Reflection on a Season in Philadelphia

Yes, dear readers, I have once again procrastinated writing. I don’t forget about you all; this blog is always at the back of my mind whenever I discover something new or think of great advice to share with my readers.  But it is true that time really flies and oftentimes my blog has been shoved to the side in favor of being with the real live people in my life who make things great. And I won’t apologize for that – if there has been one thing I learned this summer, it is that face-to-face time with the people you care about matters more than anything else in the world.

But now, unbelievably, it is fall. I have lived in my new apartment for a month and a half, and I have lived in the great city of Philadelphia for five months. I think one of the reasons I have put off blogging so long is because I feel like my life right now is a dream. Obviously, there are bad days and stressful days, but I can say with all honesty that I think my life right now is great. I am living in a city that I’ve always had kind of a romantic notion about – stemming from my high school regatta days and continuing through racing here during my collegiate years and the summers in between. I am a year-round member of Penn A.C., where I share a dock and a locker room with former Olympians. Former Olympians who say “hi” to me when I launch my boat as they are docking (and it takes every ounce of self control to not geek out). I have great teammates. I have a job at Drexel University where I have awesome co-workers. I teach classes at Rowzone Manayunk where I get PAID to make erg workouts and motivate clients through them. My new apartment is amazing – we don’t have a lot of furniture or fancy things, but it is finally a place that I can unpack all of my belongings without knowing I have to repack and move them eight months later.  I feel like I can finally settle myself in and discover who I am and what I want from life without all the chaos. I feel more focused than ever, even though most of the time I am running around like a chicken with my head cut off just trying to make it through the day.

At school, I was always told that rowing after college was way harder to manage. I assumed this was in reference to the time commitment of a full time job and a full training schedule. Personally, I think this is the least hard part of rowing now. I get up, I go rowing, I go to work, I go rowing, I go to bed. To me, this is simple.  I’ve woken up before 5:30am and gone to bed before 10pm since I was 14.  It’s the way I work well and it probably won’t ever change.

One of the hardest parts to adjust to is the volume of training.  In the past month, I have battled two fevers, multiple cold sores and been so sick that I missed my first on the water practice in over a year just because my body is adjusting to the load. But I would have to say that the harder part is explaining myself to people. In college it is acceptable to bend over backwards for your sport, because most people assume you’re getting a scholarship for it (in my case, that was still wrong). In real life, people are split into two camps. The first camp are the people who think that rowing is a “sport and social” club; that I go a couple times a week and it’s a grand old time. These people don’t understand that practice is mandatory and think that I skip Happy Hour because I’m antisocial. Trust me, when it’s pouring and freezing and all the muscles I didn’t know I had are burning, I wish I was eating nachos and drinking margaritas. Then there is the other camp of people who just think that I am crazy. They see how much time I put in at the boathouse and they wonder what kind of person would put so much energy into something that doesn’t involve a paycheck.

And I don’t even know if I could verbalize why I do it. Words can’t justify the way I feel on the good days. The 5 a.m. launch in complete darkness with perfect water where I am the only person on the river for an hour; feeling so invincible and realizing that to anyone passing by that I am just two blinking lights gliding across the surface of the water.  The Friday night row in rain so hard and so cold it takes my breath and my vision away and all I can do is feel my muscles continue to take each stroke as I wait for the downpour to stop. The feeling of freedom on the last hard stroke of a Saturday practice with the knowledge that I don’t have to begin to beat myself up again until Monday morning. Crossing a race finish line knowing that I gave it 110% of my best effort and no matter what the results say, I will be happy with that knowledge. And the fact that I never, ever have trouble falling asleep.

There are so many days that I wish I could attach a Go Pro camera to my head so that I could replay my day to my coworkers and friends to say, “See this is what I do; this is my way of life”.  But it’s not something that can be explained. I just hope that those who don’t understand know that what I do makes me truly happy and accomplished – a feeling that can’t be found through socialized drinking, retail therapy or any of the other “grown up” coping mechanisms out there. If someone had asked me in March if I thought I was going to still be rowing at this point in my life, I would have probably told them no. But I am and it is the best choice I have ever made.

