2012 National Rowing Championships PREDICTIONS

The entry list is out:  The 2012 NRC's list of elite athletes making the trip to Victoria, BC for the best in Canada! It is time to make the researched and peer-reviewed list about the details of the 1-2-3 prediction in each category.  These names below are the opinion of me, and me alone. It is not a judge of character or popularity. Just straight performance based on the entry list of Nov. 1st at Regatta Central.

Entry List online here

Women: A more difficult-to-predict section, due to not coming in contact with many females rowers (they exist?) other than the lwt's based out of Victoria.

• Lwt F 1x: Due to the fact that the two Olympians, Lindsay Jennerich and Patricia Obee, are out of the entry list it has made for an even more difficult choice.  I'm surprised that Lindsay is representing BC, but I like it.  Possibly a BC sweep! 

1. Lindsay Sferrazza
2. Teresa Berkholtz
3. Erin Snelgrove/Trish Mara 

• Hwt F 1x:  Difficult, I do know know many of these talented and powerful women. The ones I do are impressive! A late addition, I had missed that Carling was in the mix. 

1. Kerry Shaffer 
2. Emily Cameron
3. Alyssa Weninger / (Carling Zeeman!)

• Hwt F 2-: Who really knows these, I have to say I do not know the stats. I read a certain M.McCabe on the entry for the start. Is this swimming Olympian, Martha, cousin to Conlin!? But, this is my prediction:

1. Black/Ganes
2. DeBoef/Roper
3. Goodfellow/Martins

Men: 

• Lwt 1x: This would have been my category if I was around to race. I, however, will unfortunately not be in a boat. I have a strong connection to these guys and I have been keeping a keen eye on the guys out west.  And yes, I think a Mexican will be the Canadian National Champion. Bold prediction - yes. 

1. Saul Garcia
2. Nick Pratt* (possible injury!?)  Mark Henry
3. Taylor Pluzak

• Lwt 2-: This is the category I raced in last year with Eric Woelfl. I enjoyed it immensely but feel the competition has increased in the past year. I got to see the U23 lwt men through the summer training at VTC and watched with shock how fast these boys men got within a short period of time. But, with years of rowing together Rares and Matt will pull through ahead. John and Eric have a year of rowing together and performing well at Sr. Worlds in Bulgaria this August! Eric also has the super-human hulk style strength that can show up with the right combination of stress and fatigue. Watch out! 

1. Sasi/Woelfl
2. Crisan/Jensen
3. Schenck/Addison  or (Lattimer/Cheng) if they get bumped into lwt again. 

• Hwt 1x: Some guys have been training steadily through the summer, others took a few months off. Hard to predict. I'm quite torn on the 2nd place and 3rd place (runner-up) Very difficult. Who knows! 

1. SNV Van Knotsenburg
2. Jamie Abbass
3.  David Wakulich (Buie)

•  Hwt 2-: I feel this will be a large gap between 1st and everyone else. I'm also torn on the 2nd and 3rd place (runner-up). But, that's it. Also, I posted up the former lwts Max and Evan, due to my view of lwt's taking over the world someday. Go get 'em boys. 

1. Dean/Crowley
2. Brazeau/Schudlo 
3. Alm/Schrijver - (Lattimer/Cheng)

The opinions in the above predictions are my own. This is in no way binding or a judge of character.   Send me a message if you think otherwise.

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The Grand Dueling

This spring weekend was the enjoyable classic event held by Vic City Rowing Club called Dueling Over a Grand. It is one of my favorite events because the total amount of racing experience obtained is huge. For example, I had six races in 24hrs!  That almost DOUBLES my previous rowing racing portfolio.  The race itself is only over 1000m, hence a Grand, but in conditions that we had today it felt more like 1500m due to the strong head-cross wind.  The umpires even had a meeting in the morning regarding the safety of sending singles out in the wash because a few boats flipped first thing in the morning.  It is a double-knockout elimination style regatta, so that means I would have to loose twice to get dropped. Oh, and the winner gets $1000 and runner up is $250. Another motivator to not get bumped.  And I wasn't going to loose without a fight. 

Due to the conditions I felt I had a fairly ugly, choppy and all-around scattered racing and rowing technique. But, everyone is racing in the same water so I couldn't blame my (lack of) speed on that. It was my first experience in being able to row through a competitor in the middle of the race and a confidence booster at that. I had a great dogfight, not once but twice, with my pal Jamie Abbass.  He is a classy guy with many stories and always has a smile on his face. We were very close both races and within a few feet it was always hard to tell who reached the imaginary line first. I hope to race him again soon.  In the end I was knocked out (2nd loss) by Steve Van Knotseburg, a heavyweight sculler in my fourth race today.  It was going to be a huge uphill (headwind) battle with SNV and in the end he finished by over a length in front of me. I was spent! What a great event. 

Kevin Kowalyk boathouse slow-walk 

SNV setting up for race time

Final Results:   Fraser Berkhout edged out Kevin Kowalyk for the win this afternoon.  On the womens side my friend Rosie DeBoef held off Erica Shaw for the top prize. Congratulations.

Canadian Royal Henley

Champions are not formed overnight. While the world sleeps, champions are forging their dreams into reality; straining every muscle, expending every ounce of energy, investing weeks upon months upon years for the sake of bettering their time by fractions of a second. When we see them rise to the podium, medal in hand, sweat clinging to their brows, know that this moment has been years in the making. Join in the pride and fulfillment of accomplishment and witness the spirit and courage of capturing a dream

Above is the opening quote to the Royal Henley in St. Catherines, ON. Possibly the biggest regatta in the racing calendar in Canada. It is a week long race with most of the top teams, crews, and individuals attending. I did not. Alas, the working world blending with my athlete world do not always intertwine perfectly. Some day I will be there. Next year?

Top results:

Rosie DeBoef 1st Open women! Sensational