- May Bumps
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1st & 3rd Trinity II about to bump Caius II to go top of the 2nd division on day 2 of the 2005 May Bumps
The May Bumps (also May Races, Mays) are a set of rowing races, held annually on the River Cam in Cambridge. They began in 1887 after separating from the Lent Bumps, the equivalent bumping races held at the end of February or start of March. Prior to the separation there had been a single set of annual bumps dating from its inception in 1827.[1] The races are open to all college boat clubs from the University of Cambridge, the University Medical and Veterinary Schools and Anglia Ruskin Boat Club. The May Bumps takes place over four days (Wed-Sat) in mid-June and is run as a bumps race.
The most recent in the series was the May Bumps 2011, which ran from 15 June 2011 until 18 June 2011.
Contents
Structure of the May Bumps
Main article: Bumps race
The races are run in divisions, each containing 17 crews. The number of crews in each bottom division varies yearly depending on new entrants.[2] Each crew contains 8 rowers and one coxswain. A total of 171 crews took part in 2011, totalling around 1500 participants. There are currently 6 divisions for men's crews (referred to as M1, M2....M6) and 4 divisions for women's crews (similarly W1-W4). The divisions represent a total race order with Division 1 at the top. The ultimate aim is to try and finish Head of the River (also said as gaining the 'Headship'), i.e. 1st position in division 1.
At the start, signalled by a cannon, each crew is separated by a distance of about 1½ boat lengths (approximately 30m or 90'). Once the race has begun, a crew must attempt to catch up with the crew ahead of it and bump (physically touch or overtake) it before the crew behind does the same to them. A crew which bumps or is bumped must pull to the side of the river to allow all the other crews to continue racing. If a crew is able to catch and bump the boat which started 3 places in front of it, after the two in front have already bumped out, the crew is said to have overbumped. A crew which neither bumps a crew ahead nor is bumped by a crew behind before crossing the finishing post is said to have rowed over.
After the race, any crew which bumps or overbumps swaps places with the crew that it has bumped for the following day's racing. A crew which rows over stays in the same position. Crews finishing at the top of a division also row at the bottom of the next division, as the sandwich boat, in an attempt to try to move up into the next division. The process is repeated over four days, allowing crews to move up or down several places in the overall order of boats. The finishing order of one year's May Bumps are then used as the starting order of the following year's races.
The Pegasus Cup
The Pegasus Cup is a Cambridge rowing prize first awarded in 2006. It was donated by Milton Brewery and will be awarded annually to the most successful college boat club competing in the Cambridge May Bumping Races. The winner is decided by means of a points system, which is described in the Cambridge University Combined Boat Club handbook as follows:
The Cup is awarded to the Club gaining the most points over the course of the May Bumps. Points are awarded as follows:- One point for every place gained by each of a Club’s boats.
- One point for each night that a Club retains the Men’s or Women’s Headship in Division One.
- One point deducted for every place lost by each of a Club’s boats.
To be eligible a club must have at least one men's and one women's boat (except in the case of single sex colleges where two boats of the same sex may be permitted).
Winners
Year Winner 2006 Newnham 2007 Hughes Hall 2008 St Edmund's 2009 Hughes Hall 2010 Clare Hall 2011 Murray Edwards 2011 Finishing positions (2012 Starting positions)
Caius M1 rowing over to claim the men's HeadshipMen's 1st Division
- Caius [Bumped: Pembroke, First and Third]
- Downing [Bumped: Jesus, Pembroke, First and Third]
- St. Catharine's [Blades; bumped: Lady Margaret, Jesus, Pembroke, First and Third]
- 1st & 3rd Trinity
- Pembroke
- Jesus
- Lady Margaret
- Queens'
- Fitzwilliam
- Magdalene
- Clare [Bumped: Emmanuel, Trinity Hall]
- Trinity Hall
- Emmanuel
- Christ's [Bumped; First and Third II, Kings]
- Churchill
- King's
- Robinson [Bumped: First and Third II]
Downing W1 with the Women's HeadshipWomen's 1st Division
- Downing
- Pembroke
- Christ's
- Newnham
- Emmanuel
- Jesus
- Clare
- Lady Margaret
- Queens'
- Caius
- Trinity Hall
- 1st & 3rd Trinity
- Magdalene
- St. Catharine's
- Churchill
- Girton
- Selwyn
Crews finishing Head of the River
Men's May Bumps (1887 - 2011)
NB. May Bumps were cancelled between 1915 and 1918, and in 1940 due to war.[1] Prior to 1946 1st & 3rd Trinity were two separate rowing clubs: 1st Trinity and 3rd Trinity, hence both separate and combined titles.[5]
Women's May Bumps (1974 - 2011)
1974 Clare 1975 Newnham 1976 Newnham 1977 New Hall 1978 Churchill 1979 Clare 1980 Clare 1981 New Hall 1982 Trinity Hall 1983 Trinity Hall 1984 New Hall 1985 Churchill 1986 Churchill 1987 Churchill 1988 Jesus 1989 Churchill 1990 Churchill 1991 Lady Margaret 1992 Lady Margaret 1993 Jesus 1994 Jesus 1995 Emmanuel 1996 Emmanuel 1997 Pembroke 1998 Pembroke 1999 Emmanuel 2000 Caius 2001 Caius 2002 Caius 2003 Newnham 2004 Emmanuel 2005 Jesus 2006 Pembroke 2007 Jesus 2008 Pembroke 2009 Pembroke 2010 Pembroke 2011 Downing NB. The Women's May Bumps were rowed in coxed-fours between 1974 and 1989, changing to coxed-eights from 1990 onwards. A new start order was used for the women's 1990 races.[1]
Table of Winning Boats (1887-2011)
Sixteen boats have been head of the river.
