The crew is now home, and after we have had some time to unwind, take hot showers, and eat our favorite homemade meals, I think that it is time to write the last post.
We spent our last full day in England watching the last day of racing at the Henley Royal Regatta. The boat tents were almost empty as only two crews remained for each event, but the Stewards Enclosure was full. There were a few good races, but surprisingly, the races were mostly uneven which was unexpected. In particular, it was fun to see the final of the Temple Challenge Cup between the Princeton Lightweights and the Brown Freshmen (Princeton won). Brown's Varsity Eight, however, won the Ladies Challenge Plate later in the day. In the Princess Elizabeth Cup (our event) Eton College won by 5 lengths (yes, 5 lengths) over Abingdon. This was not a surprise because Eton had been dominant throughout the entire regatta. But in the end, it was nice for us to spend the day as a team enjoying our last day together before we went our separate ways.
We spent the evening packing and getting ready for our flight the next day, and the next morning was hectic for those who had not packed the night before. We said our good bye's to the Webb family, who never failed to provide us with entertainment, and we were picked up by a bus to take us to Heathrow Airport. Without much incident, we boarded the plane and headed home after a brief delay due to weather or air traffic. The flight was long, but this time, we knew that we would be able to sleep once we got home, so it was easier to bear. But the highlight of the day was being welcomed to Dulles Airport by a crowd of Gonzaga supporters. Although we were quite tired, it was glad to see some familiar faces after our journey.
After having some time to reflect, it would be safe to say the the trip was a success. We may not have advanced as far as we would have liked, but in the end, we were given the opportunity to compete with the best high schools in the world, and we are honored. It is our hope that this season will lay the foundation for future Gonzaga boats to repeat what we have done and take the program even farther.
Thanks again for your support, for without your help, this trip would never have been possible. And I would like to thank all who read the blog, for it was a lot of fun to write, and it is rewarding to hear that people felt connected to the team despite being a few thousand miles away.
Wednesday, July 8, 2009
Saturday, July 4, 2009
Sightseeing
On Friday, the crew woke up at around 8, and met our parents at the racecourse around 9 for a day of sightseeing in London. Since we had spent all but one day in Henley, it seemed best to take a break from rowing and watching races. Many of the parents in attendance had already been to London, and they were helpful in guiding us toward the correct mediums of transportation. Once we got to London an hour and a half later, we were instructed by the parents to meet in a designated location in a couple of hours. We split up into smaller groups and explored the city a little. We were able to see Trafalgar Square, Big Ben, Parliament, Westminster Abbey, and other significant looking buildings. We were also able to find lunch in the city. One of the groups had a particularly bad lunch, but we charged on and met by the boating docks along the Thames where we bought tickets for a boat tour that took us to the Tower of London.
Along the way, the crew was able to see the Globe Theater, the London Bridge (which was unimpressive), the Tower Bridge (which we thought was the London Bridge), and other interesting buildings along the river. We were then dropped off at the Tower of London. Once a place of royalty, medieval fighting, and executions, the Tower of London was an interesting place to walk around with the team. Unfortunately, time crept up on us, and we had to return back to the Underground (aka London's Metro) so we could find our way back to Henley. The crew spent the rest of the evening back at the Manor scavenging for dinner and preparing for Saturday.
On Saturday, the crew had its first day of sleeping in. We slept in until 9am! After a day away from rowing, the crew returned to the racecourse for a day of watching races. For lunch, we attending a party that Gonzaga Alumnus Brian Flattery hosted at his house for the Fourth of July. We were able to reunite with other Gonzaga Alumni in attendance, and other American rowers at Henley. The highlight of the party was throwing tea bags into the Thames and listening to a Churchill impersonator recite the Declaration of Independence.
The crew then headed over to the Steward's Enclosure and other spots along the racecourse to enjoy the scene and watch some good racing. Today was semifinals, so a few of the races were especially close as finals implications were on the line. Brunswick School, who beat us on Thursday actually advanced to the semifinals but lost. It is good to know that it took an excellent team to knock us out of Henley, but we are understandably disappointed that we were so close to advancing far into the Henley Royal Regatta.
For dinner, the crew ate with the parents at a local restaurant and celebrated Independence Day. Tomorrow, we expect some good races on finals day at the Henley Royal Regatta.
Along the way, the crew was able to see the Globe Theater, the London Bridge (which was unimpressive), the Tower Bridge (which we thought was the London Bridge), and other interesting buildings along the river. We were then dropped off at the Tower of London. Once a place of royalty, medieval fighting, and executions, the Tower of London was an interesting place to walk around with the team. Unfortunately, time crept up on us, and we had to return back to the Underground (aka London's Metro) so we could find our way back to Henley. The crew spent the rest of the evening back at the Manor scavenging for dinner and preparing for Saturday.
On Saturday, the crew had its first day of sleeping in. We slept in until 9am! After a day away from rowing, the crew returned to the racecourse for a day of watching races. For lunch, we attending a party that Gonzaga Alumnus Brian Flattery hosted at his house for the Fourth of July. We were able to reunite with other Gonzaga Alumni in attendance, and other American rowers at Henley. The highlight of the party was throwing tea bags into the Thames and listening to a Churchill impersonator recite the Declaration of Independence.
The crew then headed over to the Steward's Enclosure and other spots along the racecourse to enjoy the scene and watch some good racing. Today was semifinals, so a few of the races were especially close as finals implications were on the line. Brunswick School, who beat us on Thursday actually advanced to the semifinals but lost. It is good to know that it took an excellent team to knock us out of Henley, but we are understandably disappointed that we were so close to advancing far into the Henley Royal Regatta.
For dinner, the crew ate with the parents at a local restaurant and celebrated Independence Day. Tomorrow, we expect some good races on finals day at the Henley Royal Regatta.
