Boat Dedication of the “CWO4 George Louis Gadsden”

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Nov 142021
 
CWO4 George Louis Gadsden

Thanks to all of the generous donations of our alumni and supporters, the H. Del Beekley Rowing Foundation was able to work with the team to purchase a 2017 Pockock 8+ from the University of Texas at the end of the 2019 season. The boat was purchased not with a single donation, but through the generosity of over 50 Alumni over the previous two years. As the largest single donor towards the effort, alumnus Ed Baldry (‘86 – ‘88) was given the opportunity to name the boat and chose to dedicate it to lifelong military hero and family friend: CWO4 George Louis Gadsden.

While COVID foiled our original plans for the dedication in 2020, we were blessed with an absolutely beautiful day at the 2021 San Diego Fall Classic to host the dedication and a brunch in his honor. Alumnus Ed Baldry delivered a heartfelt dedication that included the presentation and reading of a plaque that will be hung in the Boathouse and tells the story of CWO4 George Louis Gadsden. The plaque reads as follows:

George Louis began his life’s odyssey in Philadelphia, PA on February 8, 1936, as the youngest child of James Gadsden, Sr., and Isabel Deas. In 1953, at age 17, he persuaded his sister, Marie, to sign his enlistment papers and began his military career by enlisting in the United States Air Force. George moved to Charleston, SC, in 1959 and joined the US Navy.

Other than the love of his family, the Navy was his passion. Due to the Navy’s mandatory retirement policy, he retired after a 30-year career. In 1987, he petitioned the Department of the Navy because he felt he had more to offer. He was recalled to active duty in 1988 to the USS Independence for an additional five years. He began his Navy career at Naval Base Charleston SC, as a Seaman E-3. He advanced quickly in the enlisted ranks, reaching his highest enlisted rank of Chief Petty Officer E-7. George simultaneously applied for the Limited Duty Officer and Chief Warrant Officer Program and within 30 days was selected for Chief Warrant Officer.

George had a long and illustrious military career and in his 35 years of naval services, he had many tours of duty that took him to military bases around the world. While in Vietnam, he earned a Purple Heart and many other medals and commendations. All total, the Bos’n completed 40 years of combined military Service.

Ed Baldry (left, 1986 -1988) with members of the Gadsden Family
 Posted by at 9:52 AM

Fall Classic Alumni Row & Boat Dedication

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Oct 312021
 

Alumi Row – Saturday November 13th @ 7 AM

Come get on the water with this year’s team and relive the challenge and camaraderie of Aztec crew during our annual Fall Alumni row. After COVID blocked this activity last year, we’re more than excited to be able to host this event for the first time in 2 years! This year, more than ever, we’re hoping to have a big group of our alumni come out to show the new crop of Aztec Oarsmen what this program means to them.

Please make a plan to join us for a comfortable row and revive old memories with another beautiful morning on Mission Bay. After the row we’ll have some coffee and muffins available, so plan to hang around and converse with the team and other alumni.

Fall Classic and Boat Christening – Sunday November 14th

This year Crown Point shores on Mission Bay will once again be playing host to the San Diego Fall Classic on Sunday November 14th. This has always been the biggest Fall event held on Mission Bay and will be the first regatta for many of our new oarsmen to don the Red and Black and find out what this sport is really about! In addition to the race, this year the Foundation and Alumni Ed Baldry (‘86 – ‘88) will be hosting a brunch and christening ceremony for the Pocock 8+ that was purchased just before COVID. The family of the boat’s namesake – CWO4 George Louis Gadsden – will be in attendance.

Thought of joining the 1925 Club? Now is the time!

1925 Flyer Logo

Over the last month and a half we’ve seen a nice bump in people joining the 1925 Club, and the best news is that two of them decided that $19.25 a month wasn’t quite their speed, so they kicked it up to $100 a month! We’re now consistently receiving $500 a month in donations from just our recurring $1925 club donors! In addition to the monthly donors, we received individual donations totalling another $1,200 in the last month.

Recurring donations help the Foundation plan consistent strategies for helping the program. Things like establishing a healthy boat rotation schedule without needing to raise all of the funds in one shot; contributing annually to coaching, equipment maintenance, and big events; and eventually establishing a long-term fund that can support the team into the future.

