1. What inspired you to go to your first rowing practice; was there anything memorable about it?
I first discovered rowing in 8th grade while playing baseball. I was 5' 2' and a terrible baseball player, so I had a lot of time to cheer my teammates on from the bench. One of the assistant coaches on the team rowed for a masters team in the area and asked me if I wanted to come try out being a coxswain. I had no idea what a coxswain was, but I went and tried it out anyway. I remember waking up at 4:30AM and going down the boathouse, it was very dark and cold in the morning. I went on the water having no clue what I got myself into, I didn't know the language of the sport or anything for that matter. I kept on coxing for the summer, learned a lot, had my first race and loved it! I remember the first racing start I ever did, I remember only being able to smile and was hooked on rowing.
2. Was there a practice, race or other event when you fell in love with the sport, or when you knew you might not be too bad at rowing? When you thought you could make the national team?
My freshmen year in high school we had a great year, winning all our races. The following year we a good year but not the same success as my freshmen year. However, i was invited to selection camp for the Jr. National team that summer and that is when I first had the dream of making the senior national team. Seeing them practice was amazing, I knew I wanted to make the national team but wasn't sure that it would ever come. I am, and always will be, thrilled to just have the experiences and opportunities I have had.
3. Best race/practice, worst race/practice?
I have many memorable practices and races, the one that sticks out the most is the PAC-10 Championships my junior year in college at Cal. It was an up and down year, and I was in and out of the varsity too.
I knew it was a big opportunity for me if we did well. The race was within 3 seats for 2000 meters between us (Cal), Stanford and Washington. We had a slight lead the whole way but Stanford was closing fast right to the finish line. We crossed the finish line and both the Stanford coxswain and I looked at each other having no clue who won. We rowed back to the dock where we were told we had won. It was memorable just because it was so close between 3 boats the entire way.
4. Best/Anything you've done in the sport no one knows about?
I dont think i have done too much of anything yet, I hope something will come in the future.
5. Any/Most important advice for young rowers?
The best advice I have is to make sure you make your own decisions, don't let others make them for you. I was told as a young coxswain that if i am going to run into a wall, make sure you are the one who runs into the wall. Second, is to take accountability, if something goes wrong in practice or a race, think how you can make it better for the boat. Maybe something could be more clear and that will help the problem. Don't blame the rowers, take the pressure off them.
Club Affiliation: University of California
Began Rowing: Oakland Strokes, 2002
Date of Birth: 8/19/88
Height: 5'9"
Weight: 121
High School: Millennium High School
Undergraduate Education: University of California
Current Coaches: Tim McLaren, Mike Teti
Years on National Team: Four – 2005-06, Junior; 2010, Under 23; 2012 Senior
International Results: Won the eight at the 2012 Final Olympic Qualification Regatta...Finished second in the eight at the 2010 World Rowing Under 23 Championships...Won the Temple Challenge Cup at the 2009 Henley Royal Regatta…Finished fifth in the eight at the 2006 World Rowing Junior Championships...Finished fourth in the four with coxswain at the 2005 World Rowing Junior Championships.
National Results: Won the varsity eight at the 2010 IRA Championships…Won the freshman eight at the 2009 IRA Championships…Won gold in the four with coxswain at the 2005 USRowing Youth National Championships.
Personal: Zach works at California Rowing Club, enjoys snowboarding, wake boarding and following his favorite sports teams…He lists winning the varsity eight at the 2010 IRA Championships as his most memorable sporting achievement.
Comments | Log in to comment |
There are no Comments yet
|
row2k's Olympics coverage is brought to you by:
row2k's Olympics coverage is brought to you by: