Durham School Boat Club (DSBC) is a school club offering rowing to students, parents, friends and other local schools. Based at

Durham School Durham School is an independent boarding and day school in the English public school tradition located in Durham, North East England and was an all-boys institution until 1985, when girls were admitted to the sixth form. The school takes pupils a ...

in the city of

Durham Durham most commonly refers to: *Durham, England, a cathedral city and the county town of County Durham *County Durham, an English county * Durham County, North Carolina, a county in North Carolina, United States *Durham, North Carolina, a city in N ...

, England.

History

Durham School Boat Club was founded in 1847. However, there was rowing at Durham School before that - the club was a founder of

Durham Regatta Durham Regatta is a rowing regatta held annually on the second weekend in June on the River Wear in Durham, North East of England; It is known as the Henley of the North, but began several years before the more prestigious Henley Royal Regatta. ...

in 1834 and it is, therefore, one of the oldest clubs on the River Wear in Durham. Record keeping in the early days was non-existent and the first reference to a School boat was to the four oared

wherry A wherry is a type of boat that was traditionally used for carrying cargo or passengers on rivers and canals in England, and is particularly associated with the River Thames and the River Cam. They were also used on the Broadland rivers of No ...

Argo in 1838. At the regatta, the club went on to win its first Challenge Cup in 1865. The first club rower to win a blue for

Oxford Oxford () is a city in England. It is the county town and only city of Oxfordshire. In 2020, its population was estimated at 151,584. It is north-west of London, south-east of Birmingham and north-east of Bristol. The city is home to the ...

Cambridge Cambridge ( ) is a university city and the county town in Cambridgeshire, England. It is located on the River Cam approximately north of London. As of the 2021 United Kingdom census, the population of Cambridge was 145,700. Cambridge bec ...

rowing in

The Boat Race The Boat Race is an annual set of rowing races between the Cambridge University Boat Club and the Oxford University Boat Club, traditionally rowed between open-weight eights on the River Thames in London, England. There are separate men's ...

was W. King, who rowed for Oxford in 1854.

Facilities

The club operates from its own boathouse situated just downstream of

Prebends Bridge Prebends Bridge, along with Framwellgate and Elvet bridges, is one of three stone-arch bridges in the centre of Durham, England, that cross the River Wear. History Prebends Bridge was designed by George Nicholson and built from 1772 to 1778. ...

; this was built in 1892. The club has a range of boats ranging in size from

singles Singles are people not in a committed relationship. Singles may also refer to: Film and television * ''Singles'' (miniseries), a 1984 Australian television series * ''Singles'' (1992 film), written and directed by Cameron Crowe * ''Singles'' ...

to eights and octuples. Durham School boats use the three letter boat code DUS.

Philosophy

The club is not selective; that is, it is open to all students: "All year groups at the school have the opportunity to row at the appropriate level for their physiological and physical development". The club also offers rowing to The Chorister School and parents and friends of Durham School.

International representation

The club has been successful at international level, the athletes having represented their home countries and Great Britain at olympic, world, university and junior level, most recently being GB representation, winning a silver medal in the junior women's 8, at the 2010

Coupe de la Jeunesse The Coupe de la Jeunesse is an international rowing regatta rowed over 2,000 m every year. It was founded in 1985 and is open to rowers who are 18 or under by the end of the current calendar year. It is a two-day team event, with points award ...

Hazewinkel The Hazewinkel is a 2,000 m rowing and regatta course belonging to Bloso in Heindonk, municipality of Willebroek, near Mechelen, Belgium. The site consists of a finishing tower, boathouses, a cafeteria and eight basic huts that house athl ...

, Belgium; England in the 2010

Home International Regatta The Home International Regatta is a rowing regatta held every year for the countries of the British Isles - England, Ireland, Scotland, and Wales. Events are held for both men and women at junior (under 18) and senior levels, including Para-rowi ...

Cork Cork or CORK may refer to: Materials * Cork (material), an impermeable buoyant plant product ** Cork (plug), a cylindrical or conical object used to seal a container ***Wine cork Places Ireland * Cork (city) ** Metropolitan Cork, also known as G ...

Ireland Ireland ( ; ga, Éire ; Ulster Scots dialect, Ulster-Scots: ) is an island in the Atlantic Ocean, North Atlantic Ocean, in Northwestern Europe, north-western Europe. It is separated from Great Britain to its east by the North Channel (Grea ...

; the

World Rowing Junior Championships The World Rowing Junior Championships is an international rowing regatta organized by FISA (the International Rowing Federation). A rower or coxswain shall be classified as a Junior until 31 December of the year in which he reaches the age of 1 ...

Brive-la-Gaillarde Brive-la-Gaillarde (; Limousin dialect of oc, Briva la Galharda) is a commune of France. It is a sub-prefecture and the largest city of the Corrèze department. It has around 46,000 inhabitants, while the population of the agglomeration was 7 ...

France France (), officially the French Republic ( ), is a country primarily located in Western Europe. It also comprises of Overseas France, overseas regions and territories in the Americas and the Atlantic Ocean, Atlantic, Pacific Ocean, Pac ...

in August 2009; the Coupe de la Jeunesse in Cork, Ireland in 2008 and England representation at the Home International Regatta in 2006.