Please consider joining your fellow alumni by joining the 1925 Club today!

Schedule of Events: 2021-2022 Season

COVID has forced us to place the tentative “TBD” label in front of many of our events this year, but we are optimistic that we will finally be able to gather together in groups again soon. Keep an eye open for more details as we will be finalizing many of these events in the near future.

Alumni Events

DateEvent
November 13, 2021Fall Alumni Row
November 14, 2021Boat Christening
February 12, 2022(TBD) Golf Tournament
March 25, 2022(TBD) Crew Classic Banquet
March 27, 2022H. Del Beekley Annual Meeting

Team Racing Schedule

DateEventLocation
November 14, 2021San Diego Fall ClassicMission Bay, San Diego CA
February 19, 2022Gruenberg CupTBD
March 5, 2022Cal Challenge CupNewport Harbor, Newport CA
March 12, 2022Newport RegattaNewport Harbor, Newport CA
March 26-27, 2022San Diego Crew ClassicMission Bay, San Diego CA
March 30-April 1, 2022WIRA Regional ChampionshipsSacramento, CA
 Posted by at 9:51 AM

Team Update: Fall Recruiting, New Alumni Events, and More

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Oct 162021
 
Newly minted SDSU rowers take to Mission Bay

2021 Fall Season Recruiting

As the holiday season approaches, we find ourselves at a new beginning, with a season full of potential for your Aztec Crew. Coach Craig and the team hit the ground running and recruited hard. Despite all the challenges with COVID and a limited number of varsity athletes, the team drew an impressive amount of interest in the the team and holds a current novice squad of 26 rowers and 3 coxswains – including 6 rowers & 2 coxswains with prior rowing experience.

The influx of experienced rowers over the previous few recruiting classes has allowed the team to accelerate the learning curve of the novice walk-on’s and we’re excited to see that play out in the upcoming competitions. While still continuing to recruit on-campus, the return has been the best we’ve seen in recent years. It’s no secret that all teams, regardless of location, club level, or sport, saw their numbers dwindle over the past season. A big recruiting boom this year could lead the team to an accelerated rebuild and hopefully some hardware in not-too-distant future regattas.

Beautiful sunrise on Mission Bay

Open Assistant Coach Position

An opening still remains for an Assistant Coach who will work closely with the Head Coach Craig Doan while focusing primarily on the freshman/novice squad.

This is a part time position with pay between $12,000-$15,000 DOE, paid hourly over 9 months (September – May) plus the potential for summer coaching opportunities, if needed.

Candidates should have four or more years of rowing experience with coaching and/or leadership experience. Recruiting and retention of freshman/novice student-athletes is a primary responsibility of the assistant coaching position and experience and demeanor toward this aspect will carry heavy consideration. If you or anyone you know may be interested, please reach out to Craig at cdoan@sdsu.edu.

Heading back to the boathouse through North Bridge

Fall Classic: Alumni Row & Boat Dedication

his year the weekend of Fall Classic brings two events that we’d love to see a whole bunch of alumni participate in. The first is the Fall Alumni Row on Nov. 13. We’ll be mixing up boats with Varsity, the new Novice Squad, and Alumni to help the team get fired up for Fall Classic. The second is the Fall Classic Regatta on Nov. 14 where the team will be racing throughout the day. After the races we will be hosting the first boat dedication for the team in years! We’re still firming up the details and will be following up in the next few weeks, but we hope you can attend one or both of the events.

If you’re interested in attending, please reach out to info@beekleyrowing.org.

SDSU Crew Alumni Survey

We cannot emphasize enough how much we value and appreciate the feedback from our vast array of alumni. Comments and concerns are deeply considered and used to help guide future decision making and financial planning. So far, we have received nearly 100 responses, and are eager to make that number larger.

