Cambrige Competitions

With spring right around the corner, all the Cambridge teams have come out of hibernation to take the fields again. Before I went to London, I caught wind of a boats race around the Cam river. I was not going to miss this.

As a tradition, Cambridge Crew teams hold a competition between all the colleges. At the start of the race, all the boats count off in order from the starting line. The object of the race is to bump the boat in front of them and the fastest boat wins. Once the Cambridge has its champion teams, they race Oxford, their biggest rival, in a huge annual competition.

Biking all along the river bank, I was able to catch up with the boats and follow them for a ways. I was not sure where to find them and ended up biking out of Cambridge county, along some grassy field, throwing my bike over a cattle gate, and finally stopping at a pub filled with spectators along the bank (I was tempted to pick up some barbecue that they were grilling). I was able to see the end of the boys competition and the start off of the girls. I couldn't believe the massive power and strength these girls had.

Soon after they all rowed away, I biked three miles back into town and met up with some of our group to watch a Lacrosse game. The Cambridge team in all white was facing off Oxford in one of the most violent sports I've seen. The game reminded me of Hockey except that there was no ice and everyone hit each other with their sticks. Sadly, Cambridge lost to the preppy Oxford team.

All in all, it was still a beautiful spring day in Cambridge town.