Independence Day Regatta: Year Two

It’s amazing to me that the last time I updated was the middle of June. This summer has flown by and it’s easy to see why – every single day is packed! With five hours of rowing a day, there really isn’t a lot of time for other things besides going to work, prepping and eating food and sleeping. 

Independence Day Regatta has come and gone. IDR marks the moment last year when I first started thinking about rowing for a summer program. My IDR experience last year – car-topping a single and crashing on a couch- was completely different from this year. Last year I raced the Intermediate 1x (unaffiliated), this year, the Intermediate Light 1x, Open 2x and Open 4x for Penn AC. I was originally supposed to be in the Intermediate Light 2x but the Tuesday before IDR, my double partner broke her hand in a biking accident and I was put in the single instead. Both of us were really disappointed because we had been working very hard in our double and planned on racing towards a good result. This change of plans meant that my race and therefore my weigh-in was two days earlier than expected. My first weigh in as a 130 lightweight was definitely a tough one, but I hit the mark exactly: 130.0! Can’t say I’m not accurate. 

 I had a fair race in the heat and was able to make top two without pushing my hardest. The final on Saturday was a completely different story. I knew I had tough girls to race and had to have a good race to even hang with the pack. Unfortunately, my nerves got the best of me and I overgripped my oars, giving me the worst forearm cramps I’ve ever experienced in my life…beginning at 1500m to go. I crossed the finish line in last place at 26spm barely able to hang on to the handles. I was very disappointed with this, not just because I got last, but because I felt I wasn’t able to row to my potential at all and test my skills against girls I feel like I could compete with. However, the bright side is that I did at least make the final and got more racing experience. Now I know what to work on and that I have a lot of room to improve!

On Sunday, I raced in the Open 2x and Open 4x. The 2x was a last minute entry in order to give me a race in a double after we had to scratch the lightweight double. We had an okay race, we were just racing people way, way faster than we were. Like World Championship medal faster. As someone who should not only be racing as a lightweight but also in the intermediate category, this was definitely intimidating. But once again I gained more racing experience. We encountered the same situation with the quad. We put together a good race but were just outclassed. But I have to say that even through all the last minute changes and tough racing, I learned a lot and was fairly pleased with the weekend. 

 I love rowing for Penn AC. Every single person comes to practice excited and ready to row, even when we’re exhausted. Rowing in Philadelphia has refueled and revitalized my love for the sport completely. As far as my transition to a lightweight rower, things have definitely been hard but not unmanageable. My diet has worked great and although it is challenging to pass on beer and burgers when I’m out socializing, the reward has been worth it. It also helps that most of the people I know here are rowers, former rowers or coaches and understand what I am going through. The support is amazing. I definitely have a lot of thoughts about my shift to a lightweight rower so there will be a whole post about that at some point! But for now, enjoy a picture of what I eat on a regular basis. 

This Wednesday begins Club Nationals, a race I have never participated in before. I will be racing in the Intermediate Light 2x, Intermediate Light 4+ and Intermediate Light 4x. I am very excited for lots of racing over five days with a great team! GO PENN AC!

Learning From the Best: A Thank You Note to Marist Crew

As this school year, marking the end of my collegiate rowing career, ends, I have definitely been reflecting back on the last four years. Rowing at Marist has been a great experience for me and I hope that my team has learned as much from me as I have from them. On a current varsity team with only eleven rowers and three coxswains, we have gotten very close with each other, forging friendships in unexpected places as well as strengthening friendships we’ve always had. Every person brings something special to the team and all of these parts have created a cohesive whole. I will definitely miss every single one of these people and I wanted to show what makes each of them so vital to our team. Every rower could learn from these thirteen girls. 

Every coxswain should take no prisoners, like Zoe. Zoe is one of the best coxswains I’ve had and that is because she will do everything in her power to get us ahead. She steers like a champ and very rarely, if ever, messes up a call in practice. She never lets us start behind, she always steals the flat water if she can, she docks with style and she can somehow read our coach’s mind, meaning we get yelled at less. As a sculler at heart, I can get frustrated with coxswains very easily, but I think Zoe and I are on the same wave length most of the time. And if we’re not, it’s because she’s three steps ahead of me.  

 

Every rower should be positive like Theresa. I am pretty sure that I have never heard a truly negative comment from come from Theresa’s mouth, ever. On the very rare days that she shows up to practice without a smile, I know that something is very wrong. After ending her spring season with a broken wrist in March, Theresa has never complained. She still shows up every morning with a smile to be our assistant coach from the launch.

