D is for Dunts, Dings and Dookings

Even the most competent and experienced rower will end up in, rather than on, the water at some point. Many factors can prompt an unexpected dip - the inherently unstable nature of the boats, poor technique, hitting obstacles and choppy waters. Even getting in and out of boats is something of an art form! Racing shells are designed for speed rather than stability. Keeping your balance and maintaining equal weight distribution in slender, lightweight boats takes skill and years of practice to perfect. 

"Catching a crab" is one of the most common ways to end up in the water. This is a term used to describe when a rower gets their oar blade caught in the water during the rowing stroke, instead of cleanly slicing through the water. When this happens, the rower loses control of the oar, which can cause it to fly out of their hands or be pulled out of the oarlock. This mistake can cause the boat to slow down or even stop, and can be especially dangerous if the rower loses their balance and is catapulted out of the boat. 

Unsurprisingly clubs take safety very seriously and mitigate these risks through regular safety practice, capsize drills and intensive training to improve technique. Close proximity to the Glasgow Humane Society, has also been a bonus for the clubs based upstream of the weir.

Other hazards are harder to control and predict - floating branches, logs, and all manner of material can float down the river, from fridges to dead cows(!). The remnants of long-gone industry - piers, jetties, landing stages and relic bridge piers - also provide obstacles. Collisions are unusual but not unknown. 

Sometimes accidents occur as a result of boat-to-boat incidents. In use from the late 1800s, the bow ball - a rubber ball attached to the front of the boat - protects both the thin hull of other boats and the soft flesh of rowers from the sharp bow end of the boat. In 1888, a Cambridge University rower, Thomas Campbell, was fatally pierced through the heart by the bow end of a rival boat during the Cambridge University' Bumps' race. This odd event, which continues today, actually encourages physical contact - boats start in a line along the riverbank and attempt to catch and "bump" the boat in front of them. Following an inquiry into his death, the use of bow balls was recommended to increase safety. However, it took another fifty years for them to become commonplace.

Though traffic on the river is virtually nil today, in the past, this stretch of the river was bustling with craft. Rowers had to contend with other small rowing boats, fishing boats delivering to the City Fish Market, barges transporting coal downstream from collieries at Rutherglen, and even a 113ft paddle steamer. The 'Artizan' was built and operated by Rutherglen shipbuilder Thomas Seath, and she plied the route from Rutherglen Quay to the Broomielaw several times a day from 1856 till 1859. Seath had a hard-nosed policy for any craft who ventured in his path and was known to souse boaters with buckets of water from the stern of his ship. More serious accidents occurred, including the striking and sinking of a rowing boat at 'the New Club House', (Clutha Boathouse), as reported in the Glasgow Sentinel, in August 1856. Perhaps as a peace offering to the rowing community, Seath contributed 5 medals to the 1856 Glasgow Annual Regatta, and loaned his steamer, Royal Burgh, to accommodate spectators for the 1858 Glasgow Royal Regatta. He also sponsored the Stewards Cup. One of the surviving 'Artizan' medals is held in University of Glasgow's Hunterian Museum collections.