Dittons Skiff & Punting Club
attempt on the
Guinness World Record
for
Rowing non-stop from Lechlade to Southend
Dittons aim to take have taken back the Giant
Meander Record:
THEY HAVE DONE IT!!!
They crossed the line at 10:57am
In a time of 30 hours 57 minutes 37 seconds
(Time confirmed)
Malcolm Knight is going for the Single Giant Meander
on is own starting
7th to 9th April 2005
See Malcolm's pages for details
Come and be part of the action, novice
nights start Wednesday 5th May 2004
Check out the pictures,
also read the lastest
press release.
Read
the BBC News Coverage
The Giant Meander is from Lechlade Bridge to Southend
Pier, a distance of 185.88 miles. It’s called a meander, due to
the winding nature of the Thames. In 1989 the Dittons crew of Kevin Thomas,
Malcolm Knight and Simon Leifer completed this in 39 hours 27 minutes.
In 1993, a 5 man crew from Lower Thames Rowing Club beat this with a
new record time of 38 hours and 43 minutes.
Now we want to win we've won the record
back. Well done guys :)
The Finish!
Southend Pier
See more of
Saturday's pictures
The crew got great support along the way from large numbers
of club members!
Overview
Crews from the Dittons
Skiff & Punting Club have set four Guinness world records in the last 16 years. The Giant Meander in 1988, the furthest distance rowed in 24
hours in 1993, the fastest crow across the Channel in 1997 and the fastest row from London to Paris in 1999. Each of these has been a formidable
challenge, requiring extensive training and preparation.
The Giant Meander is from Lechlade Bridge to Southend
Pier, a distance of 185.88 miles. It’s called a meander, due to
the winding nature of the Thames. In 1989 the Dittons crew of Kevin Thomas,
Malcolm Knight and Simon Leifer 3 completed this in 39 hours 27 minutes.
In 1993, a 5 man crew from Lower Thames Rowing Club beat this with a
new record time of 38 hours and 43 minutes.
“Now Mark Hobson, Richard Carless, John Graham, Mike
Hart, Simon Leifer and Chris Milward want to win it back!”
The course covers 124 miles of non-tidal river above Teddington Lock, and then 61 miles down through the centre of London and
the Thames estuary to Southend. During this part of the trip, about half the time will be spent rowing against the tide. To set the record, the
crew must be in the boat the whole time it is moving, but they are allowed to get out at any of the 44 locks or other resting places. The crew
can sleep if they want, but the time taken is the elapsed time from start to finish. In reality there is no sleeping during the 38 hours.
We will attempt to beat this time on April 23rd with a crew of 6 in a 4 man skiff, Skean Dhu, an unique boat owned by the Thames
Traditional Boat Society. We plan to start in the early hours of the morning on Friday 23rd, row through that night and finish in the early evening
of Saturday.
Skean Dhu
A Thames Skiff is traditional rowing boat, which has undergone very few technology changes over history. They are clinker built
(overlapping planks) from hard wood, and much heavier than modern racing boats. Generally, there are no moving parts: no rowlocks or sliding seats.
Instead, the oars have leather collars sitting in between two wooden posts (thall pins).
Skiffs were a Victorian luxury, and featured in “Three men in a Boat”. Today they are leisure craft, frequently appearing
at Henley Royal Regatta, and we race in the summer months at Regattas organised by the Skiff Racing Association.
Fund Raising
While we are doing this
for the achievement, and the fun (really?), we have always used record attempts to raise funds for charity. Over £30,000 so far. This time
we are supporting two very good causes where crew members have a specific interest. They are the Cherry Tree Upstairs Appeal and the Crescent Centre.
Cherry
Trees provides respite care for children who have severe learning and physical disabilities.
The Crescent resource centre provides day care and facilities for elderly and disabled people in Kingston. Primary funding is
provided by the Borough, but extra facilities, trips out and the other bits that make life more worthwhile are funded by the users, where able
and by voluntary donations.
The crew will also donate to the nominated charities of the Mayor of Elmbridge, which are The Alzheimer's Trust and Bliss.
Sponsorship
We ask for your generosity to support us and our fundraising in this event with both individual and corporate sponsorships. Our
previous records got wide coverage in national and local press, TV and radio.
For the most recent event, London to Paris, we had a daily update on BBC London News Network and a documentary piece on Southern.
Footage was included in the introduction to the Sports Personality of the Year. In the 24 hour row and the previous Giant Meander, we did live
interviews from the boat!
There are sponsorship opportunities on clothing and branding on the boat and blades. Please contact any member of the crew, or
Adrian Holder at Aholder44@hotmail.com for further details.
Useful web links:
http://www.cherry-trees.co.uk/
http://www.ttbs.org/
http://www.skiffing.org.uk/
http://text.rya.org.uk/Regions/ThamesValley/clubs.asp?clubId=2437476
http://www.guinnessworldrecords.com/
http://www.greatriverrace.co.uk/
http://www.portoflondon.co.uk/index_site.cfm?site=leisure
http://www.riverthames.co.uk/
http://www.environment-agency.gov.uk/subjects/navigation/150319/?lang=_e
Preparation
This kind of event is successful only after a great deal of preparation, hard work, and support from family, friends and colleagues.
We have done it before and know how much it takes, so thank you everybody for your help. We are training 4 times per week, but there will be no
mention of the early morning starts, the all day rows, nor the aches, pains and blisters. Some of these sessions last for 8 – 10 hours, so
please spare a thought for the long-suffering families.
During the event, 50 people are needed to help for periods through the day and night. Dittons is a great club, and there are always
volunteers, but please everybody don’t be backward in coming forward! On the tidal river, Albany Motor Yacht Club are providing cruisers
for support and in case of an emergency.
