14 June 2023
By William O’Chee
William O’Chee is already in Henley.
The most beautiful butterfly will spend a large part of its life as a rather inelegant caterpillar, not flying through the air, but crawling slowly over leaf and branch. When it does emerge from its cocoon and take wing, however, it is a splendid and dreamlike creation.
For some months, the Henley Regatta course has made a slow progression up the reach from Temple Island to the Regatta finish, its booms consuming the unbounded river like a caterpillar consuming a leaf.
A morning stroll along the river reveals the task of booming the course is complete. The Henley Regatta caterpillar has grown to full size, but now must enter its cocoon before it can emerge in all its glory.
Within that cocoon, a small army of tradesmen is at work to ensure the Regatta can spread its wings in a fortnight from now. The blue and white striped boat tents have returned to their traditional location between Leander and the Stewards Enclosure.
The grandstands themselves are almost finished, although work remains to complete the bars and other facilities.
It is on the water that the bulk of the tasks remain. A small flotilla of barges cluster around the finish line, where the final and critical structures are still rising from piles in the river.
And while Phyllis Court Club peers majestically over the finish from the Berkshire bank, the Regatta’s quirky but emblematic Progress Board progresses, well… slowly.
However, it is not just athletes who make dreams come true at Henley, but the staff of the Regatta themselves.
In less than two weeks the Henley Butterfly will spread its colourful wings and take flight, taking a handful of lucky crews on its dreamy journey of rapture.
