest finisher was Biba Rabjohns of Hartpury College, who was third and nine seconds back on the winner. Biba raced in a WinTech International and will be looking to make a play for her program’s top boat in the summer, where success has been found at key national events historically. Ailish Harkin of Henley Rowing Club was seventh in a WinTech Cobra SE and Kayleigh Batchelor of St Edward’s School was 11th in the same shell. Moving into the teens and twenties, we had a flurry of finishers; Mia Lawrence of Marlow Rowing Club was 15th overall, Chloe Sheppard of Hartpury College was 16th, Claudia Kerry-Roger of Marlow Rowing Club was 18th, Lucy Webber of Exeter Rowing Club was 21st, Emily Downing of Shiplake College was 22nd and Kathryn Burton of Wycliffe College was 23rd.
WinTech are delighted to have such deep and broad representation at the sharp end of domestic rowing and are honoured to support so many talented men and women in their pursuit of national and international honours. We look forward to many of these athletes returning to the bigger boats for the culmination of the head racing season.
Come and join #TeamWinTech today! Our value goes beyond that of just a great product for a great price.
Team WinTech began 2023 with a stellar effort at the Senior Great Britain February trials, with multiple athletes competing in WinTech shells to further their advance on the national team. As always, the event was hosted across a five kilometer stretch in Boston and attracted a raft of senior names including double Olympic gold medallist Helen Glover and the men’s bronze medal-winning pair from the 2022 World Championships.
Our most impressive result came from George Bourne of Leander Club, who finished second overall in the Men’s Single in his WinTech Cobra. He was less than seven seconds behind Tom Barras and ahead of seasoned international John Collins. George’s rise to the top of British Rowing has been nothing short of astronomical; he first represented GB in 2019, winning the men’s quad sculls (BM4x) at the U23 World Championships. After making his senior team debut in 2021 at the World Cup III regatta in the men’s single sculls (M1x), he was selected for the quad (M4x) in 2022.
We had six athletes competing in the men’s single overall and Rory Harris was our next participant to finish, coming home in eighth place overall. Louis Powell of Reading University Boat Club was 19th but finished as the third fastest U23. Jacob Ioras, previously a Fawley Challenge Cup-winning schoolboy at the Windsor Boys School, was the fastest U21 and came home 21st overall. Peter Goodfellow of Durham University Boat Club was 25th whilst Jamie Leppard of Molesey Boat Club was 31st.
On the women’s side, Olivia Bates continued her assault on the British senior lightweight team by placing as the third fastest lightweight and 11th overall. Olivia won bronze at the U23 European Rowing Championships in 2022 and claimed the Godfrey Rowsports Trophy at Henley Women’s Regatta 2022 in what was the fastest time ever down the course by a single sculler in her WinTech Cobra SE.
Maddie Arlett was five seconds behind Olivia in 12th place overall, representing Edinburgh University Boat Club. Molly Curry was our next fastest finisher, placing 22nd in Queen’s University Belfast colours. Olivia White of Oxford Brookes University was 23rd overall but placed as the sixth-fastest lightweight and third fastest U21. Finnola Stratton was 32nd, Laura Bates was 34th (seventh fastest lightweight) and Alice Ives was 41st, representing Reading University, Newark Rowing Club and Leander Club respectively.
We had one representative in the Women’s Pair roster who placed 23rd overall. The crew contained Laura McKenzie and Frances Hunt-Davies of Glasgow University and Leander Club.
Team WinTech look forward to continuing to support these athletes on their journey through the trials system and are excited to watch selection take place over the coming months.
Come and join #TeamWinTech today! Our value goes beyond that of just a great product for a great price.
Team WinTech & King were out in force at the Fours Head of the River last Saturday, as hundreds of crews took to the water to race the reverse championship course from Chiswick to Putney. It was an astonishingly good day for Leander Club, who took home a clean sweep of championship events with several notable names featuring from Olympic and world championship glory.
Crews racing in WinTech & King boats took home two wins, including a new course record in Women’s Championship Fours for the aforementioned Leander, who raced in a King. The record, which had stood for 24 years, was smashed by a crew stroked by Emily Ford and backed up by Lauren Irwin, Chloe Brew, Rebecca Edwards and cox Morgan Baynham-Williams. They won the event by nine seconds over a boat from Oxford Brookes.
Our second win came in the Women’s Academic Coxed Four, where Cambridge University – current Boat Race holders – took victory by just under six seconds ahead of the University of Surrey. Cambridge, who will be officially challenged to race The Boat Race by Oxford next week in London, performed well on the Tideway and collected another win in the Men’s Academic Coxed Four.
WinTech also secured two second-place finishes; Hinksey Sculling School were bridesmaids to a dominant Henley Rowing Club, who won every junior women’s category on offer, whilst St Paul’s Girls School were runners-up in the Women’s Junior Coxed Four. The latter raced in a new WinTech Coxed Four model and contained remnants of the crew who broke the course record at Henley Women’s Regatta earlier this year.
Our stronghold in junior rowing across the UK was in further evidence on Saturday as we collected numerous additional top-ten finishes, including sixth and seventh in Open Junior Quads (Hinksey Sculling School and Exeter Rowing Club), seventh and ninth in Women’s Junior Coxed Fours (Bedford Girls School and St Edward’s School) and eighth in Open Junior Coxless Fours (Emanuel School).
Racing in a WinTech shell in Women’s Championship Quads, the combination crew of Leicester Rowing Club, Nottinghamshire County Rowing Association and Twickenham Rowing Club finished third behind Leander and a Great Britain composite crew featuring current world and European champion Imogen Grant.
Our top-five finishes were rounded out by Nottinghamshire County Rowing Association – who you can read more about in our Club Spotlight – finishing fifth in Open Club Quads, Exeter University finishing fifth in Women’s Academic Quads and Nottingham Rowing Club placing fifth in Women’s Club Quads.
Once again, the Fours Head was a fantastically well-run event, and we were delighted to see so many WinTech shells in action. We look forward to the Women’s and Men’s Eights Heads in March to round out the Tideway racing calendar
Come and join #TeamWinTech or #TeamKing today! Our value goes beyond that of just a great product for a great price.
Both King & WinTech came away with over 34 medals at the Head of the Hooch after another stellar year at one of the world’s largest rowing events. Held over two days on the first full weekend in November, the Head of the Hooch is run downstream on a 3.1 miles (5.0 km) course on the Tennessee River for over 10,000 athletes and over 2000 boats to compete. King & WinTech managed to secure 18 gold medals in a remarkable weekend across junior and senior level.
Standout amongst our performances were the three medals, plus a fourth place, achieved in the Women’s U19 Eights category. Cincinnati Juniors Rowing Club, whose story is told in one of our club spotlight series articles, ran out victors in a King SE. Close behind were St Andrew Rowing Club and Chicago Rowing Foundation, also in King SEs. To claim first, second, third and fourth in a field comprising 49 boats from all over the USA is an astonishing achievement and all crews raced superbly to set up a fantastic season of rivalry. In the same category on the men’s side, King SEs were responsible for both gold and silver as St Louis Rowing Club claimed victory whilst Chicago Rowing Foundation – who also featured in one of our club spotlights back in August – raced a King SE to the silver medal position.
Our junior success did not end there though; further wins were achieved in the Men’s U19 Coxed Four (St Louis Rowing Club), Women’s U17 Eight (St Louis Rowing Club), Women’s U19 Coxed Four (Cincinnati Juniors Rowing Club), Men’s U17 Single (Camp Randall), Men’s U15 Single (Camp Randall) and Women’s U17 Pair (OKC Juniors). The latter won their event by a colossal 40 seconds in a truly dominant display.
On the senior side, Team King dominance shined through once again as we collected a further eight gold medals across the Saturday and Sunday. King SEs were responsible for wins in the Men’s Masters Coxed Four (Chinook) and Women’s Masters Eight (Chinook) whilst the Saturday was rounded out by WinTech golds in the Mixed Masters Quads and Coxed Fours (both Chinook).
The Sunday saw WinTech shells deliver victory in the Women’s Master Singles (Rio Salado), Women’s Masters Lightweight Single (Chinook), Women’s Lightweight Coxed Four (First Coast) and Women’s Championship Lightweight Single (Gainesville).
We had another fantastic weekend at the Head of the Hooch and were delighted to see so much WinTech and King success across so many different categories and age groups. Thank you to the Head of the Hooch organising committee for putting on another spectacular event – we’re already looking forward to 2023!
Saturday
| Men’s Masters 4+ | Chinook | 1st | King SE |
| Men’s U19 4+ | St. Louis | 1st | King SE |
| Women’s Masters 8+ | Chinook | 1st | King SE |
| Women’s Youth U19 8+ | CJRC | 1st | King SE |
| Women’s Youth U17 8+ | St. Louis | 1st | King |
| Men’s Youth U19 8+ | St. Louis | 1st | King SE |
| Men’s Youth U17 8+ | St. Louis | 1st | King |
| Women’s U19 4+ | CJRC | 1st | King |
| Mixed Masters 4x | Chinook | 1st | WinTech |
| Mixed Masters 4+ | Chinook | 1st | WinTech |
| Mixed Masters 4+ | Chinook | 2nd | WinTech |
| Women’s Youth U19 8+ | SA | 2nd | King SE |
| Women’s Youth U17 8+ | CJRC | 2nd | King |
| Men’s Youth U19 8+ | CRF | 2nd | King SE |
| Women’s Masters 4+ | Chinook | 2nd | WinTech |
| Women’s Masters 4+ | Rio Salado | 2nd | King SE |
| Mixed Masters 4+ | Rio Salado | 2nd | WinTech |
| Women’s Youth U19 8+ | CRF | 3rd | King SE |
| Men’s Masters 8+ | Chinook | 3rd | King SE |
| Women’s U19 4+ | St. Louis | 3rd | King SE |
| Women’s Youth U17 4+ | Camp Randall | 3rd | WinTech |
| Mixed Masters 4x | TriStar | 3rd | WinTech |
| Mixed Masters 4+ | Chinook | 3rd | WinTech |
Sunday
| Men’s U17 1x | Camp Randall | 1st | WinTech |
| Women’s Masters 1x | Rio Salado | 1st | WinTech |
| Women’s Masters LWT 1x | Chinook | 1st | WinTech |
| Men’s U15 1x | Camp Randall | 1st | WinTech |
| Women’s U17 2- | OKC | 1st | WinTech (won by 40 seconds) |
| Mixed Youth U19 8+ | Northville | 1st | King |
| Women’s LWT 4+ | First Coast | 1st | WinTech |
| Women’s Championship LWT 1x | Gainesville | 1st | WinTech |
| Women’s Youth U19 2- | Triangle | 2nd | WinTech |
| Mixed Masters 8+ | Chinook | 2nd | King SE |
| Men’s U17 4x | Camp Randall | 3rd | WinTech |
Come and join #TeamWinTech today! Our value goes beyond that of just a great product for a great price.
Team WinTech were once again active in supporting numerous athletes at the first Open Great Britain rowing trial of the 2022/23 season. After an incredibly successful summer for GB at U19, U23 and Senior level, hundreds of athletes descended upon Boston, Lincolnshire to do battle on the River Witham and make an early mark on selector scrapbooks.
On the women’s side, all athletes were mandated to compete in the single scull. Helen Glover, fresh from her exploits at the World Rowing Coastal Championships, took top spot, around half a second clear of Lauren Henry, who finished fourth at the World Rowing U23 Championships. The fastest WinTech sculler was Olivia Bates, who placed fourth overall and was the fastest lightweight athlete of the day. Racing in a WinTech Cobra, Olivia is building an impressive reputation at both domestic and international level; she won bronze in the Lightweight Women’s Single Sculls at the U23 European Rowing Championships in September and finished second at the British Rowing Senior & U23 April Trials. She also set a course record in the Championship Lightweight 1x at Henley Women’s Regatta earlier this year.
Alexandra Watson of Molesey Boat Club and Juliette Perry of Leander Club were our next fastest finishers, in 17th and 18th respectively. Rachel Bradley of Newcastle University and Molly Curry from Queen’s University Belfast, also racing in WinTechs, were 23rd and 24th. Laura Bates of Newark Rowing Club also warrants a special shout, after placing 58th overall in only her third-ever single scull race. Overall, Team WinTech had 14 athletes competing in our shells on the women’s side from other top rowing clubs and universities including Leander Club, Oxford Brookes & Durham University.
For the men, Callum Dixon of Twickenham edged out recent Wingfield Sculls victor Seb Devereux to take the overall win. Our fastest athlete was Rory Harris of Leander Club, who finished fourth and 16 seconds behind Dixon. Rory has senior international pedigree, having won a bronze medal in the Men’s Double Scull at the third World Rowing Cup in 2021. He also placed 2nd at this year’s scullers Head of the River in his WinTech.
Our next fastest WinTech competitor was Levin Graf of Durham University, who placed 14th. Louis Powell and Solomon Hewitt, both of Reading University, were 22nd and 26th respectively whilst Peter Goodfellow, of Durham, Jacob Ioras, of Leander, and Jamie Leppard, of Molesey, were 34th, 27th and 42nd to close out our roster.
Come and join #TeamWinTech today! Our value goes beyond that of just a great product for a great price.
Team WinTech and King opened its competitive account for the 22/23 season with a fantastic set of results at the Head of the Charles. 2022 was another blockbuster year for the world’s largest regatta as racing spanned across three days and numerous categories, involving everything from eights down to singles. We had a team of 20 staff taking care of crews from all over the world with over 100 boats rented. WinTech and King crews picked up 39 medals in total, including 11 golds.
Some of the key highlights included our first gold medal of the event which landed in the Women’s Senior Master Eights. Endeavor Racing Alliance ‘A’ took the win by 2.5 seconds over crews from Seattle and Texas. WinTech secured a further four gold medals across the Master, Senior Master, Grand Master and Alumnae categories, inclusive of Men’s Senior Master Fours, Women’s Grand Master Fours, Women’s Alumnae Eights and Men’s Master Eights. In the latter event, King shells were represented on every step of the podium as Marin ‘A’, Fat Cat ‘A’ and RCA Alumni ‘A’ took gold, silver, and bronze respectively.
In the Women’s Youth Eights event, RowAmerica Rye put on an absolute clinic, not only finishing first in their event, but setting a course record at the same time. It goes without saying that their KingSE shell held fast for their next-level performance.
Molesey BC executed a phenomenal race in their KingSE 4+, taking the lead over countless crews in the Men’s Senior Master Fours event. The crew of the 4+ told us that their KingSE shell was set up flawlessly and responded beautifully throughout the entire race, contributing greatly to their victory.
The Women’s Alumnae Eight event saw a commanding performance from the University of Washington, wherein their alumnae reunited to dominate the race course. We caught up with the stalwart crew after the race, and they were quick to inform us that their KingSE shell played an instrumental role in their victory.
In the Men’s Masters Eight event, Marin RA went on to secure their third victory in a row, crossing the line ahead of all in their KingSE shell. We caught up with them after the race to hear their thoughts on the boat, and they all agreed that it “responds quick” and felt great as they navigated the countless bends and boats of the Charles river.
In the Men’s Championship Doubles event, Frankfurter Rudergesellschaft Germania took a storming victory by over ten seconds ahead of a US composite. Racing in a WinTech, the crew contained Tokyo Olympian Marc Weber and recent U23 Single Scull World Champion Jonas Gelsen. We also picked up a bronze in Men’s Championship Singles as Finn Putnam secured third place by just over a second.
All our remaining golds were won at junior level, a demographic that WinTech and King continue to dominate globally. Maritime Rowing Club ‘B took the U17 Women’s Youth Coxed Quad title, whilst RowAmerica Rye took both the overall and U17 titles in the Women’s Youth Eights in a strong showing that maintains their status as frontrunners in this category.
New York AC ‘A’ took the win in U17 Women’s Youth Doubles, finishing second overall, whilst Tideway Scullers of the UK finished fourth overall in a WinTech. Our final gold came in the Men’s Youth Coxed Quad category, as Maritime Rowing Club ‘B’ finished fourth overall but won the U17 category.
Our other notable results were a silver medal in the Mixed Para Inclusion Double via Athletes Without Limits-DC ‘A’ and corresponding silvers for Kings in the Men’s Senior Master Eights [Marin ‘A’] and Men’s Grand Master Eights [Marin ‘A’]. The Windsor Boys School, who enjoyed an unbeaten domestic 21/22 season, finished second in the Men’s Youth Coxed Quad category whilst RowAmerica Rye ‘A’ were third [both in WinTechs].
Our last silver medals came in the Lightweight Eight category for Princeton University, in the Directors’ Challenge Parent/Child Doubles for SC Kuesnacht and in the Directors’ Challenge Mixed Eight for Club Nautico De San Juan.
Once again, The Head of the Charles did not disappoint as thousands of rowers from across the world descended on Boston to enjoy one of rowing’s bucket-list events. Team WinTech and King were delighted to meet so many of our customers and witness some phenomenal racing. Roll on 2023!
| Name | Place | Medal | Club | Brand |
| Women’s Senior Master Eights [50+] | 1st | 1st | Endeavor Racing Alliance ‘A’ | King |
| Men’s Senior Master Fours [50+] | 1st | 1st | Molesey ‘A’ | King |
| Women’s Grand Master Fours [60+] | 1st | 1st | Saugatuck ‘A’ | WinTech |
| Women’s Alumnae Eights | 1st | 1st | UW Alum ‘A’ | King |
| Men’s Master Eights [40+ | 1st | 1st | Marin ‘A’ | King |
| Men’s Championship Doubles | 1st | 1st | Frg Germania | WinTech |
| Women’s Youth Eights | 1st | 1st | RowAmerica Rye ‘A’ | King |
| Women’s Youth Doubles | 2nd | 1st (U17) | New York AC ‘A’ | WinTech |
| Womens Youth Coxed Quad | 18th | 1st (U17) | Maritime Rowing Club ‘B’ | WinTech |
| Women’s Youth Eights | 3rd | 1st (U17) | RowAmerica Rye ‘B’ | King |
| Mens Youth Coxed Quad | 4th | 1st (U17) | Maritime Rowing Club ‘B’ | WinTech |
| Men’s Senior Master Eights [50+] | 2nd | 2nd | Marin ‘A’ | King |
| Men’s Grand Master Eights [60+] | 2nd | 2nd | Marin ‘A’ | King |
| Men’s Master Eights [40+] | 2nd | 2nd | Fat Cat ‘A’ | King |
| Mixed Para Inclusion 2x | 2nd | 2nd | Athletes Without Limits-DC ‘A’ | WinTech |
| Mens Youth Coxed Quad | 2nd | 2nd | Windsor Boys’ ‘A’ | WinTech |
| Men’s Under-17 Fours | 2nd | 2nd | RowAmerica Rye | WinTech |
| Men’s Lightweight Eights | 2nd | 2nd | Princeton ‘A’ | King |
| Directors’ Challenge Mixed Eight | 2nd | 2nd | Club Nautico De San Juan | King |
| Directors’ Challenge Parent/Child Double | 2nd | 2nd | SC Kuesnacht | WinTech |
| Men’s Senior Master Eights [50+] | 3rd | 3rd | Molesey ‘A’ | King |
| Men’s Grand Master Fours [60+] | 3rd | 3rd | Marin ‘A’ | WinTech |
| Women’s Grand Master Fours [60+] | 3rd | 3rd | Chinook ‘A’ | King |
| Men’s Master Eights [40+] | 3rd | 3rd | RCA Alumni ‘A’ | King |
| Men’s Championship Singles | 3rd | 3rd | New York AC, Putnam, E | WinTech |
| Womens Youth Coxed Quad | 3rd | 3rd | RowAmerica Rye ‘A’ | WinTech |
| Men’s Youth Fours | 3rd | 3rd | RowAmerica Rye ‘A’ | WinTech |
| Mens Youth Coxed Quad | 3rd | 3rd | RowAmerica Rye ‘A’ | WinTech |
| Men’s Youth Eights | 3rd | 3rd | RowAmerica Rye ‘A’ | King |
| Men’s Under-17 Fours | 3rd | 3rd | TriStar | King |
| Men’s Collegiate Fours | 3rd | 3rd | San Diego ‘A’ | WinTech |
| Men’s Grand Master Doubles [60+] | 4th | 4th | Chinook Performance Racing | WinTech |
| Men’s Senior Master Eights [50+] | 4th | 4th | Chinook ‘A’ | King |
| Women’s Youth Eights | 4th | 4th | Saugatuck ‘A’ | King |
| Women’s Youth Doubles | 4th | 4th | Tideway Scullers ‘A’ | WinTech |
| Men’s Youth Eights | 4th | 4th | Saugatuck ‘A’ | King |
| Men’s Club Singles | 5th | 5th | Pittsburgh, Petronic, Z | WinTech |
| Women’s Youth Eights | 5th | 5th | Marin ‘A’ | King |
| Men’s Youth Eights | 5th | 5th | New Trier ‘A’ | King |
Come and join #TeamWinTech and #TeamKing today! Our value goes beyond that of just a great product for a great price.
Rowing is a sport where inequality continues to rear its ugly head. There’s no point trying to deny it – if we’re on a true mission to change our community and our purpose, then we need to be honest and confront the existing reality. So, when a program springs up with that single source of truth – the earnest need to reshape the demographic composition of rowing – we at WinTech & King Racing pay very close attention.
In the case of Stem to Stern (STS) – a program designed to eliminate the barriers to participation and to increase representation of all ethnic communities within rowing – we simply knew we had to get involved. The program was started in Milwaukee, WI at the Milwaukee Rowing Club and has grown to partner with numerous clubs across the USA with one simple aim – to open the sport up to anyone and everyone who wishes to be involved regardless of socioeconomic background.
Powerful stuff and the sort of thinking that would have been dispelled as unrealistic and wishful just a couple of decades ago. However, the sport faces an existential crisis – change or become obsolete and irrelevant to a younger generation who hold social and economic empowerment as a key cause. STS, led by Will Bott, have recognised this to not only be critical to the sports future but also to the prosperity of high-performance programs across the country. Their momentum has not gone unnoticed; in the fall of 2021, STS became a program of USRowing, the national governing body of the sport, helping to fuel this growth.
