The Swingulator

 As we transition to winter training, folks can check out the swingulator upstairs in the gym mezzanine on Wednesdays and Thursdays after school (3:00-3:15)

Our two position swingulator (like the one in the video at Duke University)  supplements the nine ergometers we use for conditioning

Regular winter training starts after Thanksgiving. Try-outs in mid-February will be based on a 2000m erg time.  On the water practices start in the last week of February at the boathouse in Norfolk.

Learn-to-Row #1

 Our first learn-to-Row this year was a "learn-to-scull." Three sweep rowers (Alan, Michael, and Emily) went sculling for about 5 miles. We're still looking to attract some novices to bolster our roster for the spring. This coming Saturday looks good with much cooler weather.

Learn-to-Row session cancelled for the 21st

 We've been weathered out. Let's hope for next weekend!

Learn-to-Row starts back up

 The Learn-to-Row introductory lessons will start back up this Saturday. The plan is to have a two-hour session each Saturday through October (weather permitting) from 9:00 to 11:00. Feel free to attend any or all of the sessions. Directions to the Lakewood Park boathouse are on the sidebar to the right. You should bring a change of clothes and a towel. In the summer and early fall, shorts and a t-shirt are usually the right dress. Bring your friends! 

Summer Rowing Camp

Eleven Crusaders participated in the rowing camp in the middle of July. We started the four days with a "flip drill" allowing everyone to climb back into a capsized single. By the end of the camp everyone had a go with both rowing sweep and sculling. On the last day we launched all seven of the "racing" singles - quite a difference from the "tubs" that we used on day 2!. Highlights included a seven mile row to ODU and back and Christian setting a PR on a 2000m erg piece - 7:22. 

Some video I took on the last day. First up are Christian and Noah in the double:

Here are a couple of vids of the rest of the crew in the eight. Gavin is in the cox seat and Ashley is stroking. The first was heading out and the second was heading back in.

Seniors go out on top

   We had the only regatta of this strange season (the EVSRA CoROWna virus regatta) on May 16th at the Botanical Garden venue. The weather was good and we had entries in four sweep events: MV4, MN4, Mxd4, MN8 and two sculling events: W2X and W1X.  

    The three seniors, (Zack, Alex and Jacob) teamed with junior Christian to win their MV4 event with a time of 5:19.8. Coxswain was Gavin C. Here is a sequence taken from the following ref. They are about 2/3 of the way down the course, pulling strong:

an another from the following ref of the last seven strokes in the sprint to the finish:

This video was recorded by parents on the finish dock:

A strong finish but a couple of missed strokes and lots of head turning to look at the competition in this sprint sequence to the line. Remember, head turning causes a loss of set in the boat leading to missed strokes and a general slowing. In close races it important to "keep you head in the boat." 

Here is the whole video sequence from the mast: 

Here is the crew heading back to the recovery dock:

and walking back to the trailer:

The other team members successfully made it down the lake to the start platform and raced to the finish.  We were complimented by the referees on our ability to proficiently back into the start platform. Good job by coxswains Kevin, Gavin, and Alex in their events.  The blind boats of Ashley (W1X) and Ashley and Reagan (W2X) also rowed well.

Here is Ashley's W1X race (at least until the camera stopped.):

Here are Ashley and Reagan in the W2X event:

The Mens Novice 4 crew of Alan, Matt, Gavin and Noah, with Kevin in the cox seat, finished 2nd in their heat (ahead of Hickory and behind NA.) Their time of 5:44.5 was also better than novice crews from Cape Henry and Norfolk Youth Rowing Club (Maury) in the other heat.  

Here is their video:

At the end of the day we participated in the mixed four and the mens novice eight events. Here is a picture of the mixed crew heading down to the start:

and below is a short snippet of the crew backed into the start platform. I note Christian sculling to help Gavin keep on point. All of our crews were good examples on how to get into the start position.

Here is a picture of them about mid-course ahead of the crew Cape Henry. Emily is stroking, Christian is sitting in the three seat, Alex is in the two seat and Olivia is in the bow. Gavin is coxing. 

Here is the whole video sequence from the mast:

The MN8 featured the stern 4 of Noah, Gavin, Matt and Alan, with Emmett, Conor, Kevin and Michael as the bow 4. Guest coxswain was Alex reliving his freshman season when he both rowed and coxed.

This is their video:

 The video below was taken from the finish dock:

I'll be adding more pictures as I get them. Please send me any you have!

Some of the CRU Crew

 

CHS alums at the USNA

 Mark Ostrowski (CHS class of '19) and Charlie Turner (CHS class of '20) are rowing at the US Naval Academy in the heavyweight eights. Mark is sitting bow in the 2nd HWT 8 and Charlie is sitting the the 5 seat of the 4th HWT 8. In the first regatta of the season both crews won against crews from St. Joseph's College. 

