Win #1
As racing opened Thursday, University of Virginia's Temple entry set the tone for a winning morning at Henley. Certainly the most visible crew on the course, the day-glo orange blades and hats of the Cavaliers raced hard through Temple Island in the bout against Eton, but were able to ratchet back their efforts and their rating after the barriers to win "easily" (yet again).
The UVA crew has been in Europe for two weeks already. They raced small boats in Switzerland (where Coach Biller is from) in the Greifensee Regatta "which was humbling for them--they don't row small boats too often--but they were able to get revenge in the eights," he quips. Biller's parents Marion and George reside in Zurich.
In their race today they faced an Eton second boat; not quite enough development in that crew to match a collegiate crew that trains like UVA. Biller is a little concerned about not yet being pressed in the regatta--he does not want the crew to get complacent and stagnant as they win by more than 5 lengths. They potentially face Harvard tomorrow, and it is unlikely they can paddle through that one.
Two-thirds of this crew is walk-ons who have just learned to row and now are here in Henley--they are stunned by the experience to some degree, but recent graduate Scott Stuart is hoping to continue rowing in England in the coming year. He is 2-seat of the eight here. Garrett Thomas, 6-seat of the varsity eight, went to a small rural high school in Virginia and played baseball in the spring. They both credit Novice coach Eric Shuler with tracking down potential athletes to row at UVA, which is a club program that cannot recruit or grant scholarships to athletes.
Biller can rest assured that these guys are ready to race. "When I cross that stake boat to back it in...I am in race mode," says Thomas. Stuart says that as soon as he shoves off the dock, he is ready for a race. They have the fresh energy of new rowers--which has so far paid dividends.
"When you get the right people doing diligent work, good things will happen,"
Win #2
In a Diamonds Challenge Cup race, the youngest of the three boat-racing-Trinity-graduated-US sculler Graves brothers, John, lined up against Chris Boddy, a lightweight from Leander Club in Henley.
Graves, rowing for Craftsbury Sculling Center in Vermont, USA, started hard and fast up to a 43 rating at the Island but was able to back off to finish "easily" at a 25 rating. After a very quiet weather day yesterday, there is a slight headwind today; Graves had to row into that wind through the middle of the race, but looked strong and now has the advantage of have a nice warm-up row on the course. More tomorrow on Graves.
Win #3
The Harvard heavyweight freshman also faced the headwind in their race against Oxford Brookes University "C" boat Thursday morning, but did so with a long stroke in the body of the race that lifted the boat. Their opposition, over two lengths back, looked like they were fighting the boat and the Thames on their way down. To compensate, Oxford Brookes went for a higher stroke rate--that only enhanced the appearance. Harvard, rowing three beats lower, glided past the enclosures, winning by 2 1/2 lengths at (literally) 10 beats lower.
Win #4
Northeastern alumni boat is not a fully NE crew. US Olympian Elliot Hovey, a California Bear, stroked the Husky crew in a race of the Visitors’ Challenge for fours against the Netherlands crew of RSVU Okeanos & ASR Nereus. In just their fourth row together, Elliot Hovey, Will Miller, Petar Lovric and Tom Owsten looked stable (though Miller claims they had a couple unsteady strokes) and powered past the Dutch crew early. NED could not match the rating or power. Will Miller is the most seasoned Henley competitor here, with six Henley appearances and several different boat classes: Double Sculls, The Grand, and two different quads categories. Croatian athlete Lovric has also been in the Silver Goblets and Nickalls pair, in 2001, so you could argue he is seasoned as well! Northeastern takes alumni racing very seriously, and these athletes have won the Head of the Charles since 2009 in that category.
Win #5
The Ivy Club of Princeton, a preppy eating cub at the Ivy campus in New Jersey, is the namesake of a throw together boat of Princeton oarsmen who had the unfortunate draw of Harvard heavyweights in the Visitors’ Challenge.
Harvard was able, like its other Visitors’ appearance, to bring down the rating and race on at their own pace. We will be speaking to Harvard in the second half of the day, more from Henley in a few hours.
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07/05/2013 8:31:35 AM