For the first time in living memory, the North East Regatta this year was run as a closed event.  This means that it did not feature on the Scottish Rowing (SR) list of regattas and entries could only be accepted from a maximum of four clubs (ABC, ASRA, AUBC ad RGUBC).  It also meant that results were not qualifying and winners did not change their Novice status or accrue winning points on their SR licences.  It made it cheaper for us to run as we did not have to pay the regatta levy fee (typically about £250) to SR after the event.

Amongst the downsides of a closed event were that we had to find our own umpires (normally they are provided by SR) and that entries could not be accepted from clubs from outside Aberdeen.  The Committee of the Dee will be reviewing the pros and cons of this experiment prior to making a decision about the 2016 event.

This year saw a rather better entry than in 2014 and racing conditions were benign on both days with dull weather which lacked any sparkle but was also free from adverse racing conditions.  Races started and finished on time and no racing incidents were reported to me.

 RMW  22/6/15