Vartry Rowing Club
Barrow Challenge triumph rounds off successful first year for Flogas-sponsored Vartry Rowing Club
The victorious crew pictured, are (l/r) Chairperson George O’Brien; coxswain Karl Canavan, Michael O’Toole, Wally McKenna and Anthony Quinn.
Vartry Rowing Club in Wicklow, in its Flogas-sponsored boat, rounded off a very successful first year by winning the Coastal Rowing group at the Annual Great Barrow Challenge on 13 September.
The last race in the rowing calendar, the Challenge is an 18km timed course from St. Mullins to New Ross that tests the speed, stamina and sheer determination of each individual crew. The Vartry crew completed the race in 79 minutes and 9 seconds.
In May, the club came second in the Celtic Rowing Challenge, which runs from Ireland to Wales and is the world’s longest rowing race. In doing so, the club raised over €10,000 for the RNLI. In June, crews from the club won the inaugural Boyne Rowing Race as well as the Enniscorthy Charity Rowing Challenge.
Chairman George O’Brien said:
“We’ve had a great first year and my thanks to Flogas for all their support and congratulations to our crews for all the hard work and training they’ve put in. But none of it would have been possible without the huge amount of unsung work that goes on behind the scenes. A huge vote of thanks to everyone in the club who supported the crews with their time, energy and expertise and we’re all looking forward to 2015.”