Updated November 13, 2011

Greetings from the Regatta Chair!

The dark days of winter are approaching, but we are busy planning for rowing season next spring.

The regatta schedule, which is subject to change, has been posted at http://www.mcleancrew.org/regattas.html. Our rowers will participate in regattas every weekend from April 7 through the end of May. Below are some additional details regarding each regatta followed by useful facts for all rowers and parents, particularly those who are new to the club and sport:

Sat, Feb 4:  Mid-Atlantic Erg Springs http://www.ergsprints.com at T.C. Williams High School, Alexandria, VA. Plan to spend most of the day there cheering on our rowers! Rowers will know through their coaches which events they will participate in.

Sat, March 31 – Fri, Apr 6: Spring Break at Camp Cooper:  The entire team will go to spring break training camp at Camp Cooper, Summerton, SC (http://www.clemson.edu/yli/pages/cooper.php). All rowers must attend Camp Cooper. And they love it - it is absolutely one of the highlights of the season! Barbara Ryan, Regatta Chair, will provide further communications as the date nears. Please let Barbara know if you are interested in being a parent chaperone this year. Rowers and parent chaperones (about 1 per 10 rowers) will travel via two coach buses and parent chaperones' cars. We will depart from McLean High School around 6am on the first day of spring break, Saturday March 31, 2012 and return during the afternoon or early evening on Friday April 6, 2012.  The cost per rower last year was $450, which covered equipment,  transportation, meals, lodging, and instruction. As soon as we have more details on the cost for 2012 we’ll let everyone know.

Sat, Apr 7: Walter Mess Regatta, Occoquan (Sandy Run Regional Park), Fairfax Station, VA: http://www.nvrpa.org/park/sandy_run

Sat, Apr 14: Darrell Winslow Regatta, Occoquan (Sandy Run Regional Park), Fairfax Station, VA: http://www.nvrpa.org/park/sandy_run

Sun, Apr 15: Manny Flick Regatta #3, Philadelphia, PA:  www.phillyflicks.com , SELECT VARSITY BOATS

Sat, Apr 21: Tri-Meet Regatta, Georgetown Waterfront Park, Georgetown, Washington, D.C.

Sun, Apr 22: Manny Flick Regatta #4, Philadelphia, PA:  www.phillyflicks.com ; SELECT VARSITY BOATS

Sat, Apr 28: Charlie Butt Regatta, Georgetown Waterfront Park, Georgetown, Washington, D.C.: http://www.charliebuttregatta.com/2011/Welcome.html

Sat, May 5: Ted Phoenix Lower Boats Championship (NOTE: Freshman and novice boats only), Occoquan (Sandy Run Regional Park), Fairfax Station, VA: http://www.nvrpa.org/park/sandy_run

Sat, May 12: Virginia Scholastic Rowing Championship (“States”), Occoquan (Sandy Run Regional Park), Fairfax Station, VA:  http://www.nvrpa.org/park/sandy_run

Note that the additional cost for the following two out-of-town events are divided among the participating rowers.

Thurs, May 17 – Sat, May 19: Stotesbury Regatta (“Stotes”), Philadelphia, PA: Selected boats will go to the Stotesbury Regatta along Boathouse Row on the Schuylkill River in Philadelphia, PA http://www.boathouserow.org. Stotesbury is the largest high school regatta in the world. It is highly competitive and our coaches will decide which boats will go based on how they do in earlier local regattas. Barbara Ryan will be the lead chaperone for this event in 2012 and will provide further communications as the date nears. Rowers will leave by coach bus on Thursday, May 17 in the morning and return late on Saturday May 19. Note that rowers selected to participate in this regatta will miss some school. This year we will again be staying at the Marriott Courtyard in downtown Philadelphia: www.marriott.com/hotels/travel/phldc-courtyard-philadelphia-downtown. The cost per rower for Stotesbury last year was $375.

Thurs, May 24 – Sat, May 26: SRAA Championship Regatta (“Nationals”), Camden, NJ: Participation in Nationals is by qualification at states, so only select McLean boats will participate. Elizabeth Frazee will be the  lead chaperone for this event again in 2012 and will provide further communications as the date nears. Rowers will leave by coach bus on Thursday May 24 at about 10am (again, these rowers will miss some school) and will return on Saturday May 26 in the evening. Here’s the website for Nationals: http://www.sraa.net/NewsFolder/default.htm. We will be staying at the Crowne Plaza in Cherry Hill, very close to the Cooper River regatta site: http://www.ichotelsgroup.com/crowneplaza/hotels/us/en/cherry-hill/cpcrw/hoteldetail. The cost per rower last year for Nationals was $400.

                                       *          *          *

Here is some additional useful info mostly relating to local regattas:

Transportation and parking: The Club does not provide bus transportation to local regattas. Carpooling is definitely a good idea as parking is limited, costs $10 per car, and can involve shuttle buses to remote lots. Once you pay the parking fee, you usually cannot leave and come back, so plan accordingly.

Arrival times: Arrival times at local regattas vary for the rowers depending on whether they are lightweights or coxwains and for others, the time required by coaches. This is important -- lightweights and coxes must arrive for their weigh-ins and meetings at 7am or earlier – or their boat will be disqualified and/or they will not be allowed to row!!!!! 

Planning your days at the regattas: Regattas can be all-day events and the rowers should plan to attend until the end to cheer everyone on.  This means that parents usually stay the distance as well, so dress accordingly (see below on how to dress and what to bring), bring a folding chair and reading materials, knitting, or whatever suits you. If you need to take a rower home early, it is required that you let the coaches know because they expect the rowers to be there all day.

Food: The McLean CRew 'Food Tent' provides food for rowers throughout the day at all local regattas so you do not need to plan to send lunch for your rower. All rowers should eat at the food tent because it provides coach-approved food (i.e., no dairy before races) and they don’t have to pay separately for it. Please stay tuned for instructions and volunteer opportunities regarding food tent.   

How to dress and what to bring:

 Rowers:

      Rowers must have their unis and tech shirts with them or they will not be able to row (this is a VASRA/regatta rule).

      Rowers should be prepared for all weather conditions. It can be freezing in the morning and blistering hot in the afternoon. It can be rainy and muddy. Headgear can be worn and is usually advised and often coordinated within a boat.

      Rowers should bring and apply sunscreen prior to their race, rain or shine, because they will sit on the water anywhere from 10 minutes to 1.5 hours.

      Rowers may bring water bottles and all rowers should be well hydrated prior to arrival.

      In their duffle bags, rowers should make sure to include:

       Running shoes for warm up runs and comfortable shoes or flip flops for after the races, and 

       A change of clothes for after the races.

       Sunglasses are recommended.

 Parents/adults:

      The viewing stand at Occoquan (Sandy Run) is about a 1.5 mile hike on a forest trail so comfortable shoes are highly recommended. There is a shuttle bus to the viewing area that costs $2 but the lines can be long. The viewing grandstand can get crowded at the larger events, so plan accordingly and consider bringing a folding chair for backup. Also, it is partially exposed so wear raingear if rain is predicted and bring sunscreen and sunglasses in any event. There are bathrooms near the viewing area and places on the grass to set up folding chairs. You will usually find a group of McLean parents sitting with each other to cheer on our rowers. Binoculars are a good idea as well as reading materials or hobbies to occupy yourself between events.

*          *          *

Barbara Ryan

McLean Crew Regatta Chair

Email: barbara.ryan@verizon.net