May Bumps


The May Bumps are a set of rowing races, held annually on the River Cam in Cambridge, England. 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. 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 in mid-June and is run as a bumps race.
The most recent in the series was the May Bumps 2019, which ran from 12 June 2019 until 15 June 2019.

Structure of the May Bumps

The races are run in divisions, each containing 17 crews. The number of crews in each bottom division varies yearly depending on new entrants. Each crew contains 8 rowers and one coxswain. A total of 154 crews took part in 2014, totalling around 1390 participants. There are currently 6 divisions for men's crews and 4 divisions for women's crews. 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, 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. Once the race has begun, a crew must attempt to catch up with the crew ahead of it and bump 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 over-bumped. 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 over-bumps 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 :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.

Crews finishing Head of the River

Men's May Bumps (1887-2019)

NB. May Bumps were cancelled between 1915 and 1918, and in 1940 due to war. Prior to 1946 were two separate rowing clubs: 1st Trinity and 3rd Trinity, hence both separate and combined titles.

Women's May Bumps (1974-2019)

197419751976197719781979
198019811982198319841985
198619871988198919901991
199219931994199519961997
199819992000200120022003
200420052006200720082009
201020112012201320142015
2016201720182019----

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.

Table of Winning Boats (1887-2019)

Sixteen boats have been head of the river.
BladeBoatHead of the River : MenHead of the River : WomenHead of the River : TotalWinning Years : MenWinning Years : Women
Jesus
23
7
30
1909, 1910, 1912–14, 1920–22, 1924–25, 1927, 1930, 1935–39, 1947–48, 1955–58, 19721988, 1993–94, 2005, 2007, 2017–2018
Trinity
25
-
25
1889, 1893, 1897–1906, 1911, 1919, 1928–29, 1945, 1964–67, 1973, 2008–10-
Lady Margaret
20
2
22
1926, 1950–54, 1959–61, 1974–75, 1979–81, 1983, 1988–89, 2016–181991–92
Caius
16
3
19
1987, 1998–2000, 2002–07, 2011–15, 20192000–02
Trinity Hall
15
2
17
1887–88, 1890–92, 1894–96, 1907–08, 1946, 1992–951982–83
Pembroke
10
6
16
1923, 1931–34, 1976–78, 1985–861997–98, 2006, 2008–10
3rd Trinity
11
n/a
11
1889, 1893, 1901–06, 1929n/a
Downing
6
5
11
1982, 1984, 1990–91, 1996–972011–12, 2014–16
1st & 3rd Trinity
9
-
9
1945, 1964–67, 1973, 2008–10
-
Clare
5
4
9
1941–44, 19491974, 1979–1980, 2013
Churchill
-
6
6
-
1978, 1985–87, 1989–90
Emmanuel
1
4
5
20011995–96, 1999, 2004
1st Trinity
5
n/a
5
1898–1900, 1911, 1928n/a
Newnham
n/a
4
4
n/a1975–76, 2003, 2019
Fitzwilliam
3
-
3
1969–71
-
New Hall
n/a
3
3
n/a1977, 1981, 1984
Queens’
3
-
3
1962–63, 1968
-

NB. Prior to 1946 were two separate rowing clubs: 1st Trinity and 3rd Trinity, hence both separate and combined titles.
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.

Blades, Super-Blades, Technical Blades, and Spoons

Four boat 'awards' are informally/formally recognised by the individual college boat clubs that take part in the Cambridge May Bumps, these accolades are awarded as follows:
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:
To be eligible a club must have at least one men's and one women's boat.

Winners

Results:

Men's 1st Division

  13. II

Women's 1st Division

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