Thursday, July 2, 2009
The Races
I have not been able to find the time to update the blog because we have been busy with sleeping and racing, but a lot has happened the past two days, and here's how the first days of July have unfolded.
We began July 1st, the first day of racing, with an early morning practice to get some physical activity in. Our race against Winchester was scheduled for 5:40, so we had a lot of time to fill, and we wanted to make sure we weren't just sitting around letting our muscles get tight. The morning row went well, and we returned for our usual breakfast at around 9. From 9 until 3, we all spent the day doing various things to keep us cool and rested. It has been unseasonably hot (90 degrees Fahrenheit) in England this past week, so a few of us went for a light swim in the pool. Others watched movies, and napped, and we all had sandwiches for lunch around 1. At 3, we left for the racecourse prepared to represent Gonzaga for the first time on the international stage.
The town of Henley was like nothing we had ever seen before. In the streets, almost everyone was in formal clothing, and they were all either going to or coming from the regatta. At the regatta, crowds filled the grounds. In the parking lot, there were hundreds of tailgaters, but instead, these tailgaters had picnic tables and were drinking wine and eating salmon. Inside the boat tent, people were everywhere warming up and cooling down. To keep cool, we all stepped under the Henley showers multiple times in our racing uni suits. By 4:30, we were hydrated and as cool as we were going to get. We warmed up as we always have with a brief run and some stretching, and we launched from the dock at 5 leaving behind a large group of Gonzaga supporters.
As we rowed up to the starting line, motorboats and rowboats lined the racecourse, and Johan had to maneuver us around all the boats in addition to taking our practice tens and starts. Along the banks of the Thames were people from the start line to the finish line. We approached the starting area at 5:35, and waited for our race at 5:40. The Henley Royal Regatta is very well run, and every race goes off on time as scheduled. As we waited at the starting line, we were all very nervous, as I'm sure Coach Mandel and Coach Snyder can attest to as they were fortunate enough to be able to follow our race in the umpires launch, which is a wooden boat that is about 25 feet long. Fortunately, as soon as the umpire's flag dropped, we were ready to race and we began to take Winchester seat by seat. By the time we settled into our base rating, we had about 6 or 7 seats on Winchester, and throughout the whole race we continued to move on them seat by seat. By the barrier, our stroke rating was around 32 strokes per minute as opposed to our usual 35/36 SPM, and we held that rating until the end. Our time was 6 minutes 50 seconds, and we beat Winchester by 2 1/2 lengths in Gonzaga Crew's first international victory.
Excited, the crew hit the showers, spoke with family and friends, and returned to the manor for another relaxing evening. We also found out that we were going to race Brunswick School the following day at 3:10.
In the morning, we went for another practice row down the racecourse before races started to work on a few things. Unfortunately, Richard (6 seat) had been feeling sick and slept in to recover for the afternoon race. Once again, the morning was spent at the manor until 1. Richard recovered in the meantime, and the crew prepared for some stiff competition against Brunswick. We knew that Brunswick had gained significant speed since our last meeting at Stotesbury where we came out victorious. They proved themselves to be a very aggressive crew at the Reading Regatta, and we left for the race course preparing for a great race.
Today was also very hot, and the crew followed a similar routine of taking cold showers and drinking a lot of water before the race. The boat tent was less hectic today since half of the field had been eliminated in the previous day's racing, but the crowds came out in larger masses today. Similar to our first race, we had a warm up row to the starting line, and approached the starting platform 5 minutes prior to our race feeling jittery.
As the flag went down, our crew was losing off of the start. According to Johan, Brunswick had about 4 seats on us almost immediately. Soon after, the Brunswick boat began to encroach on our side of the racecourse and the umpire told both crews to separate. After some brief adjustments, both coxswains had their respective boats pointed straight down the course in a heated battle. Brunswick stroked at 40 strokes per minute, and we stroked at 36/37 strokes per minute. We expected Brunswick to go for the lead from the start, so we patiently powered our boat through at our own pace. By Fawley point (roughly half way), Brunswick had a length over our boat, but since they were racing at such a high rating, they began to tire, and our boat continued to surge slowly but surely at a 36. With 500 meters to go, Brunswick's lead was only 1/2 of a boat length and Gonzaga was feeling a surge in momentum. Unfortunately, Brunswick could feel the finish line approaching fast, and they put in a sprint with about 400 meters to go. At this point, we gave it our all trying to claw out anything we could as we sprinted toward the finish line 1 and 1/4 lengths behind Brunswick. Brunswick finished with a time of 6:42, and as we can estimate our time to be roughly 6:45, which is 5 seconds faster than our time yesterday.
Disappointed and emotional, we docked and put our boat away as we pondered over the race. We made an effort to keep our heads high, and we are still grateful for having such a wonderful season.
The crew derigged the boat, showered, and spent the rest of the afternoon in the Steward's Enclosure, which is an enclosed area for watching the races; however, most of the people there are not paying attention to the races, as it is more of a place for socializing. Our moods began to brighten up as the day went on, and we even got a tour of the historic Leadner Boat Club because Brian Flattery, a Gonzaga Alumnus, is a member there and scheduled for us to have a visit. Afterwards we returned for dinner and made plans for tomorrow.
Thanks so much to all for your support. We are proud to have taken Gonzaga Crew to the Henley Royal Regatta, and we hope that future boats can build upon our success. It has truly been an amazing run, and none of us could have ever expected that we would make it this far. It has been an honor.
Also, I will continue to update this blog on a daily basis despite that fact that we are done rowing, so you can still follow the crew on its journey.
