Torpids is one of two series of bumping races

Bumps race

A bumps race is a form of rowing race in which a number of boats chase each other in single file, each boat attempting to catch and "bump" the boat in front without being caught by the boat behind....

 held yearly at Oxford University, the other being Eights

Eights Week

Eights Week, also known as Summer Eights, is a four-day regatta of bumps races which constitutes the University of Oxford's main intercollegiate rowing event of the year. The regatta takes place in May of each year, from the Wednesday to the Saturday of the fifth week of Trinity term...

. Over 130 men's and women's crews race for their colleges in six men's divisions and five women's; almost 1200 participants in total. The racing takes place on the Isis (part of the River Thames

River Thames

The River Thames flows through southern England. It is the longest river entirely in England and the second longest in the United Kingdom. While it is best known because its lower reaches flow through central London, the river flows alongside several other towns and cities, including Oxford,...

) usually in the 7th week of Hilary term on four successive days from Wednesday to Saturday (around the start of March).

Bumping races evolved in Oxford as the river is too narrow for normal side by side racing.

Competing crews start the race lined up in order, one behind another, with their coxes

Coxswain

The coxswain is the person in charge of a boat, particularly its navigation and steering. The etymology of the word gives us a literal meaning of "boat servant" since it comes from cox, a coxboat or other small vessel kept aboard a ship, and swain, which can be rendered as boy, in authority. ...

 holding ropes attached to the bank, with gaps of about 1.5 boat lengths between the bow of one boat and the stern of the one in front. Racing is started by the firing of a cannon.

Crews attempt to progress up their division by hitting ('bumping') the boat in front without being hit by the boat behind, with the ultimate aim of becoming "Head Of The River" i.e. top of the first division. The Head of the River is awarded the Torpids Challenge Cup, presented to the OUBC by President T.C. Edwards-Moss of Brasenose College Boat Club. Once a bump has taken place, the crew whose boat was hit has to continue racing (and is liable to be bumped again) whilst the bumping crew moves to the side. This can lead to a crew moving down several places during a day's racing. This is the principal difference in the rules between Torpids and Summer Eights

Eights Week

Eights Week, also known as Summer Eights, is a four-day regatta of bumps races which constitutes the University of Oxford's main intercollegiate rowing event of the year. The regatta takes place in May of each year, from the Wednesday to the Saturday of the fifth week of Trinity term...

, where both crews stop racing.

The first day's starting order is based on the previous year's finishing positions, and each subsequent day's starting order is based on the previous day's finishing positions. A crew that bumps on every day without being bumped itself or that finishes at the Head of the River is awarded 'blades' - the right to get trophy oars

Oar

An oar is an implement used for water-borne propulsion. Oars have a flat blade at one end. Oarsmen grasp the oar at the other end. The difference between oars and paddles are that paddles are held by the paddler, and are not connected with the vessel. Oars generally are connected to the vessel by...

 painted up in their college colours with the names and weights of the successful crew emblazoned on them. Less sought after is the possibility of getting 'spoons', where the crew has been bumped on every single day. However, the most unusual possibility is 'spades', where the crew is bumped off the start, and then proceeds to bump the crew it is chasing, thus being both the bumper and the bumped in the same race. Only two boats have ever managed this feat on every day of the event.

The name 'Torpids' derives from the event's origins as a race for the second boats of the colleges, which were of course slower than the first boats. Nowadays there is no limit on the number of boats a college may enter, although crews in the last two divisions and crews without a position have to qualify to race by competing in a timed race the preceding Friday, known as 'rowing on'.

Rowers competing in that year's Boat Race

The Boat Race

The event 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 River Thames in London. It takes place generally on the last Saturday of March or the first...

 or any of the Henley Boat Races

Henley Boat Races

The Henley Boat Races are a number of rowing races between the University of Oxford and the University of Cambridge. Taking place on the River Thames at Henley, they are for crews that do not compete in the main University Boat Race on the 6,779m Championship Course in London:* Women's Boat Race *...

 against Cambridge may not compete in Torpids, but may compete in Summer Eights

Eights Week

Eights Week, also known as Summer Eights, is a four-day regatta of bumps races which constitutes the University of Oxford's main intercollegiate rowing event of the year. The regatta takes place in May of each year, from the Wednesday to the Saturday of the fifth week of Trinity term...

.