Every rower should be competitive like Flavia. Flavia’s like the honey badger: she doesn’t give a shit what boat she’s in or who she’s racing, she’s going to give it her all to make sure her boat’s bowball is crossing the finish line first.  The happiest I’ve seen Flav is when 1) she PRs on her 2k and 2) when we have a good practice beating up on other boats and 3) when we win races. She is not afraid to push herself or others to compete at a higher level.

Every rower should be able to find humor in any situation, like Meg. This past year, I have spent a lot of time with Meg. She sits next to me when we erg and she’s my pair in the boat. And if I’m laughing in the middle of practice, it’s probably because Meg said some offhand remark that is making me almost pee my pants. From sassing our coaches to making fun of me, Meg always lightens the mood at practice, on the bus or at races. 

Every rower should believe in themselves like Sarah. Sarah, a former swimmer for Marist, was thrown into the V8 after rowing for three weeks. She had literally never touched an oar in her life at the end of February and then was put in our boat at the end of March. Despite dealing with the most yelling constructive criticism from our coach as he brought her up to speed, Sarah never seemed to get frustrated. She improved leaps and bounds and I think that’s due to her innate athletic confidence in her ability to perform when the time calls.

Every coxswain should be even tempered, like Jen G. Due to our lack of a true 2V this year, Jen was not been able to cox that much. Whenever we enter a 2V in a race, it’s usually some combination of freshmen that Jen gets to cox. Jen never gets frustrated with them and has an incredible teaching personality, which helps immensely in the beginning of this year.

Every rower should be enthusiastic like Eleni. When Eleni first joined the team as a freshman walk-on, it was easy to tell that she wanted to be all in for the team. A lot of freshmen walk-ons are there for the social aspect, but Eleni was enthusiastic about both the sport and the people she was working with. She enjoys being on the water and works hard to improve her rowing, even as an upperclassman.

Every rower should be determined like Jenn. At 5’1”, Jenn is one of the smallest rowers in our boathouse. Most people, including our coach, looked at her and didn’t think she could row well. Despite her size disadvantage, she now is consistently one of the fastest ergs on the team (and if we weight adjusted erg scores, she likely would be the fastest). This is due to her incredible work ethic as well as her phenomenal amount of mental toughness. Nobody tells Jenn what she can’t do.

Every rower should have the desire to improve their technique like Kelsey. Kelsey just wants to become a better rower. She’s sat behind me for two years now and her main complaint about our coach is that he doesn’t criticize her enough. Most rowers would be happy to stay under the radar, but not Kelsey. She’s not afraid to ask if she has corrected a mistake and is constantly asking Jenn, who sits behind her, to look out for her problems. When something is wrong in the boat, Kelsey is just as likely to blame herself as other people and works to make corrections on every stroke.

 

Every coxswain should be able to balance life and rowing, like Bree. This semester, Bree completed her student teaching while practicing every day and racing every weekend. Most college students I’ve met can barely handle one of these things, never mind both at the same time. Bree put her mind to it that she was going to do everything that she wanted to this semester and I believe that she has done a great job at both.

Every rower should be dedicated like Marissa. If you’re rigging or derigging a boat, Marissa is probably helping. If you’re launching for a race, Marissa has probably carried your oars to the dock and is about to carry your shoes away from it. She has never skipped a YOYO or missed a practice without a very legitimate reason, such as being near deathly sick. Marissa always gives 100% to practice and racing, as well as the little things (launch carrying, erg cleaning, trailer loading, boat moving and the like) that most rowers try to avoid. Without people like Marissa overseeing the details, crew teams everywhere would grind to a halt and I believe Marist is no different.

Every rower should be organized like Maggie. As co-captains, Maggie and I have had to deal with some tedious and detail oriented issues, such as ordering gear, planning formal for the men’s and women’s teams, organizing team gifts, etc. Between the two of us, we have managed to do some awesome things, things that I could not have done all by myself. Maggie is one of those people who you just know is going to be incredibly successful in her life and I would not doubt that I will see her on one of those Time Magazine People of the Year issues.

