Future of the boat race at risk from Thames pier plan

[sunburywhite]

If it is 80m and the river is 188m then why not add another 108 m to it and get a new bridge

[mrmicawbers]

If it is 80m and the river is 188m then why not add another 108 m to it and get a new bridge

Ha Ha that did cross my mind.

[toshes mate]

Ah got you, know it well, that doesn't go out 80mts though, surely?

The B&W photo I originally chose, which refused to display, appears to have been taken from the river and actually showed the whole length including the stub I mentioned which adds another 20m or so.  You can see the end of the stub to the left in the photo which did display. 

From memory I recall there was a ticket office, boat timetable display and queuing area (like a bus stop) on the stub prior to the gangway shown in the to the pier itself.  However, the pier changed over the fourteen years I lived in the area.  I have tried looking up archive data about the pier but couldn't find it in the most obvious places.  The measurement I applied is from an old OS map which is to scale and suggests 80m is, as I previously stated, a reasonably accurate guess to length from embankment to the pier's furthest edge.  The floating pier itself was quite wide and square and accommodated various tugs and barges most of the time.  My earliest memory of the pier (1949/50?) is of it being very busy.         

[Logicalman]

Does anyone really care anymore about a bunch of privileged toffs going for a paddle every year

With respect, I am neither privileged nor a Toff, but I have enjoyed watching the race when able to and believe in looking to maintain such traditions, where possible, notwithstanding someone of my standing might never have the opportunity to partake.

I can understand your sentiments but do strongly disagree with them, sir.

[RaySmith]

Does anyone really care anymore about a bunch of privileged toffs going for a paddle every year

With respect, I am neither privileged nor a Toff, but I have enjoyed watching the race when able to and believe in looking to maintain such traditions, where possible, notwithstanding someone of my standing might never have the opportunity to partake.

I can understand your sentiments but do strongly disagree with them, sir.

I remember it as a big event as a kid - I'm now old - , watching it with excitement on  tv, and choosing who you wanted to win- I chose the light blue of Cambridge, since we knew no-one who even went to university, let alone Oxbridge, apart from some of our schoolteachers, I suppose.
Then after I'd began watching Fulham, I remember watching a reserve game at the Cottage, standing on the Riverside  terracing, and everyone in the small crowd went up the back to watch the boat race going past.
So, I'd be a bit sad to see the end of this tradition, if that was the case.

[I Ronic]

The race was moved to the River Ouse last year. Covid and bits falling off of Hammersmith Bridge. Here's the gem about that course. Note the Ouse is narrower.

The 2021 Boat Races route

The 4.89km course starts just north of the Prickwillow Road bridge near Ely and finishes just before the Victoria Street bridge by Littleport.

Typically the twists and turns of the River Thames can have a big say in the Boat Races, but this time around the route is almost completely straight, and no bends means there is little room for error.

The boats will start around 13.5m apart on the start line, with the blades just six metres away to begin with, while both teams will be closer to the banks given this section of the Great Ouse is narrower than the Thames.