Coach Matt Madigan from London: On the ground

All smiles for Sarah Trowbridge while the team explores their new temporary home.

We have now been on the ground for five days and have settled into our dorms, the course and our routine.  The last two boats from the US arrived this afternoon, which completes our team.  We will have 12 of the 14 boat classes racing here.  Germany qualified a full contingent.  Great Britain and Australia both have 13 qualified boats.

Once we landed, a short drive took us to our Rowing Village, which is located at Royal Holloway, a University of London campus.  We were here for about 1 hour then off to London.  The bus ride around the outskirts of London led us to USOC processing center.  We received our credentials at the airport, but this processing was to get official team gear.  Thanks to sponsors Nike, Ralph Lauren, P&G, Oakley, and others we received a bunch of Olympic Team gear that we are now proudly wearing around the Rowing Village and Venue.  On the bus ride back, we went right through the heart of London, along the Thames, saw the Eye, Parliament, Big Ben, and the rest of downtown.  We got stuck in traffic, a constant here, and it turned into the nap bus, since we had been traveling nearly non-stop for more than 24 hours and it was a warm 2 hour drive.  The 30ish-mile drive has been two hours twice, and I thought the traffic in DC and the Bay Area is bad.

Royal Holloway, University of London

The Royal Holloway, University of London is a great place.  All rowing countries are staying here except Great Britain, located about a half of a mile from the course.  Nine thousand students during the day give way to the teams, security, volunteers, staff and military personnel.  We are in single rooms with the Slovenians, Dutch, Aussies, Germans, Swiss and others in our compound.  Two-level cafeteria is a three-minute walk away serves good cafeteria food, reflecting the variety of cultures staying here.   There is a gym with 30 rowing ergs and another 15 kayak and canoe ergs as well as a bunch of free weights.   The feature of campus is the Founder’s Building, which was built in the late 1800’s and is beautiful.  It is a traditional brick building with porticos, peaks, bay windows, lots of nooks and crannies and two huge courtyards.  Yesterday there was a wedding reception in one of the courtyards, and knowing the gates were open, I took the photo-op.  Also a couple of pubs that are a short walk away with some good cask beers.

Recycling is clearly a focal point.  The cafeteria is serving on compostable plates with practically everything we touch being recycled.  At the course the silverware is made from potatoes, not sturdy, but enviro-friendly.  Coca-Cola has vending machines everywhere.  I heard 70 machines were at the course.  Also encouraging recycling by advertising that a bottle used here will be turned into a new one within 6 weeks.  Public transportation for everyone associated with the games.  You need your room key to turn on the power in your room, which is common across Europe.

Lots of security here.  Cameras, Bobbies, security forces in green, military troops and automatic weapon toting policemen are located at multiple points throughout campus and especially around the gates.  Double fences all around campus and the venue, vehicle barriers, vehicle inspections, metal detectors and X-ray machines greet us.  We travel from “clean zone” to “clean zone.”  I took a ride with our Program Manager, Fred Honbein, to the Venue, in the USRowing van; it took us about 30 minutes longer than the busses due to additional security and shuttles.  We were discussing getting some spray paint in to paint the oars with Concept2 and Darren Croker and they said the only possible way to do it now would be to ship it UPS where it would be scanned at the airport and then brought in by UPS.  Impressive.

Margot Shumway posts up next to the Palace Guard. (That chin strap is about to become a mouth piece, huh?)

Bus ride to the course is around 30 minutes on the weekends and up to 80 on the weekdays.  They have Olympic lanes on some of the roads, but the Motorways, get packed with traffic and we sit like every other car out there.  What is interesting is that the course is 8 miles by bike, 12 miles via Windsor on backroads and 18 the way we go around Heathrow Airport.  The reason we go the long way that was  mentioned to us is that the backroads are too small with small roundabouts with no contingencies should there be congestion or should something happen.  Thus far we have been taking an early bus to the course and staying through lunch to get the two practices in.

