Tikitapu (Blue Lake) put on pristine conditions for the first regatta of the rowing season last Saturday.  

Conditions at the lake can range from serene to storm-like because of the terrain and prevalence of winds swirling in the lake basin. But it was mirror-like conditions on show as rowers from across the Bay of Plenty arrived to rig boats and set up camp.

The regatta is a great start to the season, with the 1000-metre course a warm-up distance for those continuing to row the season at Lake Karapiro.  

All club members are able to participate at the regatta, with masters’ and school-age events run throughout the day.  

It was a full programme for the club, with two fully loaded trailers heading across with a total of 27 boats.  

Forty-seven crews raced, competing in sculling and sweeping disciplines.

The senior boys’ squad, coached by Gary McAdams and Leighton Hale, produced strong results in the multitude of races.  

Competing strongly in the under-17 eight, the boys then broke into fours, quads, doubles, pairs and singles, with squad members alternating between competing against each other and then unifying as crew mates.  

The internal competition between the boys sees the overall squad going from strength to strength.

Novice rowers had their first taste of racing at the regatta and were supported in some events by masters’ rowers. A great example of this was the women’s open coxed eight, which had a blinder coming first of six crews with a combination of novice, intermediate and masters’ women.  

This year, the club has novice rowers in the masters’ and age-group categories. New events have been created ,meaning they are able to row in the mixed boats. It is often a challenge for small clubs such as Whakatāne to get sufficient numbers for the large boat categories, so it is great to see the flexibility by the organisers.

As always, the rowers are supported by a large group of friends and family who make the effort to bring picnics and supplies for the day.  

The family focus and feel of the club is apparent in the large numbers of supporters cheering crews on.

This weekend, a small squad head to Lake Karapiro for the two-day Memorial Regatta, it will be a reality check for the crews moving to the full 2km course.