1972

Five-day Henley under way with 26 qualifying heats Wednesday

St. Catharines RC entries in five finals

By Craig Swayze (Ont.)

Click here to see full size. Impressive start - The Kennebecasis Rowing Club of Rothesay, N.B. coached by Jerry Leinert, made an impressive debut at the Royal Canadian Henley Regatta yesterday. Shown above, extreme left, is the Rothesay junior four with coxwain which placed second to Toronto Argonauts in its beat and qualified for the final. Kennebecasis also won its heat in the junior 155- pound eights. Leinert Is a former St. Catharines Rowing Club head coach.

For the last few years, the Henley story has been Four Days In A Row. But they've had to change it this time out.

With 26 heats chunking down a flat calm Henley Course yesterday afternoon, the national rowing championships became a five-day regatta for the first time in its colorful 92-year history.

But for the moment any- way, nothing much else had changed. Defending champion St. Catharines Rowing Club crews won the afternoon's first two races - heats of the junior cox pairs - and added two other firsts when Peter Murdza took one of the junior 135-pound singles and a junior 145-pound four came through in its elimination.

It was all enough to give the stripe-shirted St. Catharines youngsters an early jump of 54 rival clubs in pursuit of what could be their 14th consecutive Royal Canadian Henley Regatta points crown.

There were no points published following yesterday's opening heats. Those will come with the completion of today's nine finals.

But in all, St. Catharines RC qualified five entries from the opening day's competition. In addition to the winners, Ross Yeo used a second in the junior 135-pound single to gain a berth in today's final.

Getting under way at 3:30 p.m. today, the second day of action at this 92nd Henley rows through 7:40 p.m.

While heats can often be deadly, there was plenty of action throughout yesterday's program.

And showing the way were the ever-colorful Mexicans and a gang of Maritimers making their first Henley appearance in the colors of the Kennebecasis Rowing Club of Renforth, N.B.

Edgar Tams started the ball rolling for Mexico by winning a heat of the junior 155-pound single handily. Sculling in the colors of the Mexican national squad, he had open water on the remainder of the five-boat field to clock 7:43.5 for the 2000-metre distance.

Then came teammate Hugo Enriquez in a heat of the junior 135-pound single. He splashed home by inches over Ross Yeo in 8:12.4 with Pablo Rion of Club Espana following in the next heat with a second behind winner Jim McCullough of Buffalo West Sides. McCullough clocked 7:41.1 in winning.

It was a national team boat which brought Mexico a win in the opening heat of the junior fours, besting Toronto Argonauts and three other en- tries in 6:30.8. That followed a hard-working Mexican national junior 145-pound four qualifying with a second to that St. Catharines RC boat.

Clocking 6:40.2 to win, the St. Catharines lightweights rowed as J. P. Bura, Maynard Schultz, Tim Purcer and stroke Mark MacLean. The winning St. Catharines junior cox pairs lined up as Henry Vanbreda, stroke Jeff Hager and cox Kai Syri in one with Fred Vaughn, stroke Roger Gemmell and cox Matt Newman in the other.

Kennebecasis made its biggest splash in the first heat of the junior 145-pound fours.

The New Brunswickers pounded down the course in 6:10.8 (the fastest of the three heats) to cross the line a good three lengths up on Minnesota, with Wyandotte, Argos and St. Catharines trailing in that order.

In the junior cox four, Kennebecasis had to be satisfied with a close second to Argonauts. But it was still enough to qualify for today's final.

The only other New Brunswick entry yesterday was in the junior fours. The same four boys who rowed a second in the junior cox four heat took off again, but wound up fourth and out of the running in a race which event to Belmont (Mass.) Rowing Club.

One of the heats of the junior 145-pound fours provided the Henley Grandstand with its biggest thrill of the afternoon when a Brockville Rowing Club entry rowed right up onto the presentation float. somewhat off course, the Brockville crew cut from No. 2 lane all the way across the course. Ottawa managed to avoid a last-minute collision with the BRC entry to win and in clinching second, the Eastern Ontario youngsters had their shell clip the floating dock.

Fortunately for them, there was no damage despite the fact that the shell slid up on the dock all the way to the No. 2 seat.

A protest lodged by another crew in this race was disallowed and the finish stands. St. Catharines entries in the junior fours failed to make it, finishing third and fifth. And in the junior cox four, one Cerise and Blue boat wound up third and out while the other was late for the start and the race went off without it.

Bad luck also dogged the St. Catharines junior 155-pound eight. Pounding along in the five-boat pack, broken equipment forced the crew to abandon the race after just 800 metres.

With today's program of nine finals and 17 heats getting under way at 3:30 p.m. and going through 7:40 p.m., Friday's eight finals and 25 heats will go at 2:10 p.m. and finish at the same time in the evening.