We are very disappointed to announce that the 2024 Fours Head is cancelled due to a combination of wind strength and wind direction associated with Storm Bert, which is forecast for this weekend.
We have been monitoring a number of weather forecast sources this week including the Met Office, MetCheck, XCWeather and the BBC. Even the most optimistic of these currently forecasts a base wind speed of c.20mph with c.50mph gusts from 9am, the time when crews would be boating. This speed of gusts is considerably above the level where the race could be run safely.
In addition to the risk of swamping and the difficulty of marshalling in these conditions, this level of wind also presents a significant risk to those bringing trailers to the competition.
Refunds
Although we state on our Entries page that entry fees “will not be refunded if the event is cancelled”, we hope to be able to refund part of the entry fee, as we did when the race was cancelled in 2023. Please bear with us while we assess our unrecoverable costs so that we can calculate the refund level. We will post an update here on our website as soon as we can.
Thank you!
The Committee would like to say a massive THANK YOU to everyone who entered; to those who were understanding when we didn’t accept their crews due to the race being so heavily oversubscribed; all of the visiting crews who were so helpful about trailer sharing and/or moving boating location; to the host clubs; and all of the many other volunteers who were willing to help put on the 2024 Fours Head.
Fours Head Sweatshirts
Although the race is off this year, you can get ready for 2025 with one of these natty, new (UNDATED!) Fours Head sweatshirts. £5 from the sale of each sweatshirt (retailing at £30) will be donated to the race by Rock the Boat, who have produced the sweatshirts in association with us.
Get 10% off environmentally friendly cleaning products
And finally, don’t forget that our friends at Delphis Eco, the leading UK supplier of environmentally friendly cleaning products – who provided some generous bundles for the host clubs – are offering a 10% discount on online orders to all members of the rowing community – find out more here >>
The Fours Head 