Hectic, electric and 'bringing the energy': inside the 2024 spit crews

Predominantly compiled of year 12 students who have watched the tradition unfold during their school years, this was their moment after a week of rallying Boat Race spirit in the school yard.

It was hard to gauge the loudest, most parochial crew for Ballarat Associated Schools' Head of the Lake - a regatta that has evolved for more than 110 years.

BEST COLOUR: 80 crowd photos from Head of the Lake 2024

Size did not matter.

Ballarat High School's Jordan Hando said last year her school had one of the most vocal crews and her cohort wanted to ensure such momentum and noise stayed strong.

Year 10 division one rower Meg McBride said she could feel the High School spirit when out on the water, representing her school.

High School also had its own doggie mascot in Sasha, who has her own High zoot suit, has been representing at Boat race for about four years to support her humans.

A little further on from High School, Ballarat Clarendon College also had a canine crewmate in Truffle Clarke.

College spit crew Hannah Yates and Georgia Lennox described the atmosphere as hectic and charged with electricity.

The other electrically charged point was the border between College and Ballarat Grammar with both crews involved in a constant friendly banter.

Grammar's Molly Kelly said this was all a fun part of the atmosphere and it was great to see everyone so excited.

While Grammar did not have a puppy mascot, the crew relied heavily on its Viking legacy.

Viking Archie Williamson had been ready to channel Grammar's Viking energy.

"I'm loving the chants. I'm losing my voice. This is great," Williamson said. "I love seeing all the students get involved and all the parents supporting."

For Damascus school captain Paris Govan, being in the spit crew was a "rite of passage".

Govan was also to cox Damascus in the girls' firsts and got in the thick of spit crew action on the south side early.

"For me, it's my fifth season," Govan said. "As year 12s, it's a rite of passage for Ballarat kids to get involved."

The battle-ready entrance is almost as big as the title races.

You could hear Grammar a couple of kilometres away, marching from its sheds on the far side of Lake Wendouree led by the school's bag pipers. This stirring entrance transformed, as per tradition, into a piping guard of honour for the spit crew to take its place by the shoreline.

Loreto had the quick power impact, in a short walk from the girls' school grounds.

St Patrick's College's arrival was like a roaring Irish-themed wave.

Each time a St Pat's crew wins, the spit crew erupts into a yelling frenzy. Younger crews are urged to get loud and lead a cheer.

For year 9 rower Liam Shaw - racing in division two as stroke after two years as a cox - it was quite an experience.

"It's very significant, a big race, lots of people," Shaw said. It was his goal to get to the senior firsts crew by year 12.

Loreto's gold-clad spit crew captains were all about "bringing all the energy" with a vocal contingent also on the south side of the spit.

"We weren't chosen for this role because we have any specific leadership ability," Reegan Sheenan said. "We were chosen because we're loud, and that's what matters."

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