The St Peter’s College Boat Club (SPCBC) has set a new World Record for the Longest Continuous Row (Large Team Heavyweight Mixed 20-29) on a rowing machine, with 83 participants logging 1,628 miles (2,620,930 metres) over 10 days. The students set an ambitious goal of surpassing Hull University Boat Club’s 2019 7-day record, officially breaking the Hull record on Sunday 28 January at 2pm, and finalising their 10-day record at 2pm on 31 January 2024.
SPCBC set up their rowing base camp in the St Peter’s College Junior Common Room, recruiting fellow students, as well as several members of College staff, to cover the 240 hours of continuous rowing on an ergometer. Some participants set impressive personal records, too, clocking up to 12.5 hours on the machine throughout the 10-day programme. The event fundraised for the Boat Club and the College’s Access and Outreach programme, raising more than £4,300.
Amy (Archaeology and Anthropology, 2021), the President of the St Peter’s College Boat Club, said, ‘We’ve all had such a good time: it’s been so nice to see how this challenge brought us all closer as a boat club, and we’ve beaten a world record as well!’
The new record, now verified, will appear on Concept 2’s web listing of Large Team Longest Continual Row Records, and has been recognized with a special certificate of achievement and a Concept2 banner.