If you have not had the chance to make your voice heard, please take a few minutes to fill out this year’s alumni survey, which can be found here: Take the Survey

Alumni Events

DateEvent
November 13, 2021Fall Alumni Row
November 14, 2021Boat Christening
February 12, 2022(TBD) Golf Tournament
March 25, 2022(TBD) Crew Classic Banquet
March 27, 2022H. Del Beekley Annual Meeting

Team Racing Schedule

DateEventLocation
October 9, 2021Row for the CureMission Bay, San Diego CA
November 14, 2021San Diego Fall ClassicMission Bay, San Diego CA
November 21, 2021Head of the HarborTBD
February 19, 2022Gruenberg CupTBD
March 5, 2022Cal Challenge CupNewport Harbor, Newport CA
March 12, 2022Newport RegattaNewport Harbor, Newport CA
March 26-27, 2022San Diego Crew ClassicMission Bay, San Diego CA
March 30-April 1, 2022WIRA Regional ChampionshipsSacramento, CA
 Posted by at 8:24 AM

August 2021 Newsletter

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Aug 192021
 

Team Update

With the first day of classes for the fall semester starting on August 23, Coach Craig and the Team Executive Board (Officers) are finalizing their on-campus recruiting plan and starting to put it into action. The first gathering of the returning squad of athletes will happen on August 18th, where Coach Craig and the officers will be laying out their goals and expectations for the coming season, as well as assigning responsibilities for the upcoming recruiting events that start on the very same day.

Recruiting events will kick off with team representatives volunteering at Move-In-Day, where school ambassadors volunteer to talk with students, greet parents and family members, answer questions, provide directions, help new students ease the transition into the SDSU community, and hopefully pick up some interest for the team along the way. After that, they will have Athletes recruiting at the Res Life (resident hall) welcome events on the 18th and 19th, the ARC-til-Dark event on the 22nd, the Associated Students Expo on the 25th, and a massive push at the Sports Clubs Expo event that is tentatively scheduled to take over the North Library Walkway from Tuesday 8/31 through Thursday 9/2. If you’re a local alumni and have interest in helping out, please contact Coach Craig at cdoan@sdsu.edu

In addition to the recruiting efforts planned for the first few weeks of classes, Coach Craig has been using his contacts as a WIRA Steward and now Crew Classic Board member to bring in 4 recruits who have junior rowing experience from places like Sacramento and Texas to bolster the existing squad of returners. Coach Craig also reported that he’s been in contact with several “walk-on” athletes that have already expressed interest in joining the program through their social media and website outreach.

Strong fall recruiting has always been a critical key to the success of the program. After essentially being put on pause for the last year and a half due to COVID, Coach Craig and the returners will be doing a “Full Court Press” on their recruiting efforts to launch the program into a successful year.

Assistant Coach Position

Since Coach Craig took over as head coach in the Fall of 2019, he has been the only paid coach supporting the program with some assistance from volunteer alumni coaches. The plan was to hire an assistant coach for the 2020 season, but COVID put a bit of a damper on that…  With all of the effort around recruiting, and the plan to bring a few more boats of athletes to the program, Coach Craig and the Officers have decided to post and recruit for a new Assistant Coaching position to help with both the on-water practices as well as on-campus training activities. If you know of anyone interested in the position, please encourage them to apply through the Associated Students job posting.

2021 Alumni Survey

The 2021 Alumni Survey is still active and we’d love to hear from as many Alumni as we can. If you haven’t yet filled out the survey, please head on over and take the survey. After that, please do us a favor and reach out via email or post on Social/Twitter/Facebook/Instagram to any alumni that you’re in contact with and encourage them to fill it out as well. The responses so far have been great and have even included some constructive criticism. We want to hear it all!  Please share the survey to help us get the word out.

Schedule of Events

While the schedule for the upcoming year still has a whole bunch of “tentative/tbd” in front of it, we’re making plans as if all things COVID will allow them to happen. Stay tuned as these events get closer for more details, but for now, here’s what to expect:

Alumni Events

DateEvent
November 13, 2021Fall Alumni Row
November 14, 2021Boat Christening
February 12, 2022(TBD) Golf Tournament
March 25, 2022(TBD) Crew Classic Banquet
March 27, 2022H. Del Beekley Annual Meeting

Team Racing Schedule

DateEventLocation
October 9, 2021Row for the CureMission Bay, San Diego CA
November 14, 2021San Diego Fall ClassicMission Bay, San Diego CA
November 21, 2021Head of the HarborTBD
February 19, 2022Gruenberg CupTBD
March 5, 2022Cal Challenge CupNewport Harbor, Newport CA
March 12, 2022Newport RegattaNewport Harbor, Newport CA
March 26-27, 2022San Diego Crew ClassicMission Bay, San Diego CA
March 30-April 1, 2022WIRA Regional ChampionshipsSacramento, CA
John “Del” Hayes ‘86

Rediscover this 1986 LA Times article about the champion lightweight 8+, Del Hayes, Tom Hartley, Scott Petry, Brian Hughes, John Lingham, Bruce Branstine, and the rest of the returning crew of 1986 under coach Chuck Datte.

