The May Bumps will take place Wednesday 11th - Saturday 14th June 2008.

Entries are now open and may be submitted via the CREWS system (captains will need to log in to access the system).

» Enter a Crew

After entering crews for your club, you will need to submit information for the Bumps Programme here.

The deadline for entries is Friday 16th May 2008.

The entry fee per crew is £32. Entries will not be regarded as complete until full payment has been received AND any outstanding club bills have been paid. Cheques should be made out to Cambridge University Combined Boat Clubs with your club name on the reverse, and should be sent to Rev. Ian Thompson, King's College, Cambridge.

The pre-bumps meetings (incl. Captains' meeting) will take place Sunday 8th June, Latimer Room, Clare College.

The Getting on Race took place on Friday 8th June, timed from the Little Bridge to the post 78 yards downstream of the Railway Bridge.

Results

Qualifying Crews

Times for Non-Qualifying Crews

The provisional start order including those crews that got on is available via the Results page.

As circulated to the College Captains on Saturday 2nd June:

10 Outing Forms

These forms should be returned to Tom Davies and Ian Thompson by Friday 8th June. Failure to do so or a false declaration will result in all crews from the club concerned being disqualified from the Bumps.

Marshalling

All crews (except those in the W6/M5 division) should marshal at Chesterton on the meadow side 45 minutes before their division time.

Boats in the bottom W6/M5 division should marshal on station 10 minutes before the division time.

Please remember that all divisions race 2 hours earlier on Saturday.

College Marshals

Colleges must provide the correct number of competent marshals at the correct times or risk fines.

Marshals should sign in at the Control Desk 5 minutes before their slot.

Links to the Marshals Rota and Instructions can be found at the bottom of this page.

Rules

Full details of the rules governing the Bumps can be found in the handbook.

Please remember that all substitutions must be declared before racing and that bank parties (including runners, boatmen and VIPs) are limited to 4 people per crew.

Pre-Bumps Cox Talks

The pre-bumps coxing talks will be held on Sunday 10th June, in the Keynes Room, Kings College at the following times:

» Novice Coxes - 2:45pm
» Experienced Coxes - 3:20pm

The CUCBC Coxing Rep for 2007-8 will be elected at 3:20pm between the two talks.

Novice Coxes (ie those who have never coxed in bumps before) must attend in person, experienced coxes may send a representative, but all must sign in. Any novice coxes for whom this causes a problem should contact Kathryn Coffin at coxing@cucbc.org.

Coxes Mailing List

All coxes are strongly encouraged to subscribe to the CUCBC Coxes Mailing List.

Click here to subscribe to the list.

For full details of the May Bumps, please use the May Bumps 2007 menu on the left hand side.

These pages include full details of the Getting on Race, division and marshalling times, marshal rotas, Notes and Fines from the Umpires, etc.

Results

The final results are now available.
Click here for the final (Saturday) results [PDF].

Spectators are encouraged to come down and lend their support to crews from their college; directions may be found below. Spectators are reminded that the towpath during Bumps is very busy, and for safety reasons, all cyclists must be in possesion of a valid bank pass.

Each club will be issued with a total of four bank passes per boat and this is the maximum number of people permitted to accompany a boat during the race. This number includes the Boatman, the Club’s Senior Treasurer and any College VIPs. The towpath will be cordoned off at the Railway Bridge and there will be further checks at Grassy Corner. If you do not have a bike pass then we request that you leave your bicycle at one of the above points and continue on foot. Crews having excessive bank parties will be heavily penalised, and repeat offenses will earn the crew a technical bump against them. Spectators are asked not to run along the towpath during the races as this obstructs the umpires and can cause accidents.

Note that use of megaphones by bank parties is strictly forbidden during racing for coaching or giving distances, but boatmen and coaches may use them to give instructions to crews facing potentially dangerous situations.

How to get there

The majority of the Bumps course is downstream of the Penny Ferry pub (formerly the Pike & Eel). The Plough pub is also a popular vantage point, as many bumps occur around Grassy Corner and Ditton Corner. The Control Desk is located at the start of the towpath - simply find your way to this point, and carry on walking down the towpath (the entire course is approximately 2.6km):

• CUCBC Control Desk (Google Local)

All crews are reminded that they have to marshal in reverse order in their marshalling area (either Peter’s Posts or Chesterton) before going down to the start and then spin in order, onto their station. This should pose minimal problems providing that crews are sufficiently organised and respond quickly to the marshal’s requests. Any crew causing unnecessary and/or excessive delay risks being fined and/or having a technical bump awarded against them.