“It’s fantastic to have the support of an organisation like USRowing,” explained Will when we caught up with him. “From a fundraising perspective, they are backing STS with an operating budget which has allowed us to bring another full-time person onto our team. They’ve also given us access to an incredible team, across social media, curriculum, governance.”
STS focuses on the key barriers that prevent so many under-privileged children from partaking in the sport, including transportation, swimming lessons and club/equipment fees. “We provide access to not only rowing but also high-quality STEM educational activities, like robotics, Rude Goldberg machines, engineering concepts,” said Will. “In the past two years, the program has just exploded all over the USA to some of the most established centres in the country and I truly believe we’re witnessing a shift in how talent is sourced and developed at a young age”.
Will came to create STS after spending ten years at Milwaukee Rowing Club as a coach, initially to try and increase diversity and representation within that ecosystem. Realising quickly that what he was doing resonated with not only his own community but numerous other regions, he scaled and set STS the ambitious goal of creating 25 programs serving over 250 student-athletes across the United States by 2022. This is a target he has already achieved.
WinTech & King Racing have supported STS for several years, including donating two eights to the program this year alone. “Brent and I have had a strong relationship for a while now and a couple of seasons ago he called me, asking if I was planning to attend the US Masters,” explained Will. “At the time, I wasn’t considering it, but he said it would be a game-changer for STS, so I went along. It was a huge trip as it helped us develop our relationship with USRowing and ultimately become a partner to them”.
WinTech & King Racing sponsor STS and have provided the athletes with shells to row and train in. Both the eights handed over in 2022 were critical to the growth and development of STS in their respective locations (Milwaukee Rowing Club and Tacoma Rowing) and allowed the crews to gain legitimacy within their middle-school programs.
“As STS grows in various locations, supplying more children into the squads, the demand on equipment becomes increasingly onerous,” said Will. “WinTech & King Racing’s support has helped alleviate this and allow us to continue to bring in more kids to fill more seats in more boats”.
Will’s ambitions are bold; his aim is fundamentally to support his partner clubs as best he can and ensure STS plays a key role in providing access to the sport of rowing. At a macro level, it is no exaggeration to say that STS are changing the face of rowing – hopefully forever.
Come and join #TeamWinTech today! Our value goes beyond that of just a great product for a great price.
Deep in the Southern Appilachain range, countless crews from across the nation converged on the atomic city of Oak Ridge, Tennessee, for this year’s Youth Summer National Championships. A 3 day event defined by sweltering heat and fierce competition, we are proud to have seen our teams come away with a staggering 31 medals overall. With podium positions across 21 of the 29 total events, other boat-builders paled in comparison to our commanding presence.
First among our champions was Row West, hailing from the golden shores of Los Angeles, California. Their tenacious athletes took golds in both the Women’s U17 1x and Women’s Youth 1x events, joined on the podium by several other teams in WinTech shells.
In addition to winning the overall points trophy, RowAmerica Rye also dominated across a myriad of events. Taking 9 golds in the Women’s U16 4+, U17 4x, U17 8+, and Youth 4x, as well as the Men’s U17 8+, Youth 2-, U17 1x, U16 4+, and U17 4x, their stalwart team lead from the front come finals day. Once again, they were joined by fellow teammates and rival teams alike on the podium in each event, all proudly racing WinTech shells. Specifically, 4 of the 6 boats in the Men’s U17 8+ and Women’s U17 4x finals were Kings and WinTechs. The same went for half of the entire field within the Women’s U17 8+ and Youth 4x finals. In short, if there was a final, odds were that there was going to be a WinTech or King shell in medal contention.
Last, but certainly not least, among our national champions were Penn AC in the Men’s Youth 4+, Maritime Rowing Club in the Women’s U16 8+, Litchfield Hills in the Women’s U17 2x, and Oakland Strokes in the Men’s Youth 4-. As was the norm at this regatta, Oakland Strokes was joined in their final by 3 other teams in WinTech shells, a testament to the dependability and performance of our boats.
The list of medalists in our shells goes on. Here is the full breakdown:
| Event | Team | Result |
| Women’s U17 1x | Row West | Gold |
| Women’s U16 4+ | RowAmerica Rye | Gold |
| Men’s Youth 4+ | Penn AC | Gold |
| Men’s U17 8+ | RowAmerica Rye | Gold |
| Women’s U17 4x | RowAmerica Rye | Gold |
| Women’s 16 8+ | Maritime | Gold |
| Men’s Youth 2- | RowAmerica Rye | Gold |
| Women’s Youth 1x | Row West | Gold |
| Men’s U17 1x | RowAmerica Rye | Gold |
| Women’s U17 2x | Litchfield Hills | Gold |
| Women’s U178 8+ | RowAmerica Rye | Gold |
| Men’s Youth 4- | Oakland Strokes | Gold |
| Women’s Youth 4x | RowAmerica Rye | Gold |
| Men’s U16 4+ | RowAmerica Rye | Gold |
| Men’s U17 4x | RowAmerica Rye | Gold |
| Women’s U17 1x | Litchfield Hills | Silver |
| Men’ Youth 4x | Oakland Strokes | Silver |
| Women’s Youth 8+ | Row West | Silver |
| Women’s U17 4+ | RowAmerica Rye | Silver |
| Women’s U17 4x | RowAmerica Rye | Silver |
| Women’s Youth 1x | RowAmerica Rye | Silver |
| Men’s Youth 8+ | Penn AC | Silver |
| Men’s U17 4+ | Maritime | Silver |
| Women’s U16 4x+ | RowAmerica Rye | Silver |
| Men’s U17 8+ | Maritime | Bronze |
| Women’s U17 4x | Oak Neck Academy | Bronze |
| Women’s Youth 1x | The Port Jefferson | Bronze |
| Men’s U17 4+ | RowAmerica Rye | Bronze |
| Men’s Youth 4- | Penn AC | Bronze |
| Women’s Youth 4x | South Jersey | Bronze |
| Women’s U16 4x+ | Maritime | Bronze |
We congratulate all the great athletes, coaches, parents, and volunteers that made up the teams that chose our shells to faciliate their glorious victories. With such an incredible weekend in the books, we cannot wait to see what the upcoming Fall season has in store for us all!
Come and join #TeamWinTech today! Our value goes beyond that of just a great product for a great price.
On a blistering hot weekend at Holme Pierrepont, the junior season came to an unofficial end with the staging of the British Rowing Junior Championships. Team WinTech had one of our most successful events ever, collecting 15 wins alongside 12 silvers and 12 bronzes. Our victory count was by far and away the highest of any boat-builder and reiterated our status as the UK’s leading provider of high-quality racing fleet.
Our first win came courtesy of the Windsor Boys School in the J15 Boys Single (in a race where a WinTech athlete from Newark claimed the silver).
Mark Wilkinson’s program won six events across the weekend and five of those golds were in WinTech boats. Other wins included Junior 14 and 15 Boys Coxed Quads, Junior 18 Boys Doubles, Junior 16 Boys Quads and Junior 18 Boys Quads. This rounded off a sensational season for the Windsor Boys School, who won every single Championship Sculling event at the National Schools’ Regatta (all in WinTechs) before claiming both spots in the Fawley Challenge Cup final (again, in two WinTechs).
We claimed four golds in total on the Friday – two for the aforementioned Windsor Boys and one each for Shanklin Sandown Rowing Club and Marlow Rowing Club. Shanklin were winners of the Junior 14 Boys Doubles (in a final which also included a bronze medal-winning Windsor Boys crew) whilst Marlow claimed gold in the Junior 15 Girl’s Coxed Quads (completing the sweep in this category for WinTech).
Our Sunday got off to the best possible start as Shanklin Sandown Rowing Club claimed their second win of the weekend in the Junior 16 Girl’s Single in the first ‘A’ final of the day. We also picked up the silver medal in this category via Henley Rowing Club.
Race 311 saw Nottingham County Rowing Association – under the impressive stewardship of Declan Gamble – triumph in the Junior 18 Boy’s Single. Read more about that program via our club spotlight series.
After a 45-minute pause, the gold rush restarted in earnest. From Race 318 until the end of the day, WinTech were responsible for nine of the remaining 14 gold medals on offer. Winners included Marlow Rowing Club in the Junior 16 Girl’s Double, Newark Rowing Club in the Junior 16 Men’s Double, Claires Court in the Junior 18 Girl’s Double (freshly minted from their historic win in the Diamond Jubilee Challenge Cup), NCRA in the Junior 18 Girl’s Pair, Great Marlow School Boat Club in the Junior 18 Boy’s Pair and Hereford Rowing Club in the Junior 18 Boy’s Coxless Four.
Our spread of clubs was another hugely rewarding theme throughout the weekend; a full breakdown of all medals won in WinTech Racing boats can be seen below:
| Event | Club | Medal |
| O J15 1x | The Windsor Boys’ School | Gold |
| O J14 2x | Shanklin Sandown RC | Gold |
| W J15 4x+ | Marlow RC | Gold |
| O J15 4x+ | The Windsor Boys’ School | Gold |
| WJ16 1x | Shanklin Sandown RC | Gold |
| OJ18 1x | Notts County RA | Gold |
| WJ16 2x | Marlow RC | Gold |
| OJ16 2x | Newark RC | Gold |
| WJ18 2x | Claires Court School | Gold |
| OJ18 2x | The Windsor Boys’ School | Gold |
| WJ18 2- | Notts County RA | Gold |
| OJ18 2- | Great Marlow School | Gold |
| OJ16 4x | The Windsor Boys’ School | Gold |
| OJ18 4x- | The Windsor Boys’ School | Gold |
| OJ18 4- | Hereford RC | Gold |
| W J14 1x | Wallingford RC | Silver |
| O J14 1x | Wycliffe Junior RC | Silver |
| O J15 1x | Newark RC | Silver |
| O J15 2x | Tideway Scullers School | Silver |
| O J14 4x+ | Guildford RC | Silver |
| WJ16 1x | Henley RC | Silver |
| OJ16 2- | Tideway Scullers School | Silver |
| WJ16 2x | Sir William Perkins School | Silver |
| OJ16 2x | Bristol | Silver |
| OJ18 2x | Nottingham & Union RC | Silver |
| OJ16 4+ | Claires Court School | Silver |
| WJ18 2- | Newark RC | Silver |
| W J14 2x | Gloucester RC | Bronze |
| O J14 2x | The Windsor Boys’ School | Bronze |
| W J15 2x | Wallingford RC | Bronze |
| O J14 4x+ | Hinksey Sculling School | Bronze |
| WJ16 2- | Calpe RC | Bronze |
| OJ16 2- | Notts County RA | Bronze |
| OJ16 2x | The Windsor Boys’ School | Bronze |
| WJ16 4+ | Sir William Perkins School | Bronze |
| OJ16 4+ | Great Marlow School | Bronze |
| WJ18 2- | Hinksey Sculling School | Bronze |
| OJ18 2- | Llandaff RC | Bronze |
| OJ16 4x | Lea RC | Bronze |
Team WinTech have enjoyed an incredible season of racing, which has felt especially significant after nearly two years away from the conventional schedule. A 39-medal haul from the British Rowing Junior Championships felt like a suitably satisfying way to end the year, in an event that gave us ample opportunity to meet with so many clubs and schools and discuss their season and how we can set them up for even brighter success in 2023.
Enjoy your summers and we will see you next year!
Come and join #TeamWinTech today! Our value goes beyond that of just a great product for a great price.
We had a fantastic weekend of results to celebrate at Henley Masters Regatta 2022. The event, which is typically staged the week after Henley Royal Regatta finishes, was established in 1994 and is hosted and run by Upper Thames Rowing Club. Crews racing in WinTech & King Racing shells delivered six wins, including three from crews from the USA who had traveled over to compete. After the slightly underwhelming weather a week earlier, this regatta was blessed with blistering heat and calm conditions as the iconic Henley course came alive in the summer sunshine.
Our first win of the Saturday afternoon session – which is typically reserved for finals – came in the Open Masters B Double Sculls; a Derby-Burton composite came away with the victory.
Open Masters E Double Sculls win also went to a WinTech crew, as Grosvenor Rowing Club from Chester secured the win by a length over a Chateau-Gontier-Manosque Composite.
Our third win came about half an hour later in the Women’s Masters D Eights final, as Marin Rowing Association of the USA who were racing in a King 8+ beat Broxbourne Rowing Club by ¾ of a length.
This marked one of Marin’s six wins across the event in a hugely successful weekend for the club from California. They secured another one of those in a WinTech shell, as they claimed the Women’s Masters E Coxed Fours over Worcester Rowing Club by half a length.
Our fifth win came in Race Open Masters D Coxless Fours as Monmouth Rowing Club beat Bewl Bridge Rowing Club by two lengths.
Our final win of the afternoon saw Chinook Performance Racing, USA take Women’s Masters G Eights by four lengths in the last race of the day racing in a King SE 8+ over a Walbrook-Weybridge Composite.
Crews racing in WinTech & King Racing shells featured in 12 finals overall with a 50%-win rate. We thoroughly enjoyed attending this fantastic regatta and meeting so many athletes, clubs and spectators. This event marks the typical end of the Henley racing series and we’re already very much looking forward to returning to this course in 2023.
Our value goes beyond that of just a great product for a great price.
Team WinTech were once again winners at Henley Royal Regatta in an incredibly special year for both the Regatta (who enjoyed a huge record entry both domestically and internationally) and for the Windsor Boys School, one of our key customers and 2022 victors in the Fawley Challenge Cup.
Race 2 on the Sunday of Henley Royal Regatta was particularly distinct for everyone associated with the Windsor Boys School. Not only were the ‘A’ crew – who are undefeated in junior competition this season – winners by a comfortable margin but the opposition were their ‘B’ crew, who also raced in a WinTech. Such an achievement has not been seen in the Fawley Challenge Cup for many years, but this squad is one of the most talented in recent history.
These crews were both comprised of rowers from a squad that won every single Junior 18 sculling event on offer at the National Schools’ Regatta five weeks ago. Their ‘A’ crew featured Marcus Chute in the ‘3’ seat, who is a European junior champion in the single scull. The Windsor Boys’ School is an all-boys upper school and sixth form. The boat club is based in a boathouse situated on the Thames in Windsor, originally built by the Imperial Service College. Before yesterday, the club’s quad teams have won the Fawley Challenge Cup at Henley Royal Regatta seven times in recent history, with the last two wins in 2017 and 2018. They were beaten finalists in 2021.
Under the tutelage of Director of Rowing Mark Wilkinson – himself a former Windsorian schoolboy – the program has become one of the most revered junior sculling set-ups in the country. Yesterday was a celebration of success for all concerned with the boat club, as eight of the school’s athletes raced against each other at the very highest level. In the end, the result was a relative formality but the scenes on the finish line – where both crews were cheering each other and clapping in unison – was amazing to witness and a true testament to an astonishing season.
Elsewhere, Team WinTech had several other boats progress through to the quarter-final stage of racing. The Dolphin Boat Club from the USA were convincing winners on Thursday in the Fawley Challenge Cup but lost out to the Windsor Boys ‘B’ on the Friday.
Aitchison and Cracknell of Itchen Imperial RC in the Silver Goblets and Nickalls’ Challenge Cup also progressed to Friday. Trentham Boat Club made it through to the quarter-final of the Diamond Jubilee Challenge Cup for junior women’s quad – a fantastic achievement for the club.
Our other representative was Brown and Hodgson of Tideway Scullers School in the Goblets, who also lost after winning their Thursday race.
We were also proud to have representation in the heats with crews racing both in WinTech Racing Boats as well as our sister brand King Racing.
Congratulations to all athletes and coaches. Our team from UK & North America were on-site throughout the week and massively enjoyed meeting so many athletes from across the rowing community. We look forward to reconnecting through the summer and continuing to support various initiatives into the new season and beyond.
Come and join #TeamWinTech today! Our value goes beyond that of just a great product for a great price.
Following on from various fantastic results at the UK National Schools’ Regatta, a host of teams in WinTech and King shells had another superb weekend at the USRowing National Youth Championships. Staged at Nathan Benderson Park in Sarasota, Florida, the event played host to thousands of athletes from across the USA whose sole focus was to place as highly as possible in their respective categories. With events on offer across the spectrum of boat classes, there was plenty of opportunity for hardware as teams in WinTech and King shells collected four golds, four silvers and three bronzes.
Our most notable achievement came in the final of U17 Women’s Eights, where King shells took athletes to the gold, silver and bronze medals. RowAmerica Rye, one of the most prominent programs in the New York area, took the win ahead of Cincinnati in second and Saugatuck in third.
Saugatuck’s U17 women’s program is something to behold, evidenced in the fact that they consolidated their bronze in the eights with a stunning victory in the U17 coxed fours category. Oakland Strokes, strong partners of WinTech and King, placed fourth in the same final.
Chicago Rowing Foundation, sporting a brand-new King SE 8, crowned an undefeated season in the eight to claim victory in the Women’s Youth Eights category, beating out fellow WinTech and King partners RowAmerica Rye and Marin into third and sixth respectively. Coach Mike Wallin will be taking the US Women’s Eight to the Junior World Championships in the summer in testament to his extraordinary achievements this season.
Our final gold came in the Men’s Youth Pairs, where Triangle Rowing Club took the win by over three seconds in a WinTech shell. Our other medal mentions came in the form of two silvers and a bronze from RowAmerica Rye in the Women’s U16 Eight, Men’s U17 Coxed Four and Men’s U16 Eight respectively. Norwalk also picked up a silver in the Women’s U17 Double in a WinTech.
With 21 King Eights on various start lines across finals days, we’re delighted to support the very best of American junior rowing talent and will continue to watch as several of these athletes go on to represent the USA in international competition over the summer. All of us here at WinTech and King stand ready to support your every training and racing-related need.
Come and join #TeamWinTech today! Our value goes beyond that of just a great product for a great price.
Last weekend top rowers from countries around the world traveled to the Bosbaan regatta course (the oldest artificial rowing lake in the world) in Amsterdam to compete in Holland’s most renowned International regatta – the Koninklijke- Holland Beker regatta.
On Saturday, Olivia Bates competing in her WinTech Racing Super Lightweight Cobra SE placed first in the BW 1x event almost 15 seconds ahead of 2nd place in a time of 07:45.23. On Sunday, Olivia again competed this time in the LW 1x event claiming another win in a time of 07:51.31.
These two wins follow on from an extremely successful start to the season for Olivia. She placed 2nd at the British Rowing April Trial in the lightweight Women’s category and then went onto to win gold in the Women’s Championship Lightweight 1x and Silver in the Women’s Championship 1x at the BUCS (British University Colleges & Sport) Regatta at the National Watersports Center in Nottingham where she competed for The University of Nottingham.
Just over a week ago and racing in Nottinghamshire County Rowing Association colours Olivia won the Championship Lightweight 1x event at Henley Women’s Regatta setting a new course record in the process in a time of 5:36.60. Incredibly this is the fastest time down the track for any single sculler at the event including openweight events.
Good luck for the rest of this season Liv!
Come and join #TeamWinTech today! Our value goes beyond that of just a great product for a great price.
If you think about the best schoolboy sculling centres in the UK over the past decade, there are a few names that immediately come to mind. Sir William Borlase and their three wins in four years in the Fawley Challenge Cup from 2012 to 2015. The Windsor Boys School and their remarkable consistency at the summit of schoolboy sculling. And then, Claires Court School (CCSBC).
Ever-present with the big boys since re-emerging on the scene in 2013, the club has a proud history of launching young athletes into the national and international rowing community. The club was founded in 1985 and row out of Maidenhead Rowing Club, nestled in the Thames Valley. It’s an ideal location to produce a conveyor belt of sculling talent; the club have had numerous athletes represent Great Britain and have also collected three Fawley Challenge Cup trophies (two in association with The Windsor Boys School) in their 37-year tenure.
The quickest acceleration of the CCSBC program has come in the past decade, after Tom Jost and Chris Clark took over the program in 2012. The club’s first appearance as a complete CCSBC unit at the Henley Royal Regatta was in 2013, after a stellar season for their J16 cohort. Although they exited in the first round, it set their stall out as a club to watch.
CCSBC’s program is built in cycles, with development years beginning at J15/J16 level so that those athletes can pass through the program with every intention of winning national silverware when they reach J18. The club’s crowning glory came in 2016, when they not only won the Fawley Challenge Cup at Henley Royal Regatta but also secured the historic ‘Triple Crown’ – winning the boys quad title at both the Schools’ Head of the River and National Schools’ Regatta alongside their Henley triumph.
Like the boys, the girls are following a similarly patient, well-thought-out approach. Last year saw the club qualify their first female junior crew for Henley Royal Regatta whilst they won a silver medal in the double at the National Schools’ Regatta. Although the boys program is a little way ahead in terms of maturity, the girls squad are benefitting from the same impressive coaching regime and results are already beginning to show.
Entering 2022, as the world steps carefully out of the COVID-19 quagmire, there is perhaps nobody better suited to lead the club forward than a sculler who rose up the ranks to win Henley in 2016 in a CCSBC vest. Alex Richardson, who featured in every HRR CCSBC quad from 2013 to 2016, took over from Tom Jost at the beginning of the 2021/22 season and is already preparing his squad for a busy summer of racing. “We typically have our four fastest athletes in the quad, with a view to settling in the top three or four boats in the country,” explained Alex. “The eight is our second crew and is set up with the target of qualifying for the Princess Elizabeth Challenge Cup and potentially making it through a round or two”.
WinTech Racing have partnered with CCSBC for several years now, stretching back to Tom Jost’s takeover of the program. Although the club have several different brands in their boathouse, Alex described our shells as the backbone of the fleet. “Simply put, we wouldn’t be able to do what we do without the help and support of Oarsport and WinTech Racing,” he said. “We won the 2016 Schools’ Head of the River in a WinTech Racing International and they’re just phenomenal boats. Our whole squad train and race in their singles, doubles and quads throughout the season”.
