South Cariboo Rowing Club members got in on some valuable competition experience at a couple of recent rowing events.
Head coach Jack Jenkins accompanied 10 club competitors to the Head of the River race on the Nicomekl River and the nearby Head of the Reach in Delta, which took place Sept. 24-25.
Close to 200 entrants and 60 boats competed in what were among the last rowing events of the season.
Day 1 at Nicomekl saw the South Cariboo junior girls' quad boat, with Jill Matlock, Lauren Sortome, Jemma Van Osch and Tyra Van Osch, race to a third-place finish.
Winds kicked up the next day during the Head of the Reach races, forcing the girls to shorten their race distance from 5.5 to 2.5 kilometres.
At Nicomekl, Jack's wife, Brenda Jenkins, teamed up with rowers from the Kamloops and Victoria clubs to place fourth in the master women's quad, while newcomer Gavin Spooner joined Steven Giddens from Kamloops in the junior "A" male double division.
"The women were primarily doing it for fun, but did a nice job," says coach Jenkins.
The master men's quad, with Will Van Osch, Brad Summers, Jon Sortome, Gordon Hutchinson and junior rower Amy Dykstra as their coxswain, and finished in the middle of the pack. Head of the Reach results weren't available at press time.
Coach Jenkins says the double-header weekend has become a staple learning opportunity for the South Cariboo club, whose membership has climbed to near 30 during the past few years.
"This was a time to get club members introduced to racing and regatta culture - the fun part of competition."