RYDE Rowing Club made the trip to Christchurch for a regatta on the river Stour at the weekend.

On Saturday, May 13, crews had to fight their way through several rounds of competition.

Limited to coxed-fours only – with no small boats – the Ryde entry was restricted to just two Mens Coastal Junior Crews.

The newly promoted Ryde B crew of Dan Sanderson, Isaac Gibson, Charlie Watts and Lars Groothuis, coxed by Joe Bird, held a slight lead over their first-round opponents at the start of the race.

But the crew had an issue at the turn and fell behind and were not able to restore their lead before the short-course race finished.

The Ryde A crew of Matt Chalmers, Ben Sanderson, Will Hall and Paddy Kearney, coxed by Mai Mackay, meanwhile, faced a much larger problem.

While warming up for their semi-final, they collided with a Christchurch Ladies Junior Coastal Four, causing the Christchurch boat to capsize.

Crew members on both boats suffered injuries, though Ryde’s boat itself came out unscathed.

But the Ryde bowman suffered from bruised ribs in any case and the crew were forced to withdraw.