ROWING

Poverty Bay Herald, Volume LIX, Issue 17954, 5 December 1932, Page 10

ROWING

SHIELD REGATTA DATE EFFORT TO AVOID CLASH RACING MEN’S PROPOSAL Oarsmen throughout the East Coast Rowing Association’s district, including those of the Wairoa and Napier clubs, have evinced much interest in the question of the date selected for the annual competition in connection with the L.V.A. and Colley and’ Kirk shelts. These trophies arc held by the Poverty Bay club, and will be rowed for this year on the Waipaoa River, in which tidal conditions will be most suitablo for the purposes of the regatta on Saturday, February 11. As this date was also originally selected by tho Poverty Bay Turf Club for the second day of its summer meeting, and a clash was most undesirable from tho oarsmen’s point of view, every effort has been made by the Rowing Association to reach some agreement with tho Turf Club. The hitter body, however, is under an obligation to consider not only its own interests, but also those of the other racing clubs on the East Coast circuit, namciy the Wairoa, Tolaga Bay, ltuatoria, and Opotild clubs. Any variation of the original arrangements made by the Poverty Bay Turf Club may involve one or more of the other clubs in difficulties, especially with' regard to the visits of horses from outside the district.

Inquiries made to-day elicited tho information that the Turf Club’s programme committee, after considering all the factors in the situation, had been unable to alter its arrangements to race on February 9 and 11. The effect of this decision is that a clash of interests will occur unless the Rowing Association is able to effect some alteration in .its programme of regatta competitions. There are alternative suggestions, one of which has been evolved by rowing men who wish to see both the races and tho regatta, and the other being advanced by racing men of the district.

ALTERNATIVE PROPOSALS The first is that the Rowing Association might arrange to hold the Neill Shield sculling contests and also the new pair-oar competition on the Wairoa River on February 11, and leave tho L.V.A. and Colley and Company shield contests to a date a few weeks later in the season. If this could be arranged, fewer oarsmen would be engaged on the date already selected for the Turf Club’s meeting, and those enthusiasts who wish to see both the major rowing events and the races will be able to do so. The racing men’s suggestion is that the shield regatta on the Waipaoa River might be rowed on Friday, February 10-, between the first, and second days of tho Poverty Bay Turf Club’s meeting. The difficulty associated with this proposal is in arranging for leave for the men engaged from the various clubs. Each club in the association’s area will be represented at this regatta by upwards of 20 men, and while Gisborne business men might be prepared to facilitate the conduct of the regatta on Hie Friday, in recognition of the desirability of increasing the importance of race week, the employers of oarsmen in Wairoa and Napier might not respond with the same readiness. Both suggestions are worthy of consideration by the association, however, and if anything is to he done to avoid the threatened clash with the racing date, it should be done soon. Tho views of the Napier and Wairoa clubs could be consulted without loss of time, and it would not be too late to change the arrangements for the regatta if those clubs could be induced to agree. The matter of leave for Gisborne and Poverty Bay oarsmen could be taken up with the employers’ organisations in the meanwhile, and if put in the right light the question should receive favorable consideration. As crows for the L.V.A. Shield competitions have been nominated already in at loast one of the clubs, any change in the arrangements would have to be mado soon, if at all.

MILLER CUP EVENTS

FINALITY THIS WEEK It is hoped that, the annual competition between the Poverty Bay and Gisborne clubs for the Miller -Inter-Club Cup will be finalised this week, or at least by Monday next. The competition is arousing greater interest among club members this season than for two seasons, the standard of oarsmanship in both clubs being generally higher than .in recent years. The President’s fours series of the respective clubs will bo commenced tomorrow, it is anticipated, and by Friday the semi-final stages will he readied. The Miller Inter-Club Cup .is contested annually in a series oi four races, in which tho semi-finalists of the two clubs meet eacli other. The first crews defeated in the respective club series will meet, possibly on Friday evening, in the first races for the Miller trophy, and the winners and losers in the respective club finals will meet later in continuation of the interclub competition. To date, the Poverty Bay club has enjoyed an unbroken run of success in connection with the Miller trophy, and members of that club anticipate success in this year’s racing. The feature, of the competition is that its conditions, enable men who might, have to Avail, a season or two for representative honors to take part in intei-dub incing. as the Presidents’ Fours series of both the Poverty Bay and Gisborne clubs are contested by the whole of the active membership, and crews are not selected especially to take part in the Miller Cup races. The Gisborne club’s committee has announced tho draw for first round racing in the President’s Fours as under: — Tuesday.—ll. Hunter v. A. G. Leutill; IC. Bell v. D. Alexander; C. Annstrong v. 11. Ilankey. Wednesday.—R. Rait v. A. F, Allen; R. DeCosta v. G. Forbes. Hyes.—G. J. Jcune, It. Hanna, and G. C. Jones.