 Posted by at 1:18 PM

We need your feedback: Aztec Crew Alumni Survey

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Jul 292021
 

The H. Del Beekley Rowing Foundation is currently planning future milestones, events, and areas of support for Aztec Rowing. After a tough period for collegiate rowing and the world overall, there has never been a more crucial time to take a step back, ask the important questions, and ensure we’re focusing on what’s most important.

As an Aztec Crew Alumnus/Alumna or supporter, we need your valuable input to get to those answers and continue to shape our future plans. Please follow the link below to a brief questionnaire to let us know how we are doing and where we can continue to grow and improve.

Take the Survey!

We appreciate your time and feedback.

 Posted by at 6:08 AM

Aztec Update: July 2021

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Jul 202021
 
1985 Lightweight 8 @ the Royal Henley Regatta
1985 Lightweight 8 @ the Royal Henley Regatta

After digging up this picture from the archives, we reached out to have our alumni identify it, and they didn’t disappoint! We received several responses that identified the boat as the 1984-85 Lightweight crew that had a 33-3 record that year and had the opportunity to represent the program at the Royal Henley Regatta in 1985. The boat included the following athletes from bow to stern: Brian Hughes, Ken Krueger, Tom Hartley, Josh Gruenberg, Mark Bassett, Wes Powell, Toby Shipley, George Oliver, Janice “JJ” Jinguji. We’ll work on getting a more detailed account of the year and the boat in a future article.

Alumni Survey
Be on the lookout for an upcoming survey from the H Del Beekley Foundation. In an effort to always implement the thoughts and opinions of our entire alumni base, we will be sending out an alumni survey in the coming weeks. The survey will be sent via email and posted on relevant social media handles. You may also request a survey directly by emailing info@beekleyrowing.org.

Fall Involvement
In person events are nearly back! After a year of dealing with unprecedented turbulence, the world begins to exhale. Coach Craig Doan has navigated the team with dignity and grace, and we as an alumni group are soon able to support him and the current rowers & coxswains through in-person events.

Both Coach Craig and the Foundation Board agree that alumni involvement and support will be critical in building post-pandemic momentum for the program. More detailed announcements will follow, but be prepared for at least one alumni row as well as other alumni involvement opportunities in 2021.

Where Are They Now – Dennis “Denny” Coates – SDSU 1961-1962
Dennis Coates with teamIn 1960, Del Beekley led the effort to restart the rowing program at San Diego State. Back then, the team would row out of the 1891 Rowing Club at the foot of 5th Avenue, San Diego Bay. I showed up for the first meeting in a coat-&-tie. Del got me on a rowing machine then told me to report for practice the next week.

Read his and others’ full stories in the “Where are they now” section of the H. Del Beekley Foundation website.

1925 Campaign Update
The 1925 Campaign continues to grow, adding 3 new active members donating monthly, which is a good start towards our goal of getting 40 alumni signed up this year. Ingrained in the culture of the Aztec alumni is the desire to give back to the team that taught it so much, and brought so much value to the lives of its members. To learn more about the goals of the Campaign, or to become a member of the 1925 Club, please visit https://beekleyrowing.org/1925-club/

 Posted by at 6:17 PM

Dennis “Denny” Coates (1961-62)

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Jul 172021
 
Dennis Coates with team
“Denny” Coates is holding up the crooked Number-2 oar.

In 1960, Del Beekley led the effort to restart the rowing program at San Diego State. Back then, the team would row out of the 1891 Rowing Club at the foot of 5th Avenue, San Diego Bay. I showed up for the first meeting in a coat-&-tie. Del got me on a rowing machine then told me to report for practice the next week.

