Gently down the stream

[venta]

Tomorrow evening, after work, I shall be driving up the M1 to Whitby for a festival. Why yes, thank you, I have noticed that I only came from there on Monday. Bit of a calendar failure when I organised May. This time it's a folk festival. I've ironed some shirts and polished my boots so I can turn up without disgracing Mabel.

We got an email telling us that there was going to be a race. For all the attending dance teams. Did we want to join in ? It was a rowing race, in the harbour.

By the time this question reached me, two people had agreed to play. We needed a team of four. I did a quick mental check, decided no one else would be willing, and agreed to be the third.

Shows how much I know.

Still, I figured that it'd be a bit of a laugh. And if the worst came to the worst, I can swim and know how to get to the nearest place with an A&E department.

Yesterday we got another email from the organiser, giving various details on how to get hold of tickets, where we were dancing, etc. At the bottom it said:

The Endeavour Cup Rowing Race
Mabel Gubbins will challenge
the Champions Black Swan Rapper
To be raced in Whitby Harbour over a 200m course

Now, a bit of background here:

Mabel Gubbins is a dance team made up of cake-eating, gin-drinking ladies of whom I'm the youngest by a clear ten, possibly fifteen years. Black Swan are the darlings of the folk world, a team of blokes in their mid-twenties noted for their athleticism.

A swift flurry of emails followed:

Me, to our social sec. "WTF? What have you agreed to?"
Her, back to me. "No idea, I haven't even confirmed we'd enter"
Me, to festival organiser: "You bastard"
Him, to me: "There's only two boats"

Apparently, however, we are stuck with it. The rest of Mabel feel that to withdraw after it was published would make us appear (a) wet (b) cowards (c) girlies and (d) southerners. Naturally, (d) is the one to be most worried about.

So, er, at some point at the weekend I shall be involved in the rather fearsome task of getting into a sea-going rowing four and racing against a team which has already won such a race. Hell, at least they've done it before. I have never rowed anything other than a kid's inflatable dinghy.

The sole good to come out of this so far was that I got there in time to veto someone else's suggestion that we wear white t-shirts for the race. I do not expect to come out of this without ending up in the harbour.

Comments

[davefish.livejournal.com]

If you need a break on the way past, we should be available for drop-innage.

[venta.livejournal.com]

Thanks - I'll give you a call if you should be expecting me :) Bearing in mind that (if I go flat out) I'll get there pretty late and still have to find my tent, etc, I don't expect to stop by. But the offer is very much appreciated.

[(Anonymous)]

DROP OUT NOW!!! THIS IS YOUR MOTHER TALKING.

[venta.livejournal.com]

Hey, you taught me to swim practically before I could walk for fear I'd fall in that harbour. And I never did... you must have been so disappointed :)

[shrydar.livejournal.com]

You've not done too badly on the calendar front. A friend of mine flew over here from Canberra twice in the space of a month to get to Swancon and a friends wedding. She couldn't get enough leave to cover the intervening ten days.

Good luck with the race :)

[bateleur.livejournal.com]

If Black Swan are going to get you lot rowing I reckon you should get them drinking gin and eating cake - preferably just before the race !

[venta.livejournal.com]

That is the current plan, yes!

[undyingking.livejournal.com]

would make us appear ... southerners

I think it would take more than that, in your case at least. Or do the others drag you down?

[venta.livejournal.com]

I dunno... in five years time I'll have lived as long down 'ere as I did up there. Southern might be catching :(

[marjory.livejournal.com]

Never....