Mark of the Orange II - Chapter One, National Champions! Part One

Bill Sanford stood near the victory dock at the IRA finish line on Onondaga, waiting for the start of the last race of the day – the men’s Varsity Eight. As the tall, gangly coach listened for the announcer’s call that the race had started, the north wind ruffled his thinning hair, foreshadowing a rough start and long race for the big boats. After a season that had started out with a poor showing in a home loss to Harvard, the crew had come together, improving seemingly every week. With a solid string of wins in dual meets, a decent showing at the Sprints, and strong talent up and down the boat, Sanford felt confident his crew would be among the medalists.

Less than an hour before, coxswain Ozzie Street had launched the Varsity from the dock at Longbranch. Walking down the boat, shaking each man’s hand before they pushed off, Sanford had seen little of the banter that normally marked the pre-race launch. Instead, he felt a quiet confidence coming from the crew. Normally sophomore stroke Art Sibley and his classmate and bowman Gerry Henwood would be bouncing around, annoying the upperclassmen on the crew, but this was different – the guys were “wired, they were ready to go but they seemed relaxed and happy they were in the finals…they were quiet and I think that was because they were focused.”

Finals day had dawned hazy and a good bit cooler than Friday; a steady headwind was predicted and conditions on Onondaga looked to be a bit choppy, especially near the start of the two thousand meter course on the lake’s eastern shore. As the boathouse bunkroom came to life, most of the guys came out on the balcony to check conditions before heading into the dining room/Sanford living room for Sandy Pisani’s pre-race breakfast. With all three Orange eights in the Grand Finals along with an SU entry in almost all the small boat events, there was much to be excited about at Longbranch. Buzz Congram’s Northeastern crew also had crews in each of the eight finals, and the Huskies, along with Brown and California, the guest from the West, were looking like serious competitors for the top of the podium.

There was a good deal of confidence in all the SU boats. The JV was coming off a very solid season, the frosh were looking for a third straight title and the Varsity had seen very solid results late in the season that had been a bit unsatisfying for the Orange.