George Mason University Crew Club

Water Practice

2012-02-03T20:37:00.000-08:00

Since the weather has been surprisingly warm George Mason University Crew will start water practices on Saturday 02/04/2012. All rowers meet at Shenandoah Parking Deck at 12:15 to carpool to the boathouse.

Spring 2012 Tentative Regatta Schedule

2012-01-27T09:49:00.000-08:00

April 1, Occoquan Sprints, Sandy Run Regional Park
April 7, Rocketts Landing, Richmond, VA
April 14-15, Knecht Cup, Camden, NJ
April 21, Kerr Cup, Philadelphia, PA (TBD)
April 28, (TBD)
May 6, Mid Atlantic Collegiate Crew Championships, Sandy Run Regional Park
May 11-12, Dad Vail Regatta, Philadelphia, PA
May 26-27, American Collegiate Rowing Association (ACRA) Championship, Gainesville, GA

New Officers of the Crew Club

2011-12-10T20:24:00.000-08:00

The Crew Club held its annual officer elections for the coming year on Saturday, December 4. The officers for 2012 are:

President: Matt McKinney
Vice President: Lindsay Holzer
Secretary: Brett Baker
Treasurer: Joseph Taylor

We look forward to an exciting spring semester with our new team leadership. As always, any emails regarding the club can be sent to georgemasoncrewclub@gmail.com.

Fall Regatta Schedule

2011-09-16T19:14:00.000-07:00

Welcome back to all club members! The fall season is off to a great start, with a lot of new membership and several full boats on the water everyday. The regatta schedule for this fall will be as follows:
October 9: Occoquan Challenge @ Sandy Run Regional Park
October 16: Occoquan Chase (hosted by GMU Crew Club) @ Sandy Run Regional Park
October 22: Head of the Charles Regatta @ Boston, MA. Only the varsity 8+ will race.
November 5: Head of the Occoquan (HOTO) @ Sandy Run Regional Park

Of special importance here is the Occoquan Chase, which is the club's largest fundraiser of the year. While all members will be helping in the setup/running of the regatta, we will need novices to help with concessions, shirt selling, and dock mastering. It is important that all club members are in attendance at this regatta.

Spring Break 2011

2011-03-23T08:23:00.000-07:00

The Mason Crew Club finished up our annual spring break training week on Saturday, March 19. Thanks to all the dedicated rowers and coxswains who showed up consistently for this crucial week of 2-a-day practices, and also thanks to coaches Bob Spousta and Greg Muir. Our spring regatta season will kick off on Sunday, April 3, when we host the Occoquan Sprints at Sandy Run Regional Park. The season will continue through the American Collegiate Rowing Association Regatta at the end of May. The tentative regatta schedule below is accurate.

Spring 2011 Tentative Regatta Schedule

2011-01-12T13:57:00.000-08:00

April 3, Occoquan Sprints, Sandy Run Regional Park
April 9-10, Knecht Cup, Camden, NJ
April 16, Kerr Cup, Philadelphia, PA
April 23, Rocketts Landing Collegiate Regatta, Richmond, VA
May 1, Mid Atlantic Collegiate Crew Championship, Sandy Run Regional Park
May 13-14, Dad Vail Regatta, Philadelphia, PA
May 28-29, American Collegiate Rowing Association (ACRA) Championship, Gainesville, GA

HOTO 2010

2010-11-10T19:39:00.001-08:00

The Mason Crew Club participated in the annual Head of the Occoquan (HOTO) at our home waters, Sandy Run Regional Park, on Saturday and Sunday, November 6 and 7. As a club, we fielded more boats in this regatta than any other this fall, with 6 boats entered. In the first race of the day the varsity 8+ set the standard for the day by holding off Pitt to place 3rd out of 17 crews. The varsity's efforts were matched by the novice 4+, which came in 4th of 16 crews. Shortly thereafter the novice 8+ rowed their first race as a boat, taking 13th of 20 crews. Finally, 2 varsity 4+'s rowed to finish off the day for Mason, with the first 4+ taking 3rd and the second 4+ taking 15th of 31 crews.
In addition, Sunday brought another race for our club, with the racing of a quad. The first GMU quad in some time took 1st place of 3 crews in one of the regatta's last races.
Congratulations to all Mason rowers and coxswains on their outstanding close to the 2010 fall season! From now until the ice breaks on the Occoquan we will be in land training: erging, lifting, and working on land to get as strong as we can for the spring season.

