Friday, March 25, 2011

River Thames Webcam Live at Varsity Boat Race 2011

The University Boat Race, generally known as "The Boat Race" is a rowing race in England between the Oxford University Boat Club and the Cambridge University Boat Club, rowed between competing eights each spring on the Thames in London.

This live feed is on the River Thames for the 2011 Boat Race:

Boat race live webcam

Event Information:

It takes place on the last Saturday of March. The formal title of the event is the Xchanging Boat Race, and it is also known as the University Boat Race and the Oxford and Cambridge Boat Race.

An estimated quarter of a million people watch the race live from the banks of the river, around seven to nine million people on TV in the UK, and an overseas audience estimated by the Boat Race Company at around 120 million, which would make this the most viewed single day sporting event in the world. However, other sources estimate that the international audience is below 20 million. The course is 4 miles and 374 yards (6,779 m) from Putney to Mortlake, passing Hammersmith and Barnes; it is sometimes referred to as the Championship Course, and follows an S shape, east to west. The start and finish are marked by the University Boat Race Stones on the south bank. The clubs' presidents toss a coin (the 1829 sovereign) before the race for the right to choose which side of the river (station) they will row on: their decision is based on the day's weather conditions and how the various bends in the course might favour their crew's pace. The north station ('Middlesex') has the advantage of the first and last bends, and the south ('Surrey') station the longer middle bend.