Autumn on the Hamble

Autumn brings spectacular colour changes to the woods that line the upper reaches of the Hamble river, so on Sunday it was off to join Hamble River Rowers in one of their Bursledon Gigs to row up to the Horse & Jockey for lunch.

It was another spectacularly lovely day, sunny but not oppressively hot. So lovely, in fact, that I failed to take any pictures of the colours just appearing in the woods. This is a snap of Jim Williams coxing with a bit of wood behind.
Getting in the boats at the pontoon, I was placed in stroke due to my leg length being deemed excessive for any other seat. Jim drew my attention to a football in the bottom of the boat which apparently is an improvised stretcher for shorter rowers.
Now, it looks very simple and effective, its round shape allowing it to sit in the bilges very securely, but it can't be optimal. Surely one's feet must tend to slide off on either side and preventing stroke from developing full power.
I had to put my feet on the edge of the cox's seat, but found that the lack of a proper stretcher meant my heels were crammed into the bilges and it was really difficult to row properly. How important a good footrest is - pressing down with the feet is where all the power comes from.