Head of the Charles 2010

2010-10-24T08:52:00.000-07:00

The crew club once again made our fall trip to Boston for the Head of the Charles Regatta, the largest rowing event in the world. The varsity 8+ competed in the Club Eight event on Saturday, October 23 on the Charles River.
The Head of the Charles is widely considered to be one of the most challenging, if not the most challenging race course in rowing. Crossing under six bridges and winding through numerous turns past thousands of spectators, it is a test of not only the strength and stamina of the competing rowers, but also of the decisiveness and skill of the coxswain. Starting in the choppy waters at the mouth of the river near downtown Boston, the race finishes on a significantly narrower course 3.2 miles upriver. The Mason varsity 8+ started 13th in the race based on last year's results. For all the obstacles of the course and a driving head wind, the race was without drama for our boat. The boat crossed the finish line with a time of 16:46.026 and a place of 20th out of 42 crews. Finishing in the top half of the field means a guaranteed entry in next year's regatta, which means that the Mason Crew Club will have the privilege of competing in this event once again in 2011.
In addition to the varsity 8+ on Saturday, Bob Spousta, our coach, competed in the veteran singles [60+] event on Sunday morning, October 24, and finished 6th out of 46 scullers with an adjusted time of 19:53.440.
Information about this year's and next year's regatta can be found at the regatta website at hocr.org. Race photos will be forthcoming courtesy of sportgraphics.com. Congratulations to the Mason varsity 8+ on rowing a solid race and securing an entry for next year and to Bob Spousta for his (as always) excellent showing at this year's Charles!

The Occoquan Challenge

2010-10-07T17:35:00.000-07:00

The Crew Club kicked off the fall racing season on Sunday, October 3 at the Occoquan Challenge. A head race unlike any other on the East Coast, the Challenge calls for crews to execute a hairpin 180-degree turn in the middle of the race.
Our first race of the day was in the championship 8+ race with the varsity 8+. Mason took 8th of 12 crews, having been edged out by William & Mary by 6 seconds and by Mary Washington by a mere 4 seconds. Moving quickly from the 8+ into 4+'s, Mason made a great showing in the Club 4+ race, with our "A" 4+ taking first place, our Alumni 4+ taking 2nd, and our "B" 4+ taking 6th out of 13 crews. With over a month of training and racing on the water remaining for the we still have plenty of time to improve on this fairly solid start.

That said, we ARE still looking for anyone interested in rowing/coxing for the club. Feel free to send an email to Club President, Danny Lewis at dlewisd@gmu.edu, or head coach Bob Spousta at rspousta@gmu.edu if you have any interest in joining our club.

Our next race will be on Sunday, October 17, when the Mason Crew Club will host the Occoquan Chase on our home waters at Sandy Run Regional Park.

Fall 2010 Regatta Schedule

2010-09-12T10:23:00.000-07:00

October 3, Occoquan Challenge, Sandy Run Regional Park
October 17, Occoquan Chase, Sandy Run Regional Park
October 23-24, Head of the Charles, Boston, MA
November 6, Head of the Occoquan, Sandy Run Regional Park

Join the Crew Club for burgers @ Brion's!

2010-08-30T21:40:00.000-07:00

As many of you may be aware, Brion's Grill at University Mall offers a special on Tuesday evenings-- half off all burgers after 6 pm. Last semester, the Crew Club began informally attending as a team, to bolster our bodies with some of that good, American, muscle-building grease. If you are a) looking to get to know our team better, b) interested in rowing, c) poor, or d) all of the above, feel free to join us! We usually meet at Brion's at around 7:30; it's a quick walk from campus if you don't have a car. There is always at least a handful of club members there every Tuesday of the semester, and this is an excellent opportunity to learn more about our sport and our team outside of practice. Be there!

Welcome Back!

