NMH Crew : Boys Crew

Race Results - Spring 2007

Season records (W-L)

B1 Varsity: 9-15
B2 JV: 0-10
B3 Novice: 1-9

NMH boys crew @ NEIRA championships
Saturday, May 26th
Lake Quinsigamond, Worcester MA

distance: 1500 m
conditions: shifting winds, light chop, warm and sunny

Results: varsity (4th in our heat, 5th in the Petite Final, 11th out of 18 overall)

The NMH boys crew rowed two clean and solid races at New Englands Saturday, but we were not fast enough to move up from our 10th place seed. We were faster than all the crews we had defeated earlier in the season, but were not able to make ground against a deep and talented field. In recent years at NEIRAs, the top eight or nine crews have been within ten seconds of each other. We were about ten seconds off our recent NEIRA pace this season, and the champions were about ten seconds ahead of the field. leading to a wide spread in times this year. In the Grand Final, Andover and Exeter made it a two-boat race for 1000 meters, with Andover making several strong moves in the last 500 meters to pull ahead for their second championship in five years. Our junior varsity and third boat did not race at New Englands this year. Rowing in the varsity eight Saturday were Teresa Le (c), Jeff Breau, Spencer Hattendorf, Eli Pack, Scott Pelton-Stroud, John Bleh, Chas Summers, Sam Hoefle, and Henry Hutcheson.

I am proud of the progress the boys made in conditioning and technique this spring, and I am especially proud of our captains, Jeff Breau and Teresa Le, who have contributed much to our team during their time at NMH. Jeff has been dedicated and diligent all spring, helping to mold an inexperienced varsity boat into a polished and committed group. Teresa has led the team through some of our most successful seasons during her career here, and I will miss her calm and confident voice on the mike. All of our seniors will be missed, but I know they are off to some great adventures ahead after graduation, and we have a great group of returning underclassman on the oars and on the tiller to fill their big shoes! Congratulations to Jeff, Teresa, Rob Downey, Eli Pack, John Bleh, Chas Summers, Tyler Jackson, Alex Palmisano, and Lucas Ewing - I have really enjoyed working with each one of you.

Boy's Varsity Eight full results (from www.row2k.com)

BV8 Heat 1
1 Andover 4:34.07
2 St John's 4:37.56
3 Simsbury 4:42.49
4 Salisbury 4:44.33
5 Farmington 4:53.2
6 Middletown 5:04.16

BV8 Heat 2
1 Kent 4:36.45
2 Brunswick 4:36.92
3 Tabor 4:37.48
4 Hanover 4:56.71
5 Brookline 4:57.74
6 Stonington 5:16.49

BV8 Heat 3
1 Exeter 4:35.4
2 St. Paul's 4:38.6
3 Shrewsbury 4:43.06
4 NMt Hermon 4:48.48
5 Concord 4:57.05
6 E Lyme 4:59.48

BV8 Grand Final
1 Andover 4:21.83
2 Exeter 4:24.26
3 St. Paul's 4:28.48
4 Kent 4:33.97
5 St John's 4:36.56
6 Brunswick 4:38.29

BV8 Petite Final
7 Salisbury 4:39.89
8 Tabor 4:41.57
9 Shrewsbury 4:44
10 Simsbury 4:46.13
11 NMt Hermon 4:50.84
12 Hanover 4:59.9

NMH boys crew vs. Andover
Saturday, May 19th
Connecticut River, Gill MA

distance: 1500 m (upstream)
conditions: moderate current, flat water

Results:

Varsity
1. PA B1 4:43.3
2. NMH B1 5:07.9

Junior varsity
1. PA B2 5:02.7
2. PA B3 5:06.7
3. NMH B2 5:43.4

Lower boats
1. PA B4 5:35.2
2. PA B5 6:03.0
3. NMH B3 6:15.6

Summary:
Andover's powerful boys crew team swept the NMH eights in NEIRA league racing Saturday, winning all races. In the varsity race, Andover finished 24 seconds ahead of the NMH eight, which was the largest margin of victory in the competition in eight years. NMH's season record drops to 3-5 with the loss.

