Rowing: Aussie visitor creates a stir

Hawke's Bay's Jess Turfrey (front) and Georgia King on their way to victory in the women's double scull final. Photo / Warren Buckland

Top marks for commitment in the Hawke's Bay Rowing Club's New Year's Regatta go to Aussie visitor Fleur Spriggs.

A multiple national champion across the Tasman and a world championship competitor from 1988-1995, Spriggs, 45, flew into Auckland on Friday night and along with hubby, Andrew Greaves, drove from Auckland at 2.30am on Saturday so she could compete in the second day of the regatta at Clive.

"Bill put me on to Ross at the Hawke's Bay club who promised me lots of races so I could keep fit while on holiday before the Queensland State Championships," Spriggs said, referring to former East Coast Rowing Association development officer Bill Caldwell who coaches her at the Commercial club in Brisbane and club captain of the Hawke's Bay club Ross Webb.

With a win in the mixed masters single and second placings in the club single, masters women's eight, women's quad and corporate final with Aon Insurance who were beaten by Haden and Custance, Spriggs was thrilled with her day's racing.

"This is my first regatta in the North Island and on a previous visit to New Zealand I raced at Lake Ruataniwha in Twizel. It's part of my plan to race in as many countries as possible. Later this year, I will race at Henley in Britain ... I've already raced in Germany, Austria, the United States, Switzerland, Finland and the United Kingdom," Spriggs, who has rowed for 30 years, said.

Yesterday she played a round of golf alongside Greaves, who plays off a 16 handicap, at the Cape Kidnappers course.

"Compared with my rowing I'm a real beginner at golf but I enjoy it," Spriggs said.

Will Hawke's Bay rowing fans see her in action at a New Year's Regatta in the future? "I would love to come back again."

With 110 rowers, the host club retained the Hawke's Bay Cup for the most points at the regatta with 103. Hawke's Bay finished 49 points ahead of Aramoho, of Wanganui, who had 30 rowers.

Among the female highlights for the Bay were Jess Turfrey's and Georgia King's victory in the women's double scull final and Kate Laracy's win over Spriggs in the women's club single final.

The form of the Bay's novice boys' crews suggested the host club's future was in good hands.

Connor Gibson and Adam Van Der Peet won the novice boys double scull final and Gibson joined Duncan McCrory, Issac Adams, Jarrod Hart, Thomas Wright, Caleb Hannam, Liam Vogelaar, Liam Brunton and cox Salesi Tuipulotu in the winning novice boys eight crew.

McCrory, Van Der Peet, Gibson, Fergus Ritchie and cox Sheldon Pio were triumphant in their novice coxed four final.

"We won three of the five shootouts as well," Webb said.

"It was one of the more memorable regattas from a Hawke's Bay perspective with improved numbers and entries.

"The club continues to grow and a lot of that is just from word of mouth ... youngsters going back to school and telling their mates how much they enjoy what we do and then their mates end up following them back the following summer."