'Fair bit of battling' while rowing in St. John's Townies vs. Baymen punt race

A team of Baymen beat the Townies in the fourth annual Grand Townies vs. Baymen Punt Race on Saturday at Harbourside Park,but rowerssay it's a job just to line up the flat-bottomed wooden boats with winds blowing a gale in St. John's Harbour let alone to race across it.

• Harbour domination a draw at Townie vs.Baymenpunt race

"It was breezy, got thrown around a bit, but it was a lot of fun," said longtime rower James Cadigan, who won the 2016 Royal St. John's Regatta men's championship last Augustwith his Outer Cove crew.

TheBaymengot their names added to the trophy, and a $500 cash prize, with $250 going to the losing Townies.

Handling a punt

Cadigan said handling a punt with a crew of just two, holdingtwo oars each is a lot harder than the shells they use for the Regatta.

"In a punt, you're sitting in a boat where you're sitting on a plank.You have to use the ribs of the boat to keep your feet in place, and there's no oar locks, you're using ropes to keep your oars on the pegs which are sticking up on the side of the boat," he said.

"So you've got a fair bit of battling just to figure out how to go about it in the first place."

Cadiganraced in this year'snewcomer event withnovice rower Darrell Power. That race was brought in asaneffort to get new rowers in on the fun.

Organizers said they didn't have enough women participating this year to hold the women's race, but plan to hold more learn-to-rowsessions next summer to help attract more competitors.

A centuries-old tradition

The Grand Townies vs. Baymen Punt Race is run by The Narrows Group, an organization with a mandate to preserve and protect the historic entrance to the St. John's Harbour.

Cadigan said he was happy to be involved in the community event, and to check out how different punt racing is from the kind of shell rowing he's used to.

He saideven though he didn't win this year, he's on team Baymen.

"I'd say I'm a Bayman, being from Outer Cove, but that's up for an argument I guess depending who you talk to," Cadigan said.

In Newfoundland, the term "bayman"refers to someone from outside the St. John's area, while "townie"refers to those from the capital city commonly known as "town."

According to the team behind The Great Fogo Island Punt Race, another annual wooden-boat race, such rowing competitions in Newfoundland go back as far as the mid-19th century. Fishermen took one day every summer to have some fun and show off their strength and skill, as rowing was a means of survival, as well as a way to earn a living from fishing.