The Women's Eights Head Of The River Race 2017
Over 300 crews will race from Chiswick to Putney on Saturday
The Women’s Eights Head of the River Race founded in the 1930s with 5 crews participating has now become the largest women’s rowing race in the world with around 2,880 women racing and 320 crews taking part. The 2017 race takes place on 11 March at 3:30pm.
It is raced on the River Thames over 4 miles and 374 yards, or 6.8 kilometres, from the start at the University Pole in Chiswick to the finish at Putney Pier.
It is the only race in the UK where novices can compete in the same race as Olympic champions and as such attracts a wide range of rowers from clubs and universities
The Women's Head is a time-trial or processional race; each crew races the clock, aiming to get the fastest possible time in their division. Each boat is assigned a number and the crews proceed down the river one by one in numerical order with a gap of approximately 10 seconds between each crew. Each boat earns an individual time, just like a person racing a marathon - timing begins when they cross the start line and stops when they cross the finish.
Because the race is processional, results can't be compiled until all racing crews have crossed the finish line. During the race, a crew may pass a slower boat or be passed by a faster one, so you may find the crew you support skipped around a few places by the time they reached the finish.
Local Parking:
With so many boat trailers plus a big crowd of spectators all gathering on Putney Embankment it means that parking spaces there have to be suspended. The suspensions will commence at 8am on Saturday, March 11. Motorists who park their cars there overnight on Friday will need to move them ahead of Saturday morning’s deadline. Vehicles left in parking bays after this time are likely to be towed away.
Normal parking rules will be reinstated at approximately 6pm once the majority of spectators, rowers and boat trailers have departed.
Numerous signs notifying drivers of the changes have been placed along Putney Embankment.
Residential roads linking Putney Embankment with the Lower Richmond Road will also be closed to all traffic on Saturday apart from residents.
For further information about parking arrangements call the helpline on (020) 8871 8871.
March 9, 2017