We began July 1st, the first day of racing, with an early morning practice to get some physical activity in. Our race against Winchester was scheduled for 5:40, so we had a lot of time to fill, and we wanted to make sure we weren't just sitting around letting our muscles get tight. The morning row went well, and we returned for our usual breakfast at around 9. From 9 until 3, we all spent the day doing various things to keep us cool and rested. It has been unseasonably hot (90 degrees Fahrenheit) in England this past week, so a few of us went for a light swim in the pool. Others watched movies, and napped, and we all had sandwiches for lunch around 1. At 3, we left for the racecourse prepared to represent Gonzaga for the first time on the international stage.
The town of Henley was like nothing we had ever seen before. In the streets, almost everyone was in formal clothing, and they were all either going to or coming from the regatta. At the regatta, crowds filled the grounds. In the parking lot, there were hundreds of tailgaters, but instead, these tailgaters had picnic tables and were drinking wine and eating salmon. Inside the boat tent, people were everywhere warming up and cooling down. To keep cool, we all stepped under the Henley showers multiple times in our racing uni suits. By 4:30, we were hydrated and as cool as we were going to get. We warmed up as we always have with a brief run and some stretching, and we launched from the dock at 5 leaving behind a large group of Gonzaga supporters.
As we rowed up to the starting line, motorboats and rowboats lined the racecourse, and Johan had to maneuver us around all the boats in addition to taking our practice tens and starts. Along the banks of the Thames were people from the start line to the finish line. We approached the starting area at 5:35, and waited for our race at 5:40. The Henley Royal Regatta is very well run, and every race goes off on time as scheduled. As we waited at the starting line, we were all very nervous, as I'm sure Coach Mandel and Coach Snyder can attest to as they were fortunate enough to be able to follow our race in the umpires launch, which is a wooden boat that is about 25 feet long. Fortunately, as soon as the umpire's flag dropped, we were ready to race and we began to take Winchester seat by seat. By the time we settled into our base rating, we had about 6 or 7 seats on Winchester, and throughout the whole race we continued to move on them seat by seat. By the barrier, our stroke rating was around 32 strokes per minute as opposed to our usual 35/36 SPM, and we held that rating until the end. Our time was 6 minutes 50 seconds, and we beat Winchester by 2 1/2 lengths in Gonzaga Crew's first international victory.
Excited, the crew hit the showers, spoke with family and friends, and returned to the manor for another relaxing evening. We also found out that we were going to race Brunswick School the following day at 3:10.
In the morning, we went for another practice row down the racecourse before races started to work on a few things. Unfortunately, Richard (6 seat) had been feeling sick and slept in to recover for the afternoon race. Once again, the morning was spent at the manor until 1. Richard recovered in the meantime, and the crew prepared for some stiff competition against Brunswick. We knew that Brunswick had gained significant speed since our last meeting at Stotesbury where we came out victorious. They proved themselves to be a very aggressive crew at the Reading Regatta, and we left for the race course preparing for a great race.
Today was also very hot, and the crew followed a similar routine of taking cold showers and drinking a lot of water before the race. The boat tent was less hectic today since half of the field had been eliminated in the previous day's racing, but the crowds came out in larger masses today. Similar to our first race, we had a warm up row to the starting line, and approached the starting platform 5 minutes prior to our race feeling jittery.
As the flag went down, our crew was losing off of the start. According to Johan, Brunswick had about 4 seats on us almost immediately. Soon after, the Brunswick boat began to encroach on our side of the racecourse and the umpire told both crews to separate. After some brief adjustments, both coxswains had their respective boats pointed straight down the course in a heated battle. Brunswick stroked at 40 strokes per minute, and we stroked at 36/37 strokes per minute. We expected Brunswick to go for the lead from the start, so we patiently powered our boat through at our own pace. By Fawley point (roughly half way), Brunswick had a length over our boat, but since they were racing at such a high rating, they began to tire, and our boat continued to surge slowly but surely at a 36. With 500 meters to go, Brunswick's lead was only 1/2 of a boat length and Gonzaga was feeling a surge in momentum. Unfortunately, Brunswick could feel the finish line approaching fast, and they put in a sprint with about 400 meters to go. At this point, we gave it our all trying to claw out anything we could as we sprinted toward the finish line 1 and 1/4 lengths behind Brunswick. Brunswick finished with a time of 6:42, and as we can estimate our time to be roughly 6:45, which is 5 seconds faster than our time yesterday.
Disappointed and emotional, we docked and put our boat away as we pondered over the race. We made an effort to keep our heads high, and we are still grateful for having such a wonderful season.
The crew derigged the boat, showered, and spent the rest of the afternoon in the Steward's Enclosure, which is an enclosed area for watching the races; however, most of the people there are not paying attention to the races, as it is more of a place for socializing. Our moods began to brighten up as the day went on, and we even got a tour of the historic Leadner Boat Club because Brian Flattery, a Gonzaga Alumnus, is a member there and scheduled for us to have a visit. Afterwards we returned for dinner and made plans for tomorrow.
Thanks so much to all for your support. We are proud to have taken Gonzaga Crew to the Henley Royal Regatta, and we hope that future boats can build upon our success. It has truly been an amazing run, and none of us could have ever expected that we would make it this far. It has been an honor.
Also, I will continue to update this blog on a daily basis despite that fact that we are done rowing, so you can still follow the crew on its journey.
Wednesday, July 1, 2009
Henley Eve
As I write, it is the morning of our first race, and all that remains to be done is race. Yesterday was a good day for the team, and it started with our normal breakfast and morning practice. Since we have begun to taper, we have being rowing only one lap on the Henley course, where we usually go over our race plan at a low rating. By now, we are all familiar with the race course, and we could point out all of the well known landmarks like Barrier and Fawley.
