Slow up, fast down in BaselHead regatta

Now over twice the size of the 2010 BaselHead, this year seven countries took part including a huge contingent from the Czech Republic. Names like Olympic Champion, Mirka Knapkova rowed in her country’s eight and the Czech Republic won both the men’s and women’s elite race.

On the Rhine River in the heart of Basel, the boats were started every 20 seconds to race over the 6.4km course. Coxswains had to navigate through three bridges and also steer around a half-way marker. Race organiser Paul Castle said the race course was quite challenging. “As well as the often fairly strong current, the BaselHead course has a big long bend, several bridges, buoys, fishing nets and other water obstructions. As a result, overtaking is not allowed in some parts of the race and there are time penalties for any naughty behaviour. And then, of course, there’s the turn…”

Varying methods were used to take the turn. Rowing for Lausanne Sport Aviron (SUI), Laura Fell described the turn, “We held it up on bow side, stroke side tapped it round, then we all started rowing again (half slide for three, then up to full slide). It went well!” Lausanne Sport finished sixth in the women’s elite category.

Being an up-and-back race, the crews had a hard slog into the current on the way up and then got the advantage of the current on the way back. “The stream was very, very strong,” said Fell, “so it was very hard work rowing up. After that, you whizzed back down!”

The winning Czech crews won cash prizes and local souvenirs while the club crew that had done the best over the past three years, the Ruderklub Blauweiss Basel, won the ‘BaselHead’ trophy – a new Filippi VIII.

As Basel is close to the border with Germany and France, Castle described the organising committee as being unique, “Five clubs from Basel, Germany and France set up the Trinational Regatta Association especially to host this race – and despite two languages and some considerable differences in local rules, regulations and habits, it functions far better than many people around the world might imagine!”

The next BaselHead will be on 16 November 2013.

For results: www.baselhead.org