If I remember correctly, we worked out six times a week – 5 regular practices and a Saturday morning endurance run to the salt pile in Chula Vista. Every so often we would row west and dodge the Coronado ferry boats. We gained a lot of experience in rough waters. The Navy guys quickly learned if they cut across our bow the wake would swamp us, and seemed to enjoy attempting to do so. Most workouts were late afternoons and ended with dark waters, silhouettes, cold and wet. The winner of the final sprint of the practice got first dibs for the only warm-water showers available – that kept us motivated.

Dennis @ the 2017 Alumni Row

Most races I stroked the JV (lightweight) boat. However, Coach put me in the number-2 seat in the Varsity boat often enough that I lettered (Crew was a Varsity sport back then). I really enjoyed the combination of physics and zen that is rowing.

I was raised in Pacific Beach and called San Diego home through college, but I moved around a lot after graduation. I spent five years in the Air Force, two years in graduate school at Stanford, two years in New York, and finally two years in San Francisco before coming back to San Diego. I am now happily retired.

I love and enjoy my kids and grandkids. I have been heading out to the Sierras every summer for the last twenty-plus years with a great bunch of guys. There is a sense of teamwork involved with camping that is not unlike the special teamwork of rowing.

Crew has a very special place in my heart!

 Posted by at 6:25 AM

Aztec Update: April 2021

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May 022021
 

Current Team Status

The team continues to persevere and maintain camaraderie throughout the pandemic. Coach Craig has met with the team regularly via zoom as they continue to train independently. While San Diego County has continued to ease COVID restrictions, the university has committed to strict testing protocols to ensure athlete safety. With only a few weeks left in the semester and mandatory quarantine periods, it is unlikely the team will row together as a full squad this spring.

With that in mind, the team is looking ahead to next season. They are in talks with SDRC to be able to get into shells over the summer, and plan to hold digital events to continue training and stay in touch.

A typical year would bring alumni rows, golf tournaments, tailgates, and Padre games. This past Sunday marked the first ever alumni zoom call; allowing alumni to meet the team virtually and talk about how rowing impacted them through college into their careers. The foundation would like to recognize Mike Buckel, Cameron Elliott, and Steve Lewis for taking the time to speak with the team.

We anticipate holding similar events in the future to allow alumni to connect with the team and discuss their experiences. If you’re interested in speaking with the team via zoom or at an upcoming recruiting event, we’d love to hear from you. Reach out to us directly at info@beekleyrowing.org to get involved.

H Del Beekley Annual Meeting Recap

The H Del Beekley Foundation held its annual meeting last month, once again being restricted to a virtual gathering. There were many shifts within the organization of leadership this year. The Foundation will see a new name at President, VP, Secretary, as well as one At-Large member.

2021-2022 H. Del Beekley Board Members

  • President – Andy Olson
  • Vice President – Brandt Watson
  • Treasurer – Steve Lewis
  • Secretary – Kameron Kennington
  • At large board member – Melissa Gogin
  • At large board member – Vacant
  • Team President – Shane Wilson

There is currently a vacancy in one of the At-Large member positions. If you are interested in helping guide decisions for the foundation, please reach out to any of the current members, or to info@beekleyrowing.org. The At-Large role serves as an advisor and advocate to the broader alumni base. He or she is invited to attend all Board meetings, and can assist in various Board initiatives including future event planning.

Where are they now – Levi Imbuzan (2012-2017)

Born in Romania, Levi immigrated with his parents to the United States in 1998. His heart was set on joining the Marine Corps since he was 12 years old, but his dreams were dashed when his parents refused to sign the paperwork to allow him to join at 17. Not yet possessing the cognitive abilities to decide to wait one year, Levi set himself to taking the ACT and SAT, and applying for any and all colleges in the last month applications were open. His acceptance to SDSU led him to our program and the career he has created for himself.

Read his and others’ full stories in the “Where are they now” section of the H. Del Beekley Foundation website.

