In case anyone hasn’t heard, the Rats did very very well in Portland!
I haven’t gotten an official story, but the boards were lighting up last night and this morning!
The final results from Sound Rowing are up – along with the Sound Rowing Photos on the “Inaugural Sound Rowers 5 mile race around Ross Island in the Willamette River on August 2, 2014”
8/2 7:57 PM We done good. Oct was first overall, our two quads did well and we all had fun. Jim
8/2 8:04PM The octuple, the boat I was in, won 1st place not only in its category but overall in the entire race of 30+ boats!!! We won! Very, very exciting and fun. More photos to come. Katie
Ross Island Regatta pix from Kathleen’s husband John
8/2 9:34 PM Jim told me they set a course record – but then this was Portland’s first event. So now they have a rep to maintain. The pressure! Bonnie Buckley
8/3 9:26 AM As you have probably heard by now, our Club had a great experience in the Ross Island Regatta in Portland yesterday, with all Rats bringing home first-place blue ribbons: the Oct, which was also the fastest boar overall; the mixed quad; and the women’s quad. We also set course records, as this was the first-ever Ross Island Regatta. You will doubtless be hearing endless stories about it over coffee after rowing during the next week or so (and possibly longer than that), and watch for photos and a story, probably on our Facebook page, soon. Marsha
8/3 1:55 PM YES, you did do good! So now you must return next year so we can have a show down again. Thank you for diving down. It was so great to have your clubs energy at the event. Karen Tobin (Race coordinator)
8/ 3 6:15 PM Karen, you and your club were so gracious. We did have a great time. And I liked your spin on the Oct race – you took second and we took second to last. We will try to make it a good race next year. Jim Buckley
8/3 6:23 PM My brother in law took photos and video of yesterday’s race,. OCT did great! Kathleen (see video below) Watch the GoPro video of the Oct’s winning trip and victory swim
8/4 9:42 AM After de-rigging the Oct, the Lorna and the Frank C and loading up the trailer on Thursday evening, 17 of us headed for Portland on Friday morning in anticipation of the Ross Island Regatta at 8 AM on Saturday, August 2. Here are some highlights:
* Arriving to find the temperature in the high 80s; whew!
* Many of us meeting for a festive dinner Friday evening at the Courtyard Restaurant
* Thanks to the generosity of family, friends and our Portland hosts, everyone having a place to stay Friday night
* Congregating at the race venue at 5 AM on Saturday to unload equipment and rig the shells
* Noticing as we were putting the Frank C in the water that the rudder was jammed to starboard, and Ted performing a repair with a Leatherman offered by a spectator, with minutes left until the start time
* Coxes Kathleen (Oct), Janet (Frank C), and Micaela (Lorna) leading us through the 6-mile course without incident, avoiding all hazards and keeping us rowing “long and strong”
* The Oct being the first boat to finish overall, several boat lengths ahead of the Oregon Oct
* Karsten and Lucie, just 6 weeks after taking the Learn-to-Row class, bringing home blue ribbons for their first-place finish in the Lorna
* The women in the Frank C, average age 68+, finishing first in their class
* Cox Kathleen being thrown into the river after the finish, and several others joining her for a refreshing swim
* Enjoying a hearty repast provided by the host club after the race
* Drivers having difficulty navigating the Byzantine Portland roads, GPS “help” notwithstanding, and the truck making a detour around Lake Oswego on the way out of town * Being so thankful for the warm welcome, including much boat-handling help, given by the Oregon rowers Marsha
8/4 12:27 PM “Happiness is the success of the all,” having invested so much of my time and energy into making it happen…..but now I am in the boat, just “Shut up and row” (USRA tee shirt.) We are at the start, the Octs are drifting together, we have to “back” to untangle our oars, we drift past the line, back up again. The cox and the stroke have worked out the start, we are off, we are strong with a power 20, a great start, they catch a crab, and we never lose the lead. The boat is moving, the cox is driving us, we are coming up on the turn to go down the backside of Ross Island, Buckley uses his starboard oar as a giant rudder and we turn tight and fast, they hold water with three starboard oars as they turn, they lose speed, we gain 2 more boat lengths. Kathleen takes our stroke rate down to 22 but with a strong leg drive, then they start to gain on us so we raise the rate and start power 10’s. I can’t contain myself, the boat has swing, I yell “Yaahooo!” (then I am out of breath.) They stop gaining on us and we win with a 40 second margin. Our time is 32:43 for 9000 meters, 1:49 splits, no way, although I would like to believe it. Ted
The big race from Dan Vimoto on Vimeo.
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