Sport: Bull in a Bumping Race

On the River Cam at Cambridge the Americans did badly, but they made history. They made it by picking a girl to cox them for the Lenten bumping races.*

The girl was an Oklahoma farmer's daughter, WAC T/4 Connie Grayson, 23, who was picked mostly because she was the lightest (106 lbs.) of all the G.I.s at Cambridge. The Americans called themselves "Bull College," after their billets in the famed Bull Hotel. They practiced three times a week for four weeks, trying to learn the mysteries of bumping races. The boats line up one after another, two lengths apart, and each...

Want the full story?

Subscribe Now

Subscribe
Subscribe

Learn more about the benefits of being a TIME subscriber

If you are already a subscriber sign up — registration is free!