But the big event of the morning was watching Gonzaga's spare pair (Nick Jones and Chris Williams) compete in the spare pair's race. There were 7 pairs entered in the event, and the races were held on the course over roughly 1500 meters. There were 3 quarterfinal races to qualify for 2 semifinal races; however, Gonzaga was the only boat that did not have to qualify, and Nick and Chris went straight to the semifinal because there were an odd number of crews. Westminster College's pair defeated Belmont Hill's pair, so Gonzaga raced Westminster in the semifinal, and won by 4 or 5 boat-lengths! Interestingly enough, the other quarterfinals included the Princeton Lightweights, Bates College, and MIT, so Nick and Chris ended up racing MIT in the final of the spare pairs race. Unfortunately, MIT won by a lot, but now we can say that Gonzaga Crew has raced in the 'finals' at Henley and that Gonzaga has raced MIT, an Eastern Sprints crew program. Congratulations to the pair.
As usual, we ate a quick lunch in the town, and returned home to rest for a few hours before another short practice. We rowed one lap on the course again, showered, and returned home for dinner. Nervous and excited, the crew went to bed early and was ready to take Gonzaga Crew to new heights.
Monday, June 29, 2009
Preserving Energy
We go to sleep in an extra hour today, and we started our drive to the race course at around 9am. Today, more parents showed up to see us before our morning practice, and this reminds us that the regatta is getting closer and closer. Our practice showed that yesterday's success with the Empacher was not a fluke, as we had another great practice. We have also begun to work on doing practice races down the course at lower ratings to really get used to racing the 2112 meter distance. Afterwards, we washed our boat to make it look nice as the yellow coloring on the boat makes dirt really stand out.
As usual, we ate lunch in the town, and returned to the manor for three hours where we were told to stay out of the sun. The weather has been great here by the way, but as race day approaches, we don't want to sun to make us tired. We are no longer making frequent trips to the grocery store so we don't waste our energy on the walk, and we are no longer having noodle fights in the pool. It is very clear that race day is approaching.
Afternoon practice was short and light, and afterwards our crew and all other overseas crews were invited to a reception at the Rowing Museum that is located along the Thames about a half mile away from our boat tent. There weren't many crews there, but it was interesting to get a peek inside the museum, and it was very cool to meet the Olympic British Oarsman Matthew Pinsent. He has won four Olympic gold medals, and it was cool to talk to him for a brief time and to get a picture with him, that I will try to post when I am able to. The rest of the night was calm, and we once again got to bed early.
As usual, we ate lunch in the town, and returned to the manor for three hours where we were told to stay out of the sun. The weather has been great here by the way, but as race day approaches, we don't want to sun to make us tired. We are no longer making frequent trips to the grocery store so we don't waste our energy on the walk, and we are no longer having noodle fights in the pool. It is very clear that race day is approaching.
Afternoon practice was short and light, and afterwards our crew and all other overseas crews were invited to a reception at the Rowing Museum that is located along the Thames about a half mile away from our boat tent. There weren't many crews there, but it was interesting to get a peek inside the museum, and it was very cool to meet the Olympic British Oarsman Matthew Pinsent. He has won four Olympic gold medals, and it was cool to talk to him for a brief time and to get a picture with him, that I will try to post when I am able to. The rest of the night was calm, and we once again got to bed early.
New Boat, New Hope
I apologize for not writing this blog last night, but the team has good news that I hope is worth the wait. Yesterday, started off like most days, except we were given a extra half hour to sleep in. Initially, we had to rig our Resolute before we could begin rowing, and while we were rigging, we saw our first wave of parents. It was good to see some familiar faces. Coach Mandel gave us an open ended practice where we were able to decide what we wanted to do. This gave us the opportunity to work on some drills we hadn't practiced in a while, and it was fun to explore the Thames at our own pace.
After practice, we spent the afternoon having some fun, eating lunch in town, and watching Transformers 2 at a small movie theater in Henley. The theater was very small, and the interesting thing about the theater was that when you purchased a ticket, you were assigned a specific seat. In the end, the experience was almost more entertaining than the movie itself. The Tabor Academy team was also there, and the whole movie, these younger local kids were being obnoxious. Gonzaga and Tabor ended up finding friendship in telling to the kids to be quiet, but it was all in good fun, and it was a much needed interruption in the middle of the 3 hour long movie.
When the movie finished, we had to return to our boat rack for our afternoon practice, but we were all in for a surprise. Coach had us walk out back where he was rigging another boat, an Empacher from Hampton School in England. Coach said that we were going to borrow their boat for one practice because he was afraid that the Resolute, which is different from the one we have back home, was sitting too low in the water. Although we were tired of rigging boats, it was all worth it when we took the boat out on the water. We had our best practice yet, and we got greater run with each stroke than we have our whole time in England. Most of us expelled our doubts, and agreed that we wanted to continue to row with the Empacher. We feel that this boat will give us new confidence, and even if it is not any faster, we needed a change to help us refocus. Lets keep our fingers crossed.
With a little more swagger in our step, we returned home for a nice dinner of beef and vegetable stew, and got an early sleep.
After practice, we spent the afternoon having some fun, eating lunch in town, and watching Transformers 2 at a small movie theater in Henley. The theater was very small, and the interesting thing about the theater was that when you purchased a ticket, you were assigned a specific seat. In the end, the experience was almost more entertaining than the movie itself. The Tabor Academy team was also there, and the whole movie, these younger local kids were being obnoxious. Gonzaga and Tabor ended up finding friendship in telling to the kids to be quiet, but it was all in good fun, and it was a much needed interruption in the middle of the 3 hour long movie.
