Activities Summary 2009-2010

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

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

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

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

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

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

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.