The Great River Race – we made it!
Saturday 8th September saw a crew of staff members from St Philip’s School take part in the Great River Race. The event starts in Greenwich and heads upstream for 22 miles, finishing in Richmond upon Thames. This was the first time the crew had taken part in the race, and all were surprised by the scale of this massive event.
The start is particularly tricky with all 320 boats attempting to get into the correct order at the start line. Once underway, we soon realised the toughness of the challenge we had taken on by the strong head wind and the wash created by the many sightseeing river boats; it was very choppy to say the least!
Our attention however was soon turned to the pool of London and the many sights that you see from a completely different perspective. Tower Bridge looked resplendent as did all the bridges and countless famous sights that we passed by.
Through the City of London the river takes on a completely different feel and the scenery becomes greener and the river calmer. Having said that, at this point your back is beginning to ache and your hands are becoming sore. All in all this has been an amazing experience; some might say that it’s life changing.
We all agreed that it was a fantastic day and are looking forward to competing in next year’s race. Finally, we would all like to say special thanks to all those who have sponsored us, we have raised an amazing £1300.
It’s not too late to sponsor us! Please click the link and donate anything you can, everything raised is going towards equipment for our pupils: https://www.justgiving.com/fundraising/stphilipsboatrace