We have been on the course now for five days and there is a flurry of activity around the venue.  The record rainfall in June slowed progress considerably and wood chips, temporary sidewalks and even temporary parking lots have been installed over very soft pastures and soil where spectators, workers, volunteers and athletes will be traversing and watching the rowing competition.  It is an amazing and complex multi-layer infrastructure that goes into putting this on.  The military personnel, security forces, workers and volunteers have their own separate infrastructure including their own dining, transportation, medical and resting areas that for the most part go unseen, unless you look for them.

The venue

The venue itself is very much a “bathtub” course.  It parallels the Thames and was a gravel quarry at another time that has been expanded to an 8-lane regulation course.  Prevailing and significant crosswind from the left hand (starboard) side as we come down the course wears on the athletes.  With a good patch of weather this week, we are hoping that it is a minimal impact.

On both sides of the course are bike paths, that will become coaching pelotons and camera car lanes during the Games.  On both sides of the course in the last 250 meters are grandstands; general public on the north side and family, friends, special guests on the south.  2 big screen TVs, 50 feet by 50 feet are on either side enabling spectators to watch.  A 3-lane warm-up course lies behind the south grandstand.   They also have built 300(+-) foot towers at either end of the course for cameras and have strung 4 cables between them forming a 1.5 mile “cablecam” that will follow the races.  Similar to the cameras above the field at a football game, that someone said is the longest one ever built.  Should make for some great viewing.

Very few countries have been here this week and it has been good to get out on the course and test things out.  The Olympics is a smaller regatta than the World Championships, so fewer boats, coaches, etc., but with the infrastructure around us it is still pretty intense.

Outside the castle gates with Margot Shumway, Sarah Trowbridge and Coach Matt Madigan.

After the travel and four days of double-days, we took an afternoon off for mental refreshment and headed to Windsor.   The athletes need the distraction and since we are 15 minutes away, we took advantage of taking the tour of the castle and having some fish and chips.  The castle was extremely impressive.  Gardens, huge rooms, courtyards, art, tapestries, weapons and the guards made for a great afternoon.  From one of the terraces you could see the camera towers at the course.  Sean Gorman, my brother and I made the ride here from the World Championships in 2006 and it was only 10 minutes by bike.  The Queen was in, but we didn’t get to have tea with her, possibly next time.

The docent explained that with the Jubilee Year, 60^th anniversary of her coronation, and the Olympics she is quite busy.  The rooms we had been touring were used for events nearly nightly and she walked us through the process.  It looked like a museum, and hard to believe it was a fully functioning banquet, reception, social area nightly when the tourists were away.  She mentioned she had wanted to get tickets to the rowing but couldn’t and that her friend had made it as a volunteer.  When we gave her one of our Olympic pins she literally jumped up and down and ran to show another one of the docents.  Awesome to see the excitement we have shared with others for the Games.

Athletes are doing well.  We have settled into a routine.  Normal ups and downs of a trip.  Boat is rigged, athletes are doing the work.  It will be an exciting coming week as the rest of the nations arrive and we complete our training for racing.  We continue to be thankful for our supporters and backers at Potomac as well as our friends and family.

Rowing with pride and gratitude

Stephen Whelpley (bow) training with Willy Cowles for trials in Chula Vista earlier this month.

It’s so rare that people take the time these days to show their gratitude, much less send a thank you note.  Stephen Whelpley took time out of the insane demands of a U.S. National Team Quad Camp training schedule to write the following note of thanks to the PBC Board.  That’s practically an Olympic feat itself.

Steve thanks the club, but as you read on, you will see all of the thanks appropriately go to Coach Reilly Dampeer.  Reilly’s scullers train hard and row to win, but at the end of the day, just like her, they truly represent the best of our club and the best of our sport … win or lose.

Steve, we are unbelievably proud of all of our athletes, and yes, we are proud of you and Willy.  Some have said your race was the best race they had ever seen.  Ever.

And yes, when you chose to row with Willy, you chose us, too, and like it or not you’re part of the PBC family now.  This means yet another young nubile energetic person will allow us to sit back here in DC, whether at home or in our offices, and live vicariously through you and your relentless pursuit of excellence in the sport we all love.

For that, we thank you.  The best is yet to come.