National events

The club enters a number of local, national and international events. In addition to wide-ranging representation at the various north-eastern

heads A head is the part of an organism which usually includes the ears, brain, forehead, cheeks, chin, eyes, nose, and mouth, each of which aid in various sensory functions such as sight, hearing, smell, and taste. Some very simple animals may no ...

and

regattas Boat racing is a sport in which boats, or other types of watercraft, race on water. Boat racing powered by oars is recorded as having occurred in ancient Egypt, and it is likely that people have engaged in races involving boats and other wate ...

oarsmen and women of different ages are regularly entered in events further afield. The club has been successful in the

British Rowing Championships The British Rowing Championships usually take place every year. The event is held at the National Water Sports Centre, Holme Pierrepont (Nottingham) with occasional championships held at the Strathclyde Country Park. The championships original ...

producing eight champion crews, the last in 2010 with Gold in the Open Junior Coxless Pair and women's eight composite. In the National Schools Regatta in 2010 the club won silver in the Fours Cup for First Coxed Fours. Recent years have also seen the club at Henley. The women's 1st Eight entered

Henley Women's Regatta Henley Women's Regatta, often abbreviated to "HWR" or "Women's Henley", is a rowing regatta held at Henley-on-Thames, England. Chris Aistrop and Rosemary Mayglothling were jointly responsible for setting up the Regatta in June 1988 and Aistrop ...

in 2010 for the first time in The Peabody Cup, losing to

Headington School Oxford Headington School is an independent girls' school in Headington, Oxford, England, founded by a group of evangelical Christians in 1915. The ''Good Schools Guide'' called Headington "A delightful school, hichnurtures and entertains its pupils wh ...

who went on to the final. The 1st Eight rowed in the

Princess Elizabeth Challenge Cup The Princess Elizabeth Challenge Cup is a rowing event at Henley Royal Regatta open to school 1st VIIIs. History The event was instituted in 1946 for public schools in the United Kingdom. It was opened to entries from overseas in 1964, and th ...

at the

Henley Royal Regatta Henley Royal Regatta (or Henley Regatta, its original name pre-dating Royal patronage) is a rowing event held annually on the River Thames by the town of Henley-on-Thames, England. It was established on 26 March 1839. It differs from the thre ...

in 2008 for the first time in over 40 years. Having pre-qualified again, the 1st Eight was in action in the Princess Elizabeth Challenge Cup at Henley Royal Regatta in 2009, achieving a win over

Reading Blue Coat School ('Truth Conquers All) , established = , closed = , type = Independent day schoolPublic school , religious_affiliation = Church of England , president = , head_label ...

in their first race before being knocked out by

Abingdon School Abingdon School is a day and boarding independent school for boys in Abingdon-on-Thames, Oxfordshire, England. The twentieth oldest independent British school, it celebrated its 750th anniversary in 2006. The school was described as "highly ...

(one of the country's premier rowing schools who went through to the final) on the second day. The school achieved pre-qualification into the Princess Elizabeth Challenge Cup again in 2011, being knocked out by the Sophie Barat Schule. In 2013, Durham School Boat Club was the only club in the North-East of England to have a J18 boat qualify for an event at Henley Royal Regatta, pre-qualifying a first eight for the Princess Elizabeth Challenge Cup. They were beaten by Bedford School in the heats. Most recently competing at HRR in the Prince Elizabeth entering their men's 8+ in August 2021. Where they competed first day against Norwich School. There are also frequent trips to various events held on the

Tideway The Tideway is a part of the River Thames in England which is subject to tides. This stretch of water is downstream from Teddington Lock. The Tideway comprises the upper Thames Estuary including the Pool of London. Tidal activity Depending on ...

in London, the

Holme Pierrepont National Watersports Centre Holme Pierrepont Country Park, home of The National Water Sports Centre is located in the hamlet of Holme Pierrepont near Nottingham, England and on the River Trent. It is used for many different types of sports and has recently received sign ...

and

Dorney Lake Dorney Lake (also known as Eton College Rowing Centre, and as Eton Dorney as a 2012 Summer Olympics venue) is a purpose-built rowing lake in England. It is near the village of Dorney, Buckinghamshire, and is around 3 km (2 miles) west of Wi ...

. In 2012, the school achieved its first success at the School's Head of the River race on the Tideway, with the women's J16 4+ winning their category.

International events

The club also trains and competes internationally. Each year there is an annual training camp, previously to Gent with entry into th
Gent Spring Regatta
in Belgium. In 2010 the club won gold, silver and bronze medals in a number of categories. In 2011 the camp was on

Lago d'Iseo Lake Iseo or Iseo lake ( ; it, Lago d'Iseo ; lmo, Lach d'Izé, label=Eastern Lombard), also known as Sebino (; la, Sebinus), is the fourth largest lake in Lombardy, Italy, fed by the Oglio River. It is in the north of the country in the Val C ...

in Italy, based in

Lovere Lovere (Bergamasque: ) is a town and ''comune'' in the province of Bergamo, in Lombardy, northern Italy, at the northwest end of Lake Iseo. The houses in the city have overhanging wooden roofs, typical of Switzerland, combined with the heavy s ...

. Since 2012, the club has held its training camp annually in Soustons, France. In addition, the club visited the United States in October 2008 to row in the

Head of the Charles Regatta The Head of the Charles Regatta, also known as HOCR, is a rowing head race held on the penultimate complete weekend of October (i.e., on the Friday that falls between the 16th and the 22nd of the month, and on the Saturday and Sunday immedia ...

, achieving an excellent result for their first visit.

Honours

British champions

References

{{United Kingdom rowing clubs Durham School Rowing clubs in England Sport in Durham, England 1847 establishments in England Sports clubs established in 1847 Rowing clubs of the River Wear Scholastic rowing in the United Kingdom