Rowers travel north of the border

Author: Stephanie Pritchard

The start of the school year for most means adjusting to earlier hours in order to get to class on time. Classes at 8 a.m. are to be eschewed and few get to bed before midnight. For Middlebury Crew the start of the school year has a different tone - it means blisters, sweat, 5 a.m. practices and weekends spent traveling to distant regattas. The team spent the past three weeks refining technique and building strength in preparation for the racing season.

This past weekend the team traveled up to Canada to race at the Head of the Rideau in Ottawa. The course was full of turns and in most places too narrow for boats to pass each other, and provided a challenge for rowers and coxswains alike. Coach Alex Machi commented on the course's difficulty, also noting the additional challenge that Middlebury's competing boats were "[brand] new line-up[s], with a couple of new varsity team members, competing together for the first time against Canadian squads with a lot more rowing experience and who have obviously been practicing together for a while already this fall."

The women's team raced early in the regatta in the varsity women's fours event. Stephanie Pritchard '06 (coxswain), Miko Heller '07.5, Camden Burton '06.5, Meira Lifson '07 and Allison Lange '06 launched their boat in a light rain, which quickly changed to a veritable downpour. It wasn't until 40 minutes later, while the girls waited at the starting line, that the rain finally stopped.

The 5000m race was strong from the very first stroke. At the halfway mark Middlebury caught Carlton University who had started 20 seconds ahead in the staggered start, and continued to gain time over them. Middlebury took second place in the event, topping third place by over a minute and a half. Coach Machi was excited about the outcome: "The most encouraging thing for me was not taking second place - though it's always good to finish well against this level of competition - but the fact that everyone was so enthusiastic about the row today."

The men's race in the afternoon was equally successful, especially for a boat as young as Middlebury's. The men's varsity eight, made up of Kelsey Eichhorn '08, Doug Penrose '06, Matthew Daylor '06, Daniel LoPotro '08.5, Justin Scott '08, David Wood '07.5, Teddy Iobst '08, Neil D'Astolfo '07.5 and Gregory Judson '08, placed fourth against a competitive field that included McGill University, Queens College and the University of Ottawa. While challenging, the race was without a doubt a positive experience. The boat came off the water feeling confident, optimistic and excited about the rest of the season.

Eichhorn said, "we all agreed that we had our best row thus far this season, and I am really impressed with the progress made in so little time on the water."

Instead of racing next weekend, the rowers will entertain visiting parents of rowers who are invited down to Lake Dunmore to try the sport to which their sons and daughters are so dedicated. Both the men's and women's teams travel to Rochester in two weeks for the Head of the Stonehurst Regatta, a race famous for its format: head race in the morning followed by a sprint race in the afternoon. Until then, it's back to sunrise over Dunmore.