2010-08-25T12:33:00.000-07:00

As the summer months come to an end, the Mason Crew Club would like to welcome you to the 2010-2011 academic year. We hope your summer went well and your semester kicks off to a great start. As always, the club is continuously looking to make the upcoming semester more successful than the last and introduce new members to our sport. With that, there are a number of events going on during the first few weeks of school which will allow students to get an idea of what the crew club is all about.

Look for crew club members as they assist students with move-in on Thursday 8/26, Friday 8/27, and Saturday 8/29. Come talk to us at the Welcome Week Connection Carnival/Organization Fair on Wednesday 9/1 from 11AM-3PM on the Johnson Center North Plaza. We will also be at the "Taste of Fitness" activities expo in the Aquatic and Fitness Center and Recreation and Athletic Complex from 5-8PM on Wednesday 9/1 and Thursday 9/2. In addition, we will conduct two interest meetings: Wednesday 9/8 at 2PM and Thursday 9/9 at 2PM, both in the Field House Racquet Ball Court #4. We look forward to meeting prospective rowers and coxswains!

Activities Summary 2009-2010

2010-05-25T11:41:00.000-07:00

The George Mason University Crew Club's 2009-2010 Season had all the characteristics of a successful one. The crew club was able to compete at a noteworthy 11 regattas, while rowing to 13 first place finishes and 8 second place finishes. Club practices were held on the Occoquan Reservoir four days each week: Monday, Wednesday and Friday 2-4PM, and Saturday 9-11AM. After taking 1st at the Head of the Occoquan in the fall, the club returned to the prestigious Head of the Charles Regatta in Boston, where the varsity 8+ raced past 31 crews to place 15th of 46 crews in the Club 8+ Event. In addition, the club traveled to the American Collegiate Rowing Association (ACRA) National Championship Regatta in Oklahoma City this spring, where the club made it to the grand final for the second year in a row, this time in the Heavyweight Varsity 4+ event. Mason posted the 4th fastest time in the trials, rowing away from Alabama, University of Michigan and the U.S. Military Academy before posting the 2nd fastest time overall in semifinals, on the path to the grand final. Spring 2010 also marked the GMU Crew Club’s first year participating in various homecoming activities and competitions which presented an opportunity to win monetary prizes, valuable promotional exposure and have fun in the process. Club members participated and took 1st place in a lip syncing contest, outperforming various Greek, sports and other student organizations on their way to a 2nd place overall finish in the 2010 “Unmasque your spirit” team homecoming competition. The 2009-2010 crew seasons presented a challenge which was more than met by the Mason Crew Club. As the fall season draws near, the club continues to actively recruit new members for the 2010-2011 seasons and spread throughout the George Mason University community, the camaraderie, determination and dependability that go concurrently with the sport of rowing.

2010 Dad Vail

2010-05-08T18:14:00.000-07:00

The Mason Crew Club's Varsity 8+, our top boat, raced in the 75th Dad Vail Regatta in Philadelphia on Friday, May 7. The Dad Vail is the largest collegiate regatta in the United States. In a heat against Grand Valley, Marietta, Ohio State, U.S. Merchant Marine Academy, and Rollins Mason took 4th place, sending them to reps, from which only the top 2 boats out of 6 advance to semifinals. Unfortunately, Mason was edged out by the University of Florida by just over 1 second, and had to settle for 3rd. Despite the narrow loss, our varsity 8+ rowed one of their finest races this year, and we are extremely proud of the work they have done. This marked the end of the 2010 spring season for most of Masons rowers and coxswains. A handful, however, will continue to train over the next 2 weeks for the American Collegiate Rowing Association's Nationals in Oklahoma on May 24, where Mason has entered a varsity 4+ and a varsity pair. Good luck to all those who will be traveling to Oklahoma!

Mid-Atlantic Collegiate Crew Championships

2010-05-08T18:04:00.000-07:00

The Mason Crew Club hosted the 18th Annual Mid-Atlantic Collegiate Crew Championships on Sunday, May 2 at Sandy Run. Enduring unseasonably high temperatures, our boats proved their skill against several schools from the Mid-Atlantic area. In the varsity pair race, Mason's B pair finished 2nd overall with a time of 8:19.15. The A pair finished 4th with a time of 8:25.9. In the JV 8+ race Mason came up from behind in the first 1,000 meters to take 2nd with a time of 7:09.26. Finally, the men's varsity 8+ rowed a spectacular race against long-time rival Loyola, beating them for 1st by a boatlength with a time of 6:25.7. This was the first time in 5 years that Mason has taken the championship away from Loyola. Congratulations to all Mason rowers and a special thank you to all volunteers who helped make this regatta a success.

