75 and sunny with light winds! When was the last time we saw weather like that at The HOCR! Maybe never. Course records were crushed, people got sunburned and water was guzzled. The WPI turnout was fantastic. Alumni, friends and family cheered and rowed! I want to apologize in advance if I forget anyone….
The men’s collegiate eight had a good row. They finished tenth and coxswain Kenedi Heather nailed all the turns while the rowers gave it everything they had physically. This was the first HOCR for five of them and taut nerves may have made them row a bit short and scrambled. Still, they beat most of their New England competitors and 26 other crews from around the country and world.
The Women had two boats in the collegiate eight. The first boat finished eighth overall and beat New Mac rival Wellesley. It was a strong row by a young boat that has high expectations for the spring. The second boat finished 23rd.
The men’s club eight also had a good row, finishing 25th in a fast field of international and D1 crews. They beat all the crews they should have beat and coxswain Andrew Morrison steered a great course.
Other WPI crews that rowed: Tobin and Jim McGee in the parent/child double (5th), Alumni eight with a mix of alumni from the 2000s (29th), Mixed Eight with Alumni from the 20th century 😊 (29th), Riverside club four with Alex Barat and Renee Lanza (15th), (Renee and Martha Strom spent a lot of time training the coxswains to drive the course), and the women’s master quad with Lauren Baker and Linda Guida (28th). Again, I apologize if I left anyone out.
The Fish is next week. Both the men and the women lost several people to IQP sites as B term begins. After the Fish, winter training begins. Both teams show great promise for the spring as long as they come back fit and ready to go.
Larry