* * *

Dear PBC Board,

My name is Stephen Whelpley, and I spent the majority of the majority of this rowing year as Willy Cowles doubles partner.  Considering my current situation in quad camp out in Chula Vista, I ask you not to judge the magnitude of my message by the brevity of its delivery.

There are a lot of things that could be said and a back story that could be illustrated.  I will simply say that I have been training full-time for over 7 years now since graduating from college, primarily for Penn AC in Philadelphia.  This very well could be the culmination of my “serious” rowing career.  Rather than accept my original invitation to go to quad camp, I knew pursuing the Men’s Heavyweight double was what I wanted to do for numerous reasons.  After some back and forth emailing, Willy and I came to an agreement to pursue it together.  To some degree, I knew that in choosing Willy, I was also choosing PBC.  And at the time, due to various logistical reasons, it made more sense for me to do that than for Willy to choose Penn AC.  What I did not know at the time, though, was the degree to which this would shape and ultimately help me in my pursuit of my Olympic goal.

The pupil becomes the teacher. It wasn't so long ago US rowing team members (L-R) Julie Nichols, Margaret Matia, Sarah Trowbridge and Reilly Dampeer celebrated a Women's Quadruple Sculls silver medal at the XV Pan Am Games 2007 in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. (Photo credit MARTIN BERNETTI/AFP/Getty Images)

I first want to thank Potomac Boat Club for its impeccable support of us and our pursuit to represent the U.S. in the Men’s Heavyweight double.  The rowing community is small, and there are countless stories of its “brotherhood.” Nonetheless, for a club to support such an effort that so closely benefited a non-club member as much as its own member was extremely benevolent and generous.  I also admired the way that the club and its athletes (both those with whom I trained with in the sculling group, as well as all those I came across from other groups, as well) carried themselves on a day-to-day basis.  There is a familial quality to everything you do that is quite welcoming and healthy. Considering the amount of resources that are required to compete at an international level in this day and age, it is not an easy thing to stay competitive.  However, I feel that PBC helped make it possible through both actual resources and the intangibles of the institution.

I also wanted to take a moment to give what is certain to be insufficient praise of Coach Reilly Dampeer.  I have rowed for a total of 14 years now.  During that time, I have come into contact with countless coaches and have been coached directly by over a dozen coaches.  Some of them were already considered legends of rowing – Ted Nash, Kris Korzeniowski, McLaren, and so on – and others will be soon.  I think Reilly’s efforts this year would have been up there with any of them.

Coach Reilly Dampeer watches her athletes make it through an erg piece way better than her finger nails.

Despite the outcome, I have absolutely no regrets about this year.  We trained hard.  We executed our race.  We went fast.  If I could do it all over again, I would select Reilly as my coach every time.  Sure, she is a relatively young coach, but she makes up for this tenfold with her dedication, willingness to learn, and intense work ethic.  Aside from her direct coaching of our boat, she successfully managed an entire training group in a foreign location, managed the psyches of many different athletes, and flawlessly prepped both young and older athletes for an extremely important race.  It is easy to see the physical resources we need like boats, video review equipment, ergs, and facilities, and clubs obviously need to maintain those resources as well as they can.  However, the importance of a good coach should never be underestimated as a resource, and I feel that Reilly proved to be an invaluable resource to us.

I really saw myself going to the Olympics this year in the Men’s Heavyweight Double.  I have gone to trials and national selection regattas for plenty of years now, and even when I thought I was good enough, I never could picture outcomes as vividly and confidently as I could this year.  I’m sure you know what a respectable time and race we rowed by now and how competitive our event turned out to be when you look at our final’s times against the World Record.

While I wish we could have brought pride to PBC, my family, myself, Reilly, Willy, and many others with a trip to the Olympic Qualification Regatta in Lucerne and ultimately a formidable club-made boat in the 2012 Olympics, I am still extremely proud of our endeavor and hope that PBC is as well.

Thank you.

Sincerely,

Steve

Kevin Baum lookin’ sharp in Oxford Blue

PBC's Kevin Baum, third from left, to race for Oxford

Okay, so maybe we’ll let him wear blue instead of red this one time.

