CLEVELAND - It is 8 a.m. on a sweltering morning in the Flats, and Rajagopal Srinivas is completing a grueling workout as part of his summer training for the St. Ignatius High School Rowing Team. There is nothing unusual about this, really, as many rowers select the morning to head down to the Cleveland Rowing Foundation's boathouse at Rivergate Park and train. Yet this opportunity to row and exercise is often taken for granted by many in Cleveland's rowing community; this is where Gopal—as Srinivas is known—stands out.
Unlike nearly all of the rowers who row out of the CRF boathouse, both young and old, Gopal started rowing early—in the seventh grade, in fact. But that was when he lived in Florida, and only after his family had been previously connected with the sport. Today, most youth have very limited opportunities to begin rowing; firstly, because there are few youth programs, and secondly, because rowing is an expensive sport.
Srinivas recognizes how privileged he has been to row for five years. The rising senior at St. Ignatius, a private, Catholic school in Cleveland, understands that his situation is unique, and unfortunately, rare. But he has been a Boy Scout since the third grade and studied under the St. Ignatius motto of "Men for Others." In preparing to complete an Eagle Scout project, he thought about his extraordinary opportunities and began formulating a way to open up rowing not only to younger people, but those in the city of Cleveland.
"It's a pretty closed sport," he says, "and it doesn't have to be. There are so many [rowing] shells unused that there is the possibility of getting more people on the water." Given that a typical brand new 8-person rowing shell costs anywhere from $20,000 to $40,000 and that most programs have fees ranging from $150 to over $1,000, it is unlikely that most inner-city children would ever have the chance to row. This is where Srinivas is making waves.
His Eagle Scout project has included several learn-to-row interest sessions with a select group of children from the Ohio City area of Cleveland; these children participate in the Arrupe Neighborhood Partnership programs overseen by St. Ignatius High School. Furthermore, Gopal is creating a fund to help cover the costs for those children who want to continue rowing. Arrupe director John Gill is both thankful and excited about the project and its implications.
"Rowing has been made real to 25 students and the adults they were with. Just being on the water, individual and team aspects of rowing properly, and enjoying nature in this way for the first time is exciting. We don't know what it may have sparked, but I am so grateful for their opportunity."
Gill assisted Srinivas in creating the learn-to-rows as a new part of the Arrupe center's Arrupe Explorers summer camp program for seventh and eighth graders. In addition, Gill coordinated the adult help that would help take the camp down to the CRF boathouse and help it run smoothly. One of his main concerns was safety, but the students received a thorough briefing about safety on the water and were required to wear life jackets while they were in boats. Furthermore, Gopal had enlisted the help of his teammates and coaches to assist in teaching and coaching the complicated sport.
Former Head Coach of the St. Ignatius team Matt Previts, and Head Coach of the newly created Notre Dame College Rowing Team Russ Eckles served as the coaches for the three-hour on-the-water learn to row sessions, after a day of basic rowing education and training on the boathouse rowing machines. As seasoned, Cleveland rowers, they had only praise for Srinivas and for the project.
"Gopal had to work through shortages in funding, changes in project scope, and secure permission from several different entities all while building the schedule, constructing dock boxes, and programming the event," Previts said. "He displayed remarkable adaptability and was never discouraged. Even in the face of obstacles and setbacks, he did not waiver and simply 'plowed around' any impediments." Eckles agreed, citing the promising future for this program.
"The project was a success because it was well-attended, the kids had a great time, and were exposed to something totally different in their lives," he explained. "This is a great opportunity to expand rowing in the urban environment and population."
Srinivas estimates he spent over 80 hours completing the bulk of the project, with at least 60 hours devoted to planning the event and securing all the proper approval, including that of the Boy Scouts of America committee which approves projects. Although his original plan was to buy a rowing barge kit to facilitate the learn-to-row, the funding came up short, but he was given the go-ahead to start a fund to allow his project to continue to grow. Gopal believes this is important, because the majority of the students really enjoyed rowing.
"I liked the trip because it was fun to go in the water, and to try rowing even though some parts were hard," said Gabby, a seventh-grader. While many of the students were somewhat afraid at first, their taste of rowing helped them overcome this anxiety and enjoy the experience. Srinivas plans to conduct another learn-to-row again soon, and then hopes that future Boy Scouts and St. Ignatius students will be able to further develop the project into an entire rowing program exclusively for kids who ordinarily would never even get to set foot in a boat. And with his fund put in place, it appears as if this could become a reality in a matter of a couple years.
Gopal Srinivas does not have any immediate dreams of coaching; after graduating, he hopes to study Economics and Pre-Med while rowing at the collegiate level. He has recognized the blessings and opportunities that have been presented to him, and is working to open up the oft-closed world of rowing to a new class of people. With a solid foundation in place, one can only imagine where this pilot program could go; perhaps to Philadelphia, Boston, Florida, or many places where rowing is historically popular. And although Srinivas hopes that one day soon this will be the case, for now he is enjoying watching his program grow, and witnessing more young people row.