Budapest Training Camp 2024

September saw PCBC kick off the year with our annual 10-day training camp in Budapest, Hungary. 

Training camp is a great opportunity for rowers to ease back into the sport and refocus their energies towards the upcoming year of rowing on the Cam. Throughout training camp our rowers work to develop their technique, improve their fitness, and bond with their squad-mates, all on a gorgeous stretch of river in a beautiful city.

Camp is structured around three core sessions a day, incorporating both land and water training. Each of these sessions is overseen by our head coach, Chris Radbone, from land and from the launch. Alongside feedback throughout these sessions, rowers receive further direction in the form of whole-squad video analysis at the end of the day.

While camp involves plenty of hard work, we also took the opportunity to unwind a bit, exploring the city and enjoying Budapest’s nightlife. At the midpoint of our training we travelled to the iconic Gellert Thermal Baths for some much needed rest and recovery, and spent the rest of the day wandering through the city taking in the sights. We wrapped up our day out together with some traditional Hungarian food at a local restaurant.

Another highlight of camp worth is PCBC’s ‘Budapest Regatta’- an intense, and very high-stakes (bragging rights and a round of applause up for grabs) 200m sprint down the Danube. Everyone put on a strong showing and for the first time ever, perhaps serving as proof of the improvements everyone made over the course of the camp, we had no capsizes. 

We’d like to extend a special thanks to Bálint Homonnay and his family for allowing us access to their amazing facilities and for all the help offered throughout the training camp- this trip certainly couldn’t have happened without them!