Grey College Boat Club

Grey College Boat Club (GCBC) is the rowing club of Grey College at Durham University in North East England.[1]

Grey College Boat Club
MottoGradibus ascendimus (Ascending by degrees)
LocationDunelm House, Durham
Home waterRiver Wear
Founded1959 (1959)
Membership70 active members
AffiliationsBritish Rowing, Grey College

The club has over 70 active members and shares its boathouse with Josephine Butler College Boat Club.[2] The club competes at a national, regional and college level, with notable success in the 2023 Head of the River Race.

GCBC Senate Crew, 1965

Boathouse and Fleet

Grey College Boat House is located at Dunelm House on the River Wear between Kingsgate Bridge and Elvet Bridge, a ten-minute walk away from Grey College. [3]

Grey College Boat Club owns two VIIIs, the 'Brian Seal', and 'Tom James'.

The club also own a number of IVs, and other smaller boats including a double scull named 'Whip-ma-whop-ma-gate' after the street in York.[4]

The Men's 1st IV is a Stampfli called 'Schilders, snel beser'. The Women's 1st IV is a Janousek called 'These Girls Can'. Another IV owned by the boat club is 'The Golden Phoenix', the unofficial symbol of the college which was adopted after a fire devastated the main accommodation block in March, 1959.

Racing Calendar & Results

Grey College Boat Club compete throughout the year in many head races and regattas in the North East of England. Over the last few years, events competed in include:

National Events

Regional events

  • Durham Regatta
  • Rutherford Head
  • Tyne United New Year's Head
  • Durham City Regatta
  • Durham SBH
  • Tyne Head

College events

Head of the River Race

Grey College Boat Club routinely sends an M1 and M2 to the Head of the River Race, with notable success in recent years. The club's highest finish position is recorded below:

Year Finish position Time Crew
2023 168th 19.36 Coxswain: A.Baker, Stroke: L.Jones, J.Bowers, T.Mercieca, J.Gondzic, G.Drake, H.Garrard, F.Fleming, Bow: O.Wilcockson

Women's Head of the River

The boat club also regularly sends a W1 to Women's Head, achieving a number of strong results over multiple decades. The club's highest finish position is recorded below:

Year Finish position Time
2003 137th 23.41

Durham Regatta

Grey College Boat Club has seen notable success in recent years at Durham Regatta. In 1995 the Men's Novice IV won the Lady Hershall Plate for the first time in over twenty years (Tock, C., Owens, L., Moxey, D., Blake, B. and Kelly, R. [cox]). In 2009, the Women's first IV won the novice event, and in 2010, the Men's first VIII won both days of the regatta. There have since been a number of successes, most recently in 2023 when a crew won the Five Alive Trophy. Awards won since 2009 are listed below:

Event Year Result Crew
The Danny Webster Memorial Cup 2009 Winners (W Nov 4+)
The Barry Ward-Thompson Trophy 2010 Winners (Col 4+)
The Alderman Thurlow Trophy 2010 Winners (Nov 8+) T.Munro, A.Hatch, J.Davies, A.Palmer, J.Turner, A.Newton, N.Collard, G.Critchley, D.Benhamou (Cox)
Joseph Brown Challenge Cup 2010 Winners (IM3 8+) T.Munro, A.Hatch, J.Davies, A.Palmer, J.Turner, A.Newton, N.Collard, G.Critchley, D.Benhamou (Cox)
The Prince Bishop Trophy 2011 Winners (W IM3 8+)
The Lady Herschell Plate 2013 Winners (Nov 4+)
Bell and Ridley Challenge Cup 2022 Winner (Op Int 1x) E.Bowman
The Five Alive Trophy 2023 Winners (Op NC 4x+) H.Garrard, T.Mercieca, L.Jones, J.Bowers, A.Baker (Cox)

Club structure

Any member of Grey College JCR, MCR or SCR is eligible to join Grey College Boat Club, alongside students from Ustinov College. Any other student of Durham University may join with the permission of the President. The club is run by an executive committee elected by club members throughout the year. The executive committee is composed of the President, Men's Captain, Women's Captain, Men's Vice Captain, Women's Vice Captain, Treasurer, Boatman and Welfare Officer.

Grey College Boat Club holds an annual Ball each year in Epiphany term which is the highlight of the boat club's social calendar. At this event, a formal thank you to out-going members of the executive committee is offered and results of the current and previous seasons are celebrated.

See also

References
  1. Durham College Rowing. "List of Clubs in Durham". Archived from the original on 5 August 2011. Retrieved 28 June 2010.
  2. Durham College Rowing. "River Wear". Archived from the original on 28 July 2012. Retrieved 28 June 2010.
  3. Amateur Rowing Association. "ARA Club Finder". Retrieved 28 June 2010.
  4. York City Centre. "Whip-ma-whop-ma-gate". Retrieved 28 June 2010.
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