Congrats to the Advanced Women on their outstanding performance at the NW Regional Regatta!
Overall the Advanced Women's Team had 13 boats medal and it was amazing to see so many Marin boats in each final. Each event had a full 12-14 entries and the D4 had 15+!

B8: Gold (Final Only race)
C8: Gold and Silver
D8: Silver and Bronze
E+8: Bronze
B4: Silver, Bronze and 5th
C4: Gold and 4th
D4: Silver and 6th
B4x: Gold
Mixed B4+ Silver
Mixed E8: Bronze

More Team Results to come!! For full results go to: www.racetrak.com

The latest in the MRA Singles ladder series was a lot of fun, though the conditions were difficult. We ended up having a very strong headwind on the first half of the course, and most people ended up losing 30 seconds off of their times due to the conditions. But, we all still showed up and made the times. Thanks to everyone for coming down!

The results from the most recent MRA singles ladder can be found in the file below and are also posted on the MRA Ladder board in the boat house:

MRA Singles Ladder Results - 6/7/09

Marin girls' crew tops nation for second straight year

CalHiSports.com doesn't cover the sport of crew because there really is no organized high school competition in California, or any states for that matter.

That doesn't mean that there are not countless numbers of young student-athletes that use crew as a ticket to some mighty fine educational institutions.

A perfect example is the Marin Rowing Association, located in Larkspur, whose teams have sent countless young men and women on to college and successful rowing careers.

Founded in 1968, it began as a boys program for only the Redwood of Larkspur boys and later girls, but now has student-athletes from high schools throughout Marin County as well as San Francisco participating in its highly-regarded program.

The current stars of the program for high school age boys and girls is the Women's Varsity 8+ that just returned form winning its second straight Junior National Rowing Championship, June 12-14 at Harsha Lake in Cincinnati.

On June 8, CalHiSports.com was actually on the water in the chase boat, watching the girls in a capacity as a local Marin journalist.

We rode shotgun in the pontoon-style boat with MRA Executive Director and Women's Varsity 8+ Coach Sandy Armstrong while the girls were practicing for the Nationals on Corte Madera Creek near Highway 101 in Larkspur, just off San Francisco Bay waters. The part that seemed so exciting was the start as they practiced on their own without an official starter.

Coxswain Chelsea Lucas, a recently graduated senior from Redwood who will be on the Cal crew team next year, was in total charge.

"Attention, (pause) go! Pryyy,” said Lucas, drawing out the y in pry as she encouraged the girls to pry the water.

With that command, the girls shot forward and Lucas continued to bark commands and encouragement crouched from her seat.

"Slow down and let your knees come to your chest so when you have the blade to the water you can feel the connection,” said Armstrong from the drivers seat of the chase boat after the girls practiced several starts in the deep choppy waters.

"Good power. I like what I see. Nice blade to the water. We're good to go,” continued Armstrong after the girls had fine-tuned things to her liking.

Whatever Armstrong imparted to them about their start must have worked because on the chase boat she admitted that the girls' starts have not been their strength in the past.

In Cincinnati, the girls blew away from the starting line and led from start to finish, winning in 6:45 for the 2000m race, and by five seconds over Phillips Exeter Academy from New Hampshire.

Besides Lucas, the rest of the national title team included: Stroke, Erica Rippe, Drake (San Anselmo), senior, Cal; Caitlin Morgan, senior, Drake, Stanford; Michelle Leason, junior, Tamalpais (Mill Valley); Caroline Rosetti, senior, Sacred Heart Cathedral (San Francisco), Cal; Kristy Wentzel, junior, Drake; Olivia Ley, senior, Branson (Ross), Princeton; Fiona Duffy, senior, Tamalpais, Columbia; bow seat, Audrey Wooster, senior, Redwood, Princeton.

After a very long hiatus, Rachel and I are excited to announce the next MarinRowing singles ladder, a 2500m member's only race conducted entirely in singles! It has been entirely too long between ladders, so we're going to try to have one every month through the summer to make up for it. So, get out in your singles and start practicing, then, come down on Sunday afternoon, June 7th and give the ladder a shot, even if you don't scull very much!

When: Sunday, June 7, 2009
Mandatory Race Meeting: 1:45pm
First flight start time: 2:15pm
(high tide at 2:15pm)
Second flight: approx. 2:45pm
More flights: if needed.

