News
The Catch: July 2025
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Welcome to July's issue of the ANA News.
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NEW MEMBERS This month we welcome the following new members registering in June:
Thanks to several of our new members for assisting more experienced members with the recent Bunnings BBQ at Bayswater. Despite heavy rain and cold temperatures the team kept busy with lots of sales. We also fondly farewell Sue HS as she commences rowing in Ballarat after moving east for family commitments. We hope you stay in touch with the Club and pop in for a row when you come back. On that subject, there is a widespread 'guest row' process across Australia where travelling rowers can arrange a casual row with interstate clubs - great if you are interstate for work or holiday. You can locate contact details through Rowing Australia affiliate links or WIKIPEDIA (subject to accuracy). |
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UPDATES FROM THE COMMITTEE June's meeting was essentially 'business as usual' with not much to report on:
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SAFETY AND SECURITY It is apparent that we are paying more attention to safety related matters, this is great to see. Some things we always need to consider are:
Disappointingly, there have been a few security incidents of late. We have been extremely lucky that this has not resulted in theft or damage, but let's not leave this to chance. There have been previous occasions of cars being broken into, so the threat is always there. Examples of recent security concerns are:
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SPOTLIGHT ON ... RECREATIONAL ROWERS ANA has by far the largest number of 'Rec Rowers' in WA who are a vital part of the Club. There are several opportunities for Rec Rowers to take part in organised squads, row in singles or form your own crew. Current organised offerings are organised via WhatsApp groups:
Please contact the organisers prior to attending - details are contained HERE |
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RACING NEWS The Canning Bridge Classic regatta was held on 8 June 2025 and saw Max, Thomas, David and Luca take part in their first RWA Pennant. Remarkably Max and Thomas won the Men's Division 2 Pair, taking line honours against crews of younger and more experienced rowers. David and Luca joined in for the Men's Division 2 Coxed Quad, with Indra coxing them to second place out of six crews, setting the bar for the remainder of the pennant season. Sadly the Perth to Fremantle Head Race, scheduled for 22 June was cancelled due to severe wind and wave conditions. With winds up to 30km/hr ANA fully supported RWA's decision to postpone the event until 5 July when hopefully the conditions are more suitable for the 16km race from the Old Swan Brewery to the Fremantle Rowing Club. The Racing group would like to give a massive thanks to Sarah and Susan, who volunteered to be safety marshals on the race course. After navigating some seriously choppy water between ANA and the Narrows Bridge, they were turned back after being advised of the race's cancellation. Without the volunteering of our Club members it would not be possible to hold these races. The racing focus now shifts to the RWA Pennant Series with the first regatta being held on 19 July. The RWA Indoor Rowing championships are being held on 27 July 2025 at the UWA Recreation and Fitness Centre. This event is open to ALL rowers as well as the general public. This event often sees stiff competition from gym goers and Cross-Fit competitors over a variety of age groups, distances and styles, including relay events. It would be great to see a good representation of club members at this event - for further details click HERE |
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JUNIOR RACING NEWS Firstly a big congratulations to Graham on his selection as the coach of the WA U22 women's squad, and overall team manager for the Oceania Teams Rowing Championships to be held at West Lakes rowing centre, Adelaide, from 24 to 27 July. It's great to have your achievements recognised in such a public manner. All Schools Regatta 1 was held on 15 June. For many of them this was the first time they experienced the challenge of lining up at the start with other crews and trying to stay in their lane! The All Schools Regatta series enables children from clubs and schools that do not participate in PSA or IGSSA regattas to compete in organised rowing competitions. This was a bit of a logistical feat as we had 15 rowers in 21 events, with the draw not being conducive to boat-sharing, requiring the use of more boats and oars than otherwise expected. Well done to Graham and Captain Peter for working the logistics out while trying to leave some boats in the shed for the rest of the Club. Wins to:
Minor placings were taken by 7 other ANA crews. All Schools Regatta 2 was held on 28 June with 21 rowers entering in 18 events. A total of 380 rowers entered this regatta, making it the biggest All Schools regatta held in WA in terms of athlete numbers and separate race entries (956 seats raced). Its great to see the sport expanding beyond the traditional rowing schools, and certainly adds to the depth of competition experienced. Wins to:
13 other ANA crews filling the minor placings The Junior Dev Squad will be without their supercoach Ingrid for a couple of weeks as she flies out to compete in the World Open Water Swimming Championships in Singapore. Seems weird to be in the water rather than on top of it but we won't hold that against her! Good luck Ingrid and safe travels.
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LADIES NIGHT Upon its formation in 1920, the ANA Rowing Club was an affiliate of the larger ANA Aquatic Club and was limited to male rowers born in Australia. In 1923 the ANA Ladies Rowing Club was formed as a separate affiliate entity, however, this was not long-lived, dissolving in the late 1920’s. At the committee meeting held in 27 October 1978 a motion was passed to "constitutionally ratify the decision made previously to incorporate females within the Club's structure" Women now represent 61% of the Club’s membership, and what better way to celebrate the opportunity for us to discover new friends amongst the different groups than a Ladies Night to be held on Friday 11 July at the Guildford Hotel. Bookings are essential, please RSVP HERE by 7 July to secure your seat at the table! |
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BLAST FROM THE PAST - REG DAY, AARON MARSHALL and RON DODDS Have you ever wondered why our boats are named as they are? Wonder no more. Each month we will bring you some of the history of our most used boats, appropriately starting with Reg Day, Aaron Marshall and Ron Dodds who were integral to the Club's foundation in 1920. Reg “Dick” Day (the 'Reg Day' eight) became actively involved with ANA in the early 1930’s as a very competitive oarsman. During World War II, Reg, with assistance from Aaron Marshall (the 'A Marshall’ coxed quad), trained Air Training Corps cadets using ANA’s rowing boats. Many of these servicemen joined ANA post-war and were again coached by Reg. Aaron was the Club Captain during this time. After senior coach Paddy Ryan's death, Reg, Aaron, and Ron Dodds (‘the Dodds’ double scull) kept the Club going, leading to ANA winning their first senior 8+ State Championship and overall Premiership in 1949. Reg’s success led to his appointment as WA’s King's Cup coach in 1951, 1952, and 1953, with three of his ANA rowers making the 1955 King's Cup crew. Something to consider next time you are in these boats (when you are not concentrating on rowing!). Further images and information about our history can be found at the ANA Centenary Facebook page.
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COMING UP THIS MONTH... This month we pretend it isn't cold by keeping busy!
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