ROWING.

Auckland Star, Volume XXXVIII, Issue 250, 19 October 1907, Page 12

ROWING.

The rowing season opens to-day.

The garden party tendered to the Auckland Rowing Club by their commodore (Dr. Stuart B. Reid) at his residence, brakei-road, Remuera, on Saturday last, was a conspicuous- success. Fortunately, the weather kept fine. There was a very large attendance of members and their friends, whilst the other local rowing clubs, as well as the Auckland Rowing Association, were well represented. There was an exceptionally large attendance of ladies, and their bright costumes, and evident intention to enjoy the afternoon, added greatly to the gaiety and animation of the scene. The many varied sports and competitions provided were entered into with zest. The shooting competition was responsible for a large number of entries, and some very fine records were put up, the winner (Mr Barber) securing six "bulls-eyes" in the final round. The Auckland City Band, under Bandmaster West, was in attendance, and their delightful selections enhanced the attractiveness of the afternoon. A very pleasing feature of the function was the presentation to the commodore of a photographic shield "showing the past season's executive of the club, with the commodore in the centre. Mr William Coleman (president) made the presentation on behalf of the club members, and, in doing so, eulogised the splendid services 'of the doctor in promoting the interests of the club. ;He was-a commodore they might well be proud of. (Applause.) The "boys" then gave three cheers for Dr. and Mrs Reid, "supplementing this with their War Chant. "Karearea." In responding, Dr. -Reid emphasised the importance of the club keeping up-to-date. He was glad that the club would shortly have an eight-oared boat, and was particularly keen that this class of rowing should be introduced in Auckland. He trusted the other clubs would follow suit, and saw no" reason why, in the near future, Auckland should not be able to send a crew over to Australia, who would uphold the honour of New Zealand on the water in the same way that the "All Blacks" had done in the football field. Thanks to the doctor's generosity in promoting and providing the garden party, the club's funds for the purchase of eightoared boats has been augmented by about £20.

The present season promises to eclipse any previous ones so far as regattas are concerned. Already three regattas have been arranged, following closely on each other's heels, and crews will need to get into training right away. The first of the season is the Association's regatta, which will be held at Mercer this year on December 7th. Ponsonby regatta follows on December 21st, and Whangarei comes next, on New Year's Day. The following new rules were adopted at the last annual meeting of the New Zealand Amateur Rowing Association: 1. The names of judge or judges, umpire or umpires, and starter for all regattas other than the championship regatta, must be submitted to and approved of by the local Association under whose jurisdiction the regatta is held.

2. At the conclusion of the regatta it shall be the duty of the regatta secretary to secure from the umpire or umpires a signed statement certifying that there have been no disqualifications. The said signed statement shall be placed before the Regatta Committee at its first subsequent meeting, and shall be the authority to pay the prize money. A regatta committee paying prize money before receiving the official statement shall do so at its own risk.

3. Any crew not having been started m a race shall not take part in that race, nor in any way interfere with that race, under a penalty not exceeding £2, the amount to be paid by the club whose representatives have infringed this rule.

An effort has been made (says the "Sydney Evening News") to induce Stanbury to go into training again, with a view of wresting from Webb the title of the world's champion sculler. A well known sporting man, and a solid backer of his, approached Stanbury on the subject after Charlie Towns' defeat by the New Zealander, but he remains firm in his determination to give up rowing. His intention is to settle on the land, but up to the present bad luck seems to follow him, for he has been unsuccessful at every ballot. He is still a resident of Ryde.

When questioned by an "Evening News" representative as to Tresidder's chances against Webb in the forthcoming championship race on the Wanganui River, Stanbury said: "They tell mc Tresidder is rowing well at 'Newcastle, and is only 101b over weight. If he gets on as well as he used to be he will put up a good race, and I think he will beat •Webb." Stanbury's opinion is that Tresidder's age (38) would militate against his retaining the championship for any length of time should he succeed in wresting it from "Webb. Stanbury points out that there are no marine laws in New Zealand controlling boat rraces, and that the absence of -such -a controlling

power is a serious drawback in connection with first-class sculling that should be remedied at once.

The West End Rowing Club hold their first trial fours of the season on November 2nd, when trophies presented by their patron (Mr T. -Peacock) will be rowed for. This club has recently ordered a new racing' four from Messrs Edwards and Sons, of Melbourne. The boat is expected to arrive early in December.