When the movie finished, we had to return to our boat rack for our afternoon practice, but we were all in for a surprise. Coach had us walk out back where he was rigging another boat, an Empacher from Hampton School in England. Coach said that we were going to borrow their boat for one practice because he was afraid that the Resolute, which is different from the one we have back home, was sitting too low in the water. Although we were tired of rigging boats, it was all worth it when we took the boat out on the water. We had our best practice yet, and we got greater run with each stroke than we have our whole time in England. Most of us expelled our doubts, and agreed that we wanted to continue to row with the Empacher. We feel that this boat will give us new confidence, and even if it is not any faster, we needed a change to help us refocus. Lets keep our fingers crossed.
With a little more swagger in our step, we returned home for a nice dinner of beef and vegetable stew, and got an early sleep.
Saturday, June 27, 2009
One of those days
Today, the crew spent the majority of the day competing in the Reading Regatta, which is a regatta that hosts competitors from teenagers to adults over a three lane 800 meter course. For our team, the regatta gave us an opportunity to get one last race in before Henley, and learn more about racing in England. Little did we know, we ended up getting more than we bargained for.
The first race for Gonzaga was the spare pair at 10:50. Chris and Nick got out to an open water lead initially, but the referee in the boat following the race told them to go more toward one side to make room for the other crew. Unfortunately, the referee was incorrect, and he steered the pair into the bushes on the side of the river allowing the other pair to take the lead. The winning pair came up to Chris and Nick after the race and were very understanding of the situation as they both knew that Chris and Nick should have won. It was disappointing, but the pair will have another chance to compete on Tuesday in the Spare Pair's Race, which is hosted the day before Henley begins.
In the eight, we found ourselves in a dogfight with Shiplake College in the first heat for the Scholastic Eight race, and we lost by one seat in the end. Unfortunately, we were in the fastest heat, and our time was over 3 seconds faster than any other boat in the other heats, but this offered little consolation as we have been beat up the past few days. We needed to win to qualify for the finals, and we came just short. On the bright side, Henley is 2112 meters, which will play to our strength, and we have also learned from each race.
The crew then left the race course for a few hours to find lunch at The Oracle Mall in Reading. Many of us found familiar restaurants like Pizza Hut and McDonald's, and we even saw a restaurant that featured Southern American food. We thought it was funny to see a restaurant advertising American food. We also took a walk around mall and got a taste of British life, and many of us decided that even though the mall was in England didn't change the fact that we hate being in malls.
We returned to the race course once more for the Eight to race in the Intermediate Eight event, where we raced a college crew from Ireland. This event was supposed to be a challenge as the crews were more mature, but we thought we rowed better than our first race despite losing by a boat length. Understandable, morale has been a little low as we have not been used to losing this season, but we continue to charge on.
Tonight the team took the Webb boys, Henry and George, out to a pub called The Lamb, where we had a good meal. The best news of the day came when we heard the results of the draw, which is the seeding of the crews in our event. We were seeded very well, and we will race Winchester College in the first round of Henley on Wednesday. This should be a good race for us, and it gives us something positive to focus on. To see the results of the draw, you can go here: http://hrr.co.uk/downloads/draw09.pdf . We are in the Princess Elizabeth Challenge Cup in case you do not know. We look forward to a better day tomorrow.
The first race for Gonzaga was the spare pair at 10:50. Chris and Nick got out to an open water lead initially, but the referee in the boat following the race told them to go more toward one side to make room for the other crew. Unfortunately, the referee was incorrect, and he steered the pair into the bushes on the side of the river allowing the other pair to take the lead. The winning pair came up to Chris and Nick after the race and were very understanding of the situation as they both knew that Chris and Nick should have won. It was disappointing, but the pair will have another chance to compete on Tuesday in the Spare Pair's Race, which is hosted the day before Henley begins.
In the eight, we found ourselves in a dogfight with Shiplake College in the first heat for the Scholastic Eight race, and we lost by one seat in the end. Unfortunately, we were in the fastest heat, and our time was over 3 seconds faster than any other boat in the other heats, but this offered little consolation as we have been beat up the past few days. We needed to win to qualify for the finals, and we came just short. On the bright side, Henley is 2112 meters, which will play to our strength, and we have also learned from each race.
The crew then left the race course for a few hours to find lunch at The Oracle Mall in Reading. Many of us found familiar restaurants like Pizza Hut and McDonald's, and we even saw a restaurant that featured Southern American food. We thought it was funny to see a restaurant advertising American food. We also took a walk around mall and got a taste of British life, and many of us decided that even though the mall was in England didn't change the fact that we hate being in malls.
We returned to the race course once more for the Eight to race in the Intermediate Eight event, where we raced a college crew from Ireland. This event was supposed to be a challenge as the crews were more mature, but we thought we rowed better than our first race despite losing by a boat length. Understandable, morale has been a little low as we have not been used to losing this season, but we continue to charge on.
Tonight the team took the Webb boys, Henry and George, out to a pub called The Lamb, where we had a good meal. The best news of the day came when we heard the results of the draw, which is the seeding of the crews in our event. We were seeded very well, and we will race Winchester College in the first round of Henley on Wednesday. This should be a good race for us, and it gives us something positive to focus on. To see the results of the draw, you can go here: http://hrr.co.uk/downloads/draw09.pdf . We are in the Princess Elizabeth Challenge Cup in case you do not know. We look forward to a better day tomorrow.
Friday, June 26, 2009
Henley Begins (Sort of)
As usual, we all woke up at 7:30 for another light breakfast, but today, we were preparing to do pieces with Belmont Hill. They are an American crew from Massachusetts that race fours in the New England Championships. We ended up doing six 1 minute pieces working on different parts of the race. Despite our best efforts, Belmont Hill proved themselves to be a faster crew. We haven't had such good competition all year, and despite our best efforts, they came out on top each time. It was humbling for us as we have not lost to a crew in a long time, but we hope that Belmont Hill ends up being one of the better crews in our event.
