The following message is being sent by email to all club entries secretaries and crew contacts on Sunday, 17 November 2019:
You will be aware of the heavy rainfall we’ve been experiencing. The Tideway is now on a yellow flag, with a very strong ebb stream, which is the tide we will race on, and which has resulted in some very challenging conditions even for experienced Tideway crews.
Under yellow flag conditions, the Port of London Authority advice is for “man-powered vessels, in particular: beginners, novices, younger juniors (J15s and younger), or any weaker crews, and those that do not usually navigate on the tidal section of the River Thames not to go afloat on the Ebb Tide. All river users of man-powered vessels should navigate with extreme caution and consider whether it is safe for them to go afloat on the Ebb Tide.”
Although we do expect some improvement in conditions by the end of next week, there’s still a lot of water to come down from up river with all of the non-tidal Thames on red boards. Therefore, bearing in mind the likely conditions for Saturday, and the PLA advice, we are considering all options including reducing the size of the event.
Accordingly, and before we take any action, we ask ALL clubs and coaches to review their crews’ readiness and their own risk assessment, taking into account the likely conditions next Saturday, and to scratch those for whom these are too high risk or would likely not provide a positive racing experience. Any scratches before 8pm on Tuesday (19 November 2019) will be fully refunded. Thereafter the normal no-refund policy for scratchings will apply.
The Fours Head 