PBC’s own Kevin Baum has been chosen to row for Oxford University in The Boat Race on April 7, 2012.  Kevin is one of two Americans who join an international crew from England, Germany, and the Netherlands to battle Cambridge during the 158th running of this historic competition.

Kevin previously rowed for the St. Albans School, Stanford University and has been a member of the PBC Open Sculling Program since 2008.  He is also the son of Senior Member George Baum.

PBC Open Sculling Program Coach Reilly Dampeer says of Kevin, “Kevin is a relentless competitor and exemplary member of the PBC team … and gives us a great reason to cheer for Oxford this year!”

(Causing certain members of PBC to ask, “Did we need another reason?”)

Click here for a story that includes a brief sound byte from Kevin.  For more information about The Boat Race, please visit http://www.theboatrace.org/.

Good luck, Kevin!  Your PBC family will be cheering you on from here!

Social Committee … Do we smell another happy hour?! (Or do we just smell the keg o’ rater?)

OS Stefanie Kozuszek reminds us what it’s really all about

Open Scullers launch for another morning of hard work on the water. (Photo by Igor Belakovskiy)

Tonight is the Rising Stars Dinner and Auction, an event to support the National Team and Olympic dreams of members of PBC’s Open Sculling Program.  Following the dinner, our Open Scullers will leave for California and the final leg of training for the regattas that will determine this year’s Olympic team.  Our shared hopes, dreams, and best wishes for success, go with them!

In this month’s look into the world of an Open Sculler, Stefanie Kozuszek reminds us that making the National Team is just the icing on the cake of being part of a hard working, close-knit team.

If you’d like to read more about Open Sculler Stefanie Kozuszek, please visit her bio page here (click).

* * *

Happy 2012! I hope everyone had an enjoyable holiday season!

It’s a big year, an Olympic year, and the end of a four year cycle of hard work and effort by athletes from all over the world hoping to represent their nation in London. For the PBC Open Sculling Program, it means it’s time for us to kick it into overdrive. Following this weekend’s Rising Stars Dinner and Auction, a few of us will stay in DC and focus on building our fitness, targeting through to the next cycle. Others will head out to Long Beach, California, to prepare for the National Selection Regattas in Chula Vista in April. We all hope they will be greeted with flat water, warm weather, and a training environment that will lead them to a spot on the National Team.

It’s always interesting to see the reactions of people when you tell them that you are training to one day make the National Team or better yet, to make it to the Olympics. They usually hone in on the Olympic part and ask when the next Olympics are. The next time they see you they’ll ask something like, “So, make it to the Olympics, yet?”

Deep down, you know how much more work and how many more years you will have to put in to make that dream a reality. You’ll have to get up early, train twice a day, and throw in a little work on top of it all to help pay the bills. This and more run through your head when all the person waiting on the other side probably wants is the short answer. Still, you’re thinking that there is always more you can do, always something to improve on to give you that little extra edge … “No, not yet, but I’m working on it,” you say.

Sometimes it’s scary to share your ultimate goal with others. What if you never reach that goal? Will they think of you as a failure? Or will they respect that you had enough courage to chase those dreams? In the end I’ve realized that if you are doing what you what makes you happy, then who cares what someone else might thing.

The reality is that we won’t all make it to the Olympics or even to the National Team. But as long as we’ve tried our best and enjoyed the time that we’ve put in, each of us will be able to walk away with our heads held high knowing we were true to our dreams. The friendships built on this team alone are enough to make it all worth it, but we will have also bettered ourselves along the way.

But enough of that. It’s time to get fast!

PBC’s Shumway finds gold in Mexico

PBC's Margot Shumway at this year's Pan Am Games (Photo courtesy of Margaux Jackson)

Potomac Boat Club’s Margot Shumway won gold today in the Women’s Single event at the XVI Pan American Games 2011.

Margot’s win earned the U.S. one of the two gold and one bronze medals won by our National Team on this second day of finals in Ciudad Guzman.

Click here to read the Rowing News article about Margot’s win and here to read the ESPN article about the win and for more updates from Mexico.

