Bowdoin Rowing

Remigio Delectate et Remigate Velociter

fall

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The Textile River Regatta 2015

The leaves have barely started turning and we’ve already got our first race under our belts… sort of. The Textile this year was one unlike any other in recent history.

For the Bowdoin Navy, it included just as many non-races as it did races. The gentle breeze that kicked us into gear early Sunday morning ended up kicking us off the water by early afternoon.

Our novices, scullers, and club fours returned from mighty voyages down the Merrimack River with stories of being “slaughtered” by the waves and trying to dodge buoys that had drifted all around the course, yet all crews pulled through with remarkable spirit.

Our first novice men’s boat came in fifth in their event with a time of 25:30, with the second novice men’s boat following closely behind with 28:36. The first novice women earned second place with an impressive 28:36!

Next up was the men’s recreational single sculling event, which was demolished by our very own Lucian Black with a time of 28:25.

In the men’s club fours event, our third varsity boat came in eighth with a time of 23:32 after a penalty. Several course marker buoys had moved around in the tumultuous waves, so many crews were getting penalized left and right for “skipping” them. A similar thing happened to our women’s third varsity boat. Despite the odds, they had a great race with an adjusted time of 28:44!

By the time 1 pm rolled around, three more men’s boats and two more women’s boats were sitting pretty at the start line, ready to take a stab at it. 

The Merrimack had other plans…

Several boats had already flipped downriver due to the nasty conditions, and race officials deemed the whole project unsafe for the rest of us. In an exciting and thoroughly unsystematic manner, about thirty boats of all different sizes made a beeline (“paddling”) back to the dock.

Thankfully, all our rowers, coxswains, and equipment made it back safe and sound, albeit damp. Land ho!

This weekend, we take on the Quinsigamond Snake Regatta and, after that, the Chahhhles River! Stay tuned with Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram (@bowdoinrowing).

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Head of The Charles Medals!

At The 50th Head of the Charles, Bowdoin earned third place medals in the Men’s College Four and Women’s College Four, while the Men’s Second Boat zoomed to 13/44 in the same event as the first boat.

The fall rowing extravaganza capped a speedy season for the whole Navy. Opening at the Textile River Regatta, Bowdoin’s men took 2, 5, 6, and 11 in a field of 25. The Novice Men were 3/5 for the first medals of their Bowdoin careers. On the women’s side, we came 1st and 9th in a 24 boat event, while the Novice Women were 4,5, and 7. Nora Hefner ’16 won the Women’s Club 1x.

The next weekend at the Quinsigamond Snake Regatta, the varsity men were 2, 5, and 8th and the novice men were 3rd. The varsity women were 1st and 8th, and the novice women finished 3, 4, and 5! After a solid start to the racing season, the crews were excited to finally head to Boston.

The capstone of fall rowing, the Head of the Charles, attracts thousands of the best collegiate rowers in the country, as well as former and current National team members from over a dozen countries. The Collegiate Fours events included the usual powerhouse programs, but this year Bowdoin proved itself among them. In the men’s event, The Bears finished ahead of Michigan, UNC, Notre Dame, Penn State, Texas, and Georgia Tech to name a few.  Likewise, the women topped Brock, Clemson, FIT, Georgia Tech,  and Purdue among others.  Pretty good company for a small liberal arts college on the coast of Maine!

The men’s boat which won third was coxed by Claire Velez ’16, stroked by Cal Brooks ’15 and powered up by Mark Endrizzi ’15, Nathan Post ’15, and Joe Lake ’15.  In thirteenth place, Maddy Livingston ’16 coxed while Trevor McDonald ’15 stroked for Harris Fisher ’17, Phillip Maier ’18, and Arman Ashrafi ’17. In the women’s boat, Sophie Berube ’16 had the helm for stroke Mary Bryan Barksdale ’15, Emily Martin ’15, Courtney Payne ’15, and Liza Tarbell ’17.  Both men’s and women’s boats have finished in the top ten since 2011, and each side has earned two medals at HOCR in those years, including a gold by the women in 2012.

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Fall Fun

Fall Season is underway with a great squad of returning rowers and a full group of novices. The weather on the coast of Maine has been spectacular and crews are taking advantage of it mornings and afternoons.

Racing begins with the Textile River Regatta on Oct. 5 in Lowell, MA, followed by the Quinsigamond Snake on Oct. 11. We have 3 crews in the College Four and 2 alumni boats racing in the Club Four at the Head of The Charles on Oct. 18. Come join us at the water!

Family Weekend begins Oct. 31 and we will have an event at the Boathouse to introduce parents and siblings to the boats and oars. Stay tuned for details!

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Speedboats!

A beautiful fall season saw speed boats right through the Navy! In the three races of the head season the top women’s boat won both the Textile and the Snake and was 5th at the Charles. The Men’s First was second twice and 6th at the Charles. Lightweight Men won at Textile and took third in the Open Division at the Snake, and competed with gusto to beat a couple of crews in the elite lightweight event at the Charles. And we had speedy novice crews as well. The Women’s Novice Four sped its way to gold and silver at the Textile and Snake, and the Novice Men’s Fours came second and third in Lowell, and then third in Worcester. We also boated a Women’s Novice Eight which came fourth at the Textile and seventh out of twenty at the Snake!

Hard work and long hours translated to great speed this fall. For the third consecutive year we had both men and women in the top ten at the Charles, which is a great accomplishment. Coupled with the depth and speed of our novice pool, the Navy is looking very competitive for spring! So competitive, that while most of the Navy will be off the water after Dad Vail in May, we are pleased to be taking the women to England to compete in the prestigious Henley Women’s Regatta in June! More speed to come!

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Opening Days 2013

Our Opening Days bring some 27 new rowers and coxswains to the Navy for our 2 week “try it out” session. With several of our juniors abroad this term, we’re thrilled with the turnout! Jumpy the seal, the big bald eagle and a great picnic at Popham Beach have been pretty enticing for the new group.

The upper boats have been hard at work preparing for racing in Oct. Both our men and women earned guaranteed entries in the college fours at the Charles, the men with a repeat medal performance at 5th place and the women by winning the gold! Those two boats will be joined by men’s and women’s alumni boats in the Club Four.  We are also racing at the Textile and Snake regattas ahead of the Charles.

Inquiries from prospective students have been dramatically up this year and we encourage any of you who may be considering Bowdoin for study and rowing to contact Coach Birney.

Watch for updates here as the fall progresses.