Blade Boat Head of the River : Men Head of the River : Women Head of the River : Total Winning Years : Men Winning Years : Women 
Jesus 23 5 28 1909, 1910, 1912–14, 1920–22, 1924–25, 1927, 1930, 1935–39, 1947–48, 1955–58, 1972 1988, 1993–94, 2005, 2007 Trinity (Combined) 25 - 25 1889, 1893, 1897–1906, 1911, 1919, 1928–29, 1945, 1964–67, 1973, 2008–10 - 
Lady Margaret 17 2 19 1926, 1950–54, 1959–61, 1974–75, 1979–81, 1983, 1988–89 1991–92 
Trinity Hall 15 2 17 1887–88, 1890–92, 1894–96, 1907–08, 1946, 1992–95 1982–83 
Pembroke 10 6 16 1923, 1931–34, 1976–78, 1985–86 1997–98, 2006, 2008–10 
Caius 11 3 14 1987, 1998–2000, 2002–07, 2011 2000–02 3rd Trinity 11 n/a 11 1889, 1893, 1901–06, 1929 n/a 
Clare 5 3 8 1941–44, 1949 1974, 1979–1980 
1st & 3rd Trinity 9 - 9 1945, 1964–67, 1973, 2008–10 - 
Churchill - 6 6 - 1978, 1985–87, 1989–90 
Downing 6 1 7 1982, 1984, 1990–91, 1996–97 2011 
Emmanuel 1 4 5 2001 1995–96, 1999, 2004 1st Trinity 5 n/a 5 1898–1900, 1911, 1928 n/a 
Fitzwilliam 3 - 3 1969–71 - 
New Hall n/a 3 3 n/a 1977, 1981, 1984 
Newnham n/a 3 3 n/a 1975–76, 2003 
Queens’ 3 - 3 1962–63, 1968 - NB. Prior to 1946 1st & 3rd Trinity were two separate rowing clubs: 1st Trinity and 3rd Trinity, hence both separate and combined titles.[5]
CCAT, Christ's, Clare Hall, Corpus Christi, Darwin, Girton, Homerton, Hughes Hall, King's, Magdalene, Peterhouse, Robinson, St. Catharine's, Selwyn, Sidney Sussex, St Edmund's, Wolfson, Addenbrooke's and the Veterinary School are the regular entrants never to have finished Head of the River for either the men's or women's events.
See also
- Links to individual May Bumps results
References
- CUCBC - the organisation that runs the bumps
- Cambridge University Radio CUR1350 - introductions/jargon-busting
- ^ a b c The Bumps:An Account of the Cambridge University Bumping Races 1827-1999, John Durack, George Gilbert & Dr John Marks, 2000, ISBN 0953847519
- ^ http://www.cucbc.org/mays/gor
- ^ "Pegasus Cup". CUCBC Handbook. CUCBC. http://www.cucbc.org/handbook/pegasus_cup. Retrieved 2009-06-05.
- ^ http://www.cucbc.org/bumps/results/6/3
- ^ a b http://www.firstandthird.org/ First and Third Trinity Boat Club website
External links
- CUR1350 - live commentary, instant results, downloadable MP3s of race commentary
- Cambridge bumps charts — archive of results 1992-2005
- Pegasus Cup Standings from Milton Brewery
Categories:- Rowing in Cambridge
- Recurring sporting events established in 1887
- 1887 establishments in England
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