Punting, Anyone?

The 125th National Punting Championships is coming up this weekend of 7-8 August, Tim Koch, HTBS’s special correspondent, writes from London.

“Punting is usually associated with Oxford and Cambridge though the students tend to use the craft for picnics and trips to riverside pubs, not for racing. ‘Tabs’ in particular like to make the delightful journey from Cambridge to Grantchester (immortalised in the Rupert Brooke poem, The Old Vicarage, Grantchester ) for a pint. Punting at Oxford is traditionally done in the boat, while at Cambridge it is done from the raised deck at the stern. I find the latter method easier as it allows the punter to use the pole as a rudder if necessary. Standing in the middle of the punt is more difficult but also more efficient and means that racing punts can reach up to eight knots.”

BBC had a nice piece about punting the other day (video here), and the Financial Times had an interesting article.