Cranbrook Crew at the Vernon Regatta

submitted

photos courtesy Bronwyn MacDonald

It was a cool and blustery day in Vernon on Saturday 14th when the Vernon Rowing Regatta commenced. Among 30 crews from centres as far apart as Vancouver to the Cariboo and the East Kootenay were two crews representing  Cranbrook’s Rockies Rowing Club.

from left to right; Zoe Chore, Reili Savage, Coach Roberta Rogers, Katie Clark, Danielle MacDonald

Four young ladies, members of the Rockies Rowing Club, learned to row and train on Jimsmith Lake this year in double scull racing boats owned by the club. They worked hard to gain their skills under dedicated organization and coaching by Roberta Rodgers. They were out on the water at 6-30 or 7.00am most mornings and many evenings and eventually met with good success at Vernon as well as gaining invaluable experience.

Our girls raced in double sculls over a distance of 3,500m and finished ahead of a number of entries. This race was a major test of endurance for everyone with difficult wind conditions. The second race was a 500m sprint and our girls were in a four seat sculling boat called a quad.  This was a difficult race for them, being in a different sort of boat and no time to become familiar with it. Plans for the future include racing at the BC Summer Games in Nanaimo on July 17th to 20th as well as other regattas in the area. On the second day of the regatta there were technical training sessions including one-on-one coaching which provided important experience.  The whole exercise was orchestrated by our principal coach, Roberta Rodgers.

Reili, Zoe, Danielle and Katie

The Rockies Rowing club is supported by a small but dedicated group of local enthusiasts led by Roberta. We have three doubles and two singles with the capability of providing adaptive rowing for handicapped oarsmen. Rowing is an exciting sport and an excellent way to use all the muscles in your body at a rate that suits each individual. Our program includes learn to row classes lasting approximately six hours on the water and then novices as well as experienced rowers can row together or singly for recreation or upgrading to racing standards. All interested people are welcome to come and see the boats and talk about the sport by contacting Roberta at 250 489 0174 or Brian Passey at 250 489 2220 (numscull@shaw.ca). Lessons can be arranged at that time.