Life gives you lemons, make lemonade. If there is one community that understands this notion, it is the adaptive rowing community. And it was Marlow Rowing Club’s adaptability which saved Marlow Town Regatta from being the third straight adaptive competition to be cancelled by the horrendous, El Nino-soaked year.
While the Thames water levels had settled to reasonable levels, the recent downpours has drenched the trailer park for the event making it unsuitable for trucks and trailers that would just get bogged down into the mud. But Marlow Town has always been one of the major fixtures on the adaptive calendar and the adaptive races all boated from the clubhouse across the river so the athletes would have accessible parking, facilities, staging, etc. So the club decided to pivot the event to become a nearly entirely adaptive-focused regatta. The racing times were extended to allow the adaptives to boat more leisurely, the club loaned a variety of boats and equipment to visiting athletes who had trouble securing all they needed, the organizers arranged for extra hands to help with the boating, etc.
A particular highlight was the inaugural running of the Chelton Cup race, the first cup to be awarded in a UK adaptive competition.
Congratulations the many athletes who had their first ever competition, as well as to the race winners…
- Chelton Cup Winner– Curtis Dickens, Stratford-upon-Avon
- Chelton Cup Runner-up – Chris Boys, Guildford
- W Ada 1x – Matilda Greenwood, Marlow
- WJ Ad 1x – Helen Cooper, Marlow
- O Ada 1x – Andy Morris, Stratford-upon-Avon
- OJ Ada 1x – Kostas Vindzigelskis, Marlow
- O Sup Ada 2x A – Sebastian Johnson and Jonathan Wiegandt, Marlow
- O Sup Ada 2x B – Curtis Dickens and Andy Morris, Stratford-upon-Avon
- W Sup Ada 2x A – Gillian Middleton and Mirian Martin, Stratford-upon-Avon/Marlow
- W Sup Ada 2x B – Gillian Middleton and Sarah Boszormenyi, Stratford-upon-Avon/Marlow
- Mx Sup Ada 2x A – Kostas Vindzigelskis and Helen Cooper, Marlow
- Mx Sup Ada 2x B – Sheila Forde and Jonathan Wiegandt, Marlow
- Mx Sup Ada 2x C – Claire Parker and Iolanda Vendrell, Stratford-upon-Avon
- Mx Sup Ada 2x D – Adaam Majeed and Lily O’Connor, Marlow
- Mx J Sup Ada 2x – Ian Ward and Paola Ward, Stratford-upon-Avon