Men's Head of Torpids

1838	Worcester Worcester College, Oxford Worcester College is one of the constituent colleges of the University of Oxford in England. The college was founded in the eighteenth century, but its predecessor on the same site had been an institution of learning since the late thirteenth century...	1839	Oriel	1840	Wadham	1841	Trinity	|
1842	Brasenose Brasenose College, Oxford Brasenose College, originally Brazen Nose College , is one of the constituent colleges of the University of Oxford in the United Kingdom. As of 2006, it has an estimated financial endowment of £98m...	1843	University	1844	Oriel	1845	Brasenose	|
1846	Exeter	1847	Exeter	1848	Brasenose	1849	Wadham	|
1850	Brasenose	1851	Brasenose	1852	Brasenose	1853	Brasenose	|
1854	Exeter	1855	Exeter	1856	Exeter	1857	Exeter	|
1858	Pembroke Pembroke College, Oxford Pembroke College is one of the constituent colleges of the University of Oxford in England, located in Pembroke Square. As of 2009, Pembroke had an estimated financial endowment of £44.9 million.-History:...	1859	Exeter	1860	Exeter	1861	Brasenose	|
1862	Brasenose	1863	Exeter	1864	Exeter	1865	Exeter	|
1866	Brasenose	1867	Exeter	1868	Exeter	1869	University	|
1870	University	1871	University	1872	University	1873	University	|
1874	Brasenose	1875	Brasenose	1876	Trinity	1877	Pembroke	|
1878	Pembroke	1879	Pembroke	1880	Trinity	1881	Brasenose	|
1882	New College	1883	Corpus	1884	Corpus	1885	Corpus	|
1886	Brasenose	1887	Brasenose	1888	Brasenose	1889	Brasenose	|
1890	Brasenose	1891	Brasenose	1892	Brasenose	1893	Brasenose	|
1894	Brasenose	1895	No races	1896	New College	1897	Balliol	|
1898	Balliol	1899	Balliol	1900	New College	1901-1959	???	|
1960	St. Edmund Hall St Edmund Hall, Oxford St Edmund Hall is one of the constituent colleges of the University of Oxford in England. Better known within the University by its nickname, "Teddy Hall", the college has a claim to being "the oldest academical society for the education of undergraduates in any university"...	1961	St. John's St John's College, Oxford __FORCETOC__St John's College is a constituent college of the University of Oxford, one of the larger Oxford colleges with approximately 390 undergraduates, 200 postgraduates and over 100 academic staff. It was founded by Sir Thomas White, a merchant, in 1555, whose heart is buried in the chapel of...	1962	St. Edmund Hall	1963	No Racing	|
1964	St. Edmund Hall	1965	St. Edmund Hall	1966	St. Edmund Hall	1967	St. John's	|
1968	Balliol Balliol College, Oxford Balliol College , founded in 1263, is one of the constituent colleges of the University of Oxford in England but founded by a family with strong Scottish connections....	1969	Balliol	1970	Balliol	1971	Balliol	|
1972	Oriel	1973	Oriel	1974	Oriel	1975	Oriel	|
1976	Oriel	1977	No Racing	1978	Oriel	1979	Oriel	|
1980	Oriel	1981	Oriel	1982	Oriel	1983	Oriel	|
1984	Oriel	1985	Oriel	1986	Oriel	1987	Oriel	|
1988	Oriel	1989	Oriel	1990	Oriel	1991	Christ Church Christ Church, Oxford Christ Church or house of Christ, and thus sometimes known as The House), is one of the largest constituent colleges of the University of Oxford in England...	|
1992	Oriel	1993	Oriel	1994	Oriel	1995	Oriel	|
1996	Oriel	1997	Oriel	1998	Oriel	1999	Pembroke Pembroke College, Oxford Pembroke College is one of the constituent colleges of the University of Oxford in England, located in Pembroke Square. As of 2009, Pembroke had an estimated financial endowment of £44.9 million.-History:...	|
2000	No Racing	2001	Oriel	2002	No Racing	2003	Oriel	|
2004	Oriel	2005	Oriel	2006	Oriel	2007	No Racing	|
2008	Magdalen Magdalen College, Oxford Magdalen College is one of the constituent colleges of the University of Oxford in England. As of 2006 the college had an estimated financial endowment of £153 million. Magdalen is currently top of the Norrington Table after over half of its 2010 finalists received first-class degrees, a record...	2009	Christ Church	2010	Christ Church	2011	Christ Church	|

• In 1986, 1990, 1994, 1995, 1998 and 2003, racing was held on fewer than four days

• In 1991, Oriel were penalty bumped four places for training while the river was in flood.

Women's Head of Torpids from 1992

1992	Somerville Somerville College, Oxford Somerville College is one of the constituent colleges of the University of Oxford in England, and was one of the first women's colleges to be founded there...	1993	Somerville	1994	Somerville	1995	Osler-Green Green College, Oxford Green College was a graduate college of the University of Oxford in England. It was centred around an architecturally appealing 18th century building: the Radcliffe Observatory, which is modelled after the ancient "Tower of the Winds" in Athens....	|
1996	Osler-Green	1997	Osler-Green	1998	Osler-Green	1999	Osler-Green	|
2000	No Racing	2001	St. Catherine's	2002	No Racing	2003	Merton Merton College, Oxford Merton College is one of the constituent colleges of the University of Oxford in England. Its foundation can be traced back to the 1260s when Walter de Merton, chancellor to Henry III and later to Edward I, first drew up statutes for an independent academic community and established endowments to...	|
2004	Merton	2005	New College New College, Oxford New College is one of the constituent colleges of the University of Oxford in the United Kingdom.- Overview :The College's official name, College of St Mary, is the same as that of the older Oriel College; hence, it has been referred to as the "New College of St Mary", and is now almost always...	2006	Oriel	2007	No Racing	|
2008	St. Catherine's	2009	St. Catherine's	2010	Magdalen Magdalen College, Oxford Magdalen College is one of the constituent colleges of the University of Oxford in England. As of 2006 the college had an estimated financial endowment of £153 million. Magdalen is currently top of the Norrington Table after over half of its 2010 finalists received first-class degrees, a record...	2011	Magdalen	|

Double Headship

The 'Double Headship' is an accolade awarded to any college finishing with both their men's and women's crews at the 'Head of the River'. Oriel College is the only college to have achieved a Double Headship in Torpids, having both men's and women's crews at the Head of the River in 2006.

External links

• Oxford University Rowing Clubs
• Oxford Bumps Charts