1. What inspired you to go to your first rowing practice; was there anything memorable about it?
Most of my friends from my freshman class in High School went out for rowing in the spring. Having been around rowing so much as a child I certainly wanted to give it a shot as well. There was something about the training and the connection between work and results that hooked me on the sport from the beginning.
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?
I never thought that I could make the National Team until I was actually on one. As a matter of fact, when my parents dropped me off at the Cornell boathouse for my first Junior Team tryouts I was scared to death. The first three or four people that I saw there looked like giants to me and I never thought I would be able to compete with them. But what kept me going was seeing how well some of the smaller guys performed as the camp went on. Watching guys with less raw physical ability overperform because of the tenacity with which they approach the sport has always been and continues to be something that motivates me.
3. Best race/practice, worst race/practice?
One race that always sticks out for me is the 1998 IRA. I was a sophomore and I rowed bow seat with an incredibly talented group of guys in front of me. I was just happy to be in the boat with athletes of that caliber. The final race was extremely close all the way down the course with two reigning World Champions stroking the respective Princeton and Washington boats. I am glad to have been a part of that race and even happier that I didn't disturb the engine in front of me in the last 250... there were some big dudes in there that I wouldn't want coming after me!
4. Best/Anything you've done in the sport no one knows about?
The best thing that I have done in the sport that nobody knows about was to give my national championship medal to our boatman Brad Woodrick in 1998 at Summer Nationals. To me, meeting people like Brad is what a sport like rowing is all about. He has more character than I ever will but he doesn't try to show it off. He is happy to work his butt off with little praise for his work just to help the team win. There are people like Brad behind most succesful teams that are rarely recognized. That summer I wanted him to know how much I had learned from him without him even knowing it. In my opinion, he earned his gold medal.
5. Any/Most important advice for young rowers?
My advice for young rowers is to have fun and race hard! The training will come but there is a lot to be learned from racing hard and testing your limits.
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