We tried to keep our heads high and refocus ourselves over another lunch in the town. Once again, we split up and went to three different sandwich shops. Each of us claims to have found the best sandwich and the best deal. At least we've all found food that we're comfortable with. We returned to the manor once again for some rest, but today was different because the Henley Royal Regatta hosted the qualifying rounds today, so we could only practice once. At around 5:30, the Webb's prepared a barbecue for us replete with sausage and chicken. The barbecue was held early so that we could watch some of the qualifying races. For whoever wanted to go, Coach Mandel drove the van down to the race course, where he found a spot along the banks of the Thames to see the racing. Much like Stotesbury, the qualifying rounds are time trials, and only a certain number of crews may advance. Most crews, including us, however, did not need to qualify based on our previous results.
Henley was as lively as we have seen it thus far. Crowds lined the banks of the river, crews filed in and out of the bays of the boat tent, and countless crews were seen rigging and derigging in near the trailers. Although it is nowhere near as crowded as it will be next week, it is clear that the excitement is building. Our confidence was also helped as we watched the qualifying rounds of the Princess Elizabeth Challenge Cup, which is our event. The crews were all very beatable, and we can now infer that some of the crews that were exempt from the qualification rounds are also equally beatable. It was helpful and uplifting to seem some of our competition after this mornings setback.
The crew then returned to the manor but not until we stopped by the grocery store. If it seems like we go to the grocery store everyday, it is because we have. I'm sure the cashiers recognize by now, but what can you expect, we're hungry.
Tomorrow, the eight and the pair will compete in the Reading Regatta against some British Crews, other American Crews, and even an Irish Crew. Hopefully, the crew will return home tomorrow with Gonzaga Crew's first ever official international victory.
We tried to keep our heads high and refocus ourselves over another lunch in the town. Once again, we split up and went to three different sandwich shops. Each of us claims to have found the best sandwich and the best deal. At least we've all found food that we're comfortable with. We returned to the manor once again for some rest, but today was different because the Henley Royal Regatta hosted the qualifying rounds today, so we could only practice once. At around 5:30, the Webb's prepared a barbecue for us replete with sausage and chicken. The barbecue was held early so that we could watch some of the qualifying races. For whoever wanted to go, Coach Mandel drove the van down to the race course, where he found a spot along the banks of the Thames to see the racing. Much like Stotesbury, the qualifying rounds are time trials, and only a certain number of crews may advance. Most crews, including us, however, did not need to qualify based on our previous results.
Henley was as lively as we have seen it thus far. Crowds lined the banks of the river, crews filed in and out of the bays of the boat tent, and countless crews were seen rigging and derigging in near the trailers. Although it is nowhere near as crowded as it will be next week, it is clear that the excitement is building. Our confidence was also helped as we watched the qualifying rounds of the Princess Elizabeth Challenge Cup, which is our event. The crews were all very beatable, and we can now infer that some of the crews that were exempt from the qualification rounds are also equally beatable. It was helpful and uplifting to seem some of our competition after this mornings setback.
The crew then returned to the manor but not until we stopped by the grocery store. If it seems like we go to the grocery store everyday, it is because we have. I'm sure the cashiers recognize by now, but what can you expect, we're hungry.
Tomorrow, the eight and the pair will compete in the Reading Regatta against some British Crews, other American Crews, and even an Irish Crew. Hopefully, the crew will return home tomorrow with Gonzaga Crew's first ever official international victory.
Thursday, June 25, 2009
Back to Racing
We woke up at 7:30 today a little less jet-lagged and a little more refreshed. After a few days, we have grown more accustomed to our temporary home and our close quarters. The manor is a fairly large house that has 9 bedrooms, 2 bathrooms, a number of living rooms or studies, and the kitchen/dining room. The rowers bedrooms are situated mostly in one section of the house with the exception of two rooms. It is clear that the house was meant for shorter people as everyone, except for Johan, has hit there head a few times on the doorways, especially when we are groggy in the mornings. There are two baths in the house, but we can not use them because they leak, which is why we take showers at the race course. The cold water faucets in the bathrooms have low water pressure, so we make the best of what we can when it comes to brushing our teeth and washing our hands or face. For breakfast, there is always an assortment of juice, bread, muffins, cereal, and spreads. We have developed a habit of using the chocolate spread and the raspberry jam.
The crew headed to the race course at around 8, and as we have gotten more comfortable with the new river and new boat, we have improved our practices. There have been some good improvements in each practice. Afterwards, we cleaned the inside of our boat, which had been spotted with water stains since we had gotten it, and now at least it looks nicer. Once again, we all headed into town to find lunch, but this time we split up, and each group found some kind of deli. Most of us were able to find lunch for less than £4 which is a pretty good deal as far as we can tell.
Similar to yesterday, we returned to the manor for a couple of hours to rest, and this time, most of us took naps, which we discovered was much better than swimming and noodle fights. But what came after our nap has been our biggest rowing challenge yet. We returned to the race course for our second practice where we did pieces against Green Lake Crew. They are a club crew from Washington State, and they won the Northwest Regionals this year. Because of their club status, they are competing in the Thames Challenge Cup as opposed to our race, the Princess Elizabeth Challenge Cup. We won a piece and they won two pieces by the end of practice. It was clear that their extra week on the course was an advantage. They all knew many of the course markers and quirks of the race course which we have not yet learned; nonetheless, it was good to get some racing experience, and we feel that we will be better prepared in the future since we know what we need to work on now.
The crew returned back to the manor for a pasta dinner, and many of us made another walk to the grocery store to purchase additional snacks. We also played some football, or to be precise, American Football as it is called here, with the two boys. And as the night wears on, we are aware that the Henley Royal Regatta is one day closer. We look to heighten our focus once more for another productive day tomorrow.
