The Lion & Chough Regatta 2025

The Lion & Chough Regatta – 22nd November 2025

Dev Squad – D8+

The OARC Development Squad of 2025–2026 made their racing debut at the Lion & Chough Regatta in Oxford, bravely taking on their first-ever competition in cold, relentlessly wet conditions. With rain falling for most of the day and temperatures staying low, it was as much a battle against the weather as it was against the other crews.

Racing as a mixed novice crew against men’s novice boats, the squad took it all in stride. Their first race against Balliol got off to a flying start, with the Dev Squad pulling ahead early and cruising to a comfortable win by several lengths. Race two brought a longer wait and after 15 minutes sitting on the start line, our crew was more than ready to go—and once they did, they held off University College to take the win by a length and a half.

The semi-final against Magdalen College was a nail-biter. After a very close race, the Dev Squad missed out on the win by just a single foot (ouch). Magdalen then went on to win the regatta, so we’ll take that as a moral victory.

All in all, it was a fantastic first outing for the squad and a great reward for all the hard work put in over the past few months—wet kit, cold hands, and all…

Cox: Lucy C, Michelle R, Ellie T, Geoffrey F, Ben T, Bruce H, Faye M, Lara S, Mary D

You can actually see how much it was raining

Ready to push off