Every rower should be able to handle setbacks, like Angie. Angie had to take the first semester of our sophomore year off from college, something that would be hard for anyone, never mind a Division I athlete. She came back second semester light years behind the rest of our class in terms of technique, but with an attitude that said nothing was going to stop her from improving. She spent that spring mostly not boated, but when she came back the next year, she improved immensely, making the Varsity 8+ in the spring and having the fastest 2k in the boathouse. This year she has battled with recovering from getting her wisdom teeth removed as well as “confined” appendicitis, and her only complaint was that she couldn’t erg with the rest of us. And guess who was the stroke seat of the V8 for the spring season?  

 

My time at Marist has not just been shaped by the people who are on the team now, but almost anyone I’ve met through crew. Whether it was the seniors when we were freshmen, the alumni who I’ve met through other people, the coaches, or the freshmen on the team now, every single person has had some kind of impact on my life, whether they know it or not. Thanks for a great four years, Marist Crew!

On the Road to Boston!

Last weekend I participated in C.R.A.S.H.-B. Sprints in Boston, MA. This was the second year I have gone, and like most second year events I think it went better than last year. My score won’t tell you that, but well, that’s what this blog is for.

I like going to C.R.A.S.H.-B’s because it gives a more definite purpose to winter training. I love competing and as much as I enjoy competing against my teammates, it gets kind of old to me fairly quickly. C.R.A.S.H.-B’s feeds my need for competition and helps break up the time until we race on the water again. I also believe that the more experience I get competing in different areas against different people will help me to be more mentally prepared to race in any situation on the water. All that being said, I raced pretty terribly in Boston this year.

           

Everything was set for me to do well. I was much smarter with my diet than last year and felt very strong despite my weight loss. I had great pre-regatta workouts, including a 2k only one second off of my P.R. from last year. I had four great nights of sleep before the race. I weighed in with minimal stress (well, less stress than last year, anyway). I had a fantastic pre-race playlist. I warmed up well. I had a good coxswain. I was less stressed about the race than I was the year before. But I just couldn't hack it.

           

The thing that I like about erging is that there are no excuses. I didn’t have a bad race because six seat rushes her slide or the coxswain didn’t take a good line or stroke seat didn’t keep the rate up or the set was off. I had a bad race because I raced badly. I think that’s why it has taken me so long to write this post; because I accepting that I did poorly is not something I do particularly well. It’s even harder when I had to return to a team full of people who watched me taper throughout the week and who were rooting for me.

           

However, I’m not upset I made the trip. I always try to learn from my mistakes. I know I have to be a lot more focused on my own race, rather than let the environment and the speed of the people around me scare me into going out too fast. I have to use my cardiovascular strength to keep the rate high when my legs get tired. I have to be able to turn a bad first thousand into a good piece. At this stage of the game, a PR isn’t going to come unless I want it 110% of the time, whether I'm at on the water, on the water, in the weight room or in my kitchen contemplating eating six cookies for lunch instead of a salad. 

At least my erg face isn't so horrible...but Clarkey kind of looks like Mario in that red hat!

       

I also enjoyed the trip because, being the huge rowing nerd that I am, I just love being around rowing people. Because I’m a nice person (a.k.a. wanted to keep my gas costs down) I drove three freshmen guys to and from the race. While providing a great deal of amusement, they also jogged a lot of freshman year memories that I had forgotten about. Sometimes I feel that dealing with senior captain stuff gets in the way of me appreciating how much I truly love the sport of rowing and it was great to be reminded. I also enjoyed spending time with Marist alumni who make me realize that if I work hard, I can have a future in rowing after I graduate. I also got to spend some quality time with my often pair partner and housemate, Angie, which is always fun (and she had a great race). I think that I can learn something from every “generation” of Marist rower, whether it’s about the sport of rowing or just enjoying myself with new friends.

           

But at least my taper wasn’t for nothing. I destroyed my 5x5' PR the Monday I got back, so I got one good erg piece out of the weekend. It just wasn’t the right one at the right time.  But, as things go in the rowing world, there will always be more 2ks and as many more bad pieces I will likely have, I hope they teach me how to have more good ones.

Special thanks to Catherine, Sopko, Fish and Victoria for letting us crash in their dorm the night before the race and good luck to Harvard Swimming at Ivies this weekend!! Go Crimson!

