If you’ve been anywhere near Cambridge in the past couple of weeks, you’ve probably been stopped by your local rower and subjected to an incessant monologue about their recent Lent Bumps campaign. It’s even more likely that this relentless ramble lulled you into a level of sleep that rowers can only dream of. Six weeks of early-morning training, ergs and weights sessions culminated in one of the Cambridge sporting highlights of the Lent term.
Lent Bumps consists of five days of rowing across eight divisions, around 110 crews, 120 coxes, 960 rowers and countless CUCBC (Cambridge University Combined Boat Clubs) helpers. Owing to the River Cam’s narrow channel, rather than competing side-by-side, boats race end-to-end, with the objective of ‘bumping’ the boat in front (which usually resembles an underwhelming raising of the cox’s hand). After being temporarily deafened by the cannon beneath Motorway Bridge, the crews embark on a 2.2km course, though many races end early with a bump. Those who row the entire way to the Pike & Eel are said to have ‘rowed over’ and are left with red faces, wondering why they signed up for this in the first place. These positions switch for the next day’s racing, and make up a final league table that determines the start positions for day one of next year’s Lent Bumps.
CamFM provides popular live radio coverage to those who couldn’t attend. From the viewpoint of a spectator not seduced by rowing’s allure, Lent Bumps tends to be a confusing yet entertaining melee of over-enthusiastic coxes, ear-splitting whistles, and crashes into Grassy Corner. Meanwhile, for the common rower, Lent Bumps is the pinnacle of their sporting calendar so far, and supposedly justifies their criminal lack of sleep.
“This prompted the Maggie coach’s bike to be thrown into the nettles in fury”
Open Headship: Caius dethrones Lady Margaret
Among the Cambridge rowing scene, Caius men had been widely dubbed the fastest crew on the river. The nature of bumps racing meant their pursuit of headship – three places higher than their Wednesday start position – was not not to be an easy feat. On the first day, they comfortably bumped Clare, who went on to slip down to seventh place, before the tougher challenge of Downing on Thursday. Downing’s crew, who underwent a significant change in personnel from last year, seemed full of talent and watts when three whistles rang out on Lady Margaret on Grassy Corner, signalling they were very close to the front. This plan to catch Lady Margaret off the start and avoid being bumped by Caius ended in tears however, as Caius plugged away, getting their next victims just after the Plough beer garden. Two from two for the week.
Friday saw the long-awaited showdown between Lady Margaret Boat Club and Caius, though it was not what either boat club or even the neutral would have wanted to see. Less than a minute after Lady Margaret’s speedy and silky rowing off the start, a crab on the first corner killed their boat speed and ended their hopes of keeping headship. This prompted the Maggie coach’s bike to be thrown into the nettles in fury, and the two crews pulled in before First Post Corner, handing headship back to Caius after a six-year hiatus. Caius stroke seat Bryan Chen told Varsity: “No one wants a headship handover to go without a race, and we were really looking forward to giving (Lady Margaret O1) a good chase. Maggie is a strong crew, and one that we hugely respect, so we wanted to show ourselves that we earned this headship, which I’d say we did on Saturday.” Caius comfortably rowed over the following day, in front of a packed Plough pub and a riverbank lined with hundreds of spectators, to secure their first headship in five years.
Women’s Headship: Jesus W1 extend their reign
In the women’s division, Jesus W1 retained headship for a fourth consecutive year. A Trinity Hall bump on Lady Margaret on Thursday handed Jesus a comfortable row over on day two, as the sun shone in conditions scarcely seen at this time of year. Saturday brought great drama however, as Jesus was chased all the way down the Reach, and for a while, the whistles sounded loud enough that it looked like Trinity Hall may usurp their rivals in dramatic fashion. Yet the grit and cohesion of the Jesus eight saw them extend after the bridge and put clear water between themselves and Trinity Hall, securing a fifth headship in as many years. Trinity Hall W1 climbed to second in the division after bumping Downing W1 and Lady Margaret W1 along the way.
Jesus W1 look imperious, holding both headships and managing to train their novices to a high standard, whereby they can effortlessly slot into the senior squads after their Michaelmas novice term. Having earnt blades through maintaining headship throughout the week, they extend their reign at the top into 2027.
