Good evening Justice Rowing family,
Week Past
This past weekend we split up the team between the Occoquan and the Rivanna Reservoir. I am pleased to say that all teams performed well and represented Justice with professionalism.
At the Ted Phoenix Regatta on the Occoquan, our two novice crews represented well and improved on prior performances. Our Men’s Novice 8 (M-N-8+) took third in their heat with a few rowers taking to the racecourse for the first time all season. Shortly after, the Women’s Novice 4 (W-N-4+) fought through to the end with a fourth-place finish in their heat. Coaches were pleased with the team’s developing technical abilities and are looking forward to getting these novices ready for states and next season in the coming weeks.
Meanwhile, the varsity team took on familiar competition on an unfamiliar course. At the Rivanna Scrimmage, each rower was able to row in two races for a hectic day of boat-swapping, lane-drifting, new-lineup-experimenting fun! While the Albemarle and Mathews crews dominated the racing, coaches noted that our rowers displayed remarkable sportsmanship on and off the water. I’d like to give a HUGE shoutout to all the parents and volunteers that helped transport, feed, and support our rowers. You are all amazing! Rowers were also given a tour of UVA’s boathouse by our very own Brooke Carmody, hopefully inspiring the next generation of collegiate rowing Wolves.
Full results of the Ted Phoenix Regatta can be found here.
Photos of Rivanna Scrimmage are available here. Photos of the Ted Phoenix Regatta are here. Note: Videos do not autoplay. Click the arrow to watch.
Week Forward
This week is the Ryz Obuchowicz! This is the largest amount of entries we have had this season! Get ready for a big day of racing! Events and lineups below:
| Event: | Lineup (Stern to Bow): coxswain* |
| Men’s Double (M-1-2x) | T. Wang, C. Brown Vasquez* |
| Women’s Double (W-1-2x) | C. Brogan, O. Findorff* |
| Women’s Junior Double (W-Jr-2x) | V. Peterson, G. Breed* |
| Men’s Quad (M-1-4x) | D. Coronado, N. Ward, K. Wilson, E. Sobol* (TBD) |
| Men’s Junior Quad (M-Jr-4x) | P. Rice, L. Montfort, R. Bates, Z. Hardy* (TBD) |
| Women’s Quad (W-1-4x) | S. Palacios, H. Ershadi, E. Buckhorn, S. Barrera* |
| Men’s Novice Four (M-N-4+) | S. Blackadar, A. Juarez, J. Nowlin, S. Schneider, N. Kenzi* (TBD) |
| Women’s Novice Four (W-N-4+) | I. Brookes-Weiss, A. Telleria, R. Davis, S. Ehmann-Jones, A. Forrest* |
Please note that those lineups marked with “TBD” are still being sorted and tested by coaches. All rowers should plan to be available for the regatta and finalized lineups will be determined tomorrow at practice. With some absences and lack of water time on Monday due to trailer unloading, coaches need a little more time. Thanks for your patience. Please reference previous weeks’ emails if you have questions about when/how lineups are determined, and, as always, please reach out to your coaches if you have more questions.
Mathews Regatta, 5/7
After communicating with the Mathews coach who is running the “Williams Wharf Scrimmage” this year on May 7th, the coaches have decided to cancel this year’s trip to Mathews, Virginia. We were informed that the event would be smaller this year in terms of teams and entries than in previous years due to construction on-site limiting space to one dock for both launching and recovering. This adjustment adds to the difficult logistics of the event and we feel our time can be better spent on the Occoquan.
In lieu of the trip, we will plan to field novice crews at Virginia State Rowing Championships (VSRCs) Day 1. Additionally, we’re in process of planning a varsity practice that afternoon (5/7) after the regatta has wrapped up to prepare for the next weekends’ events. VSRC is traditionally split between two weekends. The first weekend (5/7), is where novice, second, third, and fourth boats compete. The second weekend (5/14) hosts the varsity and junior varsity boats.
While the Mathews trip is an unfortunate loss from the schedule, we hope to return to the race in the future and can put the budgeted funds towards further equipment repairs/replacements.
Regatta Rower Logistics
Timing: On FRIDAY, coaches will let rowers know what time their race is and WHEN they should be at Sandy Run, usually 2 hours before the race to allow time for parking/drop off, warm-ups, boat adjustments, and race planning. All rowers (and those not competing but who want to watch) should be dropped off at Sandy Run. When you arrive tell the parking attendants that you are dropping off a rower and they will direct you to where you can go. Non-competing rowers are always welcome to cheer their teammates on! If you would like to stay at the regatta yourself, more info on parking is below.
Friday Night Pasta Dinners
Friday nights before each regatta, a team host serves pasta to the rowers. Please sign up to host here. Thanks to those who have already signed up to host; two open dates remain. If we don’t have volunteers to host, the rowers won’t have a team dinner that night. An example menu is here. Plan for approximately 35 rowers. This is a rower’s only event—no parents. Drop off your rower Friday after practice and pick them up promptly at 9:00 so they can rest up before Saturday’s race! This week’s dinner is hosted by Christine Sobol (Ethan’s house), 3755 Tennis Court, Falls Church 22041.
Regatta Reminders
Important Regatta Reminders: There is no parking at Sandy Run Regional Park (unless you are a volunteer that day); you will need to park at South County High School (SC), 8501 Silverbrook Rd, Lorton, VA 22079, and take a shuttle ($10/round trip) to get to the regatta site. The ScCo Parking lot is about 15-20 minutes from Sandy Run. From the Sandy Run drop off it’s about a 15-20 minute walk down to the Grandstands where you can watch the race. NOTE: Spectators should plan to be at the SoCo parking lot at least 1 – 1 1/2 hours BEFORE the scheduled race time. Please plan for traffic, congestion, etc. which can cause delays. A concession stand and restrooms are available at the Grandstands. Regatta t-shirts ($20-25) will be available. For the most up-to-date information on Regattas/Sandy Run, follow @VASRAresults (on Twitter). Heatsheets are released for each regatta and may change as late as day of; check the left-hand column on vasra.org homepage for a live link. Photos and slideshows are uploaded post-event at the Justice Rowing photo/video gallery.
UPDATE as of 3/31: Follow @VASRAStart to know when a race is “on the water” and which teams are in what lane. Information will be up-to-date including scratches and if teams do not start (or finish).
Paisano Pizza Nights—Sunday 4/24 through Wednesday 4/27
Eat a pizza (or two!) and Justice Rowing will receive a portion of the proceeds from purchases at the following Piasano locations: Annandale, Falls Church (W Broad Street), and Bailey’s Crossroads. Show the flyer here at time of order. Please spread the news to your neighborhood email groups, etc. Thank you to the Rosen’s for coordinating.
Car Washes – April 24 and May 22, 12:30 – 3:30
Sign up today at SignUp Genius: car wash. If you have the following items and can loan them for the event, please drop them off at the carwash on Sunday—old towels, traffic cones, and brushes. Please share the flyer and spread the news to your neighborhood email groups, etc. Thank you to the Brown Vazquez’s for coordinating.
Thank you all for your support of our program and athletes!
Coach Rob Walker (he/him)
Special Ed. and English Teacher
Justice High School Rowing Team Head Coach
www.justicerowing.org
riwalker@fcps.edu
Twitter: @CoachWalker91