And for your listening pleasure, here is my very girly pre-2k playlist that I am pretty sure no one else in the entire world would like. Haters, keep hatin'. 

1. Fixin' to Die - G. Love

2. Rolling in the Deep - Adele

3. Redneck Woman - Gretchen Wilson

4. Dirty Talk - Wynter Gordon

5. I Wanna Dance (With Somebody Who Loves Me) - Whitney Houston

6. Stronger (What Doesn't Kill You) - Kelly Clarkson

7. Turn Me On - David Guetta & Nikki Minaj

8. Blackout - Breathe Carolina

DIY: Easy Team Gifts - Hair Ribbons

Our team doesn’t order team gear until January, so the biggest distinction between the members of the varsity team and members of the freshmen team is the lack of red Marist Crew clothing. The seniors on our team decided to help the freshmen out by making hair bows for them. Although hair ribbons are something usually reserved for volleyball or softball teams, they appreciated it! Here's how to do it:

Ingredients

·         rolls of 2 different colored hair ribbon ($12 at Michaels)

·         fabric paint ($4 at Michaels)

·         elastic hair ties ($3 at Rite Aid)

Procedure

1. Cut hair ribbon to a length that can be tied into a bow. We cut the ribbon to be about 14” long.

2. Write your team acronym or number on hair ribbon in fabric paint. 

MWC for Marist Women's Crew

3. Wait for fabric paint to dry. This usually takes a couple hours.

4. Tie two different colored ribbons onto a hair tie.

Angie put the hair tie on a bottle to make it easier to tie the ribbon on

5. Tie the ribbons into a bow. 

 6. Give to team members. Smile!

Happy Thanksgiving everyone! Enjoy your food overindulgence and extra sleep. Don't forget to vote for your favorite nail polish name in the Poll section of the blog! 

Reader Contest: Win Nail Polish!

The Background
At practice last year, my team was talking (as usual) about nail polish. We were discussing how much we like the names of the colors. They might sound a little ridiculous at times, but they are just so damn catchy, it's hard not to smile when you hear names like "My Chihuahua Bites" or "Uh-Oh Roll Down the Window". However, there aren't many "athletic" sounding nail polish names (OPI's "Yo-Gotta Get This Blue" is probably the closest thing I've seen). This contest is to see who can come up with the most creative, athletic sounding nail polish name. It can be related to any sport or any activity as long as it's creative!

Contest Rules
Submit your name (and a way to contact you), your nail polish name, and what color you imagine it to be via email or the comment section below.
For example: Tory (trainingintransition@gmail.com),  "I'd Rather Row and Lose Than Be a Cheerleader", bright pink

In one week, readers will be able vote on their favorite nail polish name.

And the prize?
My two favorite nail polish colors. It's a surprise! =) And I will ship anywhere. Yes, even to England. So comment or email me  and WIN!

Head of the Ch....er....Marist Women's Crew goes to Delaware

 Fall Race #1: Marist vs. Temple, Delaware and LaSalle at Delaware

Marist Women's Crew

The first race of our season was originally not supposed to be our first race. The Poughkeepsie Regatta, scheduled for Oct. 1^st, was cancelled and we had to wait three weeks to race for the first time. This was a new race for Marist, as all the crews invited had not been picked to race in the Head of the Charles. Although our team was depressed to not make the time-honored trip to Boston, I think that the racing that happened instead was worth making the trip south.

We left school at 11am and made it to Delaware to rig and practice on the course. The river that Delaware rows on reminded me of my home course on the Passaic River with lots of bridges and multiple turns on a narrow river set in an industrial area. Personally, I like courses like this because lots of landmarks make a race go by faster. Our coxswains are very aggressive and good at steering, which makes 100% of a difference on that kind of course. The varsity 8+ and both freshmen eights were able to practice on the course before heading to the hotel to shower and eat.

