From seasoned pros to beginners, Quidi Vidi Lake is a rower’s paradise. Register a team, learn to row, or check out one of our seasonal training programs.
Please note the changes to our registration policy:
| Race Category | Cost |
|---|---|
| Masters | $1100 per team |
| Senior | $1100 per team |
| Intermediate | $1100 per team |
| Juvenile | $620 per team |
| Midget | $620 per team |
| Squirt | $270 per team |
| Out of town crew | $350 per team |
As of 2015, an online booking system is used to make bookings.
Important Note: Crews must register using our online registration and submit their waivers before they will be permitted to make a booking. Once registration and waivers are complete you will be sent an email with a user name and password for the online booking site.
The Boat and Technical Director bookings are every 35 minutes.
For a step-by-step instructions on how to use the online booking system, please see our online booking system guide.
Important Note: It is not possible to restrict how many booking are made. The current rule of only one morning and only one evening practice per crew per day still stands. If a crew does double book in the morning or evening they will be first given a warning, with subsequent infractions leading to increasing penalties of the number of days that their account will be locked. If this rule continues to be abused we will have to return to the telephone system.
If you are a new rower with a full crew (six rowers), or an individual rower looking to get your foot in the door to create a new group, this program may be what you are looking for! This includes individual and group sessions, Rowing and Boat Orientation, Technical Rowing Instruction and on-water mentoring.
The Royal St. John’s Regatta Committee is pleased to announce details of the 2019 Winter/Spring Training Program at the Quidi Vidi boathouse. The annual training program will commence on Tuesday, January 15, 2019, and run until approximately Thursday, April 25 (15 weeks total).
Coxwains must be 19 years of age as of December 31 of this year.
Minimum age of any oarsperson is 10 years, as of December 31 this year.
The course of the Royal St. John’s Regatta is possibly the most unique boat racing course in the world. Unlike most other racing courses, the length of Quidi Vidi Lake forces competitors to turn a set of buoys at the bottom of the pond in the full course, and a set of buoys at the center of the pond for the half course.
Both courses follow the same set of rules for conduct and sportsmanship.
With an overall length of 2.45 km (1.52 miles), the full course is a grueling testimony to the sport of boat racing. The crew must line themselves at their respective stake and, when the signal is given, race to their designated buoy at the bottom of the pond.
Should one full minute elapse with no mis-start, accident or equipment damage, the race is considered official and will not be stopped unless an emergency occurs.
The first crew reaching their buoy will be given right of way to round the buoy. To successfully complete the course, crews must round the buoy on the south side, and approach their starting stake on the north side. The distance between the buoys at the top of the pond is 36.5 meters (119.75 feet) and at the foot of the pond they are 15.7 meters (51.5 feet).
Though a shorter course, it is no less grueling or impressive to watch.
The length of the course comes in at 1.225 km (0.76 miles) and like the full course, crews must reach their buoys and round them on the south side, approaching their starting positions from the north.
The distance between buoys are the same in both courses as is giving right of way to the crew which reaches their buoy first.
| Shell Name | Colour |
|---|---|
| Pomerleau | Gold |
| Cougar Helicopters Soteria | Blue |
| Gerry Angel | Green |
| Dictator | Red |
| Iceberg Gold | White |
| Miss Tubular | Tan |
| Shell Name | Colour |
|---|---|
| The OZ Network | Gold |
| The Newfoundland Herald | Blue |
| Smith Stockley | Green |
| The Henley | Red |
| President’s Choice | White |
| The Broker | Tan |
| Shell Name | Colour |
|---|---|
| Miss India II | Gold |
| Stroke of Power | Blue |
| Smith Stockley II | Green |
| Catherine M | Red |
| The NTV Network | White |
| The Ranger | Tan |
| Shell Name | Colour |
|---|---|
| Lamb’s Palm Breeze | Gold |
| HydroWise | Blue |
| The Telegram | Green |
| The Sea-Hawk | Red |
| The CBC | White |
| The Marine Institute | Tan |
Located in the Boathouse on Quidi Vidi Lake, the St. John’s Rowing Club is the only sliding seat rowing club in Newfoundland. The club offers many learn-to-row programs, geared towards all ages and experiences, offers high school and college programs, and also acts as the main training facility for the Newfoundland Rowing Team.
With certified coaches and well planned programs the club can meet all of your rowing needs. Please visit their website or contact them via phone at 576-0082 or e-mail contact@sjrc.ca for more information on how you can get involved in slide-seat rowing.
In order to row in the Royal St. John’s Regatta, you must have a team of six (6) regular oarspersons, and a certified Coxswain. Most teams have a sponsor to provide financial support as well. Having a spare would be ideal in case someone cannot make a practice or in case anything goes wrong Regatta Day, but is not required. A coach or manager would also be ideal, but is not required.
Please see our How to Establish a Team page for more information on how to start a new rowing team. There are many ways to get involved with fixed-seat rowing. The best way would be to contact our Technical Coordinator at the boathouse, who will be organizing our Learn To Row Programs and will be putting together crews throughout the summer. We also have a Facebook page and bulletin boards at the boathouse which many people use to notify that they are looking for crews, rowers, coxswains, etc.
The Chevron Learn to Row (CLTR) program is a free program offered by the Royal St. John’s Regatta Committee to teach newcomers the sport of fixed-seat rowing. Please visit the Chevron Learn to Row page for more information.
The Discovery Day Regatta is a practice regatta held towards the end of June. For new and experienced crews, it is a chance to experience a race scenario before Time Trials and Regatta Day. Please visit the Discovery Day Regatta page for more information.
The purpose of the Time Trials is to determine the make-up of each Regatta Day race based upon the times rowed by the crews participating in the Time Trial heats. For each Regatta Day race, the team with the fastest time will be assigned Stake 1, the second fastest assigned Stake 2, and so on until the slowest team is assigned Stake 5. For more information visit the Time Trials page.
As of 2015 an online booking system is being utilized. Practices run during the week from 5:25am-8:00pm, and on Saturdays run from 7:10am – 11:15am with each spin being 35 minutes long. For more information or to book a spin click here.
If you cannot find a coxswain our Technical Coordinator may be available to you out for practice until you can find one – they may also be able to help your crew find a coxswain! You also have the option of putting an ad on our Facebook Page, online bulletin board (link to that page) and our Boathouse bulletin board, as some crews have found coxswains this way.
To become a Coxswain, an individual must be nineteen (19) years of age as of December 31st of any year in which the rowing event is held. They must then participate in the Learn to Coxswain program, offered multiple times each season.
Any oarsperson, rower or spare, is only permitted to register and row with one (1) crew.
The deadline for registration is April 29, 2019. In order for any crew to use our facilities and utilize the veribook system, they must have their registration prior to this date.