Ironman John Bleh '07 raced in two races Saturday, jumping into the varsity boat twenty minutes after the conclusion of his first race in the JV when senior Rob Downey was injured during the prerace warmup.

NMH vs Hanover High School
Wednesday, May 16th
Connecticut River, Hanover, NH

distance: 1500 m
conditions: calm, cool, and damp; beautiful racing conditions

Results:

Varsity
1. NMH B1 (3-4) 4:16.8
2. Hanover 1V 4:23.6

Junior varsity
1. Hanover 2V 4:15.0
2. Hanover 3V 4:18.0
3. NMH B2 (0-8) 4:34.5

Thirds
1. Hanover 1N  4:28.0 
2. NMH B3 (1-7)  4:45.0
3. Hanover 4V  4:45.0

Summary:

The NMH varsity launched the Beatrice R. Chase with its fifth different lineup of the season, this time with four novice oarsmen in the eight. We knew we were racing against a deep program with Hanover carrying six eights of oarsmen. Undaunted, coxswain Rohan Ott led her crew to our strongest race of the season, steering a great line on a great course. The start came more quickly than a few of the NMH oarsmen were expecting, and Hanover seized the advantage for an early lead that it sustained for the first minute of the race. The crux of the race came when NMH made a strong push to pull even and then earned a four-seat lead as the boats approached the halfway point. NMH continued to press the pace and moved out to open water by the 1000. For the first time this season, NMH continued to maintain their pace during the final third of the race and the cheers of our fans on the shore were no match for the shouts from the boat as we crossed the line exhilarated and exhausted. Back on shore, the boys pointed out that I needed to stop referring to them as novices, and I am happy to congratulate our now veteran varsity crew of Rohan Ott, Jeff Breau, Spencer Hattendorf, Sam Hoefle, Chas Summers, Rob Downey, Scott Pelton-Stroud, Tyler Jackson, and Henry Hutcheson.

Our second boat was up against the heart of Hanover's depth, with two strong JV crews that started well and held their rating with clean and powerful strokes. We rowed one of our best races in defeat, but it has been a long season for our boys in the B2. Coxswain Nick Palmisano did a good job holding his line as the Hanover 3V moved into and eventually across his lane, successfully avoiding a collision and helping to reduce the margin of defeat as Hanover continued to veer to starboard as the boats approached the finish line. I was also pleased that strokeman Lucas Ewing was able to control the rating throughout the race, allowing his eager crew to maintain their power more effectively throughout the second half of the race. We were just up against another set of deep and talented crews today.

Our third boat found itself in a close boat race with Hanover's fourth varsity eight, after pulling even with 500 meters to go. Our lower boats have a long, long history of snatching defeat from the jaws of victory when locked in a tight race. Perhaps it has been our inexperience that has led to so many stories throughout the years of crabs, broken oarlocks, and jumped slides during the last ten strokes of a close race. But not today! Coach Levitt's B3 raced stroke for stroke right next to Hanover and raced to win (well . . . raced for second anyway) instead of trying to win the race. Their strokes were clean and well-timed, and they managed to sneak their bow across the line ahead of their competition to finally put a "1" in the W-column. You can't teach that kind of experience in practice, and it was wonderful to see the smiles on the boys' faces as they found out the results as they pulled into shore.

NMH boys crew @ Brookline and Wayland-Weston
Saturday, May 12th
Charles River, Cambridge MA

distance 1250 meters (Powerhouse stretch)
conditions: gusty crosswind, light chop on water

Results:

B1 varsity:
1. Wayland Weston 3:43
2. NMH (2-4) 3:48
3. Brookline 3:53

B2 junior varsity:
1. Wayland-Weston 3:50
2. Brookline 3:55
3. NMH (0-6) 4:17

Summary:

