Coxing

The coxswain plays a highly responsible role in any crew and it is an extremely rewarding and enjoyable one. The cox acts as the eyes, ears and brain of the boat, in control of everything from tactics, to motivating calls, to steering.

The most important role of the cox is to ensure the safety of the crew whether that is during an outing in avoiding hazards or in a race with appropriate overtaking manoeuvres. Steering the boat is another critical role as it can be the difference between an impressive performance in a race and a disappointing one. Equally, the right call at the right time can spur the crew onto digging even deeper into their energy levels and coming up trumps when others are fading.

Our coxes are trained to a very high level with a great awareness of other river users whilst having comfortable control over manoeuvring the boat. We welcome both experienced coxes and complete beginners for whom we have a dedicated training program. And we are always looking to welcome new coxes who want to experience coxing on one of the world’s greatest rivers!

UCLBC has a variety of boats meaning coxes have the opportunity to try their hand in both stern-loaders (where they sit at the back) and in bow-loaders (where they sit at the front) and in both fours and eights. The Coxswain Captain and coaches assist coxes’ development so that even complete novices are confident and regularly competing in races by the end of the year.