The crew headed to the race course at around 8, and as we have gotten more comfortable with the new river and new boat, we have improved our practices. There have been some good improvements in each practice. Afterwards, we cleaned the inside of our boat, which had been spotted with water stains since we had gotten it, and now at least it looks nicer. Once again, we all headed into town to find lunch, but this time we split up, and each group found some kind of deli. Most of us were able to find lunch for less than £4 which is a pretty good deal as far as we can tell.
Similar to yesterday, we returned to the manor for a couple of hours to rest, and this time, most of us took naps, which we discovered was much better than swimming and noodle fights. But what came after our nap has been our biggest rowing challenge yet. We returned to the race course for our second practice where we did pieces against Green Lake Crew. They are a club crew from Washington State, and they won the Northwest Regionals this year. Because of their club status, they are competing in the Thames Challenge Cup as opposed to our race, the Princess Elizabeth Challenge Cup. We won a piece and they won two pieces by the end of practice. It was clear that their extra week on the course was an advantage. They all knew many of the course markers and quirks of the race course which we have not yet learned; nonetheless, it was good to get some racing experience, and we feel that we will be better prepared in the future since we know what we need to work on now.
The crew returned back to the manor for a pasta dinner, and many of us made another walk to the grocery store to purchase additional snacks. We also played some football, or to be precise, American Football as it is called here, with the two boys. And as the night wears on, we are aware that the Henley Royal Regatta is one day closer. We look to heighten our focus once more for another productive day tomorrow.
Wednesday, June 24, 2009
Developing a Routine
After a much needed sleep, the crew awoke refreshed and ready to take on Henley. The goal of today was ultimately to develop a routine that we could follow for our first week of training. A pleasant breakfast was followed by another ride down to the race course where we had our morning practice. The Eight rowed three laps on the course and mainly worked on building the stroke rating and learning more about the new river. The Thames is relatively small in Henley, and it is only three lanes wide. The racecourse takes up two lanes, and there is one lane for crew shells from the finish line to the starting line. In the practice lane, Johannes, our coxswain, must navigate with large motor boats passing by and crews stopping and starting in front of and behind us. Occasionally, a pesky single will try to navigate around us when we're stationary; regardless, we have tried to make the best of our cramped practice space.
Afterwards, the crew was given a budget per diem, which we must spread out over three lunches in the town of Henley, and sent off for 90 minutes to eat and explore. All of us decided to eat at a restaurant call Zizzi's that was advertising pizza. We spent most the time figuring out how to budget our money and deciding who was paying what, and ...oh yeah, we had some pizza too. A quick trip to the grocery store filled out the remainder of our time.
The crew then returned to the Manor at around 3pm to rest for two hours before we returned for our afternoon practice. Unfortunately, many of us decided to swim in the pool and battle each other with pool noodles, which understandably made us more tired. But it wasn't a total loss, it was a learning experience and we've decided that we won't swim until after both practices are completed from now on.
The afternoon practice was more challenging as the boat the rowed three laps over the race course again and rowed two 4 minute pieces at race ratings. The spare's pair also rowed for the third time on the Thames, and Chris says that they have been making progress and are ready to take on some other pairs in practice tomorrow. Once again, we headed for the Henley showers and found it slightly more manageable this time as the cold water no longer came as a shock to us.
The evening has been calm. We ate a nice dinner and made one more trip to the grocery store for snacks. We expect to sleep well tonight and heighten our focus tomorrow as race day gets closer and closer.
Afterwards, the crew was given a budget per diem, which we must spread out over three lunches in the town of Henley, and sent off for 90 minutes to eat and explore. All of us decided to eat at a restaurant call Zizzi's that was advertising pizza. We spent most the time figuring out how to budget our money and deciding who was paying what, and ...oh yeah, we had some pizza too. A quick trip to the grocery store filled out the remainder of our time.
The crew then returned to the Manor at around 3pm to rest for two hours before we returned for our afternoon practice. Unfortunately, many of us decided to swim in the pool and battle each other with pool noodles, which understandably made us more tired. But it wasn't a total loss, it was a learning experience and we've decided that we won't swim until after both practices are completed from now on.
The afternoon practice was more challenging as the boat the rowed three laps over the race course again and rowed two 4 minute pieces at race ratings. The spare's pair also rowed for the third time on the Thames, and Chris says that they have been making progress and are ready to take on some other pairs in practice tomorrow. Once again, we headed for the Henley showers and found it slightly more manageable this time as the cold water no longer came as a shock to us.
The evening has been calm. We ate a nice dinner and made one more trip to the grocery store for snacks. We expect to sleep well tonight and heighten our focus tomorrow as race day gets closer and closer.
Tuesday, June 23, 2009
The Longest Day
We've braved the gusty spring winds of the Anacostia. We've come out victorious against the fastest high school crews in the nation. And we've endured the grueling three weeks of two-a-day practices. But the boat faced one of its toughest challenges to date on the first day of our journey to England--the 40 hour day.
Fueled by the anticipation of the quest ahead, the team trudged through baggage claim, security checkpoints, and boarding calls to make it to our evening flight (roughly seven hours) toward Heathrow Airport. The crew slept as much as possible but to no avail as one was lucky to sleep 3 hours. We were welcomed in England with new accents and poor exchange rates, and British jokes and fake accents filled the air as we adjusted to our new environment.
We headed straight for the Henley race course in order to drop off our oars, which by the way called great attention to us in Dulles and Heathrow.
By our boat, it was cool to see the Eastern Sprint Champion Brown Heavyweight Team in the bay next to us. Being next to a crew of such high caliber is truly an honor and is something that none of us have experienced before.
As the energy began to wane, we headed to the Webb Manor, which is where we'll be staying for the next two weeks. We explored the house and the grounds, and we were introduced to their dog, The Padster. At this point, we began to realize how much longer we had to remain awake before we could sleep. It was 10am, but it felt like 5am to us, and we had hardly slept at all. Twelve more waking hours loomed.