The NMH varsity rowed their strongest race of the season Saturday against two excellent crews from the suburbs of Boston. Wayland-Weston is probably the fastest public high school crew in New England this spring, and Brookline made the Grand Finals at New Englands last year. The shorter course allowed NMH to row at a higher rating than we had planned, and the boat responded very well to the increased tempo. Strong quick strokes early in the race, coupled with several powerful moves gave NMH a slight lead through the River Street Bridge just past the halfway point. Wayland-Weston pulled even and through our B1 just before our sprint, and we were unable to earn those seats back during the last 300 meters despite a tremendous effort from the boys. Despite the loss, the varsity learned for the first time what it is like to row in a tight race from start to finish, an invaluable experience that we can build on in our next two races this week against Hanover and Andover. We are still developing as a crew, and I am eager to see how fast we can be when we put all the pieces together during the push for New Englands.

The junior varsity finished a distant third in their race Saturday, rowing cleanly but without enough power to keep pace with their competition. They have faced tough competition all season, and I would like to see them experience a close race before it's done since there are a number of young novice oarsmen in this boat who should play important roles on our varsity in future years. We will just have to keep practicing how to control our recoveries while we build the ratings higher this week.

Thanks as always to a generous group of parents who fed and watered the crews marvelously, and particular thanks to Dave Dyer from the school's maintenance department, who drove the dump truck that pulled our trailer on short notice this weekend. I am officially nominating Dave as the Athlete of the Week!

B1 lineup: Rohan Ott (c), Jeff Breau, Spencer Hattendorf, Sam Hoefle, Eli Pack, Rob Downey, Scott Pelton-Stroud, Tyler Jackson, Henry Hutcheson

B2 lineup: Nick Palmisano (c), Lucas Ewing, Travis Owen, Andre Gobbo, Eli Stiefel, John Bleh, Duncan Spaulding, Satya Son, Leo Chiquillo

NMH vs. Shrewsbury
Wednesday, May 9th
Lake Quinsigamond, Shrewsbury MA

distance: 1500 meters
conditions: choppy with headwind, lots of boats on the lake today

Results:

B1 varsity
1. Shrewsbury  5:17.6
2. NMH  5:24.9

B2 junior varsity
1. Shrewsbury  5:24.3
2. NMH  5:37.0

B3 third boat
1. Shrewsbury  5:52.6
2. NMH  6:07.4

Summary:

Too much drama today, with a varsity oarsman pulled at the last minute, athletes for both teams succumbing to the heat, and a chaotic scene on a very busy Lake Quinsigamond. Three sets of high school races took place within two hours, along with other high school and college boats launching, practicing, and landing. Apparently this is the status quo at the Donahue Racing Center, but our quiet rural Connecticut River seemed very far away. We will be racing on the Charles River this Saturday in Boston, so perhaps this was good practice for our inexperienced team, but we should have handled all of this better than we did. Shrewsbury High School has made big improvements this year, developing a varsity crew that nearly beat Tabor and St Johns in recent weeks. They were more than a match of all our crews today, sweeping our annual dual meet for the first time ever. All three NMH crews showed significant progress in their matching and power despite the losses, so my coaching instincts tell me that we are getting fast enough to begin to compete in the NEIRA this year. We are learning important lessons about our skills and our mental focus from each race. However, my competitive instincts are frustrated to find these lessons through losses rather than victories!

NMH vs Concord High School (NH)
Saturday, May 5th
Connecticut River, Gill MA

distance: 1500 meters +
conditions: strong current, moderate headwind, times between races are not directly comparable due to variable wind and current and differences in starting location

Results:

B1 varsity
1. NMH (1-2) 5:28.8
2. Concord 5:44.5

B2 junior varsity
1. Concord 5:24.7
2. NMH (0-3) 5:45.3

B3 third boat
1. Concord 5:56.1
2. NMH (0-5) 6:37.0

Summary:

The NMH varsity earned their first win against a well-coached crew from Concord High School of New Hampshire. Both boats had clean starts, with Concord taking a few seats early just off the line. NMH responded with composure, keeping their focus and finesse as they bore down and earned each seat back during the next twenty strokes. Our first move earned a length, and our second move broke the lead out into open water. NMH looked like a veteran varsity crew during the first 1000 meters of the race, with good balance and tight timing at the catch and finish of each stroke. Once past the turn and with the race firmly in hand, NMH lost some of its rhythm as weary legs began to fade on the drive, and the inexperience of our crew began to show during a rocky final 500 meters. We have spent little time on this section of the race plan as we have worked to develop our starts and pace, so the guys now know what we'll work on next! Congratulations to Rowan Ott, Jeff Breau, Spencer Hattendorf, Sam Hoefle, Eli Pack, John Bleh, Chas Summers, Rob Downey, and Scott Pelton-Stroud for a well-earned victory today.

