Intense heat accompanied an intense day of racing for Mo, Paddy, and Ben at Molesey regatta on 16 July. The regatta is an 850m course, and requires some careful steering in the middle.

At around 10am Paddy kicked things off for Poplar with a three length win over Putney Town in the first round of the Masters F singles.

Mo made it two for two with a great win, by half a length, also against Putney Town in the Masters A/B singles.

Paddy and Mo came up against tough opposition, both from Twickenham, in their respective finals. A spirited row from both Poplar scullers wasn’t enough to secure victory this time around, but the wins in the first rounds are a great place to build from for next time.

The next race was Paddy and Mo once again, this time in a double. Although this Poplar crew was a mixed double, they were actually competing in an open event. The competition was Twickenham once more and, despite putting in a superb effort (especially after two races apiece already!), we weren’t able to progress to the next round this time.

The last event of the day for Poplar was the open singles, which had a wide field of nine competitors entered. Ben won his first round race against Auriol Kensington by three lengths. Next up, in the semi-final, Ben raced Oxford Academicals and finished four lengths in front. Ben’s final, which was also the last race of the regatta, was a tough race against a strong sculler from the University of Surrey. After a hard-fought battle Ben crossed the line first with a length and a quarter to spare, bringing home a medal for Poplar.

All three scullers had a really fantastic day, with everyone winning at least once. We gained some great experience, and flew the Poplar flag. More than one person commented on how enthusing it’s been to see Poplar well represented at regattas this season. Loads to build on. Onwards and upwards!