History of the club

Ryde Rowing Club was founded in 1877 and is the only Isle of Wight based Rowing Club that has been in continuous existence ever since. It is believed to be one of the oldest sporting Clubs in Ryde. The Club's original Clubhouse was on Ryde Pier from where it carried out its Social and competitive rowing activities until 1968 when the then landlords, British Rail, evicted the Club on the grounds that the pillars on which the Clubhouse was built were in a dangerous condition and beyond economic repair - these pillars can still be seen standing today, over thirty years later!. Thanks to the old Ryde Borough Council the Club were re-housed in temporary accommodation in Appley Park which consisted of a Boathouse only with no changing or social facilities. In spite of this the Club experienced some of its most successful seasons on the water and laid down the foundations for the even more successful years that were to follow. Thanks to further support from the local authority, Sports Council grant aid and a major fundraising effort by the members a new Clubhouse was opened in 1975, still in Appley Park, Ryde which provided changing and social facilities in addition to a boathouse. With a new Clubhouse the Club experienced a period of growth and a significant improvement in performance with a number of Hants & Dorset and South Coast Championships won and qualification for Henley on two occasions. In the mid 1990's a further problem developed with the Clubhouse suffering from major subsidence, as a result of the construction of a sewage treatment works behind the building, for which the Club was not insured. As a result a successful application was made to the Sports Aid Foundation and the National Lottery Sports fund which has enabled the Club to rebuild a new two story Clubhouse, with much improved facilities, which opened in 1998.

For a small Isle of Wight based Rowing Club, Ryde have an impressive record in the Southcoast Rowing Championships since winning their first Championship event in 1978. Since then they have won a further nine South Coast Championships - ten in total - and numerous Open an Invitation events - including the aggregate trophy for best performing Club in the Open an Invitation events at a Regatta on three occasions. Crews from Ryde have represented their Association on twenty-three occasions and are best remembered for the outstanding achievement of the Mens Senior Four who won the Bidiford Bowl, for the Southcoast Senior Mens Championship three times in a row between 1985 and 1987 with an unchanged crew, apart from the coxswain. In the same period this crew won the Hants & Dorset Senior Championship. The Club has won twenty-one hants & dorset Championships since its first in 1962.

Two members of Ryde have gone on to row for their country, Martin Knight representing Britain in the Men's coxless four at the Olympic Regatta in 1984 and in the Quad Scull in the World Championships in 1985. More recently Simon Jones, who won at Henley Royal Regatta with his university crew, has represented Britain at under 23 and in the lightweight boats.

The Club are the current record holders for Round the Island Rowing in both Fixed seat and Sliding seat fours - the fixed seat record, in a Solent Galley, of eight hours six minutes was set in 1965 and the Sliding seat record of seven hours, fifty-seven minutes was set in 1995 in a Coastal Four. Crews from Ryde have completed the Round the Island Row on eleven occasions since the first row in 1880 and this includes the only Round the Island row by an all lady crew in 1999.

South Coast Champions. Men’s Senior Fours - 1985, 1986, and 1987. Men’s Junior Senior Fours - 1979, 1999. Men’s Junior Fours - 1995, 2000. Ladies Senior Fours - 1978, 1979, 1986. 1987.

Hants & Dorset Championships. Men’s Senior Fours - 1985, 1986, and 1987. Men’s Junior Senior Fours - 1979, 1984. Men’s Novice Fours - 1962, 1975, 1993, and 1996. Ladies Senior Fours - 1978, 1986, 1987, 1989. Ladies Novice Fours - 1986, 1990, 1995, 1996. Men’s Junior Pairs - 1965. Men’s Junior Sculls - 1983, 1986, and 1992.

Round the Island Rowing - Current Holders of the record for Sliding Seat Four and Fixed Seat Four - for Men and Ladies.

Steve Bull. Ryde Rowing Club. June, 2003.

Copyright © 2003 Ryde Rowing Club - Last modified: March 23, 2013