San Diego Crew Classic Preview

From Coach Dave Reischman:

It hardly seems possible but we start our racing season this weekend as we send a Varsity Eight out to the San Diego Crew Classic. You can get more information on the race, including the schedule of events, at: www.crewclassic.org.

You can also catch live feeds of the racing at http://crewclassic.org/video/

This is a week early for the Crew Classic this year due to Easter being the first weekend in April. The key for us is to keep in mind that we are still a long way from the Sprints and the IRA where we want to have our best boat speed. With an early race like this we have to resist the temptation to ramp things up too much too early. Particularly since the Goes Trophy isn’t for another 4 weeks yet. Having said that, I suspect the guys will be ready to go. We had a very productive spring break in Columbia, South Carolina this past week. Unusual for us, we were able to get in 6 rows in Syracuse before heading south so we were able to get to work right away. A quick afternoon row to check the rig on the first day and the start of competitive pieces and trying to figure out a line up for San Diego on the second. I am not a big fan of setting line ups early—I prefer to keep the competition boiling as long as I can. And, fortunately, I have a group that allows us to get quality work in no matter which of our 21 athletes are in the boats. By the end of the week, we were able to put together something that approximates a varsity line up for a couple of practices. When we get back from San Diego we will continue our seat racing ladder and try to have line ups solidified for the Goes Trophy.

Currently the varsity eight looks like this:

B – Dan Berry, Jr., 6’ 2”, 190, East Landowne, PA

2 – Ryan Patton, Sr., 6’ 4”, 194, Signal Mountain, TN

3 – Mike Dietrick, So., 6’ 3”, 192, Orchard Park, NY

4 – Tyson Bry, Sr., 6’4”, 195, Woodstock, VT

5 – Vince Berry, Jr., 6’1”, 193, East Lansdowne, PA

6 – Dan Turner, Jr., 6’ 3”, 194, Vankleek Hill, Ontario

7 – Chris Lutz, So., 6’ 5”, 227, Fairless Hills, PA

8 – Mike Gennaro, Jr., 6’ 3”, 189, Havertown, PA

C – Ken Marfilius, Jr., 5’8”, 130, Collingdale, PA

If you plan on attending the Crew Classic please stop by the boat area and say hello.