Bad weather might have kept members of the Bermuda Rowing Association onshore after they had planned to play their part in the annual End to End Walk two weeks? ago.

But they made amends last weekend as a crew of five females rowed from White?s Island, via Darrell?s Island, to Dockyard and then back again ? a distance longer than the original intended route from Shelly Bay to Dockyard.

The five women had been training for the charity event for several mornings each week, pushing out into the harbour at dawn to take advantage of calmer water. Their technique had been fine-tuned by a local coach, enabling them to cope with choppy water.

Among the team was Bermuda?s former number one ladies? cyclist Melanie Claude as well as Natalie Luthi, Anita Swain, Jayne Jones and Corinne Hewson.

All of the rowers were products of the Association?s Learn-to-Scull programme that started last year ? an intensive five-week course which saw participants rowing three times a week.

Last weekend?s effort, which raised $2,000 for End to End charities, saw the 46-ft Olympic class boat launched from White?s Island at 3 p.m.

?We had to wait until the conditions were pretty ideal,? said Claude. ?It?s a long way to row and the wind can change quite quickly. The coaching that we received certainly enabled us to cope with the rough wash from motor vessels.?

?We chose a course that would keep us in the lee of the islands and at the same time give us a challenging distance to row. The boat is very responsive to the rudder, which is only nine square inches ? amazing for a 46ft boat,? added coxen Hewson.

Meanwhile, the Association are continuing with their Saturday try-out sessions which involve 90 minutes of rowing and coaching, with the first three sessions offered free of charge. The first session each week is reserved for juniors.

President Michael Swain said: ?We welcome all juniors who would like to try the art of rowing. A minimum age is difficult to define. What we look for is physical maturity so that the rower has good bone structure and has the necessary muscle development.

?I would emphasise that rowing is not a physically punishing sport unless you want it to be. It is low impact and the participants row to their own abilities.

?A misconception is that rowing requires large arm muscles. We concentrate on our largest muscles, in our legs and shoulders. The sliding seats mean that we use leg force rather than pulling with our arms. The glutes are certainly given a good workout as well.

?We are developing a separate junior programme whereby we will enrol four boys and four girls from a Government school and coach them over several weeks. Melanie O?Brien and Caroline Gledhill ? products of our Learn-to-Scull programme ? will be helping me to coach that course.

?As crews develop we will encourage them to train for regattas overseas. It is hoped that our junior programme will produce the core of Bermuda?s competition squad for the future.?