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The Boat Club is raising funds to replace and maintain our aging fleet of shells and blades, which are long overdue for renewal. Our focus this year is investing in small boats for our recreational and novice rowers, and rejuvenating our top-tier racing shells used by our high-performance athletes to represent the university at national and international competitions.
Founded in 1963—the same year as the University of York itself—the University of York Boat Club (UYBC) has a proud history as the university’s oldest and largest sports club. For over six decades, the club has brought together students from all backgrounds, fostering a love for rowing at both a recreational and competitive level. Whether it’s taking to the water for the first time or competing at some of the UK’s most prestigious regattas, UYBC has always been a place where rowers can push themselves, build lifelong friendships, and be part of something bigger.
Unfortunately, this year, the club has faced unforeseen financial challenges, preventing us from properly refurbishing our aging equipment to the necessary standard. As a result, we have lost two of our single sculls and one of our double sculls—boats essential for our novice and recreational rowers to develop fundamental rowing skills and a passion for the sport from their very first session.
Our Senior Squads have also been affected, with our top racing shells falling into disrepair, significantly impacting our ability to compete at the highest level and represent the university on national and international stages.
Your generous donations would help restore UYBC’s legacy as a club which both introduces new athletes to the sport and also provides our top rowers the opportunity to achieve their full potential—continuing the club’s legacy of excellence!
That’s why we are taking part in this year’s Challenge Week. Every donation, no matter how big or small, will go directly towards ensuring that UYBC continues to grow, compete, and succeed for years to come.
This year, we’ve set an ambitious—yet entirely achievable—target of £6,000 for Challenge Week, surpassing last year’s incredible fundraising total of £5,600.
We have carefully allocated our budget: £2,500 for small boats, £500 for sculling blades, and the remaining funds dedicated to refurbishing our existing fleet.
We know this is a significant goal, but with the generosity of our supporters and the determination of our athletes—who will be going above and beyond to earn every donation—we are confident we can reach it!
Your donations will make a massive difference to every member of our club. We have a diverse community, ranging from those who have just begun their rowing journey all the way to athletes for whom the sport has been a defining part of their lives since school. Our goal of investing in new sculling equipment and refurbishing our top racing shells will benefit all members equally.
New sculling boats and blades will allow our recreational squad to accommodate more athletes in training sessions, removing the current limitations caused by a shortage of equipment. Crucially, this means more students will have the opportunity to access the sport—something we can all agree is a positive step! Novice rowers, who took up the sport just six months ago, will also benefit by gaining the tools they need to refine their skills and push themselves to the next level.
The much-needed refurbishments to our racing shells will have a tremendous impact on our high-performance squads. Not only will they enhance our chances of success at the highest levels of competition—including securing another victory at Roses for the Boat Club this year—but they will also contribute to the health and well-being of all our athletes. Well-maintained equipment allows us to train more effectively, supporting both the physical and mental well-being of our members!
Below are some of the challenges we will be undertaking during the week:
Follow the Boat Club and all our challenges throughout the week on our social media pages:
Any and all donations will go towards our ultimate goal of making UYBC an accessible, high-performing environment for all our athletes. Your donation might also help us unlock fundraising challenges which will help us reach our goal even faster (you can see these on the challenges page).
If you are supporting an individual, squad, or challenge, please let us know in your donation message!
If you are an alumni of the Club and want to get in touch, send us an email and we would love to hear from you! boat@yorksu.org
Alternatively, if you are unable to donate then we would really appreciate you spreading the word by signing up as a Challenge Week ambassador for our club, and sharing our social media posts to your own socials so as many people as possible can read about our efforts!