For this season, Alex feels the club and current cohort are in a good place. COVID-19 disrupted their cycle of growth, after a very promising 2019, which meant 2020 and the possible culmination of years of hard work was ruined. The club are back on track now though and mixing it up with the top schoolboy quads again. “We’re really excited for the summer and I think we’re capable of having a strong season, in both the eight and the quad,” said Alex. “Critically, the depth is there and I’m hopeful that we’re going to be able to boat not only a highly competitive quad but perhaps one of the fastest eights CCSBC has ever backed”.
With multiple athletes, boats and priorities to juggle, Alex knows he can rely on the support and service of Oarsport and WinTech Racing. “They’re really responsive,” he commented. “Whenever we have an issue or a question, Andrew always responds incredibly quickly and is full of helpful recommendations and suggestions”.
Some might say that the golden years of CCSBC are behind them. A Henley win, backed up by a remarkable Triple, alongside another Fawley Challenge Cup final berth in 2017, represents a pretty lofty goal to match let alone exceed. But, as is so often the case in competitive sport, success breeds success. Tom Jost and Chris Clark put the club firmly back on the map. Alex Richardson wants to be the man to take them forward to greater, brighter, silverware-laden heights – and WinTech Racing are excited to enable that journey.
Come and join #TeamWinTech today! Our value goes beyond that of just a great product for a great price.
Athletes racing in WinTech Racing boats claimed two wins and new course records at Henley Women’s Regatta 2022, the largest female-only rowing event in the world. This year the regatta returned with a record roster and races galore over three action-packed days stacked with talent from domestic powerhouses, provincial underdogs and international entrants.
The first of our wins came in the first final of the day – the Championship Lightweight Single Scull. Olivia Bates, who has had another stellar season domestically, took the win in a new record time of 5:36.60 beating the time set by Maddie Arlett of the University of Edinburgh by four seconds. Liv raced in a Wintech Cobra SE and defeated the sculler from the National University of Galway, Ireland by a comfortable 2.5 lengths. Incredibly this is the fastest time down the track for any single sculler at the event including openweight events.
The second win also came in the single sculls but this time from a rising star on the junior scene. Meg Knight in her WinTech Cobra, who rose to prominence after becoming an indoor rowing world champion in early 2021, emerged from a congested draw to claim victory in the Junior Single Sculls and in the process set a new course record. Her final, up against Bardsley-Taylor of Hartpury College, went the way of the Trentham sculler by nearly four lengths, reiterating Meg’s status as one of the UK’s foremost junior talents.
We also had crews racing in four other finals throughout the Sunday, demonstrating the depth of our fleet in international competition. Reading University were narrowly beaten in the final of Championship Lightweight Double Sculls, losing out to a crew from the Australian National University Boat Club.
In Championship Lightweight Pairs, Surrey University lost out to a superlative crew from Cambridge University whilst St Paul’s Girls School were beaten in the final of Junior 16 Coxed Fours by Henley Rowing Club. They did however set a new course record in their semi-final against Henley with a time of 5:23.3.
Our last finalists, Tideway Scullers School, were beaten in the last round of Junior Doubles by an excellent crew from Sydney Rowing Club, Australia.
Finally, St Paul’s Girls School set a new course record in the their semi-final of the J16 4+ in their brand new WinTech Racing International 4+ with a time of 05:23.3!
Our team were on-site all week supporting athletes and coaches in the competitor zone and were delighted to see the return of Henley Women’s Regatta in its full form. This event always marks the start of a fantastic run of races on the Henley stretch of the Thames and we’re hugely excited to witness further sporting drama unfold over the course of the next few weeks. Congratulations to all winners!
Come and join #TeamWinTech today! Our value goes beyond that of just a great product for a great price.
The National Schools’ Regatta returned to Dorney Lake in its full format for the first time since 2019 this weekend. With athletes unable to double up between days, this allowed a wide range of competitors to enjoy the spoils of silverware right across Championship, Junior 16, 15 and 14 events. Athletes and crews racing in WinTech Racing & King Racing boats had a hugely successful three days, collecting ten gold, nine silver and ten bronze medals in total.
Friday began with a flurry of wins in both J14 Octuple categories (boys and girls) – Windsor Boys School and Headington School, long time partners of WinTech, took the respective victories.
The former race also saw Mossbourne Academy take silver 3.5 seconds back on Windsor Boys. This was followed by another gold for Windsor Boys (the second of many through the weekend) in the Creber Cup for Boys Junior 15 Coxed Quads.
The fourth gold of the day in WinTech Racing boats came in the Boys Junior 14 Coxed Quads as Guildford Rowing Club took home the Canterbury Cup, finishing 1.5 seconds clear of second-placed Molesey Boat Club. Another silver medal was delivered by Marlow Rowing Club in the Girls Junior 15 Coxed Quads. Finally bronze medal-finishes were achieved in Boys Junior 15 Coxed Fours by Yarm School, Girls Junior 15 Coxed Fours by St Edwards and Boys Junior 14 Coxed Quads by Hinksey Sculling School.
Saturday, the longest day of racing, brought with it a further six medals for Team WinTech; the Windsor Boys School maintained their impressive magnetism to silverware by bringing home golds in both the Championship and Second Quad categories. This puts Mark Wilkinson’s boys in pole position to mount an assault on the Fawley Challenge Cup at Henley Royal Regatta in just over four weeks’ time.
Silver medals were achieved by Marlow Rowing Club in the Girls Second Quads and from Hinksey Sculling School, who also had a fantastic regatta, in the Boys Junior 16 Coxed Fours. A further two bronzes were achieved in the Boys Championship Coxed Fours by Canford School in a King 4+ and The Windsor Boys’ School in the Junior 15 Eights.
Sunday was our most successful day as athletes and crews racing in WinTech shells returned a whopping 14 medals from a total of 14 categories. The gold rush began with the Boys Junior 16 Double from Marlow, who dominated their semi-final and final to establish themselves as runaway leaders and take home the aptly named Marlow Bowl. A bronze in this event in WinTech boats was also secured through a spirited performance from Newark Rowing Club.
The Championship Double categories saw crew racing in WinTech’s take both gold medals on offer, as Tideway Scullers produced an astonishing final sprint to claim the gold ahead of Sir William Perkins in the girl’s event.
On the boy’s side, the result was in no doubt as Windsor Boys simply sculled away from the field in our new FLX hulls to win by over 12 seconds – a course record!
Our partnership with the Windsor Boys School means a great deal to us and it was fitting that our final gold of the weekend came from the brilliance of Marcus Chute; the European champion did not panic when under early pressure from his opposition and simply turned on the afterburners in the second half to win by nearly seven seconds over James Graham of Leander Club.
Five silver medals were achieved in WinTech boats; Meg Knight from Trentham Boat Club in Girls Championship Sculls; Hereford Rowing Club in Boys Championship Coxless Fours; Great Marlow School in Boys Championship Pairs; Nottingham and Union Boat Club in Girls Championship Pairs and finally Sir William Perkins in Girls Junior 16 Seconds Quads. Four additional bronze medals came from Byron Richards racing for Nottinghamshire County Rowing Association in the Boys Championship Sculls, Newark Rowing Club in the Girls Championship Pairs, Monmouth Comprehensive in the Girls Junior 16 Second Quads and Windsor Boys School in the Boys Junior 16 Quads.
Our UK dealer Oarsport were delighted to be on-site all weekend, supporting athletes and coaches racing in WinTech & King Racing boats as well as meeting clubs from across the country. We were so happy to see so many juniors competing successfully in our boats and can’t wait for next year!
| Event | Club | Result |
| Championship 4x | The Windsor Boys School | Gold |
| Championship 2x | The Windsor Boys School | Gold |
| Championship Girls 2x | Tideway Scullers School | Gold |
| Championship 1x | The Windsor Boys School | Gold |
| 2nd 4x | The Windsor Boys School | Gold |
| J16 2x | Marlow Rowing Club | Gold |
| J15 4x+ | The Windsor Boys School | Gold |
| J14 1st 8x+ | The Windsor Boys School | Gold |
| J14 1st Girls 8x+ | Headington School | Gold |
| J14 4x+ | Guildford Rowing Club | Gold |
| Championship 4- | Hereford Rowing Club | Silver |
| Championship 2- | Great Marlow School | Silver |
| Championship Girls 2- | Nottingham & Union | Silver |
| Championship Girls 1x | Trentham Boat Club | Silver |
| 2nd 4x | Marlow Rowing Club | Silver |
| J16 2nd 4x Girls | Sir William Perkins | Silver |
| J16 4+ | Hinksey Sculling School | Silver |
| J15 4x+ | Marlow Rowing Club | Silver |
| J14 1st 8x+ | Mossbourne Academy | Silver |
| Ch 4+ | Canford School | Bronze |
| Ch Girls 2- | Newark Rowing Club | Bronze |
| Ch 1x | Notts County RA | Bronze |
| J16 2nd Girls 4x | Monmouth Comprehensive School | Bronze |
| J16 2x | Newark Rowing Club | Bronze |
| J15 8+ | The Windsor Boys’ School | Bronze |
| J16 4x | The Windsor Boys’ School | Bronze |
| J15 4+ | Yarm School | Bronze |
| J15 Girls 4+ | St Edwards School | Bronze |
| J14 4x+ | Hinksey Sculling School | Bronze |
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Last weekend the European Rowing Under 19 Championships took place at the beautiful Lago di Varese Regatta Venue in Northern Italy. All European Member National Federations plus Israel were eligible to compete. A rower may compete in an Under 19 rowing event until 31st December of the year in which he or she reaches the age of 18.
Marcus Chute of Great Britain took gold in the Junior Men’s Single scull event in his WinTech Racing Cobra 1x beating Boris Taeldeman of Belgium and Pierre Molins of France. This follows a similar performance at the recent Munich International Regatta and he will compete on home soil this coming weekend at the UK National Schools Regatta in the Championship 1x category.
We would like to take this opportunity to congratulate Marcus and wish him all the best for the rest of this season!
The Cobra is designed for those looking for the stiffest and fastest racing boat money can buy with no compromises. Perfect for those who simply want the best-in-class. This shell is crafted from high modulus uni-directional pre-preg carbon fibre and is pared with our state of the art carbon bow wing rigger. Optional Upgrade: SE – One piece outer layer of carbon with a choice of matte black wet sanded for ultimate hydrodynamic efficiency
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Team WinTech had another successful day at the Munich International Junior Regatta last weekend, taking home four medals across various categories and nationalities.
On the GB side, Marcus Chute continued our strong momentum with The Windsor Boys School to secure gold in the Junior Men’s Single Scull. Racing in a Cobra, Marcus took victory by three seconds over Cornelius Conrad of Dresdner Ruder-Club 1902 e.V. He also doubled up to win bronze in the Junior Men’s Quad Scull. Marcus will now have his eyes firmly set on competing for Great Britain at the Junior World Championships this summer alongside claiming various domestic titles.
Megan Knight, who plies her trade at Trentham Boat Club domestically, took a fantastic silver medal in the Women’s Single Scull, finishing 14 seconds back on Lina Kuhn of the Swiss Rowing Federation. Meg, who recently secured a scholarship to Stanford University in the autumn, is also a World Virtual Indoor Rowing Champion. She rowed to a silver medal in a WinTech Cobra.
We also had two medallists crews amongst the German contingent. Lena Kirchner took the overall win in the Women’s Lightweight Single Scull on both days, beating out a number of her country’s women and a sculler from Austria. She was racing in a WinTech and we look forward to watching her progress this season.
The final medal came from the German Women’s eight; Germany actually took gold, silver and bronze but the winning crew came home in a WinTech. With traditional strength in the bigger boats, these girls will undoubtedly have their sights set on strong performances throughout the remainder of the season.
WinTech are delighted to support the cutting edge of European rowing talent and look forward to enabling these fantastically talented young men and women as they progress towards silverware.
Come and join #TeamWinTech today! Our value goes beyond that of just a great product for a great price.
After a displaced and somewhat diminished event in 2021, this weekend saw BUCS regatta return to Holme Pierrepont on the May bank holiday for the first time since 2019. With the UK’s fastest student athletes competing across a variety of boat classes, Team WinTech were once again involved at the sharp end of racing. Three days’ worth of competition provided a perfect stage for old names to regroup at the summit, new victors to take a seat at the table and displaced opponents to refresh and reflect on a weekend that promises much for the rest of the summer season. Edinburgh University won the Victor Ludorum after a string of superb results across beginner, intermediate and championship categories.
For WinTech, two silvers and a bronze was our haul for the first day of racing; Olivia Burns of Edinburgh University came home second in the Women’s Beginner Single in a WinTech International.
Reading University – competing in a Cobra – were silver medallists in the Women’s Championship Lightweight Double. They were only beaten by GB squad member and recent Boat Race winner Imogen Grant alongside Brigid Kennedy.
Our final medal of the day came in the Women’s Championship Quad, as Nottingham raced to a bronze medal in one of our Medalist shells.
Sunday was our most successful day, with seven medals recorded across various boat classes including a one-two in Men’s Beginner Singles. Edinburgh University, who took all three medals on offer in the category, were led out by Cameron Baird and Lucas Leschynski, who were both racing in WinTech Internationals.
We also picked up a gold and bronze in Women’s Championship and Intermediate Lightweight Singles respectively; Olivia Bates saw off stiff competition from Imogen Grant to take the championship title in a Cobra. Racing up a weight category, Olivia also collected a silver medal in Women’s Championship Singles. Erin Meredith, racing for Birmingham University, won an impressive bronze in the intermediate ranking.
Beyond this, we picked up two bronzes in Women’s Beginner Fours, courtesy of Nottingham University, and Men’s Championship Lightweight Doubles with Oxford University.
Monday saw Team WinTech collect a further four medals, including a stunning gold in Women’s Beginner Doubles. The Edinburgh University duo of Olivia Padwick and Emma Ramsay led from the front and came home four seconds clear of their opposition in our international shell.
We also picked up a silver in Women’s Intermediate Lightweight Quads as Exeter University finished a couple of seconds back on an impressive Cambridge boat.
Our final two bronze medals came from the Men’s Beginner Doubles (Edinburgh University) and Women’s Championship Doubles (Reading University).
| Event | Club | Result |
| Women’s Champ LW 1x | University of Nottingham | Gold |
| Women’s Champ 1x | University of Nottingham | Silver |
| Women’s Champ LW 2x | University of Reading | Silver |
| Men’s Champ LW 2x | University of Oxford | Bronze |
| Women’s Champ 4x | University of Nottingham | Bronze |
| Event | Club | Result |
| Women’s Intermediate LW 1x | University of Birmingham | Bronze |
| Women’s Intermediate Lw 4x | University of Exeter | Silver |
| Event | Club | Result |
| Men’s Beginner 1x | University of Edinburgh | Gold |
| Women’s Beginner 2x | University of Edinburgh | Gold |
| Women’s Beginner 1x | University of Edinburgh | Silver |
| Men’s Beginner 1x | University of Edinburgh | Silver |
| Women’s Beginner 4+ | University of Nottingham | Bronze |
A big thanks to James Lee and his team who put on such a great event and also to AllMarkOne for the amazing photos!
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The GB Senior & U23 final trials took place over the Easter weekend, in beautiful spring-time sunshine and against the looming backdrop of a full roster of international events for the first time since 2019. Team WinTech once again had several athletes competing at Caversham and came away with a number of notable results in both heavyweight and lightweight single sculls for men and women.
Our best results came in the form of a one-two in the lightweight women’s single scull, as Maddie Arlett and Olivia Bates continued their fine sculling form to finish first and second respectively. The women’s heavy and lightweight sculling was combined into one competition with four finals across 22 athletes and Maddie, racing in a Lightweight Cobra FLX for Edinburgh University Boat Club, finished fourth in the ‘A’ final, about 14 seconds back on overall winner Lola Anderson of Leander Club. Olivia, in a Super Lightweight Cobra, was third in the ‘B’ final but second in the lightweight category
On the men’s lightweight side, Jamie Copus of Oxford Brookes University is a well-established name on the circuit and showed his mettle once again by finishing second in a Lightweight Cobra FLX. His battle with overall winner Dale Flockhart of Edinburgh University was a fascinating one to watch unfold down the course, with Jamie closing the gap to a second at the finish line after trailing by nearly four with 500m to go.
On the women’s heavyweight sculling side, Team WinTech’s sole representative was Rachel Bradley of Newcastle University. She finished second in the ‘C’ final, a second back on winner Lauren Maddison. Katy Wilkinson-Feller of Tideway Scullers School was due to compete but had to withdraw through illness.
We were due to have four heavyweight male scullers competing but through a combination of COVID-19 and illness, Jack Burns and George Bourne had to withdraw. After strong showings throughout the trialing season, it was a real shame to not see two of the UK’s foremost talents pit their wits against each other and the best of the rest. Despite that, we were delighted to support both Bryn Ellery of Leander Club and Finn Larkin of Nottinghamshire Counties Rowing Association. Bryn, who is an alumnus of Windsor Boys School and a long-time partner of WinTech Racing, finished third in the ‘B’ final and was the second-fastest U23 whilst Finn was fifth in the ‘C’ final.
We’re extremely proud of all of our athletes and look forward to seeing them hopefully competing in Team GB colours this summer and on the domestic circuit for their respective clubs and universities.
The Cobra is designed for those looking for the stiffest and fastest racing boat money can buy with no compromises. Perfect for those who simply want the best-in-class. This full one-piece unidirectional carbon fibre hull paired with our state-of-the-art carbon fibre bow mounted rigger offers the highest stiffness and performance on the market. The Cobra is available with both a painted finish or for those who really want to maximise advantage in racing, our clear coat, friction reducing wet sanded hull finish.
Rowing doesn’t have to be the preserve of the wealthy and elite. It’s a credo that we on the circuit should live by more forcefully and one that has gone into creating a number of new programs whose focus is on leveraging the incredible talent pool available in more socially and ethnically diverse communities. It’s also a philosophy, from an educational perspective, that went into the creation of Mossbourne Community Academy, a coeducational secondary school situated in leafy Hackney – one of London’s poorest boroughs. Founded as one of the first City Academies in the UK, the school is funded by the Department of Education and independent of local authority control. Designed to bring the glamour and privilege of a private education system without the eye-watering fees, Mossbourne has regularly been lauded as one of the top-performing inner-city schools in the country.
Which is where rowing arrives on the scene. When the school was in its infancy, then principal Sir Michael Wilshaw saw rowing as critical to building the school’s image and reinforcing their status as a premier academic institution. The rowing program has already garnered a fair amount of national coverage – not least from The Times as recently as a few weeks ago – and now, under the stewardship of former Leander athlete Tom Wilkinson, the school is beginning to make larger and larger waves on the domestic circuit.
And this is where we return to how and why rowing does not need to have financial barriers to entry. The sport is already encumbered with numerous stipulations – including the need to be of a certain height and frame to increase the likelihood of success – so we should be making strides to remove those barriers within our power. Mossbourne provide a free at the point of access rowing program to pupils across all years; boats, equipment, clothing and travel is all paid for by the school, with charitable support from foundations, corporate sponsors and individual donors, allowing children to experience the benefits of our sport without the burden of substantial bills.
Tom, who was previously Head of Rowing at Sir William Borlase’s Grammar School (an experience he describes as “miles apart” from his current posting) is focused on driving positive outcomes for the school’s broader mission statement. “The diversity we have in our squad is so different to any other rowing club in the country,” he explained. “If you look at British Rowing as a whole, around 4% are from BAME backgrounds whereas at Mossbourne we have BAME representation of well over a third”.
You’d be forgiven for attending a rowing event in the UK and not spotting a single competitor, supporter or coach who was not white. “I feel like we’re trying to change the perception of our sport,” said Tom. “We’re attending more and more events and getting more and more attention from different parts of the community, and I like to think that’s driving positive change”.
For those who have read anything about WinTech and the work we do to enable rowing as a sport for all, it will be very apparent why Mossbourne are such a natural fit for us to work with. The school had never previously owned a boat until they bought one of our WinTech International eights – the very same shell that, on its debut, carried their J15 boys to victory in the First Eights category at the Schools’ Head of the River.
“The shell is amazing,” said Tom. One day, I jumped in a WinTech and went sculling with another coach. He used to beat me regularly but I had an amazing row that afternoon, came out on top and decided to try them more regularly from then on in”.
After taking delivery of the eight, Tom debuted it in winning style and was effusive in his praise for the support and aftercare provided by WinTech Racing’s UK Dealer Oarsport. “Jack and Andrew are fantastic,” he said. “Whenever I have an issue, they’re on the end of the phone. If I need a new part, it’s in the post and in my letterbox within a couple of days. I’d never had that type of service before and it has really impressed me”.
Although this is just the start of our relationship with the school, they’re a blueprint for how rowing can be mobilised to create vast opportunities for people who may not ordinarily get access to the sport. The results are beginning to speak for themselves; after very strong showings at both the Schools’ Head and the Oarsport Junior Sculling Head, Tom has his sights set firmly on representation at the National Schools’ Regatta and, for the more senior boys and girls, Henley Women’s and Royal Regattas.
Mossbourne named their eight ‘No Excuses’ – one of three principles the student body live by. It’s a moniker that fits well into the context of competitive rowing – with the right amount of effort and a tenacious attitude, one can achieve whatever they hope to, provided there are no insurmountable barriers blocking the path to progression. Mossbourne are tearing down those barriers one by one and we’re excited to support them on their journey.
Come and join #TeamWinTech today! Our value goes beyond that of just a great product for a great price. Our sales advisors can help you put together an equipment buying strategy with finance and leasing options to help work your budget harder and smarter.
