Bowdoin Rowing

Remigio Delectate et Remigate Velociter

HOCR

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Head of the Charles 2016

The 52nd Head of the Charles brought drenching rains on Saturday and howling head winds on Sunday and three crews each day from the Bowdoin Navy. Over 10,000 athletes from around the world gathered in Boston for the annual fall celebration of rowing.

On Saturday, Bowdoin raced in the Men’s Club Fours where our B boat finished 25th, and our alumni took 34th out of 48 entries.  Dartmouth, Harvard, and Boston University took the top three finishes.  Our alumni women raced in the Women’s Club Fours and finished 30th out of 59; Penn, Wisconsin, and Notre Dame took the top three in that event. Both the B boat and the women just missed getting the guarantee for next year by 1 spot!

In Sunday’s headwind, Bowdoin raced in the Collegiate Fours with our Women’s A and B boats and the Men’s A boat. In spite of three significant boat stopping incidents, the men took 14th in the 43 boat field, and earned a guaranteed entry in next year’s regatta.  FIT, Middlebury, and San Diego took top honors. The women finished 14th and 21st in a 35 boat race, and the A boat guaranteed a spot for next year. Barry University won it, with Carleton and UNH in second and third.

The gathering at the Asgard on Saturday evening was just a joy.  It was wonderful for our current team and families to connect with such a great crowd of alums.  What a bunch of characters! Thanks to Maddy Livingston ‘16 for pulling it together, and to all of you who joined us there and at the river.

Complete results, photos, and articles may be found at row2k.com and hocr.org.

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The last few days of fall

As of last Sunday’s banquet, our fall season has officially come to a close. We remembered our victories, celebrated our coxswains, and reflected upon how far we’ve come since September.

The coaches have referred to this season as a “rising tide” – not as in the local brewing company, but rather the way in which our young team has hustled to fill the shoes of the seniors who graduated in May. Their legacy lives on in our new boats (The 2015 and the MMXV) and in countless running jokes and traditions, but our current team is already showing some serious promise. We showed resilience at the Textile. Our men swept the Snake. Our women medalled at HOCR, and we guaranteed three entries for next fall. Not too shabby.

The spring season will be a whole new ball game, but we’re ready for it. The erg room is already bustling with eager winter trainers; the apple cider vinegar is flying off the shelves; the Hydration Club is scheduling meetings up the wazoo; and before we know it, we’ll be on a bus to South Carolina!

As always, a hearty thanks to everyone who makes this program as impressive and fun as it is – our tremendously talented coaches and captains, our families and friends, and everyone’s dogs. Thank you!

If you’re worried you’re going to miss us during the long, grueling, Maine winter, don’t fret. Social media is a wonderful thing – stay connected in the months to come!

It seems fitting to finish off this post with a quote shared with us by a member of the class of 2015.

“Every morning in Africa, a gazelle wakes up. It knows it must run faster than the fastest lion or it will be killed. Every morning in Africa, a lion wakes up. It knows it must run faster than the slowest gazelle, or it will starve. It doesn’t matter whether you are a lion or a gazelle – when the sun comes up, you’d better be running.” – Abe Gubegna

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The 51st Head of the Charles

Bowdoin Rowing is proud to boast five consecutive years of medals at the Head of the Charles!

This year, the first varsity women brought home a fourth place medal after crushing the course in 20:05. The second varsity women passed several other boats for a fifteenth place finish in 20:40.

The varsity men tackled a very competitive field, with the first boat clocking in at 17:54 for an eleventh place finish and the second boat at 18:53. The alumni four men finished twenty-first out of fifty-three entries in their event with a time of 18:18.

It was a spectacular weekend down in Boston. We had typical New England weather, with sun showers on Friday morning and some capricious winds and current on Saturday, but after the Textile, our rowers and coxswains were hardly fazed. We were also lucky enough to be able to use Northeastern University’s beautiful Henderson Boathouse – thanks, Huskies!

To all those who were able to join us at the race, at the reunion dinner, and especially to those who hosted polar bears this weekend, thank you! Your support means the world to us.

The season’s not over yet… next up, CBB’s!

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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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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!