Churchill College Boat Club
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Churchill College Boat Club is the rowing club for members of Churchill College, Cambridge.
The club colours are pink and brown, chosen as they are Sir Winston Churchill's racing colours. In recent years, the club has become famous for its lurid pink shells. The men's 1st VIII started the trend in 2002, with the women taking delivery of their own in 2006. The trend has continued to the extent that the club now has a pink double. The women also sport pink splashtops and lycra in the summer months.
Churchill College shares an unattractive but practical boat house with Selwyn, King's, and The Leys School. The boat house is the furthest downstream of all the College boathouses, which is a natural advantage for early morning outings.
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[edit] Foundation
The men's boat club was founded in 1961, following a remark during the Lent Bumps of that year that a college was not really a College until it was on the River. Frank Maine and Ed Markham lead the effort to get the club on the river, under guidance from Canon Noel Duckworth, the first chaplain at the college. The boat of postgraduates used the as yet unheard of training time of 6am-9am on weekday mornings, when the river was deserted. The 1st boat started the May bumps in the seventh division in 1961, bumping twice before being stopped by carnage on the third day, and being bumped themselves on the last. Following a successful Lent Bumps in 1962, the Churchill 1st VIII were repositioned up into the 3rd division for the May Bumps of the same year.
[edit] Bumps Progress
By the early 1970s, the men's 1st VIII had risen to the 1st division of the Lent and May Bumps but found itself back in the 2nd division by the end of the decade. It achieved its highest ever position at 5th in the Lent Bumps in 1998 and is currently in 6th place. In 2006, the crew rose to 6th place in the May Bumps, an all-time high for that competition.
The women's boat club took part in the very first women's bumps in 1974, racing in fours until 1989. The 1st women's VIII took the headship of the Lent Bumps in 1984 and currently reside in the middle of the 1st division. In the May Bumps, Churchill have held the headship a total of 6 times, more than any other women's boatclub − 1978, 1985, 1986, 1987, 1989 and 1990, although only the latter when the races were held in eight-oared boats. Since then, Churchill have been roughly in the middle of the 1st division. Between 1985 and 1987, Churchill finished Head of the Mays on 12 consecutive days − the longest ever continuous defence of the women's Mays Headship.
[edit] Recent Bumps Progress Tables
[edit] Lent Bumps
[edit] Men
| Year | Finish position | 1st day | 2nd day | 3rd day | 4th Day |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1998 | 5th | bumped Christ's | rowed-over | bumped Trinity Hall | rowed-over |
| 1999 | 8th | bumped by Jesus | bumped by Christ's | rowed-over | bumped by Emmanuel |
| 2000 | 9th | bumped Trinity Hall | rowed-over | rowed-over | rowed-over |
| 2001 | 11th | bumped by Robinson | bumped by Clare | (cancelled) | (cancelled) |
| 2002 | 11th | bumped Clare | rowed-over | bumped by St. Catharine's | rowed-over |
| 2003 | 8th | bumped Robinson | bumped St. Catharine's | rowed-over | bumped Christ's |
| 2004 | 8th | rowed-over | rowed-over | bumped Jesus | bumped by Jesus |
| 2005 | 7th | rowed-over | rowed-over | rowed-over | bumped Trinity Hall |
| 2006 | 6th | bumped Emmanuel | rowed-over | rowed-over | rowed-over |
| 2007 | 9th | bumped by Emmanuel | rowed-over | bumped by Trinity Hall | bumped by Clare |
| 2008 | 13th Spoons | bumped by Pembroke | bumped by King's | bumped by Fitzwilliam | bumped by Christ's |
[edit] Women
