If you have lived in Dartmouth for a few years it’s more than likely you’ve bumped into
Steve Hawke
Steve Hawke at some point. He’s worked on the Travis Perkins site for 46 years and is chairman of the town’s rowing club which celebrates its 150th year anniversary next year. He’s been speaking to Steph Woolvin about skiffs, cement and Stoke Fleming!
Steve looks totally relaxed behind the counter at Travis Perkins as his regulars come in for their usual orders of anything from plywood to Polyfilla. “My grandfather set up W A Hawke & Son early last century. It was originally a coal merchants and I joined 46 years ago straight from school. It has always been in the family, as my cousin and I took it over and turned it into a builders merchant in the 70s. Travis Perkins took it over in 2004 – and I’ve been here throughout it all – part of the furniture you may say!” His wife, Susan, is a carer and they have two grown up boys, one is a plumber, the other a chef.
In 1976 Steve decided he needed to do something outside work and, as he loved rowing, he joined the town’s Amateur Rowing Club: “I think my mum thought it might be a five-minute wonder, but 40 years later I’m still there! I became the chairman in 2012 after I got dragged into the position!” He says he doesn’t row anymore so being on the committee is a nice way to still be heavily involved with the club. It’s Steve’s job to keep everything running effectively, keeping an eye on everything from finances to race listings. He also works behind the bar in the clubhouse. He says he loves watching the young people going out to competitions and regattas as it reminds him of his days on the water: “I used to take part in competitions all round the country. I rowed on the River Thames three times. We’re so lucky to have such a fantastic river here and I just want to encourage as many people as possible to get out on it.” They have 100 members at the moment and have a good following from local schools – a link which they are keen to develop in the future. The club’s five coaches take people out two or three nights a week and train them hard: “We want to hold our own when we enter events. It is good fun and a great social activity, but there is a serious element of healthy competition.” As you can imagine there are lots of events at this time of year and nearly every Friday a team will be down at the clubhouse, by the Dart Marina Hotel, packing up ready for an early start Saturday morning. “We try to avoid expensive hotel bills by going to wherever the competition is and back in a day. We travel all over the South West: Falmouth, Bideford, Torquay.” Steve says they had a reasonable season last year winning around 20 trophies. Their best year was 1994 when they became the first South West club to win seven championships in one year.
Steve says it’s not a cheap club to run with clubhouse overheads, the cost of new boats, and petrol to get to and from competitions. The coaches go on courses to make sure they know how to get everyone up to national racing standards which is another expense. “The committee works hard to get sponsorship and grants. We have just bought a £17,000 skiff. We managed to secure a £10,000 grant from Sports Aid for that one.” Steve remembers when he first joined the club 40 odd years ago and they paid £36 for a new boat: “How times have changed! They are all modern high tech carbon fibre now though and really do stand the test of time.”
Steve says it’s quite an achievement for a local club to have lasted 150 years: “I think it’s because we do have a lot of commitment from young people who keep going through the ranks. The committee members are great and we have a lot of support in the town. We also have a healthy competitive spirit which keeps the club alive.” He says a lot of hard work goes on in the background. The secretary starts getting ready for regatta months in advance, sorting through the entries, creating the racing schedule and organising the trophies. They get entries from around the country – Southampton, Folkestone, Bexhill. “I hope the club will be going in another 150 years. Obviously I wont be here to see it!”
Steve’s life changed quite dramatically seven years ago when he was contacted by his half brother and sister: “I’ve known about them all my life, but they only recently learnt about me! My sister lives in Australia and my brother in Vancouver. When I grew up my mum moved to Australia, got together with another man and had two children out there.” He says it’s been a great seven years as he has been to Australia to visit his sister Jill and she and his brother John have been to Dartmouth to pay him a visit. “I talk on the phone to them most Sundays. You just have to get the timings right as one I need to talk to early and the other late!”
Steve and Susan live in Stoke Fleming – it means he has to get up at 6am every day to get into work for 7.15am, but he says it’s worth it: “We’ve lived there 18 years now and I’ve got used to the country way of life! We can walk to Blackpool Sands from our house and I like the quiet; I just switch off out there with our two cats Pudsey and CoCo.”
The rowing club is always looking for keen rowers. Anyone can join whether you used to race in a previous club or have never been in a boat before. - see http://dartmouthrowingclub.co.uk