Alumni Regatta

2010-04-25T11:48:00.001-07:00

The Mason Crew Club hosted our annual Alumni Regatta and picnic this morning, April 25th, 2010. A possibly record-setting 11 former Mason oarsman and 1 coxswain turned out to relive their past glory on the Occoquan. One 1k, one 500, a few power ten's and a lot of trash-talking later the three Mason 8's on the water once again agreed to peace terms and racked their boats. Immediately following this spectacle were the senior recognitions by both the mens' and womens' teams. Special thanks to everyone who donated food for the picnic and also to all the alumni who made this morning so enjoyable! Our last home regatta of the season will be the Mid-Atlantic Collegiate Crew Championships next Sunday, May 2, at Sandy Run Regional Park (see below if you are interested/know someone interested in volunteering).

Volunteers Needed for Mid-Atlantics

2010-04-18T11:34:00.000-07:00

The Mason Crew Club will be hosting the Mid-Atlantic Collegiate Crew Championships, our last home regatta of the season, on Sunday, May 2 at Sandy Run Regional Park. This is a fairly large regatta and requires a number of helping hands to ensure that it goes smoothly. We need volunteers for the following jobs:
-Launch Drivers
-Dock Masters
-Medal Distributors
-Marshals
-Shirt Sales
-Concessions
Excepting launch drivers and marshals, all of the above duties require no rowing knowledge or nautical skills. Volunteers will need to be at the park by 8:00 am; races should be over by 2:30 pm. Free parking and lunch will be provided. Anyone interested in volunteering should contact President Danny Lewis at dlewisd@gmu.edu or Head Coach Bob Spousta at rspousta@gmu.edu.
For those with Facebook, an event page has been made for the regatta. It can be found here:

http://www.facebook.com/home.php?ref=home#!/event.php?eid=108725082500320&ref=ts

Come out and get involved in the collegiate rowing community!

West Virginia Regatta

2010-04-18T11:16:00.000-07:00

Despite unusually cold weather in Morgantown, WV, the Mason Crew Club prevailed in a head to head match-up with the WVU Mountaineer Crew against the current of the Monongahela river. Mason raced in four events against the Mountaineers: varsity pair, novice 4+, varsity 4+ and varsity 8+. In the pair race two Mason pairs beat WVU, both by open water. The novice 4+ race, the most competitive race of the day, gave West Virginia their only victory by a narrow margin, with the WVU boat finishing in 8:21.14 and the GMU boat finishing in 8:25.12. Both schools raced two varsity 4+'s, and Mason's boats took 1st and 2nd in that race with times of 7:22.37 and 7:59.65, respectively. Finally, Mason's varsity 8+ won by open water in the last race of the day with a time of 6:48.34 versus WVU's 7:21.27 and 7:34.59. Another job well done by the rowers and coxswains of the Crew Club!
On Sunday, 4/25 we will host our annual Alumni Regatta and Picnic at the Sandy Run Boathouse. Any and all Mason Crew Club alumni are invited to attend.

Rockett's Landing Collegiate Regatta

2010-04-11T16:55:00.001-07:00

The Mason Crew Club participated in the 2nd Annual Rockett's Landing Collegiate Regatta on Saturday, April 10 in Richmond. Facing William and Mary, VCU, Liberty University, and University of Richmond in 4 separate events, Mason came away from the regatta with gold medals in three out of our four events. Both Mason varsity 4+'s that raced claimed victory in their races, the B boat winning by open water. The Mason varsity pair took second in their race. The most competitive event of the day was also Mason's last, the varsity 8+ race. Facing a fresh 8+ from William and Mary and rowing against the current of the James River, Mason's 8+ moved up from half a boat-length back to edge out William and Mary and take first. Despite lower-than-usual numbers, the Crew Club prevailed to have the best showing of any team at the regatta; a job well done by all our rowers and coxswains! Our next regatta will be against West Virginia University on Saturday, April 17 in Morgantown, WV.

