SMRC Head of the River
ST. MICHAEL’S ROWING CLUB – HEAD OF THE RIVER 2023
The HOR is going ahead tomorrow, Saturday 7th. Water levels have risen and there is going to be an increased flow so launching and the course could be challenging for beginners.
We have decided to slightly shorten the course to keep the start line away from the weir at Castleconnell. Please tell your rowers to bring wellies / sliders and can we ask that plenty of time is given to crews for launching. We have a big entry so are expecting congestion at the slip so please be patient with the marshals.
We are expecting a calm and warm day and needless to say we have a strong team of experienced marshals as safety remains our highest priority. With that in mind we ask that a representative from all crews attend the safety briefing meetings at 8am, 9am, 10am and 11am (next to the office).
See you all tomorrow
Brian & Kevin
SMRC
ST. MICHAEL’S ROWING CLUB – HEAD OF THE RIVER 2022
Well, we finally did it! We’re delighted to have run a very successful HoR in O’Brien’s Bridge on March 12th, thanks in no small part to the trojan work of the race committee, local and visiting crew, volunteers on and off the water, and our own crews and coaches.
You can see the results here
ST. MICHAEL’S ROWING CLUB – HEAD OF THE RIVER 2021
Well, we finally did it! We’re delighted to have run a very successful HoR in O’Brien’s Bridge on October 9th, thanks in no small part to the trojan work of the race committee, local and visiting crew, volunteers on and off the water, and our own crews and coaches.
You can see the results here
ST. MICHAEL’S ROWING CLUB – HEAD OF THE RIVER 2020
We would like to take this opportunity to thank all our sponsors for this year’s event and we are very grateful for the assistance they have given us in order to help run this event. We would encourage you to support them where possible.
Main Sponsors
Individual Race Sponsors
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HoR 2018 Results
SMRC 2018 Head of the River results
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HoR 2017 Results
SMRC 2017 Head of the River grade listing
SMRC 2015 Head of the River place listing
Head of the River – course map (.pdf)
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HoR 2015 Results
SMRC 2015 Head of the River grade listing
SMRC 2015 Head of the River place listing
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HoR 2013 Results
SMRC 2013 Head of the River grade listing
SMRC 2013 Head of the River place listing
SMRC Head Prospectus 2013 (.pdf)
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HoR 2012 Results
SMRC 2012 Head of the River grade listing
SMRC 2012 Head of the River place listing
Limerick Leader article on the SMRC HOR 2011
by Pat Cunneen
Record Breaking St Michael’s Rowing Club Head-of-the-River gets Limerick City of Sport off to a flying start – over 1000 athletes compete in over 580 crews
St Michael’s Rowing Club Head of the river between Castleconnel and O’Briens Bridge was the first rowing event to be held locally since the official launch of Limerick City of Sport. With a record breaking entry it is everything the City of Sport organisers could have hoped for. The entry of 580 crews far surpassed the previous record for an Irish Head of the River which was again set by St Michaels in 1998. It is incredible to believe that from a modest entry of 63 crews in 1981, this has grown to be the largest event of its kind over the last 30 years. This year the Head-of-the-River incorporates the Rowing Ireland National Head for single sculls and pairs. As a result, there was a strong entry from all four corners of the country. Reflecting the current strength of St Michael’s, the host club has no less than 50 crews participating.
The event is the first of three national Rowing Ireland national heads (time trials), featured single sculls and pairs. Next month Carrick-on-Shannon will host the national four-blade head (doubles and fours) event, and the eight blade version (eights and quadruple sculls) takes place in Belfast in March.
The fastest time in the National Head was recorded by a St. Michaels 2(Mark O’Brien and Declan O’Connor) with just a one second winning margin over Commercial of Dublin. Other National Head section winners included: Senior 2- Commercial; Senior Scull- Muckross (Moynihan); Intermediate Scull- UCD (Neal); Mens Junior 2- Presentation College; Mens Junior 18 Scull- Skibbereen (O’Donovan); Mens Novice 2- Fossa; Mens Novice Scull- Trinity (McCaffrey); Mens Junior 16 Scull- Commercial (Geoghegan); Mens Junior 15 Scull- St. Michaels (O’Malley); Mens Masters Scull- Clonmel (Kinsella); Womens Senior 2-Skibbereen; Womens Senior scull- Killorglin (Dukarska); Womens Intermediate Scull- Skibbereen (Walsh); Womens Junior 18 2- St. Michael’s (Aoife Leahy and Hannah O’Sullivan); Womens junior 18 scull- Portora (Nixon); Womens Novice 2- Shannon; Womens novice scull- Trinity (Dowling); Womens Junior 16 scull- Commercial (Keating); Womens masters scull- Cork (Crowley). All other boat types rowed under the broader St. Michaels Head, the fastest of which were the Grainne Mhaol/ NUIG senior 8 and senior 4.
Chief Organiser Rob Le Gear said “ The phenomenal entry reflects the popularity of this event and the magnificent stretch of water that it is run on. We had over 50 volunteers working on the day to ensure it ran off smoothly. It was great to see so many members and parents of our junior squads taking an active part in helping to run this record-breaking Limerick sporting event”.
See also the Rowing Ireland website for more details.
HOR History
St Michael’s Head of the River was inaugurated in 1981 to fill a gap which existed in the season.
Commencing with a modest entry of 63 crews in 1981, the Head has grown to be the largest rowing event in the country attracting an annual entry of approximately 400-500 crews from all four provinces.
The Head is run over a 2.5 mile course from Worlds End in Castleconnell to the bridge in O’Brien’s bridge.