Grey College Boat Club (GCBC) is the

rowing club A rowing club is a club for people interested in the sport of rowing. Rowing clubs are usually near a body of water, either natural or artificial, that is large enough for maneuvering the rowing boats. Clubs usually have a boathouse with racks t ...

of Grey College at

Durham University Durham University (legally the University of Durham) is a collegiate university, collegiate public university, public research university in Durham, England, founded by an Act of Parliament (UK), Act of Parliament in 1832 and incorporated by r ...

in North East

England England is a Countries of the United Kingdom, country that is part of the United Kingdom. It is located on the island of Great Britain, of which it covers about 62%, and List of islands of England, more than 100 smaller adjacent islands. It ...

. The club has over 70 active members and shares its

boathouse A boathouse (or a boat house) is a building especially designed for the storage of boats, normally smaller craft for sports or leisure use. describing the facilities These are typically located on open water, such as on a river. Often the boats ...

with

Josephine Butler College Josephine Butler College is a Colleges of Durham University, constituent college of Durham University. The college was opened in 2006. It is named after Josephine Butler, Josephine Elizabeth Butler, a 19th-century feminist and social reformer w ...

Boat Club. The club competes at a national, regional and college level. GCBC is a registered Boat Club through

British Rowing British Rowing, formerly the Amateur Rowing Association (ARA), is the national governing body for the sport of rowing (both indoor and on-water rowing). It is responsible for the training and selection of individual rowers and crews represent ...

, with Boat Code "GRC" and is a member organisation of

Durham College Rowing Durham College Rowing (commonly abbreviated to DCR) represents all sixteen college boat clubs in Durham University and organises some rowing activities on behalf of all member clubs. In February 2020, together with Durham University Boat Clu ...

Boathouse and Fleet

Grey College Boat House is located at

Dunelm House Dunelm House is a Grade II listed building in Durham, England, built in 1966 in the brutalist style. It belongs to Durham University and houses Durham Students' Union. Its listing entry cites, among other factors, that it is "a significant Bruta ...

on the

River Wear The River Wear (, ) in Northern England rises in the Pennines and flows eastwards, mostly through County Durham, to the North Sea in the City of Sunderland. At long, it is one of the region's longest rivers. The Wear wends in a steep valley t ...

between

Kingsgate Bridge Kingsgate Bridge is a reinforced concrete construction footbridge across the River Wear, in Durham, England, Durham, England. It is a Grade I listed building. It was personally designed in 1963 by Ove Arup, the last structure he ever designed. K ...

and

Elvet Bridge Elvet Bridge is a medieval masonry arch bridge across the River Wear in the city of Durham, in County Durham, England. It links the peninsula in central Durham and the Elvet area of the city, and is a Grade I listed building. Building Buildin ...

, a ten-minute walk away from Grey College. Grey College Boat Club owns two VIIIs, an Empacher called ' Eric Halladay' and a

Vespoli Vespoli USA is a manufacturer of rowing shells. It was founded by former Georgetown University rower and Olympian Mike Vespoli in 1980. History The company’s origins date back to the late 1970s when Mike Vespoli was the freshman rowing co ...

called 'Tom James'. The club also own a number of IVs, and other smaller boats including a

double scull A double scull, also abbreviated as a 2x, is a rowing boat used in the sport of competitive rowing. It is designed for two persons who propel the boat by sculling with two oars each, one in each hand. Racing boats (often called "shells") ar ...

named 'Whip-ma-whop-ma-gate' after the

street A street is a public thoroughfare in a city, town or village, typically lined with Building, buildings on one or both sides. Streets often include pavements (sidewalks), pedestrian crossings, and sometimes amenities like Street light, streetligh ...

York York is a cathedral city in North Yorkshire, England, with Roman Britain, Roman origins, sited at the confluence of the rivers River Ouse, Yorkshire, Ouse and River Foss, Foss. It has many historic buildings and other structures, such as a Yor ...

. The Men's 1st IV is a Stampfli called 'Schilders, snel beter'. The Women's 1st IV is a Janousek called 'These Girls Can'. Another IV owned by the boat club is 'The Golden Phoenix', the unofficial symbol of the college which was adopted after a fire devastated the main accommodation block in March, 1959.

Racing Calendar & Results

Grey College Boat Club compete throughout the year in many

head race A head race is a time-trial competition in the sport of rowing. Head races are typically held in the fall, winter and spring seasons. These events draw many athletes as well as observers. In this form of racing, rowers race against the clock w ...

s and

regattas Boat racing is a sport in which boats, or other types of watercraft, race on water body, 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 ...

in the North East of England. Over the last few years, events competed in include:

Head of the River Race

Grey College Boat Club routinely sends an M1 and M2 to the Head of the River Race, with notable success in recent years. The club's highest finish position is recorded below:

Women's Head of the River

The boat club also regularly sends a W1 to Women's Head, achieving a number of strong results over multiple decades. The club's highest finish position is recorded below:

Durham Regatta

Grey College Boat Club has seen notable success in recent years at

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

. In 1995 the Men's Novice IV won the Lady Hershall Plate for the first time in over twenty years (Tock, C., Owens, L., Moxey, D., Blake, B. and Kelly, R. ox. In 2009, the Women's first IV won the novice event, and in 2010, the Men's first VIII won both days of the regatta. There have since been a number of successes, most recently in 2024 when the club won three events. Awards won since 2009 are listed below:

Club structure

Any member of Grey College JCR, MCR or SCR is eligible to join Grey College Boat Club, alongside students from

Ustinov College Ustinov College is a Colleges of Durham University, constituent college of Durham University. Founded in 1965 as the Graduate Society, it achieved full college status in 2003 and adopted its current name from the then-chancellor of the universit ...

. Any other student of Durham University may join with the permission of the President. The club is run by an executive committee elected by club members throughout the year. The executive committee is composed of the President, Men's Captain, Women's Captain, Men's Novice Captain, Women's Novice Captain, Treasurer, Boatman, Welfare Officer and Alumni and Fundraising Officer. Grey College Boat Club holds an annual Ball each year in

Epiphany term Epiphany term is the second academic term at Durham University, falling between Michaelmas term and Easter term, as in the Christian Feast of the Epiphany, held in January. The term runs from January until March, equivalent to the Spring term at m ...

which is the highlight of the boat club's social calendar. At this event, a formal thank you to out-going members of the executive committee is offered and results of the current and previous seasons are celebrated.

References

External links

* Grey College Boat Clu
Website

Grey College Junior Common Room
{{United Kingdom rowing clubs Durham University Rowing Clubs Sports clubs and teams established in 1959 1959 establishments in England Grey College, Durham Rowing clubs of the River Wear Rowing clubs in England