Spring Fling II

     Another really hard day on the water. We entered one less event but came away with one more win that last week.  Significant wins include the Women's Light four and the Women's Novice four, both of whom finished first in five boat heats. Also taking a blue ribbon was the Men's novice four (pictured above) and the Mixed four.

     The strength and direction of the wind was just on the verge of being unrowable. After the chaos and havoc of the first two events (thank you CH for giving me some work to do...) the referees wisely shortened the course to start in the lee of the trees at about the 1000 m mark.  Rowing at the Lake Whitehurst venue is seldom winded out since the lake is almost completely surrounded by tall trees that block the wind. The exception is at the start with a southeast wind -- exactly the conditions we had yesterday.  The Mathews regatta was canceled after two events due to the wind and the open nature of that venue.

     It's interesting to note that the MN4 won in VeniVediVici. Perhaps there's still some life in that old hull after all. I'm sure the new tracks and seat carriages help. And who said duct tape wouldn't hold up? Synchronicity rowed three times after the patch was applied and both the WN4 and the WLt4 won their races with the go-fast silver tape.

   
Results are below. As usual, blue = 1st; red = 2nd, yellow = 3rd. green = other (including protestable collisions...)  If you have any more pictures send them my way and I'll add them to the blog.

 

Spring Fling I

   Another cold and raw day, with almost everybody getting two chances to race down the lake. For most of the novices and our coxswain Hana (who's currently batting 1.000) it was their first race experience. So, I take yesterday as a learning experience for most. Congratulations to the WN4 crews who placed first in their events. Special kudos should be given to Megan, Natalie, Airielle, and Amanda who beat crews from First Colonial, Hickory, and Granby all of whom started rowing in the fall (the public schools run their rowing programs fall and spring.) The fact our girls finished with open water ahead of their competition with only four weeks of rowing under their belt is a significant win.

    Also deserving a mention are the MLt4, WV4, and W2nd4 crews all of whom had close finishes with our independent schools rivals. Our MLt4 crew of Ben, AJ, Thomas, and Brennan is getting closer to NA's crew (a boat that has been together since 9th grade and seems to be the fastest MLt4 in the EVSRA.) Our WV4 crew of Alexandra, Ann Marie, Courtney and Corey beat Cox and almost caught Norfolk Collegiate's crew even after stopping midway down the lake with a serious crab. Our W2nd4 crew of Reagan, Anna, Laura, and Erin easily beat both NA and NC  Full results are below with additional comments. As usual, blue = 1st, red = 2nd, yellow = 3rd, green = out of the podium finishes. Note also that we got nine mentions in this morning's paper. Too bad it couldn't have been more!

    The next race will be in six days, with only a couple of practices in between. The regatta will again be at Botanical but with a much smaller crowd.  Let's hope for warmer weather for our Spring Fling 2!