Next year's Regatta will be with (relatively) fresh water under the keel

If you’ve passed the northern lake in the University Park recently, you may have wondered what happened to all the water. The lake is currently undergoing a cleaning process, and according to Claus Førby-Danielsen, the project manager and constructing engineer at AU, it hasn’t undergone a deep cleanse in 17 to 20 years. It has reportedly been much needed.

“Over the years, sludge has built up on the bottom, so the lake is no longer as deep. Except where the Regatta normally takes place, where the depth is as it always has been," says Claus Førby-Danielsen in a written response to Omnibus.

“The sludge comes from fallen leaves and other organic material,” he says. 

However, it's not just the lake itself that needs a glow-up.

“The stonework around the lake will be renovated due to loose stones and will be reinforced,” says Claus Førby-Danielsen. 

Seeking solid ground – or was that sludge? – in the depths... 

There is a sign by the empty lake stating that the cleaning of the lake and the renovation of the stonework will take place from 15 November to 31 March next year. 

It is a long-standing tradition that the lake opens for Regatta training on 1 March. Although the student social committees rarely mind training in all kinds of weather, it may be less effective to have to paddle around in the sunken mud puddle that the lake most of all resembles right now. 

The two organisers of next year's Regatta, Emil Ebbensgaard Kjær and Daniel Vestergaard, are not worried, however. 

"We have great confidence that we have been thought of," the two organisers say. 

"It was brought up at a meeting last year, where it was mentioned, and they also considered the Regatta and us," they continue. 

“We went for a walk to look at the renovation project, and the machines look big, so we think they’ll be able to handle the task in time,” Emil Ebbensgaard Kjær says. 

“A lake like that needs a renovation every now and then,” he says with understanding. 

“We are confident the work will be completed before the spring training. "If they don't, we'll have to take it from there," the organisers say.

Claus Førby-Danielsen also assures that the lake will be fresh and filled again, so that the Regatta can take place as usual. 

“We expect to be finished at the beginning of the new year, so that the Regatta can take place as usual,” Claus Førby-Danielsen says.

Some say you must seek solid ground in the depths, so what does the depths of the lake hold after having hosted so many Regattas? 

“Some festival chairs, a bicycle frame, a moped frame, several bottles and a bathtub have been found,” Claus Førby-Danielsen says. 

It’s unknown whether anyone has ridden off the cycle path and into the lake, but the fact that a bathtub has been found is no coincidence.

Omnibus has made enquiries, and there is some indication that the bathtub has something to do with TÅGEKAMMERET (The Science and Technology association), a party and lecture association at the Faculty of Natural Science at AU. 

“There has been a tradition for TÅGEKAMMERET to sail across the lake for racing in things that aren't boats, so maybe it comes from there,” says Benjamin Wen, vice chair of TÅGEKAMMERET. 

“I wouldn't be surprised if it came from TÅGEKAMMERET,” he says. 

The organisers of the Regatta are very much looking forward to welcoming the associations' sailors - with and without bathtubs - to the fresh and significantly cleaner lake on March 1, 2026. 

"We’re looking forward to March when we will have a fresh lake that looks great," Daniel Vestergaard says.

This text is machine translated and post-edited by Lisa Enevoldsen.