During Michaelmas Term reading week, LSERC were kindly hosted by Queens' College Cambridge for three days of training (and drinking). Despite committee concerns at first about the organisation of the event, the trip was a huge success with no damage caused - if we don’t count livers and immune systems. Having a stretch of river free of currents and the tideway code was quite the delight, and the bends offered a brand-new challenge for our novice coxes (as well as Francesca’s blood pressure).
We were able to utilise the erg and S&C facilities available within the boathouse, and even caught a Cambridge blue rower at work on the erg motivated by classical music, just like our own men’s captain! It was inspiring to see the effort that goes into maintaining such impressive fitness – and one of our novice crew decided that this provided the perfect opportunity to network and gain some erg tips from the pro. Classic LSE!
However, the trip was not all about rowing as Cambridge offered a variety of social entertainment for the evening – shame we went to the same spoons and the same club for both nights I suppose. The cinema-turned-Wetherspoons hosted the team well before we moved onto MASH, which proudly holds a 2.5-star rating. MASH was so beloved by the entire squad that a select few made it back for a second night – and I loved it so much that I even went back for thirds.
But alas, the intense training and even more intense drinking meant that a few of our weaker members suffered greatly. We lost our social sec, a cox, and even a few rowers to the struggle of late nights and early mornings and sadly they departed from the training camp early – but miraculously they all bounced back in time for Re-AUnion the following Wednesday.
Overall, the trip was a wonderful experience. We were able to train in amazing facilities, row on a beautiful stretch of the river, bond as a team, and take advantage of 5 jägerbombs for £5!
You can watch a video of some of the highlights of the trip here: https://fb.watch/iUGBJ29cLg/
By Eleanor Cartlidge, Women's Senior Captain