Today saw the return of the second of the UK’s big junior head races, in the form of the Oarsport Junior Sculling Head. Back at Dorney Lake for the first time since 2019, racing took place across age groups ranging from J18 down to J14, in both Quads and Octuples, over 3600m (two 1800m pieces strung together). WinTech and Oarsport are proud to be the principal sponsor for this fantastic event and it was no surprise to see numerous crews returning strong performances and silverware in our boats, including five golds.
It’s great to see success in our boats but more importantly participation in a great sport for all of the 2900 young scullers out there on the water and everyone smiling despite the rain!
The Windsor Boys School picked up where they left off at the Schools’ Head of the River on Monday, taking the title in the J18 Men’s Quads category by nine seconds. The ‘A’ crew, who raced in a WinTech Cobra, were closely followed by the schools’ ‘B’ crew, who finished second in a WinTech International and were 23 seconds ahead of third-placed Kingston Rowing Club. The Windsor Boys’ ‘C’ crew came home fourth overall, reiterating the astonishing depth available to Mark Wilkinson and his remarkable program.
On the J18 Women’s side, Wycliffe College came away with the overall win ahead of Henley, who have enjoyed a stellar winter racing season. Headington, racing in a WinTech International, finished in third and will undoubtedly look to use this as ammunition to drive forward over the coming months.
The Windsor Boys School continued their fantastic momentum to take the J16 Men’s Quad prize by nine seconds over Marlow Rowing Club. Racing in a WinTech International, they clocked a time that would have seen them complete a one-two-three in the J18 category had they raced in that bracket. Keeping within the J16 age bracket, we had representation with both silver and bronze medal-winning crews on the women’s side. Racing in WinTech Internationals, Sir William Perkins and Headington School took second and third respectively behind Henley RC.
Division Eight saw Headington take the win in J15 Women’s Coxed Quads, over Surbiton and Marlow, in a WinTech International. Under the stewardship of Director of Rowing, Ryan Demaine, Headington’s program has become one of the dominant fixtures throughout the country and they always enjoy success across the age groups and disciplines. Marlow’s bronze medal-winning boat also raced in a WinTech International.
In Division Nine, where J15 Men’s Octuples took centre stage, WinTech boats took home gold and silver. Once again, it was The Windsor Boys School who claimed top spot in a WinTech International whilst Hampton School finished in second in the same shell. WinTech boats appeared a further three times in the top ten with representation from Mossbourne Rowing Academy (4th), Yarm School (7th) and Whitgift School (9th).
On the women’s side, WinTech shells took places four, five, six, seven and nine, featuring Mossbourne Rowing Academy, Yarm School, Nottingham and Union, Norwich School and Fulham Reach Boat Club respectively. The J14 Women’s Octuples, Hinksey Sculling School finished second overall in a WinTech in a field of nearly 40 boats. Division 13 saw Guildford Rowing Club’s J14 Men’s Quad finish second out of 42 crews in a WinTech International.
Despite the relentless rain and moody sky, we were delighted that our best results came in the final division where the J14 Men’s Octuples took to the water. Crews racing in WinTech Internationals were sole inhabitants of top three finishes; The Windsor Boys School collected yet another gold in a podium-topping, margin-busting win, finishing nearly 45 seconds clear of Winchester College in silver and Mossbourne Rowing Academy in bronze.
In total, WinTech crews came away with five golds, six silvers and four bronze medals to round off a hugely successful day both on and off the water at Dorney Lake.
| Medal | Event | Club |
| Gold | Sch/Jun 4x- | The Windsor Boys School |
| Gold | J16 4x- | The Windsor Boys School |
| Gold | W J15 4x+ | Headington School |
| Gold | J15 8x+ | The Windsor Boys School |
| Gold | J14 8x+ | The Windsor Boys School |
| Silver | Sch/Jun 4x | The Windsor Boys School |
| Silver | W J16 4x | Sir William Perkins School |
| Silver | J15 8x+ | Hampton Rowing |
| Silver | WJ14 8x+ | Hinksey Sculling School |
| Silver | J14 4x+ | Guildford RC |
| Silver | J14 8x+ | Winchester College |
| Bronze | W Sch/Jun 4x | Headington School |
| Bronze | W J16 4x | Headington School |
| Bronze | W J15 4x+ | Marlow RC |
| Bronze | J14 8x+ | Mossbourne Academy |
Congratulations to all crews who competed and roll on 2023!
Come and join #TeamWinTech today! Our value goes beyond that of just a great product for a great price. Our sales advisors can help you put together an equipment buying strategy with finance and leasing options to help work your budget harder and smarter.
The Schools’ Head of the River returned to the Tideway in its full racing format for the first time since 2018, bringing it with the full spectrum of British weather fronts and racing emotions. WinTech were once again heavily represented across the board, with numerous clubs and schools opting to race one of the most significant events of the year in our shells.
There is no better place to start than the astonishing performance of The Windsor Boys School in the Championship Quad Category. Their top boat, racing in a WinTech Cobra, romped home to claim the title by a staggering 32 seconds over the 4-and-a-half-mile reverse championship course. Demonstrating the depth of the program, all four of their crews finished in the top ten boats, with their second crew coming home in third (half a second behind Leander A), their ‘D’ crew finishing seventh and their ‘C’ crew rounding out the fleet in tenth.
Mark Wilkinson, Director of Rowing at The Windsor Boys School, said:
“The boys have trained well through the winter with not a lot of racing so it was great to get out there. They raced really well and expressed themselves with real commitment and determination to execute what we have been working on – they were great today. Some really good results but that came from a consistent application. Onwards we go though!”
Continuing the theme of Championship boys quads, Claires Court had a great row in their WinTech International to finish sixth overall. This program is developing under the close eye of former pupil Alex Richardson and you can read more about their plans for success very soon in one of our upcoming Club Spotlight articles.
On the girl’s side, our highest finishing sculling crew were Claires Court (who are clearly building a significant program for both junior boys and girls). Racing in a WinTech International, they finished fifth overall but were less than 20 seconds back on overall winners, Shiplake College.
It was also a very special day for The Tideway Scullers School Girls Championship Eight, who finished ninth in their category. They competed in a King Racing Shell, one of the first of our sister brand to reach UK shores and after the sensational success of their women’s squad at the WEHORR on Saturday, they will surely be gearing up for a big summer. They also placed 4th in the School/Junior Girls 2nd Eights event in their WinTech Racing Cobra 8+.
It was also great to see Mossbourne Academy Win the School First J15 8+ under coach Tom Wilkinson in their brand new WinTech Racing International 8+. Rowing is an important part of the culture of the Mossbourne Federation where they offer talented sports pupils the opportunity to transition from their current school to Mossbourne Community Academy at the start of the Year 9 if they demonstrate an exceptional aptitude for the sport of rowing and they wish to pursue this path.
The Schools’ Head is one of the few races on the domestic calendar to offer mixed events and we were delighted to provide boats for the top three crews, in Hinksey Sculling School, Newark Rowing Club and Durham School respectively. Although there was over 30 seconds separating first from third, it was great to see WinTech shells competing in innovative new categories and coming out on top.
After several years off the water, it was wonderful to once again watch junior crews take to the Tideway in pursuit of glory. WinTech & King are proud to support so many fantastic clubs and schools and look forward to watching these programs develop.
Come and join #TeamWinTech today! Our value goes beyond that of just a great product for a great price. Our sales advisors can help you put together an equipment buying strategy with finance and leasing options to help work your budget harder and smarter.
It’s a telling indicator of the quality of a rowing program when the name commands respect and admiration beyond the region or even country it operates within. That is the level of pedigree Oakland Strokes have attained since inception in 1974, in no small part due to the numerous national titles, internationally renowned ambassadors and invites to the prestigious Henley Royal Regatta in London, UK.
Nestled on the West Coast of the USA, tucked inland by the San Leandro Bay, Oakland Strokes are one of the foremost junior rowing institutions in the country. They operate a roster of around 180 students from across the Bay area and consistently place and win at regional, national and world championships. Critically, they are a non-profit club, whose focus revolves around teaching rowing to the youth community of Oakland and the surrounding areas. They offer need-based scholarships for all their squads and have developed a community outreach program by which they reach out to local organizations to find individuals who will benefit from their club.
They are also ‘no-cut’ – their mantra is if you can make it to practice, you can be on the team. Inclusivity and community lie at the very heart of what Oakland Strokes are trying to achieve and they’re a shining embodiment of how powerful the combination of high performance and strong, people-focused values can be.
At Wintech, we’d be hard pressed to find a club who mirror our mission statement of rowing for all quite so accurately. If you take the history of Oakland Strokes, our relationship with them is in its nascency and born out of the club’s desire to replace an ageing fleet with cost-effective, high-quality shells.
“As you can imagine, we were buying for our Varsity Eights and then letting the boats trickle down through the system until they turn to dust,” explained Dana Hooper, Executive Director at Oakland Strokes. Dana has been with the program since 1990 and has coached crews to numerous regional and national titles. That means he’s also watched his fair share of boats slide into redundancy. “I remember we loaded up a trailer for summer camp a few years ago and every boat, across basically 11 or 12 eights, was built before the year 2000. We sort of realised that because we were purchasing bigger, heavier shells for Varsity crews, these boats weren’t suitable for younger athletes by the time they reached them”.
Oakland realised they needed more flexibility in their approach to boat procurement and so turned to Wintech, where our varying construction grades across a range of dynamic designs made us an obvious choice. “With Wintech, we’ve been able to adopt a model where we can buy a boat that is specified for the Freshmen or Sophomore class, as opposed to a one-size-fits-all approach,” said Dana. “Sometimes we’re reaching for the moon and buying their top boat whereas on other occasions we can get more of a club-style product that services our needs far better than an aged, oversized shell”.
Another challenge all boat clubs have faced in the past two years was the pandemic-induced need to shift from bigger boats to socially distanced singles. Oakland Strokes came to Wintech to buy a fleet of 16 singles, so they could adapt their programming throughout COVID-19, and we were able to support Dana and his athletes by facilitating this transition in an efficient and cost-sensitive way.
Dana was also quick to comment on the quality of the service. “Wintech are great problem-solvers and are usually on hand to support, service, maintain on any asks we might have,” he commented. “Half of my calls to Wintech are posing questions, to which the team always seem to have the answer”.
A club who have enjoyed as much success as Oakland might be forgiven for designating their five-year plan as ‘more of the same please’. Dana, though, isn’t resting on his laurels. “Our high-performance program is going really well but I’d love to see our community efforts come to fruition,” he said. “It would be amazing to watch an athlete from the outreach we do mature through the system and race in our Varsity Eight at the highest possible level. As a community boat club, we exist to enable young people to access the very best rowing-related opportunities and that is our focus right now”.
Although our relationship with Oakland Strokes is stretching in its infancy, we couldn’t be more excited to watch it flourish and grow.
Come and join #TeamWinTech today! Our value goes beyond that of just a great product for a great price. Our sales advisors can help you put together an equipment buying strategy with finance and leasing options to help work your budget harder and smarter.
The Women’s Head of the River kicked off the Tideway racing season in spectacular style as over 250 eights took to the Thames to compete over the reverse championship course (Chiswick to Putney). Crews racing in WinTech Racing & King Racing shells once again found themselves at the forefront of the action, with several of these crews achieving results of significant note.
Our highest finishing crew was the Leander Club ‘C’ boat, who placed 11th overall and raced in a brand-new King Racing Shell. The King Racing 8+ has set records worldwide and is used in rowing clubs all around the world. King has quickly become a preferred racing shell in boathouses across the US and now the UK is starting to follow suit following its extremely successful results across the pond.
Leander RC took the overall headship and all four of their crews finished inside the top 15, once again reiterating their status as one of the country’s premier rowing organisations.
We were delighted to see Notts County Rowing Association win the Provincial Small Club pennant, finishing 30th overall in their King Racing 8+ & WinTech RDS Blades and continuing to build on the impressive momentum the club are currently enjoying. Read more about the amazing journey NCRA have been on over the past ten years in our latest club spotlight.
Tideway Scullers had a phenomenal day, finishing third overall and boating six crews across all categories to great acclaim. Their ‘F’ crew went off in position 247 but finished 35th overall, racing in a King SE 8+, and placed fifth in School/Junior Eights. For the club to boat six competitive eights, with varying age groups and abilities on show, is a tribute to the strength and depth of the program and we look forward to continuing our long-standing partnership with this centre of excellence.
Finishing in 41st place on-board a WinTech were Exeter University’s A crew, who placed second in Challenge Academic Eights in their WinTech Cobra 8+. There were numerous other strong finishes involving WinTech boats, across clubs like London RC, Glasgow University Boat Club, Vesta Rowing Club and Nottingham University.
WEHORR often signals the start of a flurry of head races involving the country’s fastest clubs, schools and universities. With the Oarsport Junior Sculling Head and Head of the River Race yet to come, we’re really excited to see more promising results and wins in WinTech shells and particularly look forward to watching racing narratives unfold over the coming months.
Come and join #TeamWinTech today! Our value goes beyond that of just a great product for a great price. Our sales advisors can help you put together an equipment buying strategy with finance and leasing options to help work your budget harder and smarter.
Is there anything better in sport than a comeback? The greatest returns mark timelines, define teams and signal turning points, for better or worse, in careers, chronologies and communities. Rowing is no stranger to the bug – think Helen Glover returning to take on a third Olympics, Greg Searle straining every sinew to clinch bronze in 2012, 20 years after first winning gold, or even Hamish Bond coming back to the sport to secure a third consecutive gold medal after spending years on a bike instead of on the water.
But what about comeback stories that feel closer to home? Perhaps one of the most profound of all is that of Nottingham County Rowing Association (NCRA), a bastion of elite rowing in the Midlands during the final two decades of the 20th century. Founded in 1981 by members of local Nottingham schools and rowing clubs, the organisation was driven forward by Freddie Brooks, President of the club and a former local oarsmen and coach.
International success quickly followed – numerous NCRA athletes went on to compete at European and world level and Olympians sprang forth in 1984 at the Los Angeles Games. Over the following 25 years, the club enjoyed remarkable success and established itself as one of the foremost centres of rowing in the country; over 200 athletes won international vests, in lightweight men, and women’s events, Junior, U23, Commonwealth Games and Olympic Games. They also won an impress 23 Henley titles in 25 years!
And then, in 2006 and almost as quickly as it came, NCRA was gone. Funding ran dry and the club was forced to close its doors, for what many believed would be the last time.
Nottingham and the surviving local clubs continued to supply athletes into the upper echelons of rowing throughout NCRA’s absence but the glaring hole in the local community did not go unobserved. In 2016, after a decade away, the club was reborn and immediately set about rediscovering its seat at rowing’s top table.
Led by Declan Gamble, the club has already enjoyed success across the junior ranks over the past few years, including medals at the National Schools’ Regatta, the National Junior and Senior Championships and representation on the GB junior team at the World Championships in 2017.
“We had to play a bit of a waiting game to get it all approved by the various authorities,” explained Declan. “We raced under Beckett RC for a year and then the British Rowing Junior Championships was our first competition as NCRA. I think we picked up bronze in the J18 Women’s eight, which was a pretty good re-introduction”.
If it wasn’t obvious enough already, this club represents a fantastic partner for WinTech and an incredible opportunity for us to build strong relationships and enable the next generation of talent to pursue their rowing-related goals in our boats.
Through 2018 and 2019, the club were based out of two bays at Holme Pierrepont with a largely female junior squad before COVID hit in 2020. As they grew longer legs, juniors who matured became NCRA senior squad members and the club grew. “We actually gained quite a few members through lockdown,” said Declan. “Coming out of that period, we now have a pretty competitive junior and senior squad, which should put us in a good position for the summer”.
The club’s mantra, largely led by Declan, Ian Wilson and a tight-knit group of coaches, is to train athletes in single sculls through the winter before bringing them together in the summer in bigger boats for a tilt at national and international glory. “We’re very focused on trying to keep a competitive squad of athletes together,” said Declan. “We’re not really a club, in the tea and cake sort of way – we’re still just two concrete bays at the bottom of a lake. We just want to drive performance and help our athletes achieve their goals”.
So, how does WinTech fit into all of this? “Frankly, we wouldn’t be able to do what we do without the support of WinTech,” explained Declan. “We’ve got to the point where we’ve started to encourage people to buy WinTech if they want to purchase their own boat. Their support and service are always first-class, and our entire fleet of crew shells are WinTechs so it reduces chopping and changing”.
Olivia Bates, a name that has become almost household in the UK rowing community, is a great example of the quality of athlete to emerge from the NCRA ranks. “Liv was using a standard lightweight single before Andrew MD from Oarsport (WinTech Racing UK Distributor) asked if she wanted to use the super lightweight shell because he thought she’d go even faster in it,” said Declan. “WinTech loaned her that shell throughout her season, at Henley Women’s, Henley Royal and the Europeans and they were right – she did go faster”.
Our approach to clubs is predicated on flexibility and we want to encourage those who show potential to reach their ceiling and smash right through it. NCRA’s work to rise from the ashes and develop a program that exists to promote rowing in the local community is why we’re so proud to support their ongoing journey and look forward to watching from the bank as they collect silverware, smash records and help people achieve their sporting dreams.
Nottinghamshire Country Rowing Association are always looking for new members to join the squad and are offering taster weekends. For more information get in touch with Head Coach – Declan Gamble here.
Come and join #TeamWinTech today! Our value goes beyond that of just a great product for a great price. Our sales advisors can help you put together an equipment buying strategy with finance and leasing options to help work your budget harder and smarter.
It was another outstanding day for WinTech athletes at the second Great Britain Rowing Open Trial last weekend, as both sculling and sweep took center stage in the form of men’s and women’s openweight and lightweight singles and men’s and women’s openweight pairs.
Athletes racing in WinTech Racing boats were particularly successful on the sculling side, with four top-five finishes secured. Following a lighter field in November, the February edition of the trialing process saw seasoned international athletes return to the fold including several who represented Great Britain at the Tokyo Olympics last summer.
George Bourne, racing for the Tideway Scullers School in a WinTechRacing Cobra, built on his impressive third-place finish in November to finish second in the openweight men’s single, 1.5 seconds behind Harry Leask of Leander Club. George is a former U23 World Champion and raced at the third 2021 World Rowing Cup.
In fifth place was Jack Burns, also in a WinTech Cobra. Jack won the Openweight division in November and performed exceptionally over the weekend to see off several established names who had returned to the trailing process for the first time this season. Like George, Jack featured for GB at the third World Rowing Cup in 2021 and also competed in the 2020 Olympic Trials.
Other notable mentions should go to Bryn Ellery, a former Fawley Challenge Cup winner for the Windsor Boys School, who finished 13th, and Matt Brigham of Leeds University and Leander Club, who came in six seconds back in 14th place. Levin Graf, racing in Durham University colours, was in 17th, Isaac Workman of University of London in 23rd and Finn Larkin of Notts County in 24th.
On the women’s side, Katy Wilkinson-Feller led the Wintech charge by claiming third place in the Openweight Women’s Scull, coming 14 seconds behind overall winner Hannah Scott. Racing in a Cobra shell, Katy has built an impressive rowing CV that features numerous appearances in both international and domestic competition. She was competing for the Tideway Scullers School, one of the UK’s leading high-performance centers for promising British athletes.
Rounding out the WinTech representation in Openweight Women’s Sculls were Rachel Bradley of Newcastle University in 18th and Abigail Dawson of Lea Rowing Club in 21st place.
In a slightly smaller field comparatively, Maddie Arlett was WinTech’s top-performing athlete in the Lightweight Women’s Scull. She finished in third place, behind Imogen Grant and Emily Craig who represented Great Britain at the Tokyo Olympics in the lightweight women’s single scull. Maddie made her debut with the GB Rowing Team senior squad at the 2017 World Cup regatta in Belgrade and won bronze in the lightweight single scull at the 2019 World Rowing Championships.
The other WinTech athlete in this category was Zara Gautier-Price, who finished in ninth place representing Grosvenor RC.
The Cobra is designed for those looking for the stiffest and fastest racing boat money can buy with no compromises. Perfect for those who simply want the best-in-class.
This full one-piece unidirectional carbon fibre hull paired with our state-of-the-art carbon fibre bow mounted rigger offers the highest stiffness and performance on the market. The Cobra is available with both a painted finish or for those who really want to stand out a special edition matte clear coat.
Wintech Racing have a long and proud history of partnering with some of the finest rowing clubs and schools in the world. Our commitment to authenticity and character means we’ve got a track record of identifying and backing programs that deliver rowing for all, right across the world. In the US, our platform is perhaps greater than anywhere else but our focus on enabling rowing across all age groups and ethnic backgrounds continues to guide our strategy.
That is why Cincinnati Junior Rowing Club have represented a perfect customer and partner for numerous seasons. They are a competitive rowing team, open to any high school student in the greater Cincinnati area. Located in Newport, Ky, the club has both boys and girls’ teams, totaling around 130 rowers from area schools. Since its inception in 1993, the club has enjoyed remarkable success at both regional and national level right across the USA; CJRC have collected 20 team championships for both boys and girls teams at the Midwest Junior Rowing Association competition alongside over 30 medals at the National Championships.
Perhaps most significantly, numerous athletes have gone on to compete on the international stage, broadening their careers and amplifying the sport of rowing in a manner consistent with the aims of Wintech Racing.
Greg Hull, Director of Rowing and Varsity Boys Coach, has been involved with CRJC for many years. “We’re a competitive team, first and foremost,” he explained when catching up with us earlier this month. “If you join the squad at CJRC, you’re going to race. We get kids from all over Cincinnati which is a great reflection of how far we’ve come, considering rowing isn’t a huge sport in this area”.
The club typically plays host to around 130 rowers with an aim to achieve gender parity. “At the moment, there are more girls than boys in the program,” said Greg. “With the advent of Title IX and the opportunities for collegiate women’s rowing in the US, girls in our sport has become absolutely huge – which is really awesome”.
It is clear from even a cursory glance at the club’s website that they come prepared to envelope the sport of rowing in local communities and offer any athlete, regardless of background, the chance to get out on the water. Wintech have provided boats for the club for several years now, from beginner shells to craft that carry their inhabitants to victory on the grandest of stages.