Blades, Spoons and Heartbreak
“Corpus Christi O1’s blades were particularly celebrated, marking their first since 2011 and their first at Lent Bumps since 2006”
Blades are awarded to crews who bump every day and are a hallmark of every college bar. In the open divisions, blades were picked up by Caius O1, Caius O2, Corpus Christi O1 and Emmanuel O3. The women’s crews had more success: Jesus W1, St Catherine’s W1, Lucy Cavendish W1, Wolfson W1, Emmanuel W3, Wolfson W2 and Magdalene W2 all won blades, whereas St Edmund’s W1 and Jesus W3 picked up the illustrious super blades for bumping five times, achieved by bumping as the ‘sandwich boat’.
Corpus Christi O1’s blades were particularly celebrated, marking their first since 2011 and their first at Lent Bumps since 2006. They swiftly rounded up Hughes Hall O1, Homerton O1, Girton O1 and Churchill O1 to finally hoist their makeshift flag – crafted from a soggy jumper and a twig – on the row back home. Corpus’ Men’s Captain Owen Marlovits called it “a victory not just on the water but also on land as the squad showed an excellent mentality throughout the races, constantly bringing their best every single day.” Securing blades leaves them fifth in the O2 division, still a far cry from their glory days in the late 19th century, where they took headship in the inaugural Lent Bumps.
Murray Edwards W1 were perhaps the hardest done by. Having bumped Magdalene W1, Corpus W1 and Fitzwilliam W1, they were on for blades come Saturday, chasing a Queens’ W1 crew who had dropped down from the division above. Coming around First Post Corner, they looked destined to catch Queens’, with whistles blaring to indicate they were within two-thirds of a boat length. But disaster struck at the infamous Grassy Corner: the Medwards stroke seat caught an overhead crab, setting off a chain reaction and diverting the entire boat into a tree. Left in an unrecoverable position, they were bumped back by Fitzwilliam W1. For Medwards W1 cox Eliza Dent, the last-minute disappointment “gives the crew more of an opportunity to come back stronger and faster in May Bumps.”
“Spooning three times over, Magdalene’s dignity was only saved by the successes of their W2 crew”
Spoons, awarded to crews bumped every day, went to Clare W1, Magdalene W1, King’s W1, Emmanuel W2 and Hughes Hall W2 in the women’s divisions, and to Clare O1, Magdalene O1, Peterhouse O1, Homerton O1, Hughes Hall O1, Clare O2, Magdalene O2 and Selwyn O2 in the open divisions. Spooning three times over, Magdalene’s dignity was only saved by the successes of their W2 crew, who managed to achieve blades. Clare was not so fortunate, finishing with the lowest Marconi Cup score of -45. The Marconi Cup, awarded to the boat club that enjoyed the most overall success, was won this year by Wolfson Boat Club with a score of 40 – their W1 and W2 earning blades, and their O1 bumping twice.
Fines, Fees and Festivities
Other than the inevitable raucousness at The Plough, the most entertaining part of Bumps for the neutral is reading over some of the fines handed out by CUCBC. Sidney Sussex O1 were fined £75, their cox was disqualified, and they were awarded a penalty bump for crashing into Caius O2 and Homerton O1 on Plough Reach. Trinity Hall W1 were clearly too keen to bump to headship on the final day and decided to bring half of their college to the bank party, exceeding the limit and racking up £210 in fines. Not all fines are negative, though: the entire W3 division was prescribed a lie-in for marshalling too early, and First and Third O2 were instructed to plant a tree for using too much greenery after they bumped Sidney Sussex O1.
No number of monetary fines can match the drinking fines handed out at Lent Boat Club Dinner and the subsequent BCD Mash: a deserved celebration after a long week of rowing, despite usually involving one too many speeches (and shots).
Looking ahead
Bumps provide many student-athletes with a target to train for, college competition, and great drama on the water. Alongside the help of college coaches and CUCBC’s organisation, it is a truly special week of term for everyone who is a part of it.
Attention now turns to May Bumps, which will hopefully promise more of the sunny weather we saw before Friday, and will inevitably provide rowers with further conversation starters that the rest of Cambridge will have to endure.