CONGRATULATIONS TO MARGOT AND COACHES MATT MADIGAN AND REILLY DAMPEER!  We’re so proud of you!

PBC’s Shumway and Cowles light up the course at Elite Nationals

An unmistakable gold medal winning smile on PBC's Margot Shumway at Elite Nationals 2011 (Photo courtesy of USRowing)

Due to widespread power outages, the staff of the Star spent most of the Fourth of July holiday weekend in the dark, whining about having to drink warm Leinenkugel Summer Shandies and consume gallons upon gallons of half melted ice cream (yes, at the same time), all the while wondering what was happening out in the electricity-enabled world during a busy few days of PBC racing.

Fortunately, we ran out of Hagen-Daz Ben and Jerry beer floats (sorry) and are back on the grid … with fireworks to report!

Big congratulations go to Coach Reilly Dampeer and Open Scullers Margot Shumway and Willy Cowles for gold medal finishes at the 2011 USRowing Elite National Championships (June 29 – July 1)!

Perennial Star fave Margot Shumway got it started for PBC on Mercer Lake, grabbing gold in the women’s single sculls.  Margot finished with a time of 7:49.49, 1.69 seconds ahead of Penn AC/Undine Boat Club’s Catherine Reddick.   A 2008 Olympian, she led her race early and was able to dictate the pace throughout.

Next up was our Willy Cowles.  Willy took first place in the men’s single sculls with a time of 7:01.75, defeating Craftsbury Sculling Center’s Ben Dann, who will represent the United States in the men’s single sculls at the World Rowing Under 23 Championships.

With one gold in the bag, Willy, rowing with Stephen Whelpley of Penn AC, then won gold in the men’s double sculls with a close come-from-behind victory over USRowing Training Center’s Greg Ansolabehere and Martin Etem.  Their times were 6:31.43 and 6:31.88 respectively.

In the men’s quad race, Willy just missed a chance to pull the elusive Elite Nationals hat trick, but added hard fought silver to his two gold after edging out Harvard (racing as Cambridge) for second in a tight four boat finish.  GMS got the gold after moving into the lead during the sprint.

See the PBC result detail below.  Not a bad weekend of racing, PBC.  (Holy.)  And we haven’t even started to comb through the Independence Day Regatta results!

For additional detail about these (a couple of strong finishes by Katie Stainken) and other races at Elite Nationals, check out Row2k’s coverage at http://www.row2k.com/events/features.cfm?ID=174.

***

Race 1: Womens 1x Final @ 08:00 AM
1st 3 Potomac BC F (M. Shumway) 07:47.49 07:47.49 00:07:47.49
2nd 2 Penn AC/ Undine (C.Reddick) 07:51.18 0.8% 00:03.69 07:51.18 00:07:47.49 00:00:03.69
3rd 4 Unaffiliated (USA) B (J.Goldsack) 07:52.61 1.1% 00:01.43 07:52.61 00:07:47.49 00:00:05.12
4th 5 Unaffiliated (USA) K (M.Walsh) 07:53.84 1.4% 00:01.23 07:53.84 00:07:47.49 00:00:06.35
5th 6 Potomac BC A (K. Stainken) 07:54.25 1.4% 00:00.41 07:54.25 00:07:47.49 00:00:06.76
6th 1 USRowing Training Center – OKC A (M.Smith) 07:55.28 1.7% 00:01.03 07:55.28 00:07:47.49 00:00:07.79

Race 2: Mens 1x Final @ 08:10 AM
1st 4 Potomac BC A (W. Cowles) 07:01.75 07:01.75 00:07:01.75
2nd 3 Craftsbury (B.Dann) 07:03.30 0.4% 00:01.55 07:03.30 00:07:01.75 00:00:01.55
3rd 5 GMS Rowing (M.Sivigny) 07:09.17 1.8% 00:05.87 07:09.17 00:07:01.75 00:00:07.42
4th 2 Penn AC A (E.Schwirtz) 07:13.54 2.8% 00:04.37 07:13.54 00:07:01.75 00:00:11.79
5th 6 USRowing Training Ctr B (D.McEachern) 07:13.75 2.8% 00:00.21 07:13.75 00:07:01.75 00:00:12.00
6th 1 Y Quad Cities (D.Baustian) 07:14.04 2.9% 00:00.29 07:14.04 00:07:01.75 00:00:12.29