“We had a few relationships with various boat-builders earlier on in our program,” explained Greg. “We worked with Quantum (now defunct) who used Graeme King’s design with modern materials. After they went down, we were basically struggling to find boats but began with Wintech around 2012 when they first started selling the King Eight”.
CJRC were one of the first junior programs in the US to use Wintech shells but the first few purchases only whet the appetite for more stock. “We had a boathouse full of shells made by companies that no longer existed,” laughed Greg. “We were struggling to find parts to fix and replace and realised we basically needed a new fleet that was well made but reasonably priced”.
Greg undertook a roadshow of conversations with various manufacturers but could not find a supplier who were willing to approach a fleet procurement with purchasing and lease agreements in the frame. Until he met Wintech. Our flexible approach was unique at the time and sought after by numerous companies and it is flattery of the highest order that the partnership we struck up with Greg and CJRC is now far more common across the rowing world.
“It’s been an amazingly positive journey with Wintech,” said Greg. “It let us take an ancient collection of boats and turn it into a homogenous fleet that share parts and are viable right across the spectrum of ability, which is critical to how we run our program”.
CJRC will undoubtedly continue doing remarkable things – their focus on transforming young people into refined athletes who can make the next step to national teams or leading collegiate programs is something that resonates with the core values of our sport. Wintech Racing are excited to continue to partner with them every step of the way.
Come and join #TeamWinTech today! Our value goes beyond that of just a great product for a great price. Our sales advisors can help you put together an equipment buying strategy with finance and leasing options to help work your budget harder and smarter.
You’d have to go a long way in the rowing community to find someone not yet familiar with the remarkable work of Fulham Reach Boat Club (FRBC). Despite the fact that the club was only established in late 2014, it has established itself as a key advocate in the fight to diversify and extend our sport to the farthest reaches of the United Kingdom.Seven years ago, Oarsport (UK dealer for WinTech Racing) delivered FRBC’s first fleet of boats to club CEO Steve O’Connor.
Created as collateral from a planning agreement between St George PLC and the London Borough of Hammersmith and Fulham (LBHF), the original contract allowed St. George to build 744 luxury flats in return for building and funding the launch of a new community boat club. Steve O’Connor, former Captain at London Rowing Club, was brought in to devise the strategy around what FRBC could and should become.
FRBC required a fleet of boats that would appeal to a cross-section of rowers from beginners right through to experienced racers looking for results on the water. They also wanted to work with a supplier who would facilitate and help manage a longer-term relationship in the knowledge that the club required a comprehensive fleet replacement plan as well as regular service and maintenance availability given the numbers they wanted to get on the water.
This is where Oarsport & WinTech Racing came into the picture. Our scale, reputation for durable long lasting boats at fair prices along with our strong support for grassroots rowing communities in the UK meant we knew from the outset that the project Steve was building was something that we needed to play a role in. This along with our world-class customer service and athlete-orientated approach put us in prime position to cater for all of FRBC’s needs and they subsequently went on to purchase a full fleet of the following to get the project off the ground.
Reflecting back, it is hard to conceive just how far Steve and his team have brought the club in such a short space of time. Just recently the club took delivery of a second similar sized fleet of boats. The opportunities that FRBC have provided for thousands of local school children simply would not have existed were it not for the tireless commitment and broad strategic vision of key FRBC stakeholders and supporters. Prior to the COVID-19 pandemic, FRBC were able to help every state school in the LBHF get some level of access to the river, something that is widely thought to be a first in the UK.
The figures speak for themselves. Between September 2019 and March 2020, the club played host to a thousand participants from 10 schools – 61% were female and 53% were Black, Asian or a Minority Ethnicity. As for their experiences passing through the FRBC doors and out onto the glistening waters of the Thames, 91% enjoyed the course, 78% felt more confident on the water and 67% would love to continue rowing.
Steve and his team have created a simple framework for measuring success – they want to provide access to rowing for a cross-section of the local community, especially those who are most in need because of financial hardship or social circumstance, and help them realise their full potential both on and off the water.
‘Boats not Bars’, the newest initiative to cross the FRBC threshold, is championed by double World Champion, Imogen Walsh. The program is focused on delivering rowing-related sessions at local prisons and then offering free memberships at FRBC to the participants on their release. The effect is clear to see – several of the graduates have gone on to become coaches at FRBC.
It goes without saying that our support for FRBC is something we’re immensely proud of. They’ve achieved something that represented a first in our community and our country and the precedent they’ve created can now be replicated in other under-served areas of the UK.
“FRBC has a vision of ‘Rowing for All’ and the WinTech fleet and Oarsport team have been a key part of us being able to deliver this,” explained Steve”. From our first conversations through to our initial fleet delivery and beyond to the latest second fleet of boats, the working relationships we have in place have meant that we have been able to provide for both competitive rowers and beginners in the sport at the same time with a competitively priced fleet and great after-sales support.”
FRBC are a standing example that we can and should actively work to change the face of our sport. “We want to expand our impact,” said Steve. “Our vision is to open up the river to thousands more young people. Ideally this would be via a second site but we’re looking at any and all ways of making it easier for people to get out on the water”.
Continued success for FRBC seems a guarantee – and we’re hoping to be with them every step of the way.
Come and join #TeamWinTech today! Our value goes beyond that of just a great product for a great price. Our sales advisors can help you put together an equipment buying strategy with finance and leasing options to help work your budget harder and smarter.
It was another hugely successful day for Team WinTech at the Early ID junior GB Trials as athletes racing in our shells came away with first-placed finishes in both the U19 men’s and women’s divisions. After a great showing at the Senior and U23 edition a couple of weekends ago, the country’s best juniors took to the water in Boston, Lincolnshire on the first step towards a Great Britain vest in the summer.
On the men’s side, Marcus Chute took the win in a special edition Cobra. Marcus is building quite the rowing CV at The Windsor Boys School (TWBS), with medals at numerous national events and a finalist berth in the Fawley Challenge Cup in August. WinTech’s affiliation with TWBS stems back several years and has encompassed support at Henley Royal Regatta, the National Schools’ Regatta, the British Junior Championships and, now, a win at the Junior GB Trials. “I’m happy with the result and how the race went overall,” commented Marcus. “It was my first time racing at Boston so it was good to see what it’s all about. But this was just the first step in a season-long process so there’s plenty of work ahead”.
In an incredible show of strength, Marcus covered the course nearly a minute quicker than any of his competitors, finishing in 18:27. Mark Wilkinson, TWBS Director of Rowing, was pleased with the performances of his impressively robust squad, as his other athletes finished as high as 6th, 11th and 13th. “TWBS had 7 athletes competing and there were some excellent performances all round. We’re in a good place to be at this point in the season but as ever it’s a marker and it’s time to get our heads down for the winter training months ahead. All our athletes raced in WinTechs and the exceptional design and quality of their boats undoubtedly played a part in the results”.
Meanwhile, on the women’s side, Meg Knight took the victory in impressive style as she builds on-water credentials to match an astonishing off-water CV.
The sixth form student from Trentham Boat Club took a silver medal in the 500m Women’s Under 19 race and gold for the 2000m Women’s Under 19 final at the World Virtual Indoor Rowing Championships last March. Her triumph on Saturday, facing the very best scullers in the country, puts her firmly on course to represent Great Britain in the summer and continue her remarkable ascension to the summit of schoolgirl rowing. Racing in a white-painted Cobra, Megan finished over 11 seconds quicker than her nearest rival and will be looking to build on this performance as she heads into the longer winter training months.
Congratulations to all athletes who competed and thanks to those who have chosen to race in our boats.
Come and join #TeamWinTech today! Our value goes beyond that of just a great product for a great price.
The first round of trials for the GB Rowing Team began in earnest last weekend, with hundreds of athletes making the pilgrimage to Lincolnshire and the twisting River Witham. With returning Olympians exempt from this first open trial, motivation differed across the ranks; for some, this was a chance to iron out the early-season kinks whereas for others it was the first step on the long road to Paris and the Olympic Games. The on-water testing began on the Sunday, after all athletes were asked to participate in a 2km ergo on the Saturday. The grueling nature of testing for the national squad reflects both the physiology and psychology required to excel at the highest level of our sport.
21 athletes raced in WinTech Racing boats with several finishing in the top ten for their respective categories. WinTech sculls took athletes to 1st, 3rd and 9th in the M1x alongside an 8th and 9th placed finish in the LM1x. On the women’s side, Rachel Bradley was our highest finishing openweight sculler in 10th whilst Olivia Bates took 2nd in the LW1x and the fastest U23 1x overall.
Competing for Edinburgh University and Leander Club, Jack Burns took the win in the Openweight Men’s Single in our Cobra shell. Jack competed in the 2020 Olympic Trials and featured for GB at the third World Rowing Cup in June of this year. He’s a regular on the domestic rowing scene and his success at the weekend should continue to build the narrative around inclusion in the senior squad for Paris preparation. Burns was one of several Scottish rowers impressing over the two days in Boston including several athletes from Scottish Rowing’s national performance programme.
Close behind in third was George Bourne, a former U23 world champion and fellow participant at the third 2021 World Rowing Cup. George was racing for Tideway Scullers School, a club he joined to pursue the senior squad. Whilst at Durham University, Bourne won several BUCS medals in both sweep and sculling events and collaborated with several other notable athletes to win the Prince of Wales Challenge Cup at Henley Royal Regatta in 2019.
On the women’s side, Olivia Bates led the charge for Team WinTech with a second-placed finish in the Lightweight Women’s Single Scull and the fastest U23 LW. Olivia turns 21 in December and is currently studying veterinary medicine at the University of Nottingham. She began rowing at Trent Rowing Club in Burton and was the winner of Championship Lightweight Single Sculls at the Henley Women’s Regatta in June (again, in a WinTech!). Her latest foray into international competition was a silver medal at the 2021 European Rowing U23 Championships in September in a Cobra single.
Other notable shout-outs go to Zara Gautier-Price and Olivia White (8th and 9th in the LW1x from Grosvenor and Oxford Brookes University respectively) and Bryn Ellery, who finished ninth in Openweight Men’s Singles.
A full breakdown of the results of athletes racing in WinTech Racing boats can be seen below:
| Event | Rank | Name | Club |
| Mens 1x | 1st | Jack Burns | Edinburgh University BC/Leander Club |
| Mens 1x | 3rd | George Bourne | Tideway Scullers School |
| Mens 1x | 9th | Bryn Ellery | Leander Club |
| Mens 1x | 19th | Nathan Hull | Leander Club |
| Mens 1x | 23rd | Finn Larkin | Notts County RA |
| Mens 1x | 21st | Isaac Workman | University of London |
| Mens 1x | 27th | Andrew Mettrick | Durham University |
| Mens 1x | 29th | James Watson-Gandy | Durham University |
| Mens 1x | 37th | James Crawley | Durham University |
| Mens 1x | – | Julian Van Gelderen | Nottingham University |
| Lightweight Mens 1x | 8th | Ed Gasgarth | Durham University |
| Lightweight Mens 1x | 9th | Jude Richards | Durham University |
| Womens 1x | 10th | Rachel Bradley | Newcastle University |
| Womens 1x | 14th | Jessica Martin | Leander Club |
| Womens 1x | 18th | Oluwaseun Olubodun | Leander Club |
| Womens 1x | 19th | Abigail Dawson | Lea Rowing Club |
| Womens 1x | 27th | Hannah Lawrie | University of Bristol |
| Womens 1x | 29th | Emma James | University Warwick |
| Lightweight Womens 1x | 2nd | Olivia Bates | Nottinghamshire Country RA |
| Lightweight Womens 1x | 8th | Zara Gautier-Price | Grosvenor Rowing Club |
| Lightweight Womens 1x | 9th | Olivia White | Oxford Brookes University |
Congratulations to all athletes and thanks to those who have chosen to race in our boats. Also a big thanks to AllMarkOne for the amazing photos!
Come and join #TeamWinTech today! Our value goes beyond that of just a great product for a great price.
Arguably the greatest festival of rowing on Earth, Head of the Charles Regatta returned this year after a two-year break and delivered another incredible weekend of racing. Despite travel restrictions limiting many foreign crews from coming over to compete, entries were full and the quality was as high as ever.
WinTech Racing & King Racing had a flotilla of boats taking to the Charles and were bolstered by numerous strong finishing places in their respective categories.
For the first time the event spanned three days, with para and some masters events taking place on the Friday before the first full day on Saturday. On Friday, masters and veterans up to the 70+ category raced, and Chinook BC, rowing in a Wintech shell, picked up a fantastic second place in the Men’s Grand Masters Double. Capping off the morning’s racing was the Mixed Para Inclusion Double, won by Houser and Scott from Athletes Without Limits, also in a Wintech. These two events alone are a fantastic example of the power of rowing and Wintech to inspire and cater for any athlete.
Always a highlight of the HOCR, the alumni eights raced on Saturday, with crews representing some of the top US colleges going head to head. In the women’s event, Boola Boola – also known as the Yale alumnae – finished a fantastic second place, in a newly released King SE 8+, a couple of places ahead of the Washington alumnae, also in a King SE. With nearly 100 entries across the two events, the alumni eights category is certainly catching on and HOCR may find the idea poached by events across the world in years to come.
The Men’s Championship Single was notably won by Ben Davison, who rowed in the Men’s Eight in Tokyo, and placing second was Eliot Putman rowing for Penn AC, in a WinTech heavyweight Medalist FLX shell. Another impressive showing from the young talent at Duke University as the ladies took to the course finishing 2nd overall in their bowmount King 4+. The remainder of the masters raced on Saturday, with another Chinook crew coming out on top in a King in the Women’s Senior Masters Eight.
On Sunday, the Youth crews took to the course, along with the remainder of the Championship crews.
In the much-anticipated Youth Eights, Greenwich Crew dominated, winning both the Men’s and Women’s events. King 8+s featured in half of the top six across the Men’s and Women’s categories, with RowAmerica Rye (third) and Saugatuck (fourth and sixth) in the Women’s and RowAmerica Rye (third), Saugatuck (fourth), and OARS (sixth) in the Men’s. The King shells clearly doing a great job to propel the junior athletes to achieve fantastic results at the Regatta.
Wins came in the Men’s Youth Coxed Four, with RowAmerica Rye seeing off their competition with a few seconds to spare. The Men’s Youth Coxed Quad, was taken by Maritime RC coming out on top ahead of local club CRI in their King 4x+. A win in the Women’s Collegiate Double with FIT dominating the field in their LW WinTech 2x.
A strong showing of speed came from the Women’s Championship Four with Vesper boat club finishing 2nd place in their bowmount WinTech, 11.8 seconds behind the boat from the United States Training Center- Princeton.
Finally, a win came for Club Nautico De San Juan in the Directors Challenge Mixed Eight, who won with a handy 34 second margin over Chinook, also in a King SE. When you travel, you travel to win.
The first of the blue-ribband events was the Men’s Championship Eights, where the Huskies, bolstered by returning Olympian Simon van Dorp, held off their East Coach competitors to win out by only two seconds. Dartmouth punched above their weight, beating Yale and Harvard both of whom were stacked with international and Olympic talent.
The women’s event came next, and this time it was Stanford who took victory ahead of Princeton and Yale. The top five crews beat a crew from the Canadian national team, featuring some of the athletes that won gold in Tokyo.
As the sun set on a fantastic weekend of rowing in Boston, new victors were crowned, and competitors began to reflect on their HOCR experience. Win or lose, travelling to the home of rowing in the USA to compete in the largest river-based event in the world, must be an overwhelmingly enjoyable experience and one made all the more special by the absence of a staging in 2020.
| Event | Club | Boat | Result |
| Mixd Para Inclusion 2x | Athletes without Limits | WinTech 2x | 1st |
| Women’s Senior Master 8+ | Chinook | LW King | 1st |
| Women’s Collegiate 2x | FIT | LW WinTech | 1st |
| Men’s Youth 4+ | RowAmerica Rye | MW WinTech | 1st |
| Men’s Youth Coxed 4x | Maritime RC | MW King | 1st |
| irector’s Challenge Mixed 8+ | Club Nautico De San Juan | MW King SE | 1st |
| Men’s Grand Masters 2x | Chinook | LW FLX | 2nd |
| Men’s Clubs 1x | Maritime RC (Casey Fuller) | HW FLX | 2nd |
| Women’s Alumane 8+ | Boola Boola (YALE) | LW King SE | 2nd |
| Men’s Championship 1x | Penn AC (Eliot Putman) | HW FLX | 2nd |
| Women’s Youth 1x (U17) | Redwood Scullers | SLW WinTech | 2nd |
| Director’s Challenge Women’s 4x | Unaff. (Chinook) | LW WinTech | 2nd |
| Women’s Championship 4+ | Vesper BC | MW WinTech | 2nd |
| Director’s Challenge Mixed 8+ | Chinook | MW King SE | 2nd |
| Women’s Club 4+ | Duke | LW King | 2nd |
| Women’s Youth 4+ | RowAmerica Rye | LW WinTech | 3rd |
| Women’s Youth Coxed 4x | RowAmerica Rye | LW WinTech | 3rd |
| Women’s Youth 8+ | RowAmerica Rye | LW King | 3rd |
| Men’s Youth 8+ | RowAmerica Rye | MW King | 3rd |
| Men’s Lightweight 8+ | Princeton Uni. | LW King | 3rd |
| Men’s Clubs 1x | Pittsburgh | HW COBRA | 4th |
| Women’s Alumane 8+ | U. Washington | MW King SE | 4th |
| Women’s Youth 4+ | PCRA | LW King | 4th |
| Women’s Youth Coxed 4x | Maritime RC | LW King | 4th |
| Women’s Youth 8+ | Saugatuck | SLW King | 4th |
| Men’s Youth 8+ | Saugatuck | MW King | 4th |
| Women’s Youth 8+ | Saugatuck (2nd boat) | SLW King | 6th |
| Men’s Youth 8+ | OARS | LW King SE | 6th |
50% of the top 6 in Youth 8+s were Kings!
#AllHailTheKing
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This weekend the 1972 Olympic Rowing venue in Munich played host to this year’s European Rowing Junior Championships. 500 rowers from 27 European nations took part with the chance to become European Junior Champions.
Four WinTech Racing boats were used at the event. Athletes racing in three of the four boats won medals with a Gold in the Men’s 2x won by Poland and bronze medals in the Women’s 8+ & Mens 4+ from Czech Republic.
A big thanks to all who made the regatta possible and also to MyRowingPhoto for the amazing photos! The 2022 edition of the European Rowing Junior Championships will be held in Sabaudia, Italy from 21 to 22 May 2022.
Come and join #TeamWinTech today! Our value goes beyond that of just a great product for a great price.
One of the oldest sporting events in the world, Doggett’s Coat and Badge, has been a mainstay of the Thames Calendar for over 300 years. Conducted under a rolling river closure, scullers battle along a 7.4km course that snakes through arguably the best riverscape in the UK, beginning in the shadows of London’s financial district, and ending 11 bridges later at Cadogan Pier in Chelsea.
WinTech Racing have been a key supporter of the race since 2015, providing a WinTech International single scull for the competitors to train and race in. 2021 has seen two editions of the Doggett’s Coat and Badge staged, after 2020’s disrupted calendar meant pushing that race back. Whilst James Berry won in June, September saw four oarsmen entered: Coran Cherry, Lucas Brittan, Max Carter-Miller and George Gilbert.
Under a beating sun, in 26-degree heat, the four scullers lined up to take on the grueling course in front of a flotilla of media, officials, delegates and fervent support. It was clear in the opening 20 strokes that Max Carter-Miller, pre-race favourite and competitor in June, was going to take some stopping – he’d already established several lengths worth of lead by Cannon Street Bridge and had further extended this passing underneath Southwark Bridge.
Behind him, the contest for minor positions was more tightly contested as George Gilbert and Coran Cherry started to make their claims for podium finishes. As the cityscape fell away to be replaced by the long curving sprawl of Victoria Embankment, Carter-Miller continued to scull with superior poise and power, extolling the virtues of a long, calm stroke in perennially testing conditions.
For supporters, the spectacle of the racing is matched by the incredible scenery laid on by England’s capital city. Ticking off race landmarks is like flicking through the pages of a tourist guide to London, as the scullers made their way along the South Bank, passing the London Eye and closing on the Houses of Parliament. By this stage, the umpire – Bobby Prentice, winner in 1973 in a record time – had passed Lucas Brittan and the positional element of the race looked sewn up. Carter-Miller had established an insurmountable lead, followed by George Gilbert who had, in turn, opened up a dominant margin over Coran Cherry.
As the canyon-like metropolis of Vauxhall loomed into view, the scullers were now battling brutal conditions as well as the race itself. Instead of ushering in the first swells of winter, September in London had brought with it searing heat, shorts, sandals (sometimes with socks) and a sense of summer passing overhead. The scullers admirably battled on but the race for some time had been decided – it was to be Carter-Miller’s day in the sunshine.
The final few landmarks of distinction passed without incident and the ranking remained unchanged – the final jaunt up to Cadogan Pier (the official finish line) was something of a formality for the leading pair, though a battle did emerge between Cherry and Brittan for third place. The former eventually came out on top; perhaps not surprising given Brittan only recently stepped back into the boat after a three-year hiatus.
The 307th edition of the Doggett’s Coat and Badge finished much like how it had started – with one sculler in clear ascendancy. On the podium, Carter-Miller made clear his ambition to continue in the sport with a target of racing at the much-acclaimed Henley Royal Regatta within four years. He will be presented with the traditional Coat and Badge in a special dinner at Fishmongers Hall later in November but left the pier with more than just ceremonial attire to hand. Soaked in champagne and the perspiration of his own campaign to win, his is a name to watch in the rowing community as our sport welcomes another winner to its ranks.
WinTech Racing are delighted to play a part in the staging of this unique event and look forward to another trip down the Thames in 2022.
