Newcastle University Boat Club Newsletter, December 2009 NUBC Annual Dinner Saturday the 21st of November saw many members of the boat club swapping their zootsuits with more formal attire for the annual NUBC formal dinner. An incredibly good-looking group of club members and associates gathered at the University's Isabellas to re-cap and celebrate the highlights of the year 2009.
heartfelt thank you to three outgoing executive members; Freddy, James and Steve.
Initial disappointment was felt by a number of members who discovered that 'open bar' does not mean 'bar tab', however after a few drinks, free alcohol and purchased alcohol tasted no different to each other, and the night continued on to be a great success.
As guests devoured the most delicious pavlova in all history, awards were presented to a number of people involved in the club. Many rowers received certificates of rowing achievement in recognition of their training efforts. Jack Hanley was awarded (and much deserving of) the 'Most Improved Rower' certificate for his dedication to continually improving his rowing skills from a novice level. This year saw the handing out of four Godfrey Tanner Medals for outstanding and valuable service to the NUBC. Recipients of the medals were:
As usual, guest speakers proved to be a highlight on the night. One of the NUBC's coaches, Charles Bartlett, gave an insightful and very entertaining talk about his history in rowing and his love of the sport. This was followed by the novice speaker, Jack Hanley, who delightfully recounted his first year of rowing (or kayaking?) and being involved in the NUBC. His sentiments that 2009 had been a great year for fun, friendships and competition were shared by all members listening. A special mention goes to Emma Chandler, who gave a
Margaret Mackenzie, for the considerable time and effort she has put into helping us with coaching, regattas and supporting us in the running of the club over the years. Charles Bartlett for his fantastic contribution to coaching NUBC crews in preparation for Uni games. Sean Maloney for his efforts in coaching, tinny and trailer driving, and general involvement in the club. Erin Gardiner for her longstanding involvement and commitment to rowing and the running of the club. After awards were handed out, the celebrations continued with a slideshow re-cap of the year and the introduction on the 2010 executive. Thanks again to all recipients of the Godfrey Tanner Medal; your dedication to the NUBC is greatly appreciated!
Thanks is also extended to all those who helped to organise the night, especially Genevieve (who intricately carved decorative candlesticks, and worked her fingers to the bone creating name cards) and James, who tried to do everything, and succeeded in doing many things. Special mention goes to Jed for being naughty and having a great unsupervised after-party! Below are some photos from the night, many more can be found at our club's Facebook page...
CDRA Sprint Regatta The CDRA Sprint Regatta (held Sunday the 6th of December) is an event which most members of the NUBC look forward to every year because of the fast and fun races. This year, NUBC representation was strong, with various members rowing a great deal of races. This year was particularly enjoyable for all, with the NUBC taking home the title (and trophy) of the Throsby Gift Relay winners of 2009!!! The Mujic sibling double gave the club an early lead in the final with their ability to be amazingly fast. The mixed four of Elliot, Hanley, Sands and Flowers (c: Bissett) were strong but lost some ground against the ludicrously powerful Sydney crew. In the final leg of the race it was up to the mixed quad to regain the ground, which they did in the final metres of the race; the NUBC quad passed over the line moments before the Sydney crew. This resulted in all members of the club splashing, screaming and generally having emotional moments of hand-shaking and back-slapping. Shameus looked like he was going to cry and vomit simultaneously (which is not uncommon). After everyone had calmed down, or collapsed with joy, we collected a check for $500 (to go towards Uni Games W.A) and our beautiful trophy. Being Uni students, the trophy has already been drunk out of and will soon be engraved to a possibly substandard level by one of us to save costs (only kidding, we are awesome engravers). Thanks to Jack H for hosting a post-regatta celebration at his house. There was copious seafood (thanks Ellie), loud music to offend elderly neighbours and extreme tiredness made worse by beer. Hopefully, some video footage of the Throsby Gift and other Sprint Regatta footage will be uploaded to the website (nubc.info) in the near future. Thanks to Hugh Dunstan for filming on the day.
Upcoming Events NUBC Nelson Bay Trip (Dec 20). All Welcome! Taree Summer Regatta (Jan 1517) Christmas - have a good one!
NUBC Sprint Relay Crew 2009
NUBC Sprint Team 2009