THE Bude Surfboat Club have returned victorious from the European Surf Rowing Championships and are now the European champions!

On Saturday, August 28, rowing teams from Holland, France, Italy and Great Britain took part in the fourth annual European Surf Rowing Championships held at Wijk aan Zee, The Netherlands.

Having won the UK Open Championships in July, the Bude Runners from Bude Surfboat Club were determined to be the team to win the trophy but with experienced stillwater crews from Holland taking part and the strong possibility of flat seas, the title was open for anyone to win.

The mens and ladies crews arrived at Noordpier, Wijk aan Zee, to prepare for the event but had to take shelter in the Timboektoe Surf Club whilst a huge thunderstorm passed over.

This was followed by a strong on shore wind that brought with it choppy, unpredictable surf and made conditions look more favourable for the Bude team who are experienced at rowing in surf.

As the racing buoys were being set and teams were preparing for their warm up rows, the wind strengthened again and conditions at sea deteriorated and safety staff began to question whether or not crews should be going out.

The Welsh mens crew Llantwit Major launched their boat to face the white water and howling onshore wind whilst crews on the beach watched with interest to see how they coped. As the safety crew and competitors watched them get rolled in the rapidly worsening conditions, the organisers felt it was time to call a stop to the event and find an alternative venue.

Fortunately, Ijmuiden Beach, to the south of Noordpier, was sheltered enough behind the harbour wall to relocate the contest and by 3pm the ladies event was underway. The advantage now lay in the hands of the Dutch flatwater crews as the shelter provided by the harbour wall was such that there was hardly any surf to row out through.

However, true to form this season, the Bude Runners were not going to take any prisoners and set out as they meant to go on in the heats by winning the first race. In the second heat they were beaten into second place by their old rivals Perranporth but came back in the third to take first place again.

With a small swell picking up to provide the chance of catching a wave after turning around the buoy, members of the Bude team could barely let themselves believe that the gold was within their grasp.

Under the expert guidance of their sweep Mark Bannister, the four ladies, Jessica Lynes, Sue Roper, Emma Bartrop and Louise Paton, rowed a text book race with well rehearsed starts and turns. They led the final from the start and, whilst other teams were starting to show signs of tiring, the extra fitness sessions taken in preparation for the event began to pay off for the Bude Runners.

By the time the ladies had rowed out to the buoy they had a two boat length lead over the other teams and this was extended on the return leg of the race by utilising the small surf to pick up their boat speed.

Sue Roper jumped from the bow of the boat to sprint for the finishing flag on the beach to secure the gold medal position and European title. Perranporth Raiders and Dutch Delight were left to battle it out for silver and bronze positions with a neck and neck sprint for the finishing flags.

The Cornish team from Perranporth were awarded second place with the Dutch flat water ladies taking third.

The team captain from Bude Runners, Jessica Lynes, attributes their gold medal winning performance to the fact that the team have worked together for four seasons with dedicated rowers and a very talented sweep.

She said: "We couldn't have done it without the help of our fitness instructor Kelvin Turner whose motto is 'to train hard and race easy'! I'm not sure that it was easy but the extra sessions at Aspire Fitness Pod certainly paid off."

Bude Surfboat Club also have a mens team made up of flatwater rowers from Bristol who compete for the club. Mark Bannister swept for their crew in the championship and despite worsening sea conditions and plumeting temperatures at the end of a long day, they secured bronze medal position.

Thanks must go to Phil Martin who founded Bude Surfboat Club and who's dedication to the sport has made it all possible. For more information about the club, please visit http://www.budesurfboatclub.co.uk">www.budesurfboatclub.co.uk.