Spring racing is firing on all cylinders now, with poll-upsetting results atop the college ranks--Princeton Heavies, Washington Men, and the then-#15 Tennessee Women--to dead heats on the race course: one actual one in Boston between the Bates and Radcliffe Lights 2Vs, and one resolved with "further review of all available video technology" between the Princeton and Penn Lights.

We even spotted our first backwards uni of the season, but since racing in it was probably uncomfortable enough already, we will spare that rower and skip posting it here. You are welcome to comb through the weekend's 32 row2k galleries to see if you can spot it...and luckily for the athlete, it was at regatta that suspended the uniform rule due to weather.

In any event, definitely consider this our annual PSA to folks: make sure you check your uni before you are in the boat, at the line, pulling it up wrong-way round.

But, wait, there's more:

Peak Start Line Vibe

This pic captures that feeling when it's all about to go down:

After all, it's cold, folks are taking forever to lock on, and you are about to visit the pain cave, so we get it.

Start line shenanigans still abound--as you can see in this week's cover and in our Insta post from Mercer Sprints on Sunday--but there are also plenty of folks just not having it at the start...

and sometimes you see the whole range of emotions in one boat:

Or spot a guy feeling like he's maybe been in this bow pair a bit too long...

Surely the End of a Meme

Mewing has arrived in rowing, with kids hitting it hard all spring, from Mercer:

to Mewport, er Newport...

But years of experience has taught row2k that when a trend finally makes it to rowing, it is already on its way out, so Mew away while you still can, folks:

The SIRA M2x Kerfuffle

You know you've made a certain kind of history when your race result winds up being hotly debated on reddit.

We have the whole sequence here, as FIT collides with the William and Mary double in the fight for third place just before the line, allowing the Auburn crew that had been in fifth to sail past a few lanes over and cross the line ahead of both to actually finish third.

Unfortunate, no question, but kudos to the William & Mary duo for staying upright--and hopefully their race at ACRAs will be incident-free.

Readers who are interested in how an episode like this is decided can read the Rules of Rowing here - tho we realize that might take all the fun out of the debate.

Zeidler Scratches, at SIRA?

In Olympic news, World Champion Olli Zeidler scratched from his race this weekend with no explanation, as you can see here:

Or maybe the folks doing the Virginia entries were just having a bit of a laugh, and the Champ is just fine and still in Szeged for Euros this weekend--making this just really some goofball news.

Twin Time

Spotted at Mercer:

We have frequently featured twins in the recap, and this week there is this twin stern pair in a Row America Rye crew.

Next Level Fist Bumping

The rarely-seen "Finish Line Fist Bump" here from Tampa, in a pair no less:

Or how about adding some pinkie-swear flair:

And Next Level Notes

This coxswain had notes all over the cockpit:

No way all of that was fitting on her hand, like we saw in last week's recap, and it is hard to use the notes on your leg trick in a bow loader--plus, pretty slick use of one of the best Rowing Hack materials out there: electrical tape.

Best Beard

Haven't see one this good all spring:

Best Save

Mid-race oarlock fix without flipping? Nicely done, Purdue.

These guys even recovered well enough to finish 6th in this time trial to make the final.

Best Near Flip

This fella came about as close as you can get to a full-on start line swim:

But he did save it, and off he went.

Port & Starboard Spectating

Unintentionally perfect?

Or were these two actually taking, um, sides...

Coxin' to Rowin' Redux

Spotted another "any seat, any time" specialist this weekend at the Occoquan, doubling up in the driver's seat:

...and then the bow seat, for Battlefield HS Crew.

Somebody Lose a Bench?

If you are one of the fans who watches Occoquan racing from the rocks on the Prince William County side, we found the bench that went missing:

The bad news? It looks like it is down pretty deep, even at low water. The other bad news for folks in the VIP Rocks section? The Woodson fans came over from the Fairfax side and tagged your rocks pretty good since our last visit.

Got Wheat?

Well played, Wichita State.

The Shockers know: the only thing better than a badass boat name is some on-point bow art.

Frostbite-ing in April?

Isn't it supposed to be spring?

Hoodies under unis? Usually something we see at the Frostbite Regatta, but when temps dipped into the 30s overnight in NJ, bundling up was back in at Mercer.

"Please, No Gang Signs"

And if Iron Man says it's okay, who are we to disagree?

More 'Tell Us You're a Sculler...'

... without telling us you're a sculler:

Left over right damage is a dead giveaway, every time.

And...Smile!

Shoulder art is back:

Can our first "Ka-chow" spotting be far behind? We'll keep an eye out and let you know.