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Nick Pike Set New Round Island Row Record in Coastal
Scull
MONDAY, 3rd OCTOBER, 2005
After three Hants & Dorset and South Coast Senior Fours Championships and back
to back Hants & Dorset Senior Sculling Championships, Ryde oarsman Nick Pike was
looking for a new challenge.
His Ryde Club have a long tradition of round the Island rowing - since their
first round the Island row in 1880 thirteen crews from the Club have completed
the 58 mile row and the Club currently holds the record for a four oared boat of
seven hours 57 minutes, the fixed seat four record of eight hours 6 minutes, has
the first crew to complete the row in a sliding seat "fine" Coastal four and has
the only all Ladies four to have completed the row. But no one from the Club had
ever sculled around the Island - which was to be Nick's new challenge.
He had already made one attempt, the previous week, but the conditions were
unsuitable and particularly difficult for the safety boat and as a result this
attempt had to be abandoned. It was then a matter of waiting for a suitable
weather window to make another attempt. This occurred on Monday, 3rd October and
accompanied by a Safety Boat loaned by Clarks Mechanical crewed by Club members
Ian Hayden, Mike Jenner and Matt Allsopp the attempt started from Cowes at
3.00am - in order to catch the best tidal conditions. As well as providing the
safety cover the boat helped Nick to navigate in the near pitch darkness at the
start. Averaging eighteen to twenty strokes a minute good progress was made with
Yarmouth Pier passed at 4.20am and the Needle reached by 4.55am. Once round the
Needles a Northerly wind forced Nick inland and to follow the curve of the bay
closer than he had hoped as he sculled towards the most dangerous part of the
row - St. Catherine?s Point which was reached at 7.05am. The race off the point
produced waves of around 4 feet high, causing some anxious moments. and having
battled through this, forced a stop to bail out and an opportunity to take on
some much needed refreshments. Rowing against the tide Ventnor was reached at
7.41am then on to Dunnose Point, with the tide now with him, reached, at 7.57am.
An offshore wind across Sandown Bay again forced him to take a more sheltered
route but he still reached Culver Cliff by 8.48am - and Bembridge Life Boat
Station by 9.10 having hugged the shoreline, staying inside Bembridge Ledge.
Puckpool was passed at 9.43 and Ryde Pier, Ryde Crews traditional start and
finish point, at 10.00am. A record time for a Ryde boat was now clearly on as
Nick pushed on towards Cowes and the finish line, in improved conditions.
Fishbourne was reached at 10.25, Norris Castle was passed at 10.47am and finally
the Cowes breakwater at 10.55 - a record time for a Ryde Rowing Club boat of 7
hours 52 minutes.
The Club has extensive records of all its round the Island rows and details of
several others that have been completed by other Clubs and has information on
two individuals who have completed the row - Arthur Mayhew, in 1881 in a time of
14 hours 55 minutes and in 1928, Sir Charles Taylor in a time of 12 hours 30
minutes - but as far as the Club is aware this is the first time anyone has
completed the row in a Coastal Single Scull - is almost certainly the fastest
time for a single - and is certainly a new record time for the Ryde Club.
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