The Dimboola regatta will be on November 8.

Club captain Lyn McDonald – who was part of the silver medal-winning crew alongside Bill Thomson, John Nichols and Coleen Bouts – said the club was hoping to build on last year’s event.

“Numbers-wise I believe we had just under 300 athletes last year,” she said.

“This year we’re hoping to match that or go slightly better.

"After doing homework on regattas from this season, most of them have been down slightly so it would be nice to buck that trend.”

The club’s silver medal win was the first time it had entered a crew to compete in a world-class regatta.

Fifty-two events will run at Dimboola’s regatta, which will include single sculls, double sculls, coxed pairs, coxed fours, quads and eights.

McDonald said the club would trial under-15s events at this year’s event, while a number of competitors between the ages of 12 and 17 had already entered.

The club has received entries from Horsham, Hawthorn, Hamilton and Alexandra College, Damascus College, Wendouree-Ballarat and Ninox Rowing Club.

McDonald was confident there would be more entries.

“There’s a lot of crews who leave it to the last minute to enter,” she said.

McDonald said crews could borrow boats by prior arrangement.

She said people could enter by visiting the Rowing Victoria website by Sunday night.

There will be a barbecue lunch and drinks available at the regatta on Saturday.

The club will host a two-course dinner with music after the event, with tickets available during the regatta, before hosting the fifth annual Head of the Wimmera the following day.

McDonald said there would be about 25 races at the Head of the Wimmera event.

She encouraged people to support the events.

“If people want to come down and enjoy the rowing and the lovely setting on the banks of the Wimmera we would love to see them,” she said.

“We would love people to support the club and rowing in general.”