Come and join #TeamWinTech today! Our value goes beyond that of just a great product for a great price.
If we were to tell you that the world’s oldest and longest continuously-running race is still happening to this day, taking place every year on the beating heart of London’s waterways, you probably wouldn’t believe us.
But that is exactly what the Doggett’s Coat and Badge Race is – a 7.4km trial of endurance and watermanship that has been staged for over 300 consecutive years between London Bridge and Cadogan Pier (Chelsea). The race remains an integral part of our sport’s history and the important role rowing has played in the development of our country’s capital city.
WinTech Racing in collaboration with our UK Dealer Oarsport have been proud supporters of the race since 2015 and have provided our high performance WinTech Racing International 1x for each competitor to train and race in each year.
Beginning in the heartland of London’s looming financial district, all grey concrete and overwhelming metal, the reds, blues and oranges of the assorted scullers stands at odds with the immediate surroundings and aptly paints a picture of an event that has endured even as London has risen up towards the sky around it.
The Doggett’s Wager was started in 1715 by Sir Thomas Doggett, local actor and theatre owner who (legend has it) enjoyed a drink. One stormy night, he was rowed across the tempestuous Thames by an apprentice waterman as he himself was too inebriated to make safe passage alone. Doggett was so impressed by the skill of the apprentice that he instituted a race in their honour, promising that the winner would receive the coat and badge – a prize that still exists today. Naturally, Thomas is not still around to ensure the longevity of the race, so the Fishmongers Livery Company took up that mantle upon his death in 1722.
The Race for Doggett’s Coat and Badge is competed by Thames watermen and lightermen. Watermen are those who are licensed to drive passenger boats, and lightermen are licensed to drive cargo holding boats. 2021 will see four scullers compete for the prestigious prize – three who have raced previously, and one who enters for the first time. Competitors must be under 28 when they first enter and can race a maximum of four times in pursuit of glory.
Races have never been cancelled; postponement happened during the war years. Nine races were held in 1947, for those who missed their chance to row. This means that the list of winners has remained unbroken since 1715. The race record of 22 minutes and 23 seconds was set in 1973 by Bobby Prentice, who is now race umpire.
At WinTech Racing, part of the reason we love the race is the tradition that courses through it. Generations of watermen, hailing from the same families in many instances, take to the Thames in an effort to write their name into Doggett’s folklore. For many, the race is their own personal World Championships – a pinnacle of personal sporting merit, one shining moment to become part of history.
Part of the unique and enduring appeal of this race is the exposure to the elements. With eleven bridges to negotiate, competitors must use every ounce of skill and intelligence to stay afloat and navigate a potentially treacherous course.
Like all rowing-related exertion, the battle takes place in the mind as much as it does on the water. The grueling, unforgiving nature of the Thames makes for a fascinating watch and the flotilla of craft that follow the race coupled with the spectators who line the bank (often strategically close to a pub of some sort) pay tribute to the unique appeal the contest holds in Londoner and waterman hearts.
In a few days’ time, the race will crown its 307th winner after James Berry claimed victory in a rescheduled 2020 edition. What lies in wait for the four entrants remains to be seen – the Thames can be a cruel mistress. Whatever happens and whoever comes out on top to immortalize themselves in yet another chapter of Doggett’s history, WinTech Racing will be there to support every stroke of the way.
Come and join #TeamWinTech today! Our value goes beyond that of just a great product for a great price.
The fifth European Rowing U23 Championships were held this weekend in Kruszwica, Poland which featured entries from 30 European countries including Olympians and World U23 Champions from earlier this year. 22 boat classes are included in the event with athletes competing to become European Under 23 Champions.
Five WinTech Racing boats were used at the event. All athletes using WinTech boats made the A finals with 3 of the 5 boats coming home with medals. A Gold and Silver in the lightweight women’s single sculls and a bronze medal in the men’s pair.
A big thanks to all who made the regatta possible and also to AllMarkOne and MyRowingPhoto for the amazing photos!
Come and join #TeamWinTech today! Our value goes beyond that of just a great product for a great price.
It’s like the slow burn of a pink dawn after a long night. The stirrings and murmurings of something returning. Something good, powerful, exciting – and new.
In the rowing community, we’re not immune to the intangible energy coursing through the country. COVID-19 laid the world low and stole away our liberties in the most brutal fashion. The simple pleasure of taking a single scull out on flat water at sunrise never felt as far away as it did at the turn of the year.
The return of Henley Royal Regatta is perhaps the unspoken, untendered, unregulated vaccine that we all need. That famous old battleground, nestled in the sprawling English countryside and resting on nearly 200 years of tradition, welcomes competitors and spectators back in a few short days’ time, after over two years in the cold.
It’s fairly easy to see why we’re excited. Henley Royal Regatta represents the best of our sport on and off the water – a quasi-world cup in terms of calibre, all fettered and fitted into one-on-one racing on the straights of the Thames. Off the water, it’s a festival of colour and culture – and 2021 promises to double up as a long overdue celebration.
Of course, it’s easy to enjoy the event when you enjoy a special relationship with one of the most successful competitors of recent times. The Windsor Boys School (TWBS), led by Mark Wilkinson, have won two of the past three Fawley Challenge Cup titles and currently hold the course record established in 2018 (6:27).
We’ve enjoyed a phenomenal relationship with Mark and his team since 2013, when The Windsor Boys School were seeking a new supplier of racing boats and equipment. As a leading proponent of the junior rowing community, it was clear why we were a fit for TWBS on paper – but the synergies have only grown as our cooperation has extended across boats, repairs, support and service.
The following successes achieved on the domestic scene by TWBS came as no surprise to us. Mark’s incredible eye for detail and approach to speed reaps results and TWBS crews have gained national titles at the National Schools’ Regatta and the British Rowing Junior Championships (as recently as a few weeks ago in the latter’s case). Mark and his team have a remarkable, largely unsung ability to develop and nurture class after class of young schoolboys from dreamers to winners on the grandest of stages.
Perhaps the most remarkable thing about this group of young athletes is their resilience and whole-hearted belief in the program. In 2014, TWBS lost in the final of The Fawley Challenge Cup. They learned and returned, stronger. In 2016, again, the bitter taste of a final defeat to Claire’s Court School galvanized the next generation of rowers to step on.
And that’s how we find ourselves, eagerly awaiting the outcome of yet another Henley battle for the Fawley Cup title among the best of schoolboy scullers. Such is the strength of the program that even after a silver medal at the National Schools’ Regatta in May, most of the rowing community knew that TWBS quads only get faster as the season goes on.
A truly exceptional group of young people cannot succeed without the right infrastructure to back them up. That is where we at Oarsport (WinTech Racing’s exclusive UK dealer) come in. Rewind to 2013 where TWBS were in desperate need of replacing an ageing fleet of several different makes and a plan was put in place to streamline these obvious shortcomings to one realistically priced brand. Together, we embarked on a new purchasing approach – without breaking the bank and protecting the future direction of the club.
WinTech Racing Cobra 4x Testimonial: Mark Wilkinson – Director of Rowing – The Windsor Boys’ School Boat Club
As of today, we have supplied over 40 boats for Mark and his squad, ranging from singles for the long-distance winter morning sculls to top-of-the-range Cobra racing boats, designed with a sole purpose – to support their incumbents to victory at the summit of junior rowing.
WinTech Racing’s mission has always been to promote the growth of rowing by making it easier and more affordable to buy quality shells that improve performance at all levels. In TWBS, we believe we’ve found the perfect partner to embody our operating principles.
On the eve of Henley Royal Regatta 2021, TWBS will be under no illusion about the scale of the challenge that lies before them. Stiff competition is expected from current holders Leander Club alongside a very smart outfit from The Tideway Scullers School. Crews from Lea, Henley and Wallingford will also form obstacles that TWBS must overcome if they’re to prevail on those dappled, sacred waters. Uno animo (with one spirit) is the school’s core value, something that emphasizes the importance of teamwork, ambition, determination and leadership – all values that are intrinsic to sporting excellence.
We cannot wait to see the crews put that into action on the Henley stretch and wish all athletes and coaches the very best of luck!
Come and join #TeamWinTech today! Our value goes beyond that of just a great product for a great price.
Last week saw the Hungarian Nationals Championships take place.
There were 93 finals with events ranging from U13 right the way up to elite level. #TeamWinTech did us proud winning the following medals:
Congratulations to all athletes and coaches
| Event | Club | Result |
| NTT42x | FEC | Gold |
| NS4x | Győr | Gold |
| NI1x | Szolnok | Gold |
| NIks1x | Kalocsa | Gold |
| FTT31x | Győr | Gold |
| FTT31x | vvsi | Gold |
| NT T2 2x | vvsi | Gold |
| NT T3 1x | szolnok | Gold |
| NT T3 1x | arrabona | Gold |
| FT t2 2x | vvsi | Gold |
| fi ks 1x | külker | Gold |
| fi 2- | csepel | Gold |
| nf ks 4x | dek | Gold |
| ns 1x | szolnok | Gold |
| ni 2x | dek | Gold |
| ni ks 2x | Kalocsa | Gold |
| n amatőr tura 2x | csongrád | Gold |
| nt t4 1x | arrabona | Gold |
| ns 2x | szolnok | Gold |
| ft t4 1x | szolnok | Gold |
| mix t1-t3 4x+ | vvsi | Gold |
| nf 8+ | dek | Gold |
| Event | Club | Result |
| NTT42x | Móvár | Silver |
| NT T2 2x | arrabona | Silver |
| NT T3 1x | győr | Silver |
| FT t2 2x | győr | Silver |
| FT t4 4+ | vvsi | Silver |
| fi ks 1x | csepel | Silver |
| fi 2- | fec | Silver |
| ns 2- | szeged | Silver |
| ni ks 2x | vvsi | Silver |
| n amatőr tura 2x | tata | Silver |
| fs 2- | szolnok | Silver |
| fs 1x | szolnok | Silver |
| f i 4- | fec | Silver |
| f i 2x | csepel | Silver |
| fi ks 2x | Kalocsa | Silver |
| ni 8+ | vác | Silver |
| ns 2x | Kalocsa | Silver |
| fs 2x | csepel | Silver |
| ni 4x | dek | Silver |
| ff ks 8+ | baja | Silver |
| ff ks 2- | csepel | Silver |
| nf 8+ | külker | Silver |
| Event | Club | Result |
| NS4x | FEC | Bronze |
| NIks1x | Csongrád | Bronze |
| FFks4- | Baja | Bronze |
| FTT4 2x | Mohács | Bronze |
| NTT44+ | VVSI | Bronze |
| FTT31x | Vasas | Bronze |
| NT T2 2x | vvsi | Bronze |
| fi ks 1x | Kalocsa | Bronze |
| fi 1x | csepel | Bronze |
| fi 2- | csepel | Bronze |
| nf ks 4x | szolnok | Bronze |
| fs 8+ | vác | Bronze |
| NT T4 8+ | dek | Bronze |
| ns 2- | győr | Bronze |
| ns 1x | szolnok | Bronze |
| ni 4- | szolnok | Bronze |
| fs 2- | győr | Bronze |
| fs 1x | csepel | Bronze |
| f i 4- | vvsi | Bronze |
| f i 2x | dek | Bronze |
| fi ks 2x | csepel | Bronze |
| ff 2- | fec | Bronze |
| nt t4 1x | csepel | Bronze |
| fs 2x | csepel | Bronze |
| nf ks 2x | vvsi | Bronze |
| ff ks 2x | arrabona | Bronze |
| nf 8+ | bee | Bronze |
Come and join #TeamWinTech today! Our value goes beyond that of just a great product for a great price.
The achieved results were amazing by athletes racing in WinTech Racing Boats. In total the boat of WinTech won 3 medals: 2 – Gold Medals and 1 – Silver Medal. A summary of the medal winners can be seen below:
Come and join #TeamWinTech today! Our value goes beyond that of just a great product for a great price.
Rowing may conjure up images of white, middle-class men in brightly coloured blazers and women in long, floral dresses, or of the infamous Oxford Cambridge boat race, Henley Regatta or of exclusive gentlemen’s clubs with elaborate boathouses. But, for increasing numbers of people, rowing is finally becoming more accessible.
The popularity of the sport has grown tremendously in the past few years – mainly thanks to the rise of rowing-machine-only studios and gym classes with rooms full of indoor rowers, plus a number of UK schools are now offer rowing as part of their curriculum.
To help grow the sport further, WinTech Racing (who supply a range of boats to suit a range of athletes and budgets, from those just starting out right the way up to World and Olympic Champions), has partnered with fashion brand and design lab Rowing Blazers to create a limited-edition racing shell.
To read the full article on Men’s Health click here.
Come and join #TeamWinTech today! Our value goes beyond that of just a great product for a great price.
USRowing Summer Nationals saw a record breaking number of entries as well as clubs. An amazing 1,662 entries from 124 clubs across the country came to Camden, NJ take a shot at winning a National Championship.
The regatta was broken up between Junior events (U17 & U19) and Senior events (U23 & Open). In the junior events WinTech Racing and King saw 20 medals out of 25 events.
SAUGATUCK WINS U19 2- – International WinTech 2-
ROW WEST CLAIMS THE SILVER IN U23 8+ – Medalist King 8+
PENNAC CLAIMS THE BRONZE IN U19 4+ – International WinTech 4+
PCRA TAKES BRONZE IN U17 4+ – Medalist King 4+
ROW WEST TAKES SILVER IN U23 4+ – International WinTech 4+
ROW WEST TAKES SILVER IN U23 4X – International WinTech 4x
TBC CLAIMS SILVER IN LW U23 2- – Medalist WinTech 2-
A big thanks to the Rowing staff, volunteers, athletes and coaches. It was brilliant to see the rowing community come together again to enjoy our sport.
Come and join #TeamWinTech today! Our value goes beyond that of just a great product for a great price.
Last weekend saw the 2021 British Rowing Junior Championship take place at the National Watersports Centre in Nottingham. Over 1,500 competitors from 115 clubs took part from across the country with events for J15, J16 & J18 athletes.
Some amazing results were achieved over the weekend by athletes racing in WinTech Racing Boats. More gold medals were won in WinTech Racing boats than any other boat brand.
A summary of the gold medal winners can be seen below:
| Event | Club | Result |
| OJ18 1x | Bewl Bridge | Gold |
| OJ18 2x | Exeter RC | Gold |
| WJ18 2 | Kings School Worcester | Gold |
| OJ18 4x- | Windsor Boys’ School | Gold |
| WJ16 2x | Gloucester RC | Gold |
| OJ15 1x | Notts County RA | Gold |
| WJ15 1x | Evesham RC | Gold |
| OJ15 2x | Marlow RC | Gold |
| OJ15 4x+ | Windsor Boys’ School | Gold |
| OJ18 2x | Notts County RA | Silver |
| OJ184- | Hinksey Sculling School | Silver |
| OJ16 2x | Marlow Rowing Club | Silver |
| WJ16 4+ | Great Marlow School | Silver |
| OJ15 2x | Tideway Scullers School | Silver |
| WJ15 4x+ | Sir William Perkins School | Silver |
| OJ18 2x | Kings School Ely | Bronze |
| WJ18 2- | Marlow RC | Bronze |
| WJ16 1x | Wycliffe Junior RC | Bronze |
| OJ16 2- | Hinksey Sculling School | Bronze |
| OJ15 4x+ | Marlow RC | Bronze |
| WJ15 4x+ | Henley Rowing Club | Bronze |
A big thanks to British Rowing staff, volunteers, athletes and coaches. It was brilliant to see the junior rowing community come together again to enjoy our sport.
To see the full results, click here.
A big thanks to all who made the regatta possible and also to AllMarkOne for the amazing photos!
Come and join #TeamWinTech today! Our value goes beyond that of just a great product for a great price.
It was so great to be back at Henley Women’s Regatta this weekend supporting athletes and coaches from across the country competing in this very special event. Some amazing wins were achieved in WinTech Racing boats. Congratulations to all athletes and coaches.
If you missed the racing you can watch back the Livestream on the Henley Women’s Regatta YouTube Channel on the links below:
A big thanks to all who made the regatta possible and also to AllMarkOne for the amazing photos!
Come and join #TeamWinTech today! Our value goes beyond that of just a great product for a great price.
With the 2020 Spring Rowing Season cancelled due to the Coronavirus Pandemic, the last time we were at this event was in 2019 which now feels like a lifetime ago. It was the largest attended Youth Nationals to date, we had a record number of medals and top placements in the 1st and 2nd level finals!
6 GOLDS – one being the Marin RA 4x (coached by Skip Kielt) that upset Maritime and Malvern Prep who are sculling focused programs which have won the event for the past 15 years!
| Event | Club | Result |
| U15 W1x | Redwood Scullers | Gold |
| U17 W4+ | Saugatuck R.C. | Gold |
| U17 W8+ | Saugatuck R.C. | Gold |
| M2- | Camp Randall R.C. | Gold |
| M4x | Marin R.A. | Gold |
| W4- | RowAmerica Rye | Gold |
| M4+ | RowAmerica Rye | Silver |
| W8+ | RowAmerica Rye | Silver |
| U17 W1x | Redwood Scullers | Bronze |
| W2- | Camp Randall R.C. | Bronze |
| W2x | RowAmerica Rye | Bronze |
| U17 M8+ | RowAmerica Rye | Bronze |
| M2- | Concord | Bronze |
| W4+ | RowAmerica Rye | Bronze |
| M4x | Maritime R.C. | Bronze |
| M4- | RowAmerica Rye | Bronze |
| W4- | RowAmerica Rye | Bronze |
Come and join #TeamWinTech today! Our value goes beyond that of just a great product for a great price.
It was fantastic to see such wide representation from universities from across the UK at this year’s postponed BUCS Regatta. Some amazing results were achieved over the weekend in WinTech Racing Boats. A full breakdown of the championship results is below. Congratulations to all athletes and coaches as well as those medal wins in the Beginner & Intermediate events.
| Event | Club | Result |
| W Ch Lwt 1x | University of Nottingham | Gold |
| M Ch Lwt 2- | University of Cambridge | Gold |
| W Ch Lwt 4x | University of Reading | Gold |
| W Ch 1x | Royal Holloway | Bronze |
| W Ch Lwt 2x | Hartpury | Bronze |
| M Ch Lwt 2- | University of Oxford | Bronze |
| W Ch Lwt 4x | University of Exeter | Bronze |
If you missed the racing you can watch back the Livestream on the BUCS YouTube Channel on the links below:
Day 1, Day 2, Day 3
A big thanks to James Lee and his team who put on such a great event in difficult circumstances and also to AllMarkOne for the amazing photos!
Come and join #TeamWinTech today! Our value goes beyond that of just a great product for a great price.
WinTech Racing in collaboration with our UK distributor Oarsport have been proud supporters of the oldest rowing race in the world since 2015. Each year we have provided a WinTech Racing International single scull for all competitors to train and race in.
On Friday 24th June 2021 James Berry won the delayed 2020 306th Doggett’s Coat and Badge Wager. Only the second world war has previously led to the postponement of the annual challenge, from London Bridge to Cadogan Pier, Chelsea.
This historic race was founded by Thomas Doggett Doggett, an Irish actor, in tribute to the skill and bravery of newly-licensed watermen, the London cabbies of their time, who rowed him home along the course route late one night in bad weather, when he would have otherwise been left stranded in the City.
The race was first contested on 1 August 1715 to commemorate the first anniversary of the accession of King George I to the British throne. The 4 mile 5 furlong (7.44km) race passes under a total of 11 bridges a gruelling test of the participants’ knowledge of the river and sporting prowess.
The winner’s prize is a traditional watermen’s red coat with a silver badge added, displaying the horse of the House of Hanover and the word “Liberty”, in honour of the accession of George I to the throne.
A full race report can be seen on Hear The Boat Sing.
The 307th Doggett’s Race for 2021 should take place on 8 September 2021.
Come and join #TeamWinTech today! Our value goes beyond that of just a great product for a great price.
With the 2020 National School Regatta cancelled due to the Coronavirus Pandemic the last time we were at this event in 2019 feels like a lifetime ago. Despite the restrictions this year including the lack of spectators it was an absolute pleasure to be back supporting athletes and coaches.
With an impressive set of results in previous years #TeamWinTech had a lot to live up to but again did us proud. The key highlights were gold medals in the Boys Championship 1x, 2x and 2-. A full breakdown of the results is below. Congratulations to all athletes and coaches.
Congratulations to athletes and coaches! A full breakdown of all results is below:
| Event | Club | Result |
| Ch1x | Exeter Rowing Club | Gold |
| Ch2x | Notts County Rowing Association | Gold |
| Ch2- | Kings School Canterbury | Gold |
| 2nd 4x | Windsor Boys’ School Boat Club | Gold |
| ChG1x | Coleraine Grammar School | Silver |
| Ch2x | Kings School Ely | Silver |
| ChG2x | Claires Court School | Silver |
| ChG2- | Marlow Rowing Club | Silver |
| Ch4x | Windsor Boys’ School Boat Club | Silver |
| 2nd 4xG | Headington School Oxford Boat Club | Silver |
| J16 4xG | Headington School Oxford Boat Club | Silver |
| ChG1x | Lea Rowing Club | Bronze |
| ChG2x | Newark Rowing Club | Bronze |
| ChG2- | Emanuel School Boat Club | Bronze |
| 2nd 4xG | Wallingford Rowing Club | Bronze |
| J16 2nd 4xG | Headington School Oxford Boat Club | Bronze |
Come and join #TeamWinTech today! Our value goes beyond that of just a great product for a great price.
WinTech Racing, the largest manufacturer of rowing shells in the world, has partnered with fashion brand and design lab Rowing Blazers to create a limited edition single racing shell.
Designed by the renowned German Hull Designer Klaus Filter and customised in collaboration with Rowing Blazers each shell looks and feels like varnished wood and features the colorful stripes characteristic of the grosgrain trim on traditional rowing blazers.