1925 Campaign Update

The 1925 Campaign continues to grow with 11 active members donating monthly, which is a good start towards our goal of getting 40 alumni signed up this year. Ingrained in the culture of the Aztec alumni is the desire to give back to the team that taught it so much, and brought so much value to the lives of its members. To learn more about the goals of the Campaign, or to become a member of the 1925 Club, please visit https://beekleyrowing.org/1925-club/

 Posted by at 6:11 PM

Where are they now? – Levi Imbuzan (2012-2017)

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Apr 282021
 

Born in Romania, Levi immigrated with his parents to the United States in 1998. His heart was set on joining the Marine Corps since he was 12 years old, but his dreams were dashed when his parents refused to sign the paperwork to allow him to join at 17. Not yet possessing the cognitive abilities to decide to wait one year, Levi set himself to taking the ACT and SAT, and applying for any and all colleges in the last month applications were open. Secretly hoping to be accepted into San Diego State, his (new) dream finally came true and he was admitted into the school through the International Business Management major.

Levi went through his first year of college motivated but with no clear end goal in sight. One day he happened to stumble upon a recruiting poster for Marine Corps Officers, which only required a pulse and a bachelor’s degree. Knowing he possessed at least one of the two, Levi’s lifelong dream of joining the Marines was renewed, and he strived to be accepted into the Officer Program. At the time, he lacked all sense of self-discipline, and knew he was not in good enough shape to meet the stringent physical fitness requirements without some outside help. He gravitated toward the rowing program after hearing an impassioned speech about “The Pursuit of Excellence” from Coach Doug Perez and watching “The Social Network”.

Levi quickly fell in love with the discipline and brutality of rowing. He accepted the harsh realities of the sport and learned the incalculable value of an indomitable spirit and above all, that his achievements in life were limited only by the magnitude of his desire to achieve them. Graduating in 2017, he promptly shipped off to the highlands of Quantico, Virginia to learn Marine Corps leadership and warfighting tactics in the war against the (fictional) Centralian Separatists. Competitively selected to be a Communications Officer, Levi now serves in Okinawa, Japan with Combat Logistics Regiment 37.

He is currently working on his Masters Degree in Computer Science from Georgia Tech and looks forward to transitioning out of the Marine Corps and working for Amazon or Microsoft in Seattle, Washington in 2021. He credits rowing with providing him with the foundation of self-discipline, hard work, and pain tolerance that has allowed him to achieve so much in life. He can be found frequenting the local beaches of Okinawa, mask on, rowing oar tattoos blazing in the sun.

If any young rowers would like to reach out for guidance on the IB program, Officer selection process, or for any other reason he can be contacted at imbuzanlevi@yahoo.com

Where are they now? – Bernard Aparicio (2011-2016)

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Mar 142021
 

Bernie rowed as a lightweight under coaches Brian Robison, Derek Snyder, Doug Perez, and Toby Johnson. His years at SDSU were sleep deprived, and are now a fogged out memory. However, one of his earliest anecdotes at SDSU involved this lack of sleep. One day, after a killer evening erg, he fell asleep on a bench outside Tenochca. That was his bed for the night, and 4:30 in the morning his teammates woke him up to go to morning practice. Henceforth, the crew team claimed his dreams and soul. While at school, he worked harder, not smarter. But his discipline skated him through difficult times, and a tenacity to take on any endeavor to graduate and succeed in sport got him through school with a degree, a collection of tanks, and a reputation.

After graduating, he joined the 9-5 at TYLIN international, where he worked on airports, bridges, highways, and utility projects. He enjoyed the engineering work and the challenges of the professional world. He continued to row at San Diego Rowing Club, and was also caught teaching the occasional watersports class or hustling pizza on the weekends. He met a multitude of old SDSU oarsmen while in San Diego, and found great joy watching the team continue to grow as years passed.

However, the rowing bug had bit Bernie hard and he made a terrible economic decision. He put the engineer career on hold to row professionally. He moved to Philadelphia, where he lives in a monastery and rows with Vesper as they prepare a team for the next international race. The dream put in his head on a bench outside T-Nasty has now become the real nightmare.

After spending two years training with the program and ultimately missing the Vesper selection for the lightweight mens 2x, Bernie decided to enter into the open weight 1x trials to race against 24 of the fastest single scullers in the United States vying for a lane in Tokyo.

Despite having only a few weeks to train in the single leading up to the event, Bernie placed 9th overall in what is the most competitive race in the United States. As former rowers we can’t help but be equal parts nostalgic and proud of what Bernie has accomplished to date.

The erg is brutal and the competition is merciless. But the journey has paid itself back a thousand fold.

He one day hopes to grow up and finally “adult”.

 Posted by at 3:15 PM