Maria Bokulich and Malyka Ianni in the Women's 2-. The boat was judged to be underweight, but whatever. Looking good should count for something. (Photo courtesy of Row2k.com)

Race 5: Womens 2- Final @ 08:50 AM
1st 4 Vesper (C.Meyer, S.Kaplan) 07:37.89 07:37.89 00:07:37.89
2nd 3 Saratoga (K.Wagner, L.Fitzhenry) 07:39.69 0.4% 00:01.80 07:39.69 00:07:37.89 00:00:01.80
3rd 6 Riverside (M.Foster, L.Maldonado) 08:00.66 5.0% 00:20.97 08:00.66 00:07:37.89 00:00:22.77
4th 5 All-American (K.Bennett, M.Streitfield) 08:15.66 8.2% 00:15.00 08:15.66 00:07:37.89 00:00:37.77
2 Potomac BC (M. Bokulich, M. Ianni)  boat underweight

Race 9: Womens 2x Final @ 09:20 AM
1st 3 USRowing Training Ctr B (A.Martelli, S.Hendershot) 07:05.84 07:05.84 00:07:05.84
2nd 4 USRowing Training Ctr A (S.Zelenka, E.Regan) 07:08.56 0.6% 00:02.72 07:08.56 00:07:05.84 00:00:02.72
3rd 2 Potomac BC/USRowing Training Center – OKC [Composite] (K. Stainken, H. Cumbest) 07:11.77 1.4% 00:03.21 07:11.77 00:07:05.84 00:00:05.93
4th 5 USRowing Training Ctr C (A.Kroll, B.Teeley) 07:14.43 2.0% 00:02.66 07:14.43 00:07:05.84 00:00:08.59
5th 6 Vesper (N.Ritchie, S.Reynolds) 07:20.80 3.5% 00:06.37 07:20.80 00:07:05.84 00:00:14.96
6th 1 USRowing Training Center – OKC (S.Kozuszek, M.George) 07:21.02 3.6% 00:00.22 07:21.02 00:07:05.84 00:00:15.18

Race 17: Mens 4x Final @ 11:00 AM
1st 6 GMS Rowing A (B.DeRegt, J.Winter, T.Mickelson, R.Klein) 06:06.18 06:06.18 00:06:06.18
2nd 4 Potomac BC/Penn AC [Composite] (W.Cowles, S.Whelpley, K.Baum, T.Frank) 06:06.48 0.1% 00:00.30 06:06.48 00:06:06.18 00:00:00.30
3rd 2 Cambridge (M.O’Leary, E.Schultze, M.Wales, A.Newell) 06:07.36 0.3% 00:00.88 06:07.36 00:06:06.18 00:00:01.18
4th 3 Vesper (J.Kapetyn, D.Weber, M.Vuksich, D.Scholz) 06:08.24 0.6% 00:00.88 06:08.24 00:06:06.18 00:00:02.06
5th 5 GMS Rowing/GMS USTC Partner [Composite] B (B.B, C.C, D.D, E.E) 06:16.12 2.7% 00:07.88 06:16.12 00:06:06.18 00:00:09.94 6th 1 St. Catharines (M.Wortley, T.Schrijver, K.Drummond, M.Alm) 06:19.07 3.5% 00:02.95 06:19.07 00:06:06.18 00:00:12.89

The Open Sculling Report for May

To learn more about Willy Cowles, this month’s contributor to the Open Sculling Program Report, please click here and scroll down.  You’ll find bios for the rest of the current Open Sculling Program team there, as well!

In the meantime, we’re pulling for you back here at PBC, Willy!  Best of luck at the U.S. Training Center in Chula Vista!

* * *

May was a very busy month for members of the PBC open sculling team, with invitations to the National Selection Regatta (NSR) II and potential National Team boat camp invitations up for grabs.  The prior month, we had marked the beginning of our summer racing season, taking our singles up to Princeton for NSR I.  We experienced some mixed weather conditions at NSR I and some mixed results, but in May, with only three weeks separating the two NSR’s, we had to move quickly to find 2x combinations.