Divisions race at 45 minute intervals. All crews should marshal 45 minutes before the Gun of their division.

NB: All divisions race 2 hours earlier on Saturday.

* N.B. Divisions M6 and W5 marshall 10 minutes before the start gun at the start.

Notes and fines from the Umpires will available online, via this page, during the Bumps.

All fines can be appealed via Ian Thompson, CUCBC Senior Treasurer, within 48 hours of issue (i.e. when the daily Notes and Fines e-mail is sent).

Wednesday

Georgina

The Georgina will be going out for a one hour trip on Wednesday, leaving her moorings at 16:15. This means she should bet at the P&E by 16:45, where she will spin and head home. M2 crews heading to Marshall should let her through and there may be a delay to the start of M3, if she is slightly delayed. W2 swill meet her as they are rowing down to Marshall.

Notes from the Umpires

• Lost property:
  • FOUND at control - one pair of Merrell sandals, black and beige, quite large, and they're not Pete's. Is anybody shoe-less?
  • LOST - a fat face jumper in sort of Cambridgey blue with 'lightweights 06' down the arm, and citigroup/the ospreys embroidered on the front. Owner is reasonably attached to it...
• Coxes, don't boat without a lifejacket! It attracts a fairly hefty £50 fine and a risk of disqualification if you try and race without one, yet bizarrely there were quite a few lower boats coxes that forgot theirs today. Ditto bow balls.
• The 'overlap before grassy' rule is there for your safety - don't push it too far. A bump is a bump if the bowball passes the cox in front.
• Clearing was sometimes rubbish today. If you have bumped, STOP, then clear. Don't just sit in the middle of the river. If you have been bumped, carry on rowing and clear to one side or the other, don't change your mind half way across!
• Crews should not pull blades in on both sides. Capsize could be the undesirable result. If necessary, bury the blades underwater so as not to obstruct racing crews.
• 2 people riding on one bike whilst bank partying is dangerous and not very recommended at all.

Fines

• 1st and 3rd M5. Foul and abusive language - £20
• Caius M3. Excessive bank party - £15
• Caius M4. Celebrating before clearing - £30
• Churchill. No marshal, 1st offence - £15
• Churchill M2. Failure to easy - £30
• Clare M1. Dropped bung, no advantage - £15
• Downing W3. Late concession - £30
• Emmanuel. No marshal, 1st offence - £15
• Jesus W1. Excessive bank party - £15
• Jesus W1. Foul and abusive language - £35
• Fitz M3. Failure to clear - £20
• Homerton M2. Foul and abusive language - £30
• LMBC M6. Ignoring marshalling instructions - £20
• LMBC W2. Dropped bung (very close to gaining advantage!) - £15
• LMBC M4. Dropped bung, no advantage - £15
• Newnham W4. Poor clearing - choose one side or the other, not both - warning
• Pembroke. No marshal, 1st offence - £15
• Queens'. No marshal, 1st offence - £15
• Queens' M4. No lifejacket - £50
• Robinson M3. No lifejacket - £50
• St Edmund's M2. Excessive bank party - £15
• St Catherine's M3. Late acknowledgement - £25
• St Catherine's M3. Dangerous coxing on way home - £30

Thursday

Notes from the Umpires

On the whole, the racing today was very good (despite the rubbish weather) and there was some impressive clearing from several crews as well (although I can't remember which, it was noted by the umpires!).

All of the usual notes seem to be cropping up, such as:

• Please take your litter (i.e. water bottles) with you from first post reach. And it's still not a toilet!
• The inside of Grassy corner is a really bad place to clear to - don't stop there unless you really really really have to.
• Bank parties check that you are not excessive, and if there are strangers with you ask them to leave! This is especially important when the towpath gets busier tomorrow and Saturday.