GRAND FINAL Varsity 8+
1 Stanford 6:11.95 Marin alum Jenna Levy, cox
2 Virginia 6:12.32
3 California 6:14.76
4 Yale 6:17.22 Marin alum Maren McCrea
5 Brown 6:18.13
6 Princeton 6:24.02

GRAND FINAL Second Varsity 8+
1 Yale 6:29.04 Marin alum Lauren Richards
2 California 6:29.58 Marin alum Adrienne Keller
3 Stanford 6:31.88
4 Brown 6:32.93
5 Washington 6:34.28
6 Virginia 6:37.17

Congratulations Marin Alum on GREAT racing!
For full results: http://villanovarowing.com/ncaa/

Session I of the Girls Summer Camp is now closed. We hope you can attend a different week!

For Full Results:
www.racetrak.com

Marin Rowing squads impress in regionals
Marin Independent Journal

SACRAMENTO - The Marin Rowing Association had a successful weekend, with the women topping the points standings and the men placing second at the Southwest Regional Championships at Lake Natoma that ended Sunday. Of the 26 Marin squads entered, 21 were medalists in a competition that included 35 teams from six states.

In the men's events Marin took gold in the 2-, Frosh 8+, Frosh 4+, Novice A 8+, silver in the Lwt 8+, V4+, Lwt 4+, Novice B 8+, Novice 4+ and bronze in the V8+.

In the women's events Marin took gold in the V8+, V4+, JV4+, Frosh 8+, Novice 4+, Novice B 8+, silver in the JV8+, V4+, Novice A 8+, Novice 4x and bronze in the 3V8+.

Marin qualified for nationals in 9 events and will bring the women's 8+, women's lwt 2x, men's V8+ and a men's lwt 8+. Nationals will be held June 13-16 at Harsha Lake in Cincinnati, Ohio.

The women's varsity eight, the defending national champions, covered the 2,000-meter course in 6:41.1. The men's varsity eight was just 2.7 seconds behind the reigning national champions from Newport in a time of 6:07.85.

MARIN ROWING BRINGS HOME 7 GOLDS, 3 SILVERS, 2 BRONZE MEDALS FROM LONG BEACH INVITATIONAL

LONG BEACH, CALIF., April 21, 2009 – Marin Rowing Association’s junior crews brought home seven gold, three silver and two bronze medals from the Long Beach Junior Invitational Regatta, held April 18-19 at the Long Beach Marine Stadium in Southern California, home of the 1932 Olympics. Golds were earned by Marin Rowing’s Men in the Freshman 8+, Freshman 4+, Novice 4+, and Lightweight 8+ contests, while Marin’s Women brought home gold in the Novice 8A+, Novice 4+, and Freshman 4+ competitions. Silver medals were earned by Marin’s Women’s 3V8+, the Women’s Freshman 8+ and the Women’s Novice 8B+, and bronze medals were brought home by the Men’s and Women’s Freshman 4B+ squads.

MRA’s gold-medal winning Men’s Lightweight 8+ crew included Coxswain Harry Blatt (Corte Madera), Stroke Zander Bonnorris (Larkspur), Taylor Feld (Tiburon), Andy Goldman (Greenbrae), Paul Panicacci (San Rafael), Ian Clark (Fairfax), Griffin Whitlock (Tiburon), Matty Norstad (Corte Madera), and bow seat Greig Stein (Kentfield).
Rowing for the Women’s Novice 8A+ squad were Coxswain Annika Belzer (Kentfield), Stroke Marlena Morshead (San Anselmo), Elizabeth Littman (Sausalito), Sophie Rosenoer (Corte Madera), Charlotte Passot (Mill Valley), Anna Dellaria (San Rafael), Caitlin Byrnes (Fairfax), Brianna Lamb, and bow seat Tula Le Merle (Tiburon).

For complete results from the Long Beach Junior Invitational, visit http://row2k.com/results/resultspage.cfm?UID=409661&cat=6. Marin will compete in their final league race this weekend, April 25 at Lake Natoma in Sacramento, before competing in the US Rowing Southwest Regional Championship Regatta May 9-10, also to be held at Lake Natoma.