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More than 5000 entries on the history, culture and life of Britain (published in 1993 by Macmillan, now out of print)
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bumping races
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Form of boat race pioneered at Oxford and Cambridge in the early 19th century (the first recorded reference is in 1826) and in use elsewhere in Britain where rivers are too narrow to permit racing side by side. At the start of a race the eights are strung out in line, with the same distance between each. Traditionally if any eight catches the one in front before the end of the course (touching or 'bumping' it), both retire from the race and begin the next day with their positions reversed; nowadays overlapping rather an actual bump is expected. There are usually four days of racing, and the sequence at the end of the final day is carried over to the next year. The boat holding the front position is 'head of the river'.
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