Fines

• 1st and 3rd M4. Failure to clear - £30
• 1st and 3rd M1. Failure to clear - £25
• Caius. No marshal, 1st offence - £15
• Caius M1. Excessive bank party - £25
• Caius M3. No lifejacket - £50
• Christ's M4. Dangerous coxing - £20
• Downing M3. Late concession - £40
• CCAT W3. Failure to clear - £20
• CCAT M2. Failure to easy - £35
• Emmanuel. No marshal, 2nd offence - £30
• Emmanuel. No marshal, 3rd offence - £45
• Emmanuel W1. Excessive bank party - £25
• Homerton W1. Failure to easy - £25
• LMBC W2. Dropped bung, no advantage. Again. Don't do it tomorrow. - £15
• New Hall W3. Failure to easy - £20
• Queens'. No marshal, 2nd offence - £30
• Sidney M1. Failure to clear - £20
• St Edmund's. Excessive bank party - £25
• Vet School W1. Dropped bung, no advantage - £15

Friday

Notes from the Umpires

Well done on some exciting racing today, even with the mini storm in the middle of W4/M4!

Best of luck to all crews tomorrow, particularly those that are on for blades or a headship!

• Lost and Found (items may be collected from control):
  • FOUND - a hex tool (screwdrivers and allen keys and things)
  • FOUND - a stopwatch
• Thank you to FaT W3 for aiding in log removal from the river
• Thank you to the Magdalene W2 bank party for pulling other crews in in the pouring rain!
• Excessive bank parties are being looked out for particularly tomorrow (as the towpath is so busy), so please make sure there are NO MORE than 4 people cycling/running with a crew.

Fines

• 1st and 3rd W3. Excessive bank party - £50
• Caius M1. Excessive bank party - £50
• Christ's M4. Dropped bung, no advantage - £15
• Christ's M1. Late concession - £20
• Churchill M2. Incompetent/dangerous marshalling - £30
• Churchill M3. No lifejacket - £50
• Clare M2. Foul and abusive language - £20
• Downing M1. Excessive bank party - £50
• Emmanuel W3. Excessive bank party - £50
• Emmanuel M1. Excessive bank party - £50
• Fitzwilliam W2. Excessive bank party - £50
• Girton W2. Late marshalling an dangerous coxing - £40
• Jesus M3 and W1. Foul and abusive language - warning
• Homerton M2. Illegal practice start - £20
• LMBC M4. Failure to clear - £50
• New Hall W2. Incompetent marshalling - £20
• Queens'. No marshal, 2nd offence - £30
• Queens' W3. Late concession - £30
• Robinson W2. Excessive bank party - £50
• Robinson M1. Foul and abusive language - £15

Saturday

Notes from the Umpires

Congratulations to all crews for today and the rest of the week - particularly to Caius men (again!) and Jesus women for their respective Headships, and all crews that got blades.

Will whoever ordered the periodic rain showers for today please refrain from doing so next year?

Fines

• 1st and 3rd M4. No lifejacket - £50
• Caius. No marshal, 2nd offence - £30
• CCAT. No marshal, 1st offence - £15
• Clare M1. Excessive bankparty - £50
• Christ's. No marshal, 1st offence - £15
• Emmanuel. No marshal, 4th offence - £60
• Homerton. No marshal, 1st offence - £15
• LMBC. No marshal, 1st offence - £15
• LMBC W2. Dropped bung, no advantage - £15
• Magdalene M1. Late acknowledgement - £30
• Pembroke. No marshal, 2nd offence - £30
• Pembroke W1. Runners obstructing umpire - £30
• Queens' M4. Dropped bung, no advantage - £15
• Wolfson M2. Dangerous coxing - £50
• the drunk on the towpath who fell asleep with his head in cyclists' path - £1000000, or possibly death
• Caius men. Not exciting enough racing at the top of M1 - handicap of 3 places next year
• Amy Wallace. Wearing of OUWBC tech top on the Cam towpath - ritual burning of said garment

At the end of each day of racing, the results (which will be the next day's start order) will be available from this page.

The Cambridge University student radio station, cur1350 will be providing live commentry of the May Bumps.

Provisional live results will be available from 1st & 3rd Trinity's website. Additionally, 1st & 3rd provide an excellent WAP and SMS results service.

Mays 2007 Results

    »View the final results from the Mays 2007 [PDF]