Virginia Invitational Regatta

2010-03-21T10:18:00.001-07:00

The Mason Crew Club participated in the Virginia Invitational Regatta on Saturday, March 20 on the Chickahominy river in Williamsburg, VA. Mason claimed victory over William & Mary in the Varsity 8+ race by open water. In addition, our men's Varsity 4+, B boat won its race against JMU and William & Mary, the Varsity 4+, A boat placed 2nd in its race against Liberty and William & Mary, and the Novice 4+ took 2nd in its first race ever. Congratulations to all Mason rowers and coxswains who participated! Our next regatta will be the Occoquan Sprints on Sunday, March 28, hosted by GMU at Sandy Run Regional Park.

Click here to go to the results page.

Spring 2010 Regatta Schedule

2010-03-18T10:22:00.000-07:00

March 20, Virginia Invitational Regatta, Williamsburg, VA
March 28, Occoquan Sprints, Sandy Run Regional Park
April 10, Rocketts Landing Collegiate Regatta, Richmond, VA
April 17, West Virginia University, Morgantown, WV
April 25, Alumni Regatta/Picnic, Sandy Run Regional Park
May 2, Mid-Atlantic Collegiate Crew Championship, Sandy Run Regional Park
May 6-8, Dad Vail Regatta, Philadelphia, PA
May 21, American Collegiate Rowing Association Championship, Oklahoma City, OK

Driving to the Boathouse

2010-03-14T13:09:00.000-07:00

All rowers and coxswains,
This message was sent out to the coach of every school that rows out of Sandy Run Regional Park by the park manager. Please take heed of this; with our numbers somewhat lower than in the past, we do not need club members missing on account of their driving.

EXCESSIVE SPEED WARNING

The safety of the neighborhood and of the Sandy Run Regional Park
users is a serious issue with the vehicular traffic along Van Thompson
Road and inside the park. Fairfax County Police will be running radar
and issuing traffic citations throughout the season as you come to and
from the park. Since the Park Authority has serious concerns, the
following consequences will occur for speeding violations.

· First Violation: Rowers and coaches in a vehicle detected
exceeding the posted speed limit will be recorded and will miss that
day of practice.

· Second Violation: Rowers and coaches in a vehicle detected
exceeding the posted speed limit will be recorded and will miss a week
of practice and that week’s regatta.

* Third Violation: Rowers and coaches in a vehicle detected
exceeding the posted speed limit will be recorded and will not be
permitted to row at the Sandy Run Regional Park Rowing facility for
the rest of the respective regatta season or camp.

James R. Short, Manager
Bull Run Marina, Fountainhead
& Sandy Run Regional Parks
Office: 703-690-4392 ext. 100
Fax : 703-690-4640

Spring Break 2010

2010-03-14T13:03:00.000-07:00

Last week, the Mason Crew Club held its annual spring break training on the sunny shores of the Occoquan. With the weather on our side for the majority of the week, we made excellent progress in both our technique and strength. Bob regarded this as "One of the best spring breaks of rowing on the Occoquan in the past 10 years." Thanks to all who made the decision to forgo the pleasures of a typical spring break and instead become more effective rowers and better teammates!

Homecoming

2010-02-20T18:29:00.000-08:00

Congratulations and thanks to all those who participated in this year's homecoming activities leading to a second place overall finish in the team competition! Next stop, Williamsburg, Virginia on March 20 to compete in the Virginia Invitational Regatta, hosted by William and Mary.

Homecoming Week

2010-02-17T21:02:00.000-08:00

Come out and support the Mason Crew Club this week as we compete in the Annual GMU Team Homecoming Competition festivities. We took gold in the first annual homecoming lip sync competition and will be marching in the parade on Saturday at 5:00PM!!

Get Ready for the Annual Pentathlon

2010-01-19T08:00:00.000-08:00

The crew pentathlon is taking place in the Field House on Saturday, January 23 at 9:00 a.m.

Alumni and new crew members are welcome so come out to compete!