The boat comes with WinTech’s 3rd generation lightweight state of the art carbon fibre bow wing wing rigger, spread tow carbon fiber decks for stiffness and strength, reduced diameter shaft oars and a custom padded cover. Only 250 of these boats will be available – worldwide!
For every boat sold, WinTech Racing will donate a learn-to-row single to a pre-approved club with a strong focus on diversity, equality and inclusion to help grow rowing the right way.
WinTech Explorer learn-to-row singles are the perfect way to safely develop the skills needed for both competitive rowing and recreational enjoyment. The boats are slightly wider than their racing counterparts and have a shallower hull to provide extra stability for novices. This generous donation by WinTech Racing is worth $1.4 million.
Learn More: https://wintechracing.com/rowingblazers/
WinTech Racing is the world’s largest rowing shell manufacturer with dealers in over 40 countries supplying high quality racing, recreational and adaptive shells, launches and rowing accessories. Their mission is to promote the growth of rowing by making it easier and more affordable to buy quality shells that improve performance at all levels.
Rowing Blazers is a New York-based clothing and accessories brand known for its irreverent approach to the classics. Founded by former national team rower Jack Carlson, the brand is dedicated to the principles of authenticity, inclusivity, and fun. Rowing Blazers is notable for its rugby shirts, dad hats, blazers, and its limited-edition collaborations with a diverse array of brands including J Press, Noah, Sperry, Puma Hoops, FILA, Barbour, Lands’ End, New Era and Eric Emanuel.
Learn More: https://wintechracing.com/rowingblazers/
Senegal benefit from WinTech Racing’s ethical policy to provide free boats to poor and developing counties.
Vincent Tassery, the FISA development coach on site in Senegal said, “Senegal has many keen and enthusiastic rowers, but we are desperate for equipment. With no access to funds this seemed like an impossible dream. Then I heard about WinTech Racing’s scheme which seemed too good to be true.
I contacted WinTech Racing and it was very straightforward. They sent me a list of boats available immediately and I told them which boats I needed and shortly after the boats arrived. When we opened the container, we could not believe our eyes, as it was full of gleaming new boats”.
Klaus Filter, the Director of research and development at WinTech Racing said, “When I joined the company in 1995, I was impressed by WinTech’s willingness to help in the development of rowing which is very much in tune with my own views.”
WinTech Racing’s Environmental Initiative
Being socially responsible and sustainable is integral to living up to our values and realise our vision of delivering a brand to rival and exceed our competitors. We are proud of our innovative and environmentally sustainable approach to boat building.
We are very proud to present the book written by Daniela Nachazelova, WinTech Racing dealer for the Czech Republic. She is a member of the team of worldwide distributors since 2004 and contributes fully to the development of our brand. Daniela is also a former Czech successful rower.
In her book Women’s Voices in Rowing , she collected 14 interviews with the most influential women in rowing who talk about their professional careers and about how their lives have been affected by a sport where you win by going backward as fast as you can.
The book responds to the Olympic Games in Tokyo 2020 that will be the most gender-balanced Olympic Games in history – with an expected 48.8 percent of women’s participation in all sports.
“When I was going through the literature about rowing I realized it was all biographies of men, male coaches, and higher-ranked officers. That’s why I decided to give space to women. I was looking for stories. A fantastic list of triumphs and medals from world competitions wasn’t enough for me. I needed drama, struggle, tension. My ‚dream team’ reveals their beginnings at rowing but also their experience with discrimination and how they have been fighting it,” the writer describes.
Through her project, she will financially support the diversity and education of female coaches. “I got inspired by Solutions Journalism and from each sale of the book, both electronic one and hardcover, we will donate 1 euro or 1 dollar to the World Rowing Gender Equality, Inclusion and Diversity Commission,” Nachazelova explains.
The book features golden medalist and lawyer Caryn Davies who achieved an MBA degree at Oxford University during her rowing break and then stroked the university team to victory in the first-ever women’s Oxford-Cambridge Boat Race in 2015. Among other Voices to hear, there is Tricia Smith, president of the Canadian Olympic Committee, Michelle Carpenter, Rowing Ireland‘s CEO, or Martina Souckova, a Czech youth rowing coach and holder of a Fair Play Award for saving the lives of two young people when a huge storm hit Prague back in 2018.
“I would be very happy if the book inspires the next generation of female rowers by showing them the strong women who blazed the trail,” Nachazelova adds.
Ebook is available on Amazon from November 30. Hardcover will be released on December 4.
More information and orders: www. voicesinrowing.com
About the author: During her rowing career, Daniela Nachazelova received a rowing scholarship to Washington State University and collected medals at world cups and world championships. She won the World/U23’s and the World Student Games. Now, she is one of the first women to speak about the struggles of female professional rowers.
WinTech Racing achieve some sensational results at the German Sprint Championships 2020
This is the only ‘official’ German Championship Regatta organised by the German Rowing Federation in 2020, it took place on the 8th and 9th of October. As you can imagine due to lockdown restrictions this year, the event had a vast entry!
The results for WinTech Racing this weekend were sensational!
10 out of the 34 new “Deutsche Meister” won their Gold Medals in WinTech Racing boats and 5 of the Gold Medals were won using WinTech Racing RDS oars!
What makes this even more remarkable is when you consider that a maximum 2% of the boats at the regatta were WinTech’s!
The results:
Gold / German Champions:
Senior Women 8+ (SW8+A) Ruder-Union Arkona Berlin (Havelqueen-Achter)
Senior Women 4+ (SW4+A) Ruder-Club Potsdam
Senior Women 2- (SW2-A) Ruder-Union Arkona Berlin, Mandy Repner & Wiebke Kaufhold
Senior Women 2x (SW2xA) Ruder-Club Potsdam, Anni Kötitz & Maren Volz
Junior Women A 8+ (JW8+A) Ruder-Club Potsdam
Junior Women A 4+ (JW4+A) Ruder-Club Potsdam
Junior Men B 2x (JM2xB) Pirnaer Ruderverein, Joel Wiener & Tom Salz
Junior Women B 8+ (JW8+B) Ruder-Club Potsdam
Junior Women B 4x+ (JW4x+B) Wiking Offenbach
PARA PR1M1x Rüdersdorfer RV Kalkberge, Enrico Schildberger
Silver
Junior Women A 2x (JW2xA) Ruderverein Waltrop
Junior Women B 4+ (JW4+B) Ruder-Club Potsdam
Bronze
Junior Women A 8+ (JW8+A) Ruderverein Waltrop
Junior Men B 4+ (JM4+B) Pirnaer Ruderverein
WinTech Racing look forward to seeing you at the next event.
This weekend saw the UK Pairs Head of the River Race take place in London UK, which is an annual event proudly managed and run by Barnes Bridge Ladies Rowing Club. It was one of the first events run in the new phase of British Rowings Return to Rowing.
Although strict restrictions were in place competition was still fierce. 1st and 3rd overall were won in WinTech Racing’s brand new FLX hull shape by athletes from Tideway Scullers School winning both the Open Championship 2x and 2- events.
Other notable results in WinTech boats include:
So great to be watching some racing again and congratulations to all athletes!
About The WinTech Racing FLX
Designed by renowned shell designer and naval architect Klaus Filter our this all new Our all new revolutionary design is born out of the desire to create the most efficient hull on the market optimised for current and future elite level racing where demand and expectation for the highest performance level is sought.
Building on our industry defining Klaus Filter Hull shape the FLX is the culmination of years of painstaking research, analysis and improvement, designed to match heightened athlete fitness and technique parameters. Independent testing against other leading elite level brands proves unmatched performance – vital seconds which are the difference between winning and losing.
It continues with the European Rowing Championships. After the U23’s in Duisburg, the juniors championships take place this weekend in Belgrade.
426 rowers from 27 different European nations made the trip to Serbia to race for medals in 14 boats classes.
After the capricious weather on Saturday, the finals were held in good conditions on Sunday.
Estonia and Poland had crews in WinTech Racing Boats this year :
JM4X EST, 2nd B Final
JM2- POL, 2nd B Final
In two weeks, we will be in Poznan, Poland for the European Rowing Championships.
The Elite rowers are waiting on Lake Malta for these championships that should have been organised in May.
This weekend saw the 2020 European Rowing Under 23 Championships take place in Duisburg, Germany. Finally a return to International Competition!
This year was the largest entry in the four years this event has taken place despite the ongoing Covid-19 Pandemic. A record number of 650 competitors are entered in the regatta from 32 member federations, compared to 25 in 2019.
The European Rowing Under 23 Championships is raced in 22 boat classes and is open to all European Member National Federations (which includes Israel) for athletes under the age of 23. A rower may compete in an Under 23 rowing event until 31 December of the year in which he/she reaches the age of 22.
It’s been a tough year for athletes with restrictions on competition and sport. The following athletes raced in WinTech Racing Boats this year:
BLW1x – Austria
BM1x – Latvia
BLM2x – Denmark
The next World Rowing event which WinTech Racing will attend is the European Rowing Junior Championships which this year is taking place on 26-27th September.
Winning Just Got Easier! – Our All New Elite Competition Hull
We recently launched our new FLX hull shape designed for Elite Competition. Independent testing against the two leading elite level brands shows marginal gains which can be the difference between winning and losing!
Row The Future Today!
WinTech Racing offers a complete line-up of shells ranging from singles to eights, training to competitive, entry-level to the best money can buy, offering unparalleled quality, value and performance.
Designing a new boat is always a special adventure for any racing boat manufacturer. The FLX is our next generation racing boat and it’s been specifically designed for elite rowers who are looking to shave those valuable seconds off their times. Wintech’s revolutionary new hull shape has been specially designed by Klaus Filter, the stiffer hull offers less drag which means one thing… more speed.
This new project was based on the observation that high level rowers are now rowing at increasingly high stroke rates and that the current hull shapes are no longer optimal at these speeds. The FLX is currently available in 1x, 2x, 2- , 4x and 4- in select sizes with more classes and sizes coming soon. It’s available in our top of the range Cobra & Medalist constructions.
For more information and to find your local dealer click the link below so you can experience the speed of the FLX for yourself.
It’s a difficult time for the world and our community. Your world has shifted; your lives have been transformed. In order for all of us to fulfil our responsibility to protect our community and loved ones, it means giving up what we love for a while, getting out on the water, but this is nothing compared to the sacrifice others will make.
Whilst you are creating your new normal for a while, following your local government guidelines and practicing social distancing, we want to do all we can to help you. Whilst things seem uncertain at the moment we will pull through and together, as a community, as a family we will get through this.
This is the perfect time to focus on your fitness so when we come out of the other side you can hit the ground running. Whilst many of you are fortunate enough to have access to rowing machines and other gym equipment in your homes, we know many of you don’t. That is why we have created the following Guide To Training During Lockdown With No Equipment.
Stay Safe
#TeamWinTech
Download the WINTECH Training during lockdown guide
Since its origin in 1965, the Head Of The Charles® Regatta has welcomed the world’s best crew teams to the banks of the Charles River for the ultimate two-day rowing competition.
Last weekend saw the 55th Head of the Charles River take place in Boston, USA. Crews racing in WinTech & King Racing boats came away with an impressive 8 gold medal wins!
GOLD MEDAL RESULTS
Proof Is In The Performance- Come and join #TeamWinTech today! Our value goes beyond that of just a great product for a great price. With a range of 4 different construction options and 2 hull shapes we have a boat for everyone!
Over the last 5 days athletes have been competing for world championship titles at the 2019 World Rowing U23 Championships in Sarasota-Bradenton, Florida, USA.
Gold, Silver & Bronze Medalist were won by athletes racing in WinTech Racing Boats.
Congratulations to athletes and coaches!
Come and join #TeamWinTech today! Our value goes beyond that of just a great product for a great price.
Henley Women’s Regatta is the premier regatta for women in the United Kingdom. Each year more than 1,500 rowers travel from all over the UK and from across the world to compete in this prestigious event.
This year saw 2 Gold Medals for crews competing in WinTech Racing Boats.
Congratulations to athletes and coaches!
Next year our UK Dealer Oarsport will be providing boats for rent allowing more athletes a chance to compete in our record breaking shells.
Come and join #TeamWinTech today! Our value goes beyond that of just a great product for a great price.
Another National Schools Regatta and another fantastic set of results from junior athletes here in the UK racing in WinTech Racing Boats.
You really did us proud #TeamWinTech. The key highlights were Gold Medals in both Ch1x and ChG1x in WinTech Racing Cobra Singles as well as in ChG2x in a WinTech Racing International 2x. Congratulations to all the medal winners and well done to everyone who took part!
A full breakdown of the medals won by #TeamWinTech is below:
Event: Ch 1x
Club: The Windsor Boys’ School
Event: ChG 1x
Club: Coleraine Grammar School
Event: ChG 2x
Club: Gloucester Hartpury
Event: J16 2x
Club: Exeter Rowing Club
Event: J15 4x+
Club: The Windsor Boys’ School
Event: J14 4x+
Club: Kingston Rowing Club
Event: ChG 2x
Club: Notts County Rowing Association
Event: ChG 2-
Club: Notts County Rowing Association
Event: J16 4x
Club: Trentham Boat Club
Event: J16G 4+
Club: St Edwards School
Event: J15 4x+
Club: Maidenhead Rowing Club
Event: J15G 4+
Club: The Grange School
Event: J15 2nd 8+
Club: Norwich School
Event: ChG8+/G2nd 8+
Club: Marlow Rowing Club
Event: Non ChG 4+
Club: Sir William Perkins School
Event: J16 2x
Club: Lea Rowing Club
Event: J15 4x+
Club: The Grange School
Event: J15G 4+
Club: St Edwards School
Proof Is In The Performance- Come and join #TeamWinTech today! Our value goes beyond that of just a great product for a great price.
The 11th edition of the European Rowing Junior Championships took place this weekend in Essen, Germany with 570 crews from 33 nations taking part.
There were 4 crews racing in WinTech Boats at the event representing Great Britain, Denmark & Czech Republic.
The Danish Men’s pair won a silver in their WinTech International and the Czech Womens’ 8 won a bronze in their WinTech Medalist.
The Czech Junior Men’s Coxed Four and Great British Junior Men’s Single Scull also both raced in WinTech Racing boats both placing second in the B Finals.
Congratulations to all athletes and coaches!
The 2019 World Rowing Junior Championships take place in Tokyo where it will act as a test event for the Tokyo 2020 Olympic Games.
Come and join #TeamWinTech today! Our value goes beyond that of just a great product for a great price.
THE DETAILS: On Saturday, March 2nd, WinTech Racing will hold its first-ever open house tag sale. Literally shop the warehouse floor of older and used boats, and other equipment including oars, shoes, footboards, & parts all RED TAGGED with sale prices. New, in-stock boats will also be available for sale.
First come, first served. (And don’t forget your trailer!)
For more information contact us at 203-866-7223 or info@wintechracing.com.
As well as being the most popular brand at Junior Trials, athletes racing in WinTech Racing Boats achieved more top 10 rankings at than those racing in any other boat brand, congratulations #TeamWinTech!
Come and join #TeamWinTech today! Our value goes beyond that of just a great product for a great price.
Last weekend saw the 54th Head of the Charles River take place in Boston, USA. #TeamWinTech came away with an Impression 6 gold, 1 silver & 2 bronze medals.
A summary of the full results are below:
GOLD
SILVER
BRONZE
Come and join #TeamWinTech today! Our value goes beyond that of just a great product for a great price.
Chinook Perfomance Racing won both the men’s and women’s points trophies at World Rowing Masters Regatta 2018 winning a total of 42 racing in WinTech Racing Boats. The women had 4x the points over second place!
WinTech are honoured to be working with such a enthusiastic and successful rowing programme!
Proof Is In The Performance- Come and join #TeamWinTech today! Our value goes beyond that of just a great product for a great price.
WinTech & King Racing shells were well represented during this fall’s head racing season, lead by Saugatuck Rowing Club Juniors and the RowAmerica Rye Juniors. Here are some of the notable results:
Head of the Charles
Head of the Schuylkill
RowAmerica Rye
Head of the Charles
Head of the Schuylkill
Congrats to all crews on their success!
Proof Is In The Performance- Come and join #TeamWinTech today! Our value goes beyond that of just a great product for a great price.
This year we again supported the oldest rowing race in the world. The Doggett’s Coat and Badge Wager now in its 304th year!
The race (started by actor Thomas Doggett in 1715) takes place over 7,400m from London Bridge to Cadogan Pier, Chelsea. It is contested by up to six new waterman who have completed their apprenticeship to transport goods or people on thames and organised by the Fishmongers Company.
Not only is it a race, it is a test of determination and endurance for these young apprentice watermen, some of whom may have only been sculling for a few months, or even weeks and take on the tricky waters of the tidal Thames in a WinTech fine racing shell.
This year the race was contested by Alfie Anderson from Poplar, Blackwell & District Rowing Club and George McCarthy of Globe Rowing Club. Alfie Anderson took the lead between Southwark Bridge and Millenium Bridge and went on to win the race 19 seconds ahead of McCarthy in a a time of 25 minutes and 27 seconds.
The prize is a “Coat & Badge” which represents the costumer of an 18th century waterman complete with silver arm badge.
WinTech Racing are proud to sponsor the oldest annually held sporting event in the world with the latest technology!
Come and join #TeamWinTech today! Our value goes beyond that of just a great product for a great price.
This year saw successful regatta for athletes racing in WinTech Racing Boats at the 18th Asian Games with #TeamWinTech winning 3 gold, 6 silver and 4 bronze medals.
A summary of the results can be seen below:
GOLD
SILVER
BRONZE
Come and join #TeamWinTech today! Our value goes beyond that of just a great product for a great price.
Congratulations fo #TeamWinTech at European Rowing U23 Rowing Championships.
Come and join #TeamWinTech today! Our value goes beyond that of just a great product for a great price.
For the third year running the Czech Republic Junior Women’s 8 have struck gold at The World Rowing Junior Championships in their WinTech Racing Eight.
This year they defended their title beating both the USA and Romania in a time of 6:27. Earlier in the week during their test race they broke the course record in an incredible 6:13!
The Czech Junior Men’s and Women’s Coxed Four also both raced in WinTech Racing boats both making the A final as did Junior Men’s Single from Estonia making the D Final. Congratulations to all athletes and coaches!
The 2019 World Rowing Junior Championships take place in Tokyo where it will act as a test event for the Tokyo 2020 Olympic Games.
Proof Is In The Performance- Come and join #TeamWinTech today! Our value goes beyond that of just a great product for a great price.
Great Britain achieved some incredible results last weekend in Shanghai at the FISU World University Rowing Championships bringing home six gold and one silver medal in what was their most successful university championship ever!
Both the men’s and women’s fours and eights won gold as well as the men’s pair and single with the women’s pair taking silver. All ten crews who were racing in our top of the range WinTech Cobra Racing Boats made the A finals with seven making the podium. A full race report is available on the British Rowing website here.
The team were supported by Team Manager Lee Boucher and Coaches Hugo Gulliver, Phil Bourguignon, Brendan Gliddon, Dan Harris & Will King. A representative and boatman from WinTech Racing also attended the regatta each day to support the team.
A full breakdown of the results can be seen below:
Proof Is In The Performance- Come and join #TeamWinTech today.
We have been working closely with Windsor Boys’ School Director of Rowing Mark Wilkinson over the last few years. Last year they won and set a course record in the Fawley Challenge Cup in their WinTech Cobra Quad.
This year they won the event again beating their own record and local rivals Maidenhead RC who also raced in a Cobra Quad!
It says a lot when most of the boys train in WinTech singles and doubles and so making that transition into a crew boat with commonality of equipment and feel goes a long way to their success.
Director of Rowing: Mark Wilkinson’s WinTech Racing Testimonial
Come and join #TeamWinTech today! Our value goes beyond that of just a great product for a great price.
Congratulations to Fini Strum of Germany who won the B Final of the LW1x in her WinTech Cobra.
Proof Is In The Performance- Come and join #TeamWinTech today! Our value goes beyond that of just a great product for a great price.
Just 1 week after the eyes of the UK were on the Royal Wedding in Windsor the eyes of the UK Rowing Community were back on Windsor this time for the National Schools Regatta 2018. We had a great weekend as usual and it was great to see so many of you.
You really did us proud #TeamWinTech! Crews racing in WinTech Racing Boats won more medals than those racing in any other brand of boat. Congratulations to all the medal winners and well done to everyone who took part!
Proof Is In The Performance- Come and join #TeamWinTech today! Our value goes beyond that of just a great product for a great price.
A full breakdown of the medals won by #TeamWinTech is below:
Event: J15 G4+
Club: St Edwards School
Event: J15 G4x+
Club: Headington School, Oxford
Event: J14 G8x+1
Club: Nottingham & Union
Event: CH G2x
Club: Latymer Upper School
Event: Ch 4x
Club: Maidenhead
Event: J16 2-
Club: Kings School Canterbury
Event: Ch 2x
Club: Maidenhead
Event: Ch 1x
Club: Windsor Boys School
Event: J15 G4x+
Club: Henley
Event: J14 8x+1
Club: Norwich School
Event: Ch 4x
Club: Windsor Boys School
Event: J16 4x
Club: Claires Court
Event: J15 G4x+
Club: Marlow
Event: J14 8x+1
Club: Windsor Boys School
Event: J15 2nd 8+
Club: Hampton School
Event: Sch G4+
Club: Marlow
Event: Ch G1x
Club: Exeter
Event: Ch G8+/G2nd8+
Club: Marlow
Event: Ch G4x
Club: Headington
Event: Ch G2-
Club: Lady Eleanor Holles
Event: Ch 2x
Club: Windsor Boys School
This weekend saw the 2018 European Rowing Junior Championships in Gravelines, France with a record 34 nations taking part.
The Czech JW8+ managed to hold off rivals Romania and Belarus to win the Gold Medal in a time of 6:54.
The crew has seen great success in their WinTech International 8+ in recent years. This is the third year in a row they have won in the boat having won golds at both the 2016 and 2017 World Junior Rowing Championships. Congratulations girls!