NSR I and II, which happen every April and May, are the primary races through which National Team selection occurs. For scullers, NSR I means racing the single. The winner of this regatta earns the opportunity to go to a World Cup in Europe as the U.S. Single Sculler, and, provided he or she finish in the top 4, retains this spot as the U.S. Single Sculler going into World Championships at the end of the summer.  The same is true of NSR II, except that the second regatta also holds the opportunity to earn invitations to boat camps.  While the winner of the 2x at NSR II can also go to a World Cup, anywhere from one to three or four “runners up” can be invited to the Quad camp, a National Team selection camp where invitees try to earn a spot in the 4x.

Willy Cowles of PBC and Mike Sivigny of GMS Rowing Center (Connecticut) at NSR II

After NSR II, nine Potomac athletes, along with three rowers from other clubs (USTC-OKC, Pocock Rowing Club, and GMS Rowing Center) ran both a men’s and a women’s doubles matrix that produced three men’s and three women’s doubles.  I paired up with Mike Sivigny, a rower from GMS in Connecticut, and split the weeks between NSRs between DC and Connecticut.  After three weeks of hard training, we arrived in Princeton ready to race.  After time trials, heats, and semis, my double ended up with a spot in the A Final.  We had our work cut out for us, with three current U.S. National Rowing team boats in the final, as well as strong entries from Penn AC and the 2009 U.S. National team double.

Mike and I knew that our strength lay in our endurance, and we were able, according to our race plan, to walk from 6^th to 4^th in the second thousand of the race.  Although we were disappointed to lose to the third place crew by only seven tenths of a second, we still felt we raced well.  Other Potomac crews raced well, too.  Kevin Baum and Taylor Frank pushed a strong last 500 to a 4^th place finish in the B Final.  Joe Ledvina and Austin Nichols came in second in the C Final.  On the women’s side, Stephanie Kuzsocek and Meghan George placed 6^th in the A final,  Morgan Wimberley and Katie Stainken third in the B Final, and Maria Bokulich and Malyka Iyanni third in the C Final.

Based on a combination of NSR I and NSR II performances, as well as erg scores, I was lucky enough to be invited to Quad camp at the ARCO U.S. Training Center in Chula Vista, California.   I have been here for almost two weeks so far, and have already pulled seven all-out 2ks (one on the erg).  It has been quite a learning experience.  The camp includes selection for the 4x, as well as for the 8+ and 4- on the sweep side, so as you can imagine, racing has been fierce.  The National team coaches use camps like these to seat race athletes against one another, trying to find the fastest combinations in all boats.  They will test whatever combinations come out first at the third World Cup in Lucerne, and later at World Championships in Bled, Slovenia.  This year, the pre-Olympic year, placement at Worlds is particularly important because a finish in the top 11 means qualification for the 2012 Olympics in London.  Racing promises to continue to be intense and I hope to be able to continue to work hard and try to earn a spot on this year’s team, with an eye towards London in 2012.

Supporters help PBC’s Rising Stars get closer to National Team reality

Morgan Constantine Wimberley with a poster of herself that appeared all over DC as part of NBC News' "We are Washington" campaign. (Photo by Mike Malone)

Contributed by Maria Bokulich, member, Open Sculling Program

The cherry blossoms have bloomed, the river is rowable and the first annual Rising Stars Banquet, a fundraiser for the PBC Open Sculling Program, has come and gone with great success.

The evening began with the Board room packed full of generous supporters bidding on a variety of silent auction items from a fly fishing trip in Montana to an original painting of the Key Bridge viewed through a PBC boat bay by former Open Sculler Bill Greer.

With the guys in jackets and ties and the gals in dresses and heels, the  auction was followed by a delicious dinner prepared by PBC senior member Chef Bernard Henry.  We named Chef Bernard an honorary member of the Open Sculling Team for his very generous contribution to the event!  During dessert, each athlete spoke briefly about the passion we all share to be the best in this sport and the dream we live each day to make the U.S. National Team.  All of your contributions help us get closer to turning this dream into a reality.

