A crew of eight from Whakatāne Rowing Club headed to Orewa recently to compete in the Coastal Racing – Beach Sprints event.

While Debbie Rowe, Ayla Rowe and Luke Berquist have all had coastal rowing experience previously, Kayla Billings, Milla Best, Tayla Cloke, Sarah Bryant and Azsania Floyd were new to the sport and unsure of what to expect with different boats and conditions.

As the name suggests, this event begins on the beach with two boats either time trialling or going head to head.  

Starting with a sprint across the beach to the boat,  crew members then jump in their boat and navigate the  250-metre offshore course, with a sprint back to shore.

At the beach, a crew member then leaps from the boat and sprints to the finish.

Orewa gave the crews great conditions, with manageable waves especially for the new rowers.

Kayla and Tayla headed out first and negotiated the course well, managing a time that almost gave them a spot in the quarter final.

Milla and Sarah headed out next and managed the first part of the course, but a dislodged seat after the turn saw their sprint slowed.

Girls’ coach Debbie teamed up with novice rower Azsania in the women’s open event. They had a strong race, posting a good time with second runner Azsania having a long final sprint due to the boat being pushed along the beach.

Luke and Ayla teamed up in the mixed open double to compete with a strong field, which included New Zealand elite rower Robbie Manson.

In the girls’ U18 squad event, Kayla, Milla, Tayla and Sarah teamed up with Ayla as cox. They had a strong row out and Ayla’s experience saw them navigate the course superbly.

Rounding the buoy first, the sprint was lost to a more experienced coastal crew.

The open quad was coxed by first-timer Kayla, and Debbie, Luke, Ayla and Azsania headed out knowing that as well as a strong time they needed flawless navigation to make the final after a previous crew were disqualified for not completing the course correctly.

Making the final pitted them against a very experienced crew, which included Irish Olympic bronze medallist Philip Doyle.

While unable to take the gold, the crew raced well, finishing strong.

Coastal beach sprints is a new sport and is gaining in popularity with traditional rowers as an alternative to flat water rowing.  

The recent world championship in Turkey saw Emma Twig win the gold medal and there were strong results in the singles and double event.  

The sport will make its debut at the Los Angeles Olympic Games in 2028.

There are more events on the coastal rowing calendar with the crew heading to Papamoa next week.

Whakatāne Rowing Club is hosting an event as part of the Beach Sprints Event Series on Waitangi Day and the club hopes to have a strong contingent participating.