| Year | Finish position | 1st day | 2nd day | 3rd day | 4th Day |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1998 | 11th | bumped by Christ's | rowed-over | bumped by Newnham | bumped by 1st & 3rd Trinity |
| 1999 | 9th | rowed-over | bumped by St. Catharine's | bumped 1st & 3rd Trinity | rowed-over |
| 2000 | 12th | rowed-over | bumped by Caius | bumped by Downing | bumped by New Hall |
| 2001 | 13th | bumped by Clare | (not completed)¤ | (cancelled) | (cancelled) |
| 2002 | 12th | rowed-over | bumped by 1st & 3rd Trinity | bumped 1st & 3rd Trinity | bumped Pembroke |
| 2003 | 8th Blades | bumped New Hall | bumped Queens' | bumped Christ's | bumped Trinity Hall |
| 2004 | 10th | bumped by Trinity Hall | rowed-over | rowed-over | bumped Girton |
| 2005 | 12th | bumped by Pembroke | bumped by 1st & 3rd Trinity | rowed-over | rowed-over |
| 2006 | 11th | rowed-over | rowed-over | bumped Pembroke | rowed-over |
| 2007 | 9th | rowed-over | bumped Trinity Hall | rowed-over | bumped Girton |
| 2008 | 10th | bumped Newnham | rowed-over | bumped by Pembroke | bumped by Queens' |
¤ Girton, 1st & 3rd Trinity and Churchill were scheduled to re-row their race after a dispute, but the Lent Bumps were cancelled due to an outbreak of Foot and Mouth disease before the race could take place. In the 2002 Lent Bumps, Girton , 1st & 3rd Trinity and Churchill started in the same position as they had following the first day's racing in 2001, namely 13th, 14th and 15th positions respectively.
[edit] May Bumps
[edit] Men
| Year | Finish position | 1st day | 2nd day | 3rd day | 4th Day |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1998 | 11th | bumped by Pembroke | bumped by Emmanuel | rowed-over | bumped Robinson |
| 1999 | 12th | bumped Magdalene | rowed-over | bumped by Fitzwilliam | bumped by Christ's |
| 2000 | 10th | rowed-over | rowed-over | bumped Fitzwilliam | bumped Queens' |
| 2001 | 10th | bumped Pembroke | rowed-over | bumped by Robinson | rowed-over |
| 2002 | 14th Spoons | bumped by St. Catharine's | bumped by Clare | bumped by Queens' | bumped by Magdalene |
| 2003 | 13th | rowed-over | rowed-over | bumped Christ's | rowed-over |
| 2004 | 9th Blades | bumped Clare | bumped Jesus | bumped Emmanuel | bumped Magdalene |
| 2005 | 8th | rowed-over | rowed-over | rowed-over | bumped Robinson |
| 2006 | 6th | rowed-over | bumped Downing | rowed-over | bumped Trinity Hall |
| 2007 | 7th | bumped by Trinity Hall | bumped by Jesus | rowed-over | bumped Queens' |
[edit] Women
| Year | Finish position | 1st day | 2nd day | 3rd day | 4th Day |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1998 | 10th Spoons | bumped by Lady Margaret | bumped by Newnham | bumped by Caius | bumped by Queens' |
| 1999 | 10th | rowed-over | rowed-over | rowed-over | rowed-over |
| 2000 | 10th | bumped by Downing | rowed-over | bumped Queens' | rowed-over |
| 2001 | 10th | rowed-over | rowed-over | rowed-over | rowed-over |
| 2002 | 13th | bumped by St. Catharine's | bumped by New Hall | bumped by Christ's | rowed-over |
| 2003 | 10th | rowed-over | bumped Christ's | bumped Clare | bumped New Hall |
| 2004 | 11th | rowed-over | rowed-over | bumped by Girton | rowed-over |
| 2005 | 13th | rowed-over | bumped by Magdalene | bumped by Christ's | rowed-over |
| 2006 | 11th | rowed-over | bumped Christ's | bumped Magdalene | rowed-over |
| 2007 | 13th | bumped by 1st & 3rd Trinity | bumped by Queens' | rowed-over | rowed-over |
[edit] Henley appearances
Churchill Women won the 'College A' event at the inaugural Henley Women's Regatta in 1988, and again in 1990. Churchill Men last qualified for the Temple Challenge Cup in 1996 at Henley Royal Regatta, progressing to the second round.
[edit] Gallery
 M1 passing their boathouse in the Fairbairns Cup, 2007 |
 M2 practising a start before the Lent Bumps, 2008 |
 M4 in the Lent Bumps getting on race, 2008 |
