Fun with boats in murky waters

SATURDAY EVENING is a great time to unwind. So when it set the stage for the finale of the century old Merchants and Bankers Regatta, it was a carnival of sorts.

Energy was certainly in the air, land and water. It had been quite an eventful tournament given that races are known to provide nail-biting finishes.

The Regatta provided plenty of them. Timepass entertainment for the crowd that witnessed an exhibition of adrenaline rushing across the waters at the Madras Boat Club.

With police bands, `Pom Poms' and cheerleaders to add to the festivity, the club was decked with flags. And what an action packed finale.

Sample this, five minutes into the race, arch-rivals of the tournament, Satyam Infoway and SSI Technologies, crashed hard into each other, a few seconds into the race. The boats were then brought back to land, the broken oars were replaced and water was flushed out of the boats, before the rivals clashed once in the murky waters.

The crowd cheered, yelling out ``Give it all you got'', ``Lets kick...'' and ``Take Her Home''. Even as the coxes of the boats ordered `Power 10', Satyam Infoway snatched a slender lead, and hearts pounded hard.

Yells of ``Take Her Home'' continued. The Satyam team took the laurels home for the fours category.

The Cox of the team, Nikhil, was thrown into the water. So was the coach, CRS Karthik. ``It's a tradition,'' says K.S.Vijayakrishna, a team- mate. Just that, almost everybody wishes the waters were clean.

Two teams that shone across the forty races held in the course of the Regatta were Coromandel Travels, that took home the overall trophy (winning the first place in Ladies Pairs and Men's Pairs) the Satyam Infoway (first in Fours and third in the Men's Pairs). Not to forget, the spirited team from Tic Tac (minus any major corporate backing) that ended up runners up in the Men's Pairs and Sculls.

The Regatta founded by Parry and Co, manages to stage thrills in the water till date, says Stanley Verghese, of the M&B Committee.

Soon, after the races wound up, the participants and guests got together to let their hair down and party.

The stars of the tournament were many: Mahadevan, Sandeep and Mani (of Coromandel Travels), Karthik (SSI Technologies), James Joseph and M.R.Ravindra, the men behind the scenes of the races at the Madras Boat Club.

At the end of it all, everybody was just waiting for the winter Regatta (those interested could call the Madras Boat Club at 4339289). Some, to salvage lost pride. Some to keep the records intact. And some, simply to ``Take Her Home''.

By Sudhish Kamath

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