Here is the video of Charlie's first race: https://fb.watch/4SzUPStz21/

Charlie is wearing the white hat in the boat closest to the camera. The Navy 4th eight actually beat the 3rd eights from both the USNA and St Joe's.

Mark's race is here: https://fb.watch/4SHvSEdxw8/ 

He gets a nice shout-out from the Navy coach at the 3:55 mark of the video, Well done Crusaders!

Here is the write-up from the USNA athletic office, and a summary video of USNA rowing vs St. Joe's.

ANNAPOLIS, Md. - The Navy heavyweight rowing team had another successful early-season competition as the Mids swept a three-race slate against Saint Joseph's in late morning action on Monday. Racing on a 2,000-meter course on the Severn River, the Mids (2-0) earned dominant 20-plus second victories in the first and second varsity eight events, before finishing first and second in a competitive third varsity eight race.

"It was another great day to be on the Severn River," remarked head coach Rob Friedrich. "I thought our athletes handled the rough conditions well and we were ready for the challenge.

"The race of the day was the three-way battle in the third varsity race. Our 4V handled the conditions better than our 3V and worked hard for a lead that they held onto in the last 500 meters of the race. It's a testament to our depth and next-man-up mentality. We have a lot of great competition within the squad, which pushes all of our boats to go faster. That was also seen in our lower boat scrimmage with our 5V and 6V, who raced earlier in the day separate from the Saint Joseph's competition. I'm proud of all of our athletes, who have worked hard to be ready for competition and the opportunity to race."

Starting off with the first varsity eight competition, the home Midshipmen crew had little problem dealing with some choppy mid-day water. Fast from the opening signal, Navy had open water by the 500-meter mark, as Saint Joseph's was hampered by a slow start and catching a crab that forced its entire boat to stop and restart their stroke cadence. The Mids continued building on this early advantage as they eventually won by 37.6 seconds, 6:08.4 to 6:46.0.

The second varsity eight race saw Navy break out to a fast start once again as the Mids were able to navigate the choppy first 1,000 meters and lead wire-to-wire over the Hawks. Navy kept a consistent pace throughout the duration of the race and pulled away for a 21.5-second victory, 6:20.7 to 6:42.2.

The day of racing concluded with the most competitive encounter. The three-boat third varsity eight contest involved the third crews from each of Navy and Saint Joseph's, as well as guest appearance by Navy's fourth varsity crew. That fourth boat of Midshipmen came out on a mission on Monday and broke off the starting line fast and nearly led wire-to-wire as they earned a 3.7-second victory with a time of 6:22.5. The direct competition between the 3Vs was extremely close throughout as the Hawks broke out ahead the Mids over the first 500 meters before the teams were locked in stroke-for-stroke over the next 1,000 meters. Once the Naval Academy's seawall came into view for Navy's 3V, the Mids found that next gear and took their first lead of the race. Though the Hawks pushed late to overtake the Mids, Navy's 3V held on for a 1.0-second margin at the line, 6:26.3 to 6:27.3.

Following Monday's matinee action, Navy will next be in action on Sunday, April 18 in Fairfax, Va. with neutral site racing against Syracuse.

Race Results
First Varsity Eight
Navy - 6:08.4
Saint Joseph's - 6:46.0

Second Varsity Eight
Navy - 6:20.7
Saint Joseph's 6:42.2

Third Varsity Eight
Navy 4V - 6:22.5
Navy 3V - 6:26.3
Saint Joseph's - 6:27.3

Boat Lineups

	First Varsity Eight	Second Varsity Eight	Third Varsity Eight	Fourth Varsity Eight
1	James Walsh	Mark Ostrowski	Jerra Ewing	M.J. Duffy
2	Ian Dennis	Hill Atwell	Zane Wilson	Sam Beach
3	Billy Duffy	Claudio Montero	Jared Cox	Patrick Daly
4	Will Geib	Carey Hutchens	Nathaniel Erickson	Joseph Colley
5	Griffin Dunne	Aidan Leavy	Alex Sucato	Charlie Turner
6	Reed Schilb	Griffin Hamilton	Nick Bostock	Harrison Bleckley
7	James Sills	Peter Faber	Robert Freimuth	Evan Robertson
Str.	James Pushner	Luke Phelan	Jack Gill	Benjamin Johnson
Cox.	Matthew Catanoso	Tiffany Johnstone	Lakayla DeShields	Alex Coleman

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Rowing during break

 Some video I took. First of the eight with a novice cox driving through the bridge.

Here are Ashley and Reagan getting some meters in on the double.

One day only Kevin and Alan could make it so we took out the double for a first attempt at sculling. Bantam blades for starters, with one balancing for the other, and both stayed dry!