The next adventure of the day was riding on the wrong side of the road with Coach Mandel at the wheel for the first time in England. We didn't hit anyone or anything, but let's just say that the ride was not uneventful. Our boat, which we have rented, required approximately five hours of rigging in order to synchronize the boat measurements to those we have become accustomed to. As the coaches rigged, the rowers ate a much needed lunch and explored the unfamiliar course until it was time to row. Although we were tired, our first row on the Thames had been much anticipated and we were able to get a solid practice together.
But by far, the highlight or most interesting part of the day was using the renowned Henley showers. There is no hot water, and we estimated the water temperature at somewhere between 50 and 60 degrees Fahrenheit. On a more positive note, it looks like we won't have to worry about waiting for someone to take a 20 minute shower.
Hungry and tired, the team returned to the manor to eat, sleep, and prepare for another exciting day. The Webb's: Gary, Sarah, George (11), and Henry (10), have been very hospitable and quite entertaining. It looks like we're in for a good time at the Manor.
Sunday, June 21, 2009
Training in Review
As we scramble to pack our necessary belongings for our two week journey to England, we have twenty-nine additional practices under our belts since our victory at Scholastic Nationals. Our Henley training started with seven days of much needed rest and relaxation...and oh yeah, the Graduation of six members of the crew. Unfortunately, all good things have to come to an end, and we were all rudely awakened by a 6:45 practice on the 1st of June.
Our practice schedule went mostly like this: Monday through Saturday from 7-9am and Monday, Tuesday, Thursday, and Friday from 5-7pm. Without going into too much detail so as to keep our training somewhat secretive, our mornings were very difficult and often consisted of racing in fours. To keep the level of competition high, all of us were switched or seat-raced multiple times making for some interesting inter boat competition. The afternoons consisted mostly drilling and rowing at lower ratings. For many of these practices, we used a speed coach which Coach Mandel installed in the Sr. Seton Cunneen that would inform us on a stroke by stroke basis of our speed and distance travelled. Much like the erg, the speed coach became our worst enemy as it forced us to stay intensely focused. Nonetheless, the speed coach hopefully helped us to pick up some additional boat speed.
Highlights have included being interviewed by The Current, and The Catholic Standard, and being filmed by Channel 7 News. The crew also did three race pieces with the Potomac Boat Club's fastest eight and came up victorious each time. And undoubtedly, our post-practice breakfasts at Booeymongers made the tough practices worthwhile.
We also got better at waking up early, as Coach Mandel even mentioned how much more awake we looked towards the end of the second week in comparison to the first morning practice. This can probably be attributed to the midday naps that most of the crew took on a daily basis.
Special thanks go out to Matt Thomas '11 and Phil Bates '12 for filling in for sick or absent rowers, and Matt Weider '10 and Jorge Galindo '11 for coxing several practices in the fours. And thanks again to all for your continued support. The crew has one more practice bright and early tomorrow morning, and the remaining members of the team will all board a flight for England tomorrow evening.
Our practice schedule went mostly like this: Monday through Saturday from 7-9am and Monday, Tuesday, Thursday, and Friday from 5-7pm. Without going into too much detail so as to keep our training somewhat secretive, our mornings were very difficult and often consisted of racing in fours. To keep the level of competition high, all of us were switched or seat-raced multiple times making for some interesting inter boat competition. The afternoons consisted mostly drilling and rowing at lower ratings. For many of these practices, we used a speed coach which Coach Mandel installed in the Sr. Seton Cunneen that would inform us on a stroke by stroke basis of our speed and distance travelled. Much like the erg, the speed coach became our worst enemy as it forced us to stay intensely focused. Nonetheless, the speed coach hopefully helped us to pick up some additional boat speed.
Highlights have included being interviewed by The Current, and The Catholic Standard, and being filmed by Channel 7 News. The crew also did three race pieces with the Potomac Boat Club's fastest eight and came up victorious each time. And undoubtedly, our post-practice breakfasts at Booeymongers made the tough practices worthwhile.
We also got better at waking up early, as Coach Mandel even mentioned how much more awake we looked towards the end of the second week in comparison to the first morning practice. This can probably be attributed to the midday naps that most of the crew took on a daily basis.
Special thanks go out to Matt Thomas '11 and Phil Bates '12 for filling in for sick or absent rowers, and Matt Weider '10 and Jorge Galindo '11 for coxing several practices in the fours. And thanks again to all for your continued support. The crew has one more practice bright and early tomorrow morning, and the remaining members of the team will all board a flight for England tomorrow evening.
Friday, June 19, 2009
Wednesday, June 17, 2009
First Post
The decision has been made, the arrangements are intact, and the training is almost complete. After a successful season, the Gonzaga Senior 8, two coaches, and two spares are going to the Henley Royal Regatta in Great Britain.
This blog will serve as a way to chronicle our trip, and to allow friends, alumni, family, and followers of the crew to see how we're doing in England. I will make an effort to write a daily blog with detailed insight, so that our followers are able to be involved in our trip.
Thanks again to all for your support. Without you, this trip truly would not have been possible.
By the way, here's a link to the clip of us on ABC news.
http://cfc.wjla.com/videoondemand.cfm?id=42790&category=spo
This blog will serve as a way to chronicle our trip, and to allow friends, alumni, family, and followers of the crew to see how we're doing in England. I will make an effort to write a daily blog with detailed insight, so that our followers are able to be involved in our trip.
Thanks again to all for your support. Without you, this trip truly would not have been possible.
By the way, here's a link to the clip of us on ABC news.
http://cfc.wjla.com/videoondemand.cfm?id=42790&category=spo
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