What is a Head Race?
Compared to the Regatta, the Head race is more of an individual race, where every rower races against time. This type of rowing takes place in fall and the course consists of four to ten kilometers as well as many curves and sharp turns. The winner in this type of race is determined by class, age, and most importantly time.
There are various types of sculls that participate in this race, however just like the Regatta, all of the sculls are Fine/Olympic Class boats. The types of sculls that are used during this type of race are:
1x - single scull
2x - double scull
2- cox less double scull
4x - quad
4+ - coxed quad
8+ - coxed eight
Every Boat starts with about 10 to 15 seconds from each other, so that the boats do not collide, however in some occasions when the boat behind another one catches up, the river is usually wide enough to let the other rower get passed.
There are many well known races such as The Head of the River Race, which is on the Thames River in London. The most famous races tend to be the ones that are around six kilometers long, but there are also other races that are five kilometers long which are almost as famous as the six kilometers ones. (1) However most of the races are not really well known internationally, but rather nationally, especially in the community of rowers, and those who like rowing.
Compared to the Regatta, the Head race is more of an individual race, where every rower races against time. This type of rowing takes place in fall and the course consists of four to ten kilometers as well as many curves and sharp turns. The winner in this type of race is determined by class, age, and most importantly time.
There are various types of sculls that participate in this race, however just like the Regatta, all of the sculls are Fine/Olympic Class boats. The types of sculls that are used during this type of race are:
1x - single scull
2x - double scull
2- cox less double scull
4x - quad
4+ - coxed quad
8+ - coxed eight
Every Boat starts with about 10 to 15 seconds from each other, so that the boats do not collide, however in some occasions when the boat behind another one catches up, the river is usually wide enough to let the other rower get passed.
There are many well known races such as The Head of the River Race, which is on the Thames River in London. The most famous races tend to be the ones that are around six kilometers long, but there are also other races that are five kilometers long which are almost as famous as the six kilometers ones. (1) However most of the races are not really well known internationally, but rather nationally, especially in the community of rowers, and those who like rowing.
The image to the left shows what a typical entrance to a Head Race looks like. The river is usually entered from the bay, as the water itself is not really steep in the parts of the rivers where these are performed. There is always a really big line when going into the water, because of the immense amount of competitors during every race. The image above shows what a Head Race can look like, however in a lot of cases the river can be crowded to the point where collision is really hard to get around.
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History of the Head Race
There is currently no information on history about this type of race.
There is currently no information on history about this type of race.
1."Head Race." Wikipedia. Wikimedia Foundation, n.d. Web. 27 Dec. 2015.
2. (images) "Vesta Veterans' Head of the River Race - Vesta Rowing Club." Vesta Rowing Club. N.p., n.d. Web. 25 Feb. 2016.
2. (images) "Vesta Veterans' Head of the River Race - Vesta Rowing Club." Vesta Rowing Club. N.p., n.d. Web. 25 Feb. 2016.