50p
Shawnigan Regatta Success
Yes. If your child has grumbled that it has been a cool, damp spring, they are telling the truth. It has been. BC’s ‘liquid sunshine’ has been in abundance.
But we long-term residents of the Cowichan Valley know the benefits of living in a temperate rainforest: magnificent trees, white water for ODP kayakers, blossoming flowers, streams for the salmon, soft ground for the rugby players, full reservoirs, hydroelectricity, fewer forest fires, and, this weekend, calm waters under muted skies on Shawnigan Lake.
From late Friday afternoon until Sunday at 2:30 the Brentwood Rowing Club boated a steady stream of crews against 19 other BC clubs and high schools.
And what racing they had!
Leading the way were the U17 Girls who captured 4 gold medals in the U17 JV 4+, U19 JV 8+, U19 JV 4+ and …. wait for it …. a Gold in the U19 Varsity 8+. Other medals were awarded in U17 4+ (silver, bronze), U19 JV 1x (Sam K - bronze) and the U17 Novice 4x+ (bronze). This keen group, who will be happy to tell you about the intensity of their early morning practices - and show you the blisters and calluses earned forthwith - showed why they, and their devoted coaches Mr Brian Carr & Ms Katrina Wittenberg, are headed to St. Catharines on May 31 to see what the rest of Canada has to offer.
The U17 boys were not far behind. Led by the 72kg 4+ (Gold) the boys also earned medals in the U17 8+(silver), U19 JV 8+(bronze),U17 Novice 4x+ (bronze) and U17 JV 2x (silver). In an intense duel with rivals Vancouver College - which seems to alternate victories every regatta - the boy got pipped in the 8+ by 0.5 seconds. No doubt Mr Ward and his 18 CSSRA-bound athletes will fine tune things before CSSRAs.
The Senior Girls, under the leadership of Ms Manton and Mr Wismer, boated crews in almost every event and found their strongest success in the 2x (silver), U19 8+ (bronze) and 4x-. The Senior Novice women won the bronze in the U19 JV Women’s 8+. The Sr Boys, coached by Mr Crowley and Mr de Groot, competed in the 1x (Alex D, Bronze), U19 4+ (bronze), the Lwt 2x (bronze), Lwt 1x, U19 2- and the U19 Novice 4x+.
Mr Carr commented on the regatta: “It’s been three years since the last Shawnigan Lake School Regatta. Only two of our students had raced in this event. Despite the spring showers all weekend, the water cooperated and all our Brentwood crews had the opportunity to race for their school. There were Some excellent results throughout the team. A special thank you to the Shawnigan Lake Rowing team and their volunteers for organizing an excellent regatta.”
The 45 rowers heading to St. Catharines will enjoy an abbreviated May Long Weekend, a three day training camp, and then departure for southern Ontario on May 31. Recent weather in that part of the world features sunshine and temperatures in the high 20s.
There, at last, they can enjoy the warmth of spring - and the very best racing on the continent.
Jim Ganley, Coach
But we long-term residents of the Cowichan Valley know the benefits of living in a temperate rainforest: magnificent trees, white water for ODP kayakers, blossoming flowers, streams for the salmon, soft ground for the rugby players, full reservoirs, hydroelectricity, fewer forest fires, and, this weekend, calm waters under muted skies on Shawnigan Lake.
From late Friday afternoon until Sunday at 2:30 the Brentwood Rowing Club boated a steady stream of crews against 19 other BC clubs and high schools.
And what racing they had!
Leading the way were the U17 Girls who captured 4 gold medals in the U17 JV 4+, U19 JV 8+, U19 JV 4+ and …. wait for it …. a Gold in the U19 Varsity 8+. Other medals were awarded in U17 4+ (silver, bronze), U19 JV 1x (Sam K - bronze) and the U17 Novice 4x+ (bronze). This keen group, who will be happy to tell you about the intensity of their early morning practices - and show you the blisters and calluses earned forthwith - showed why they, and their devoted coaches Mr Brian Carr & Ms Katrina Wittenberg, are headed to St. Catharines on May 31 to see what the rest of Canada has to offer.
The U17 boys were not far behind. Led by the 72kg 4+ (Gold) the boys also earned medals in the U17 8+(silver), U19 JV 8+(bronze),U17 Novice 4x+ (bronze) and U17 JV 2x (silver). In an intense duel with rivals Vancouver College - which seems to alternate victories every regatta - the boy got pipped in the 8+ by 0.5 seconds. No doubt Mr Ward and his 18 CSSRA-bound athletes will fine tune things before CSSRAs.
The Senior Girls, under the leadership of Ms Manton and Mr Wismer, boated crews in almost every event and found their strongest success in the 2x (silver), U19 8+ (bronze) and 4x-. The Senior Novice women won the bronze in the U19 JV Women’s 8+. The Sr Boys, coached by Mr Crowley and Mr de Groot, competed in the 1x (Alex D, Bronze), U19 4+ (bronze), the Lwt 2x (bronze), Lwt 1x, U19 2- and the U19 Novice 4x+.
Mr Carr commented on the regatta: “It’s been three years since the last Shawnigan Lake School Regatta. Only two of our students had raced in this event. Despite the spring showers all weekend, the water cooperated and all our Brentwood crews had the opportunity to race for their school. There were Some excellent results throughout the team. A special thank you to the Shawnigan Lake Rowing team and their volunteers for organizing an excellent regatta.”
The 45 rowers heading to St. Catharines will enjoy an abbreviated May Long Weekend, a three day training camp, and then departure for southern Ontario on May 31. Recent weather in that part of the world features sunshine and temperatures in the high 20s.
There, at last, they can enjoy the warmth of spring - and the very best racing on the continent.
Jim Ganley, Coach