Katie Stainken competes in the 2011 National Selection Regatta for a spot on the team that will represent the U.S. at the World Championship in Bled Slovania.

Thank you to all who volunteered their time and energy to make this event possible.  With the support of PBC and the Washington, DC rowing community, the Open Scullers were able to raise $11,000 from the event.  These funds will go directly to our athletes for help with travel expenses to races, training trips and equipment needs.

In fact, we just returned from our first race of the season, the 2011 National Selection Regatta 1 (NSR 1), which took place from April 21– 23, in Princeton, New Jersey.   Each of the Open Scullers competed in a single through a time trial, heats and a final, all to earn the right to compete at the 2011 World Championships in Bled, Slovenia.

Next, we’ll let you know how the NSR 1 went!

Once again, thanks to everyone for making our first Rising Stars Banquet such a big success!

Support PBC’s National Team athletes!

Update: PBC's Brendan McEwan made it to Belarus and to semis at U23 World Championships, but the team still needs our support!

Every little bit helps!  And it’s all tax deductible!

• Click HERE to go straight to your donation options!

In less than a couple of weeks, our Brendan McEwan will represent the United States in the Men’s Single Sculls at the Under 23 World Rowing Championships in Brest, Belarus (July 22 – 25).  Brendan won his event at trials in June by 3.41 seconds, crossing the line in 6:59.294. He will be joined by Coach Reilly Dampeer, who has done a tremendous job helping him get ready.

And, hey!n  We’re proud to report again that Rob Rasmussen and Nader Al-Naji are on the Junior National Team roster!  Joined by Coach Deb Dryer, Rob and Nader will be racing in the double at the 2010 World Rowing Junior Championships in Racice, Czech Republic (August 4 – 7).

Crazy kids.  All that energy.  Makes you want to take a load off, doesn’t it?  Well, while you’re sitting there, you’re gonna earn a chance to  feel like you’re right there next to the guys when they step up to the winners’ podium … all without leaving your computer!

The charitable foundation created to support our National Team athletes, the Potomac River Sports Foundation (PRSF), figures our team still needs about $7,500 to fund our World Championships effort this year.  Basically, each boat costs about $1700 to rent and transport. The USRowing fee is $1,625 for each athlete. Add another $1300 for coach’s room, board, gear and flight. Well, you get the picture. Being an elite level rower ain’t cheap, folks!

Since we’re pretty sure none of us can cover the entire amount today, tax deductible or not, how about we do this thing together?  Fiddy from her.  A hundy from him. A couple Gs from you. And so on.  That way, we’ll all feel like we’re part of it when Brendan, Rob and Nader take those winning strokes across the finish line!

(Of course, if you do throw down the entire $7,500, just don’t tell us, so we’ll all still feel like we did something.  Thanks.)

Okay, so.  Got your credit card ready, PBC? (Come on! They need you! And it’s tax deductible!)  To give using PayPal, click here.

If you would rather pay by check, just make it payable to Potomac River Sports Foundation, and then mail it to Paul Knight at the following the address:

Paul Knight, Treasurer
Potomac River Sports Foundation
c/o Nossaman LLP
1666 K Street NW, Suite 500
Washington, DC 20006

By the way, you can give to the PRSF all year long!

Best of luck to Brendan, Rob, Nader, Reilly and Deb! GO, PBC!!!

Stay tuned for a charitable group hug mid-August.

Watch Potomac at National Championships now!

It’s not too late to catch our PBC Open scullers slug it out at the 2010 USRowing National Championships!  Watch live streaming video at http://rowing.teamusa.org/live.

Those left to race include Nicole Dinion and Brittany Robinson in the women’s lightweight 2x at 9:40!  (Like, really … you have four minutes. Git.)

Finally, Matt Madigan reminds us that PBC’s Open Scullers can’t do this without our support. Watch for tax deductible ways to donate through the Potomac River Sports Foundation to help these talented athletes continue to meet their elite rowing goals.

We are so proud of all of you!  Way to go, PBC!

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