The next day, the team left the hotel at 7:45am to get to the course. The race schedule was as follows:

9:50 varsity 8+

10:10 varsity 4+

10:30 freshman 8+

11:45 varsity 8+ round 2

noon varsity 4+

12:15 freshman 4+

*bold races had Marist boats

Varsity 8+

Because our boat had only three rowers returning from last year’s first varsity eight and three sophomores with very little racing experience due to the ridiculous number of race cancellations in 2011, I went into this race apprehensively. In all of rowing, I feel like it is hard to go into a race in a boat with people you have never raced with before because you don’t know how people mentally handle racing situations. There are breakdowns even at the Olympic level. However, we had an advantage: we raced in a brand new boat filled with rowers who were hungry for a race. And it completely paid off. Our sophomores proved themselves to be focused and intense and I think our boat rowed better in the race than it had in all of our previous practices. We started out strong, and had a fantastic middle move and a strong sprint. The steering was great and we definitely gained time on other crews because of it. We placed 2^nd to Delaware, beating Temple and LaSalle as well as the 2vs from the above schools. Overall, I think it was a great first varsity race for our sophomores and is hopefully a good indicator of a strong spring season.

Freshman 8+

Pre-race huddle by the 2F8

Marist had two boats in this race, one boat of six experienced rowers and two novices and then a boat of all novices, including the coxswain. I could not imagine tackling that course as a first race for an inexperienced coxswain and I think that Sam deserves the MVP award for the day for staying calm throughout the race. The 1F placed 2^nd by 7 seconds to Delaware and the 2F placed 5^th, great finishes for a first race of the season, especially versus a team with a home course advantage.

Varsity 4+

1V4+

Marist also had two boats in this race. Both boats had very strong races. As is typical with fall racing, my boat had practiced in our line-up once and the 2v4+ had never practiced in their line-up. Delaware started first, then the 1v4+ and the 2v4+. We began to walk through the Delaware boat in the first 500m, but needed to hold back due to a tight space under the second bridge of the course. We walked through them and had a great second 500m. Our middle move at the Delaware dock was probably the best 20 strokes I’ve taken all year. Our awesome freshmen cheering for us from the shore inspired our boat to take some great strokes. Jen, our coxswain, steered a fantastic course, as did the 2v4+ coxswain, Bree, whose boat I could see the entire time. 

2V4+

The 2v4+ also passed Delaware’s 4, a little before the halfway point. The only thing that would have made this race a little better would have been if Delaware, Temple and LaSalle had done what we did and rowed fours with rowers from the varsity eight. The field would have been more interesting, but it was a good race nonetheless.

Freshman 4+

Post race pictures

Marist entered one experienced freshman four in this race. From what I heard from the girls and their coxswain, they also had a great race. They placed 1^st in a field of three boats. They also had not rowed in their lineup prior to the race, but felt that they were able to match up really well during the warm-up. This allowed them to row well and put together a very solid race.

I really enjoyed this race. The course was different from what we usually race or practice on and the change of scenery was welcome. It was a relaxed racing atmosphere, but efficiently run. From the perspective of introducing 17 freshmen to collegiate racing, it was perfect: no chaos, no angry officials, a pleasantly small venue (my standard for this is measured by the distance between the trailer, the dock and the food tent) and clean port-a-potties. The parents did a great job with the food tent (as always). The bus ride was a little long for a one day race but what promotes team bonding more than being stuck in small space with over thirty people? (Well, besides having a great day of racing.)

Lineups

1v8+ cox: Z. Christopher 8: F. Siclovan 7. M. Kolb 6: T. Fillipini 5: M. Ladouceur 4: T. Mather 3: A. Carafas 2: J. DeLisle 1: K. Butta	1F8+ cox: N. DeVito 8: A. Devorak 7: S. Moriarty 6: M. Romer 5: S. LaRose 4: K. Wilson 3: S. Blau 2: T. Mullaney 1: A. Khoury	2F8+ cox: S. Cillo 8: B. Logue 7:  L. Hehir 6: K. Melendez 5: N. Culhane 4: K. Orzech 3: M. Perry 2: N. Washburn 1: K. Mahoney
1v4+ cox: J. Guzzardi 4: T. Mather 3: A. Carafas 2: J. DeLisle 1: K. Butta	2v4+ cox: B. Rodriguez 4: F. Siclovan 3: M. Kolb 2: M. Banks 1: E. Waskiewicz	1F4+ cox: Z. Christopher 4: A. Devorak 3: S. LaRose 2: K. Wilson 1: S. Moriarty

 Results can be found here. 

Thanks to all our parents, supporters and coaches! And also to the UDel crew team for putting together a great day of racing!