We’ll be following closely as they now prepare for the 2018 World Junior Rowing Championships which takes places on their home water in Račice on 8th-12th August.
Proof Is In The Performance- Come and join #TeamWinTech today.
Congratulations to PTW Płock who placed 1st in the JM1x at the Polish National Trials in the WinTech Racing Cobra 1x in a time of 7:32.08
Come and join #TeamWinTech today! Our value goes beyond that of just a great product for a great price.
Top rowers from the 40 clubs competed. Of the 244 hulls present, nearly 25% of the participants use WinTech (mainly Competitor and International hulls):
Come and join #TeamWinTech today! Our value goes beyond that of just a great product for a great price.
This time last week the Oarsport Junior Sculling Head at Dorney Lake. The event is quite a spectacle with over 500 Junior Crews competing across 14 events.
As always we were closely following the results to see how #TeamWinTech performed and you really did us proud!
Congratulations to all medal winners and well done to all competitors!
| CATEGORY | CLUB | CATEGORY POSITION |
| Div 1 J18 4x- | Maidenhead Rowing Club | 1st |
| Div 1 J18 4x- | The Windsor Boys School Boat Club | 2nd |
| Div 3 WJ18 4x- | Headington School Oxford Boat Club | 3rd |
| Div 5 J16 4x- | Claires Court School Boat Club | 1st |
| Div 6 WJ16 4x- | Headington School Oxford Boat Club | 2nd |
| Div 7 WJ15 8x+ | Lady Eleanor Holles Boat Club | 3rd |
| Div 8 WJ15 4x+ | Marlow RC | 2nd |
| Div 9 J15 8x+ | Norwich School Boat Club | 2nd |
| Div 11 WJ14 8x+ | Lady Eleanor Holles Boat Club | 1st |
| Div 11 WJ14 8x+ | Nottingham & Union Rowing Club | 1st |
| Div 13 J14 4x+ | Great Marlow School Boat Club | 3rd |
| Div 14 J14 8x+ | Norwich School Boat Club | 1st |
| Div 14 J14 8x+ | Hampton School Boat Club | 2nd |
A full list of results can be found on The Scullery Website
Rowing Photography did such a great job of getting the photos online (before boats were off the water). The photos from all divisions are all available to purchase on the link below.
Finally a a huge thanks to everyone involved:
We hope you all had a great day and safe journeys back home. We look forward to seeing you all at a regatta soon!
Proof Is In The Performance- Come and join #TeamWinTech today.
WinTech opens it’s doors for a wall-to-wall warehouse boat sale. Brand new overstock as well as used inventory in all sizes and categories. Browse our inventory and contact us for more info at: 203-866-7223 or info@wintechracing.com.
Bridgeport, CT
January 19, 2017
WinTech Racing is now showcasing the new LW and HW Medalist 8+’s to select crews on their Florida training trips.
This new Medalist model, complete with state-of-the-art carbon fiber bow mounted rigging and heavy press molded footboards, seats and steering components, was designed by world renowned naval architect and rowing -specific hull designer, Klaus Filter.
Check in with your local WinTech Racing representative to set up a demo for your club.
www.wintechracing.com
(Bridgeport, CT.) WinTech Racing, a RowAmerica company, has partnered with the Midwest Scholastic Rowing Association and the Scholastic Rowing Association of America for their rack needs at this year’s championship regattas. A bulk order of RowAmerica racks will be sent to Dillon Lake in Nashport, Ohio, this year’s race site for both the MWSC and SRAA races. The racks will be on sale for $1,850/set after the SRAA racing is through on May 28th. If you are interested in taking a set of these portable racks home with you please call 203-866-7223, or email us at info@wintechracing.com to reserve your set today. If you will not be attending either regatta, but are still interested in the racks, WinTech Racing may be able to put you in touch with a trailer that will be able to get them close to you. Please call 203-866-RACE (7223) to discuss those options. More information in the caption below.
WinTech & King Racing will be at the following events this spring. Please come by and see us!
| DATE | REGATTA | LOCATION |
|---|---|---|
| March 5th | Alumni Sprints Regatta | Clermont, FL |
| March 12th | OARS Youth Invitational | Orlando, FL |
| March 13th | Oars Masters Invitational | Orlando, FL |
| March 19th | John Hunter Regatta | Gainesville, GA |
| March 26th | Polar Bear Regatta | Occoquan, VA |
| April 2nd-3rd | Crew Classic | San Diego, CA |
| April 9th | FSRA West District Champs | Tampa, FL |
| April 10th | Miami International Regatta | Miami, FL |
| April 16-17th | FSRA Sculling State Champs | Sarasota, FL |
| April 23rd | Saratoga Invitational | Saratoga, NY |
| April 24-28th | Olympic Small Boat Trials | Sarasota, FL |
| April 30th | NERC | Worcester MA |
| April 30-May 1st | FSRA Sweep State Champs | Sarasota, FL |
| May 7th | Mathews Regatta | Mathews, VA |
| May 14th | Lowell Invitational | Lowell MA |
| May 14-15th | NY State Championships | Saratoga, NY |
| May 14-15th | Women’s Eastern Sprints | NJ |
| May 14-15th | Midwest Championships | Nashport, OH (Dillion Lake) |
| May 14-15th | SE Youth Regionals | Sarasota, FL |
| May 20-22nd | Stotesbury Regatta | Philadelphia, PA |
| May 21st | Northeast Regional Championships | Worcester MA |
| May 23rd | NEIRA | Worcester MA |
| May 27-28th | SRAA | Nashport, OH (Dillion Lake) |
| May 28-29th | ACRA | Gainesville, GA |
| May 29th | Mass. Public School Championships | Lowell MA |
| June 10-12th | USRowing Youth Nationals | West Windsor, NJ |
WinTech Racing recently contributed to row2k.com’s “Ask the Boatbuilder” feature. The topic: choosing between carbon vs Kevlar boats.
“As a boat company that supplies both carbon and Kevlar models, we get this question all the time. When choosing between a carbon and Kevlar boat, one should not consider the basic characteristics of each material as better or faster, without also factoring in the specific use of the boat to reach a decision; e.g. experience level of crew, water conditions, training or racing…” READ FULL ARTICLE HERE
The Rower from Hans Johnson Studios on Vimeo.
Launch into spring with WinTech Racing. WinTech announces a spring season promotion that covers Club Trainer singles, doubles, quads, coxed fours, Explorer 21s, & Junior Racers. See pricing below. For more information on the boats, please visit the product pages by clicking on the boat name.
Contact your local sales rep for more details and to place an order.
Promotion Terms:
On behalf of everyone here at WinTech & King Racing, I want to personally thank you for your business and support. We work hard to make sure every part of your interaction with our people and product is the absolute best it can be, and hope it pays off for you or your program on the water.
As we wind down another great year in rowing, we wish you and yours the very best holiday season, and look forward to serving you in 2016.
Thanks a million.
Brendan Crotty | President
WinTech & King Racing
On November 20th, the World Rowing Federation (FISA) announced its 2015 award recipients. WinTech’s chief designer, Klaus Filter, received the Distinguished Service to International Rowing award. Per FISA’s website:
“Filter is known for revolutionising boat building. He began as a rower in East Germany and moved to boat building as a way to help support his family. Filter’s innovative ideas included bringing composite materials into boat building. He was a FISA commission member for a number of years and is known for always helping a rower with a boat problem.”
Filter is most known for integrating the human element into the evaluation and development of boat shape and waterline design. His designs, which all WinTech shells are based on, are of the most internationally decorated in the history of the sport.
Congratulations to all competitors, and especially winners, from the 51st Head of the Charles Regatta. It truly is the athletes and their competitive spirit that make this regatta of the best in the world.
A special shout out to those athletes who made our WinTech and King Racing boats look good…
WinTech
King
WinTech Racing was thrilled to be a part of the first annual Red Bull High Stakes regatta. Enjoy a look back at this truly unique event.
Full-time entry-level customer service and merchandise associate positions available immediately at our Bridgeport, CT facility.
Responsibilities:
– Boat prep
– Customer service
– Merchandise inventory management
– Order fulfillment
Requirements:
– Strong organizational skills
– Positive attitude
– Basic rowing knowledge
– Desire to become part of a team-oriented atmosphere
– Local residence or ability to move locally
Compensation includes:
– Competitive salary
– Health benefits package
– 401K
– Paid vacation time
Please contact Christian Hawkins: chawkins@wintechracing.com or 203-866-7223 x303
WinTech Racing is proud to sponsor the first-ever Red Bull High Stakes regatta to be held on U.S. waters. On Saturday, August 22 along rowing’s famed Charles River in Boston, 16 teams consisting of an Eight, Quad, Double, and Single will relay along a 500-meter course with a 180 degree stake turn at the midpoint. Teams will compete in a head-to-head format with the top two times from the heats squaring off in a winner-take-all final.
To further put the focus on the athletes, as a measure to create as level a playing field as possible, all crews will compete in boats provided by WinTech Racing. The fleet will consist of WinTech small boats & King 8s that crews will hot-seat throughout the day.
For more information on how to follow the event, visit twitter.com/redbullBOS.
WinTech Racing announces a Club Trainer Small Boat sale going on through the end of August. The promotion is applicable to the Club Trainer Single (1x) and Pair/Double (2-/x). For more information on the boats, please visit the product pages by clicking on the boats below.
Pair/Doubles: $7000
Singles: $4000
The USRowing Women’s Open Weight National Team has been training and racing in WinTech singles and pair/doubles since the beginning of the 2015 season.
“WinTech Double/Pairs are solid boats. The athletes like them and that’s the best endorsement. Construction is solid and the shape is plenty quick.” ~ Tom Terhaar | U.S. Women’s National Team Coach
Contact your local sales rep for more details and to place an order.
Promotion Terms:
Dr. Valery Kleshnev of BioRow Ltd. – a rowing biomechanics consulting company – recently performed a drag factor test of four singles, one of which was the WinTech Medalist.
Per the April 2015 newsletter:
“Four singles of different brands were recently tested in an indoor tank (600m long, 16m wide, 7m depth, constant temperature +16 C) at Krylov State Research Centre in Saint Petersburg, Russia.
The boats were:
The purposes of the test were to define the drag factors of each boat using two methods: rowing and towing, and then to find their correlation.”
The findings favored the Medalist, citing:
“Summary of the results of rowing and towing measurements: WinTech boat had the lowest average drag factor, Empacher 0.78% higher, Nowing 2.35% higher, and Filippi 2.95% higher. At the propulsive power 400W (rowing power 508W and time at 2km race about 6:35), above differences in the drag factor would give the advantage to WinTech of 1.02seconds over Empacher, 3.06s over Nowing, and 3.84s over Filippi.“
For the full article visit biorow.org. More information about the WinTech Medalist.
Chase Graham, head coach of the Saugatuck Rowing Club’s youth girls program, discusses small boat training and how he credits it towards achieving National Championships in the Girls Lightweight 8+, and Girls Varsity 8 – which also went undefeated during the 2014/2015 season. See Saugatuck’s go-to training pair, the WinTech Competitor 2-/2x.
National Team sculler, Andrew Campbell, speaks about his recent row in the Cobra 1x.
WinTech’s Brendan Crotty discusses the new cash or credit for old boats program.
Have any shells collecting dust in your boathouse? We want them. Clear out some rack space and expand your rowable fleet thru the WinTech Cash or Credit Program.
It’s as simple as it sounds- we’ll make you an offer on your old boat. You can either take the cash, no questions asked, or apply 125% of that offer as trade-in towards a new WinTech or King shell. Boats are evaluated based on make, model, age, and general condition. And while we welcome all inquiries, ideal candidates are composite shells in the 10-15 year-old range. Offer valid upon drop-off of boat to Bridgeport, CT location.
Contact us for more details: sales@wintechracing.com, 203.866.7223, or submit your boat here for consideration.
WinTech’s Brendan Crotty discusses inventory, selection, and real-time availability.
WinTech’s Brendan Crotty demonstrates the new 3-piece, 4-in-1 convertible four/quad. One shell easily becomes a Coxed Four (4+), Coxed Quad (4x+), Straight Four (4-), or Straight Quad (4x) in a matter of minutes.
WinTech is dedicated to on-site customer support through an extensive schedule of regatta appearances. Here’s our anticipated schedule for Spring 2015. If you are at any of these events, please come say hello.
March 26-27 San Diego Crew Classic – San Diego, CA
April 3-4 FIRA – Sarasota, FL
April 11-12 FSRA Sculling – Sarasota, FL
April 18-19 SIRA – Oak Ridge, TN
April 18 Lowell Invitational – Lowell, MA
April 24-26 Saratoga Invitational – Saratoga, NY
April 25-26 FSRA Sweep – Sarasota, FL
May 2 New England Rowing Championships – Worcester, MA
May 2 Mathews Regatta – Mathews, VA
May 8-10 Midwest Scholastic Championships – Bethel, OH
May 9 VASRA – Occoquan, VA
May 10 ECAC – Worcester, MA
May 15-16 Stotesbury Cup – Philadelphia, PA
May 16 USRowing Northeast Youth Championships – Lowell, MA
May 17 EARC Sprint Championships – Worcester, MA
May 17 Alumni Sprints – Philadelphia, PA
May 21-24 SRAA – Camden, NJ
May 23 ACRA Championships – Gainesville, GA
June 12-14 Youth Nationals, Sarasota, FL
June 20 Rocketts Landing Regatta – Richmond, VA
June 21 Festival Regatta – Lowell, MA
June 26 Red Bull High Stakes – TBD
WinTech racing recently announces the three inaugural members of its Performance Team.
Erin Roberts won the recent East Coast Speed Order erg test and placed 2nd on the water. Erin is also the reigning CRASH-B Lightweight Women’s Champion with a
time of 6:59.4.
Jacob Georgeson is a recent member of the USRowing National Team for which he
competed at the World Rowing Championships placing 7th in the LWT 4x. Jacob is
also a multiple time National Champion in various LWT categories. Follow Jacob on
Twitter @JDGeorgeson.
Michael Clougher is a Connecticut College alum and member of NYAC. Mike recently
dropped an 18:58 6k at the East Coast Speed Order and is now setting his sights on
competing in the 1x. Follow Mike on Twitter @santaClaw3.
We look forward to following these elite athletes throughout their training and in
their quest for greatness at the national and international levels.
Now available, WinTech’s bow-mounted 4- & 4x. Shell can take either Aluminum or Carbon wings.
Embraced by many boat builders around the world, and tried and true on the WinTech Cobra 1x & 2x, bow-mounted riggers have proven to more efficiently convert energy into propelling a shell forward.
Our new quad lets you harness that power.
Call us at 203.866.7223 for more info.
WinTech’s innovative leasing program gives you the power to control your fleet and budget. For about the cost of one boat per year, fill you boathouse with the right mix of equipment to suit your needs and finances.
Now thru the end of February, receive $1,000 OFF OR a FREE Tyro 1x (value $2500) for every qualifying* WinTech or King purchased or ordered by February 28, 2015.
The new Tyro comes in LW and SLW sizes and is great for new recreational rowers or kids learning to scull.
* Offer good on WinTech International or Competitor 8+, 4+, 4x or King 8+ & 4+. No quantity limits.
Contact your local sales rep for more information.
In a multi-page feature of its September 2014 issue titled “Out of the Box,” Rowing Magazine gives an in-depth synopsis of Howard Winklevoss’s progressive business model intended to grow the reach of rowing and provide opportunity in the sport that he feels doesn’t currently exist.
Catch the full story here: http://rowamerica.com/OutoftheBox.htm
David Dickison has accepted the position of President of RowAmerica Boat Clubs, a division of RowAmerica LLC. Prior to joining the RowAmerica team, Dave was the Northeast Senior Sales Advisor for Vespoli Racing Shells for over 10 years. Previous to that, Dave was a key member of a Foundation responsible for establishing over a dozen rowing clubs in Canada.
RowAmerica Boat Clubs is an organization that provides “turnkey rowing clubs” throughout North America. In addition to providing capital assets (racing shells, oars, coaching launches, trailers, trucks, docks, gangways, racks, ergs and, in some cases, buildings), Row America will set new standards in programming, athlete development, safety, coaching, financial reporting, marketing, and so forth. Its first club, RowAmerica – Rye, was established last year in Rye, NY and has grown to over one hundred members.
The RowAmerica organization is owned by the Winklevoss family, whose members Cameron and Tyler Winklevoss rowed at Harvard, Oxford and the Beijing Olympics. “We believe Dave Dickison is ideally suited to head up this division of our organization, based on his background in Canada, his experience selling boats, and his love of rowing,” said Howard Winklevoss. “We know that individuals who are passionate about this sport can make a big difference, and Dave has both the requisite experience and passion. RowAmerica has the resources ready to help expand this sport, and we’re excited to have Dave spearhead the development of boat clubs across the Nation.”
Those involved with rowing know how wonderful this sport is for juniors. Whether they’re competitive or recreational rowers, its benefits are becoming more widely appreciated, especially as contact sports are giving many parents second thoughts. “Our aim is to establish new rowing clubs in school districts with suitable water, and to help existing clubs realize their true potential,” says Dave Dickison. “It’s a big challenge, but we’re up to it.”
RowAmerica has three divisions: RowAmerica Boatworks which markets WinTech Racing and King Racing shells, RowAmerica Shell Repair which repairs boats of all makes, and RowAmerica Boat Clubs.
If you would like to discuss how RowAmerica can help realize your vision of a boat club in your area please contact Dave Dickison directly at: 203-903-7744, or ddickison@rowamerica.com
When RowAmerica-WinTech Racing’s Chairman, Howard Winklevoss, first opened the doors at 1010 Atlantic Street in Bridgeport, CT. he knew the site would be perfect for their ongoing effort to improve the sport of rowing. Flanked by United Technologies/Sikorsky, University of Bridgeport and the Olmstead designed Seaside Park’s 325 acres of lush lawns, shady glades and sports fields, RowAmerica is a welcome addition to Bridgeport’s revitalized waterfront development as well.
This new facility adds another exciting chapter to the growing history of WinTech Racing, in operation since 2003, who has production done at a 500,000 sq. ft. facility in China. see: www.sinoeaglegroup.com.
While they have been “doing business as” WinTech Racing for the last ten years, RowAmerica has always been the parent company hovering over several independent divisions. Saugatuck Rowing Club, WinTech Racing Shells, King Racing Shells, RowAmerica Rye and the newly formed RowAmerica Boat Repair are all RowAmerica companies that cater to the growth of the sport of rowing. “RowAmerica’s goal is to make rowing possible when it wouldn’t be otherwise and to introduce the sport to communities that do not yet understand the sport. We want to give kids from all walks of life an opportunity to better their lives through rowing, a sport we all know is second to none when it comes to building character,” said Winklevoss.
The new Seaside Park facility currently accommodates WinTech Racing Shells, King Racing Shells and RowAmerica Boat Repair in addition to a budding state of the art composite technology research and development facility. That sector of the operation will lend itself directly to WinTech’s main production facility in China and eventually to the extended family of WinTech Racing distributors all around the world. “A tremendous effort has been made over the course of the last year to see this facility become operational,” states Winklevoss, father of Facebook twins, Cameron and Tyler. “We are nowhere near capacity, but our commitment to giving back to rowing will be thorough. It’s a boon that we are part of a resurgence of business in Bridgeport, Connecticut as well. Have you seen this coastline? We’ll be able to run three seasons of outreach programs directly across the street.” RowAmerica currently occupies roughly one third of the available space on this gated lot. There is an additional 100,000 sq. ft. with a 70’ paint booth and industrial oven already on site that they have access to if need be.
It’s coincidental that right down the street from RowAmerica’s headquarters is a foreseeable two thousand meter race course with miles of undisturbed water for steady state training. RowAmerica Bridgeport, a proposed club positioned along that waterway, is being planned as well. That facility could provide a harbor for several local universities and outreach programs.
Formerly tucked in an industrial section of Norwalk between Rowayton and SoNo, the 10,000 sq. feet that WinTech Racing occupied from 2003 to 2012 just wasn’t big enough. “Norwalk didn’t lend itself to the sales and repair process after 2010,” stated facility manager, Christian Hawkins. “When we started in 2003 we latched on to the first place that we could get a boat into and that became more and more difficult as demand for inventory grew. After we determined that a boat repair center was something we wanted, we began a thorough search for a hub that would allow us to grow according to our vision. Bridgeport provides ample space for all of that and more.” One intriguing addition to the story, and one that highlights tremendous potential, is that Sikorsky used this same headquarters to build the reconnaissance RAH-66 Comanche helicopter for the US Army.
It’s widely known that other manufacturers aren’t particularly thrilled about the boat repair industry. In addition to the day-to-day challenges of building rowing shells, it is very difficult work and can be time intensive while sharing labor previously dedicated to fabricating new boats. That is why most rowing shell repairs have largely been handled by a few small, dedicated repair shops. RowAmerica purchased a lot of the heavy equipment from one of those shops and now offers comprehensive repair service for all brands of rowing shells, not just their own. Because there isn’t another repair shop for hundreds of miles, shell repair service for all brands was an extension WinTech felt necessary while fulfilling the “one stop shop for everything rowing” goal they’ve been driving at since day one. “This facility is a tremendous addition to the operation and our customer base is already taking advantage of the convenience,” states Brendan Crotty, President of WinTech. By the look of the racks filled with off brand shells, numerous well known clubs are also taking advantage of the service RowAmerica Boat Repair is offering the sport’s marketplace.
RowAmerica Boat Repair is located just off exit 26 on Connecticut Turnpike (I-95) and can handle any repair, large or small, on every brand of boat on the market.
203-866-RACE (7223)
info@wintechracing.com
1010 Atlantic Street
Bridgeport, CT. 06604
If you’d like to stop by, call ahead and see for yourself what they have going on behind the scenes. By the look of it it’s safe to say that this won’t be their last extension to the rowing world.