First row of the season

 

After a long hiatus, we launched a sweep boat on the 24th of March. Looking back it was about a year ago that we were told to stop activities due to COVID-19. A year later, coaches are vaccinated, athletes have protocols about masking and distancing, and the team is broken into "pods" where we can trace any close contacts of those who might get sick.

Even though the EVSRA racing schedule has all but been pared to nothing, there is light at the end of the tunnel. For the near-term we will focus on technique and training so we'll be prepared for the next racing season, whenever that may come.

Moving Day

 

The ergs have been moved to the boathouse. An erg forest has sprung up in the boathouse. We expect to be on the water this week!. Check the rowing team googleclass for details.

Try-outs for the 2021 season

 Try-outs for all spring sports begin the week of March 14th. We will be in the gym after school on Monday and Tuesday the 15th and 16th for tryouts (a piece on a rowing machine.) On-the-water practices should begin later that week after the parents' meeting a a date T.B.A.

To try out for any spring sport you need a completed physical on file with the athletic director or trainer.

For the rowing team you also need to know how to swim.

No rowing experience is required. It is unclear whether we will be rowing the team boats (like the eight in the cafeteria) or singles (1 person to a boat.) While our hope it to row fours and eights, we'll certainly start out with ergging and land drills.

Review the Concept 2 video below on technique on the erg.

Try outs in 2 weeks - PRs set at erg pull

 

We had ergs available in the gym (suitably distanced) for folks to pull a 2000 m piece for the HRRC erg pull. Both Zach and Ashley both set PRs. Congrats to Ashley who placed third in the women's open event!

Well done to all. We start the season in two weeks on Monday March 14th. Keep tuned for dates of the first on-the-water practice, parents' meeting, transportation info, and whether we'll be rowing sweep or sculling.

When Zach set up the monitor for his piece,  he used the "paceboat" option, set at a rate of  1:44.5/500 m, and he beat it across the finish line for our first sub-7:00 2000m piece this year. Well done Zach! 

Erg Pull details set

Here are the detail for this week's erg pull:

The event is a "virtual" event sponsored by the Hampton Roads Rowing Club (HRRC) and will take place any time from 12:01 AM - 8:00 PM on Saturday, February 27th.

Participants can be from anywhere, but we will provide ergs in our gym from 10:00 AM - 11:30 AM for students to pull a 2000m piece.

The official sign up form is on the link above. You'll need a smart phone and a venmo account. There is a $15 entry fee which provides a tee shirt to all participants (with your name on it!)

and possible prizes (for top finishers in each event.)

To minimize risk, athletes will need to come to the gym in time to warm-up and then pull a piece and then leave once finished.. No spectators, no lollygagging. 

Please e-mail me with your intentions. The time slots will be based on the number and type of entries. The initial thought is girls first at 10:00 (warm-up) with the 2000m pull at 10:15.

Coxswains arriving at 10:15 (to cox the girls), then pull a 1000 m piece at 10:30.

Boys arrive at 10:30 (to cox the coxswains!) , warm-up, then pull their 2000m piece at 11:00.

We will allow 4 competitors per heat, if more than 4 girls, or guys, or coxswains, there will be a 2nd heat after the ergs are disinfected.

Again: email me your intentions (I want to participate!) so I can set the event schedule.

Mr. Bousquet

Virtual HRRC Erg Pull date is set

 For 6 consecutive years CHS was the the venue for the HRRC erg pull. Not in this COVID situation! The erg pull this year will be virtual. Competitors will pull a 2000 meter piece and then take a picture of the monitor showing the time. The picture will be sent to the organizers and top finishers in each event will be recognized.

This year the event date is Saturday, February 27th. More details to come...

Below are some pictures of previous years. Enjoy! 

2015 above
2016 below

2018 above
2019 below

2020

Inventory of Singles increases by 40%

 

Two more singles! Both need some work before we row them, but both should be ready for the spring (whenever that might be.)

First up is an Alden Star, a trainer design for novice scullers. The hull has three major cracks which I can repair. The putrid yellow color will be changed to the school's white with green chevrons. Once repaired, this boat will offer a nicer transition from a sweep boat to a racing single hull.

The better of the two is a Hudson lightweight. This boat is is great shape - minimum weight and needing very little work. The rigger will get a powder coat white finish and the grey deck will get a repaint, again white with green chevrons. The hull is suitable for rowers up to 135 pounds. With the right person trained up in it this boat will be as competitive as the heavyweight Hudson Charlie rowed at the HOCR .

We also got two pairs of sculling oars: a very nice C2set and a set designed for the Star. The Hudson also came with a hull cover and a roof carry rack, both will be used for any extended travel (maybe to Boston!) Stay tuned as these two new additions get prepped for the water.