Our junior varsity and third boat lost to a pair of strong crews that opened up sizeable leads early in each race. In the B2 race, NMH never lengthened off the start, and tried to race at a rating that they could not sustain for very long. Rushed recoveries and sloppy bladework led to many washouts and missed strokes during the middle section of the race as Concord slowly eased ahead to a length of open water by the turn. As NMH tired, the stroke rating finally came down and all eight began to row with more finesse, if not more power, during the final stretch in front of the home fans. In the B3 race, Concord blew the doors off at the start, opening a length of open water by the end of forty strokes. NMH had good timing and matching for much of the course, but just could not apply their power with the same effectiveness that their competition managed. The race was never really in doubt after the first minute, but to their credit, NMH did not lose focus thanks to the efforts of coxswain Erin MacDonald and stroke Ling Toralballa.

NMH vs. Salisbury
Wednesday, May 2nd
Lake Washinee, Salisbury, CT

distance: 1500 m
conditions: gusty tailwind with moderate chop from 500m on

Results:

B1 varsity
1. Salisbury 4:30
2. NMH 4:40

B2 junior varsity
1. Salisbury 4:50
2. NMH 5:12

B3 thirds and novice
1. Salisbury 3 4:57
2. Salisbury 4 5:23
3. NMH 5:50

Salisbury swept the NMH boys on their home course Wednesday, soundly defeating an inexperienced group of Hoggers. It is never easy to lose, but the manner in which our crews lost today showed that we still have a long way to go if we want to compete well in New England rowing this spring. Our B3 rowed themselves out of gas by the 500 meter mark, choosing a high stroke rating that sapped our energy and resulted in many missed strokes. Our B1 floundered in the waves throughout in the race despite maintaining contact until the 1000m mark, clearly unsettled by the choppy conditions, but not able to maintain our rating as well as our competition. It was a 3 second race until Salisbury made their big move, and NMH let the Scarlet Knights slip away as we never developed the swing that is essential for good racing. Our B2 rowed the best of any of our crews today, managing the water and the rating pretty well until jumping a seat with about 400 meters to go. Salisbury had already established an open water lead, so the mistake did not cost us the race, but was just the way things went for us on a beautiful spring afternoon. We know we can row better than this. Fortunately, we have many more chances to show it, beginning with our next race on Saturday, at home against Concord High School (NH).

NMH boys crew vs. Tabor
Saturday, April 28th
Connecticut River, Gill MA

Distance: 1500 meters, upstream
Conditions: strong current, flat water, debris in the third boat race required several crews to change course to avoid collision

Results:

B1 varsity
1. Tabor 4:55.8
2. NMH 5:10.4

B2 junior varsity
1. Tabor 5:15.6
2. NMH 5:46.6

NMH finally got their first race under their belts, against a powerful set of crews from Tabor Academy. In the varsity race, Rowan Ott steered an excellent course in her first race as coxswain. Both boats started cleanly, with Tabor establishing an early four-seat lead that they gradually increased during the first half of the race. NMH retained contact until the halfway point, when Tabor made a strong move that we could not counter. Once past the turn, NMH's inexperience and lack of water time began to show in our speed, as the Tabor crew was able to raise its rating significantly higher and pulled away to a 15 second victory. Although the margin of defeat was substantial, we learned a lot from this race, and are eager to get back on the water next week to prepare for our next race against Salisbury. NMH also dropped the JV and third boat races despite good efforts from our boys.

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