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Salcombe Estuary Rowing Club
The Salcombe Estuary Rowing Club was formed in 1992 and because the Club owns a number of different rowing boats, it is able to offer a variety of fixed seat rowing opportunities for most ages and abilities.

The four small boats owned by the Club are kept parked on the grass across the road from the public slipway at Batson. These boats are available for use by all members provided they are competent rowers (excluding Monday evenings from 5pm when they are exclusively available to the children being taught to row). They are also used to teach rowing, primarily to children, but often for adults as well.

The three gigs owned by the Club BOLT, CADMUS and WOLF are extensively used by all sections of the club for training, social & competitive rowing and are also used to teach gig rowing to those interested in learning.

As well as rowing, the Club holds a number of social occasions throughout the year - both for fun and for fund raising purposes. The gigs attend rowing regattas throughout the spring and summer months and all members are welcome to join the rowers at these spectacular events.

The rowing season begins in the depths of winter - competitive crews take to the water in February, light permitting. The first events take place in March/April and the gigs are taken to the Isles of Scilly in May for the World Championships. In May, the Club hosts its own regatta which is a stunning event, and throughout the summer, the gigs are towed all over Devon, Cornwall and Dorset for other events. The season is brought to a close with the County Championships held over two weekends in September. Winter heralds the boat maintenance programme when all members contribute and those with an eye on competitive rowing for the following season take to the gym to maintain and improve their fitness.

Children's Small Boat Rowing
The small rowing boats are used to introduce children (5-12 years old) to rowing. This takes place on a Monday evening from 5pm and will begin again in April 2007. The children and their parents participate in preparing the boats before use and all help make sure they are put away properly at the end of the session. This is a very successful section of the Club, thanks to the time given by those involved in the teaching and other organisation of the sessions and takes place at the Public Slipway in the Batson car park.

Junior Rowing - Under 14 and 16

Once children master rowing the club's small boats then they move on to rowing the full sized gigs. With dedicated (CRB checked) instructors they quickly progress and master the unique gig rowing style. The club's Junior members are both very active on the rowing circuit and have been extremely successful in competition. Gig rowing fosters a great team spirit, enables focus and self discipline as well as really good outdoor fitness.

Social Rowing
SERC has a band of very active social rowers. The emphasis is on getting out on the water to have a very good row whilst at the same time enjoying the flaura & fauna of the estuary and the company of those around you. Throughout the year the social rowers meet most Sundays (plus Friday evenings in Summer months) and often row to a local hostelry and then back again.

Veterans Rowing - Ladies and Men
SERC has a very active, yet competitive, veterans (over 40) section. The veterans row throughout the year for fitness and fun, yet also field very competitive squads from amongst those that still wish to race and they can be seen competing at a number of Cornish Pilot Gig Association events including the World Championships in the Isles of Scilly and other club races.

Supervets
SERC is proud that it also has an incredibly active Supervets section, with rowers into their 80's amongst the crew. The maxim is "rowing does not stop once you leave the veterans"! We are one of the only clubs in the Westcountry that can boast such an accolade.

Ladies' and Men's Rowing
Those adults who wish to learn how to row begin their training in May with approximately 4 taster sessions. Once the basics of technique and safety have been learnt they can progress to rowing with others of a similar standard where their new found skills can be taught and most importantly practiced ! As the season progresses, and confidence/ability increases there are ample opportunities for new rowers to begin to race for the club (for those that want to!). The emphasis is on learning, fitness and fun.

SERC also has very active ladies and mens racing crews. For those that choose that they want to race there are dedicated training sessions 2/3 times per week pre-season with races most weekends all over the Westcountry during the summer. The ladies and men's racing crews have been incredibly successful since the clubs inception and continue to go from strength on the circuit with 2007 being the first year that the club is fielding 3 ladies and mens teams each for the Isles of Scilly - a club first and very rare for any gig club.

Coxing
SERC also has some incredibly dedicated coaches and coxes for the gigs. Many of the coxes are also active rowers, but not all. If you love the water, and have previous boating or sailing experience, and want to try something a little different from the norm why not come along and learn to be a gig cox?

Small Boats

The four small rowing boats are available for use by Club members so long as they are not used during the time allotted for teaching children on a Monday evening.  These boats must not be taken ashore and it is the individual Club member's responsibility to ensure that they are not used in unsuitable weather conditions nor taken out by novice rowers unless accompanied by an experienced Club rower. For more information about the use of these boats please contact the Club Safety Officer, Chris Spencer-Chapman on 01548 843748.