Women's Team Wednesday: Mackenzie Elliott

As you all read, Brian did his last Men's Team Monday on his best friend and roommate, Nick. Now many of you may not know this but fate handed me a gift my senior year of high school and I now go to college with my childhood best friend: Mackenzie Elliott. Mackenzie and I have been inseparable since we were nine years old and have stayed together since. Life has taken us on an interesting journey, with rowing being a large aspect of that and with that, it only made sense to make my favorite ginger my last Women's Team Wednesday.

Mackenzie Elliott

Freshman

Hometown: Manlius, NY 

Major: Early Childhood Education

Years Rowing: 5

Fun Fact: She thinks (make that knows) that she's a poet

Q: How did you start rowing?

A: Are all of these questions going to be rowing? Okay. How did I start rowing? Well I was kinda forced to. I didn't want to and wanted to have a lazy summer but my mom said no you're going to try rowing and I said nah, man I just want to chill. Two weeks later I was being dropped off for a learn-to -row camp. I ended up not sucking and thought rowing was fun and a good way to exercise and so that fall I quit cheerleading and decided to dedicate my full time to rowing.

Q: What do you like about rowing?

A: I feel like everyone always says that they do it for the team, and yes that's true but what rowing gives you that other sports never did is a long, drawn-out adrenaline rush. Cheerleading had routines that lasted 2.5 minutes and I used to think that was long and then came rowing. Seven minutes is a long time and that's in a boat. On my own it takes me 7:33 and being able to exert my body for that long showed me what being an athlete was. I'm not saying cheerleading isn't a sport but rowing opened my eyes to something on such a higher level of athletic performance. 

Q: Why the 'Hurst? Besides the fact that you couldn't stay away from me?

A: Oh you know that's obviously it. Well, I came in as a psych major so that was a big part since they have a great program. For rowing, I would say it was Jamie and Adrian that made me want to row here. Other schools didn't make me feel as welcomed and when I came here the coaches and teammates made me feel like I was already apart of the team. I don't know, it was like he kind of expected me to come and row and he already knew what I was thinking and that this was the right place for me in the back of his mind. And I mean, who can really let down Adrian?

Q: What advice to you have for incoming freshman rowers?

A: Don't expect to know who you are. When I came here I thought I knew what I wanted and what I wanted to strive for. That changed even in the first semester. You just feel lost - lost in rowing or lost in life, that's just apart of it all. You just have to accept that and continue to work hard at what you want to achieve and find something that drives you through the good and bad. Oh, and rowing is hard. 

"Oh no I'm going to fall out!" (Caption by Mackenzie) 

Q: You were injured in the middle of racing season and told you couldn't row - what was that like?

A: Can you just put it sucked? I think it's any rower's worst nightmare to be told you can't row. I had felt like I had finally started to prove myself. I was starting to show the coaches why I was here and started to believe in myself and believe that I could do it. And to then be told I can't seat race the next week and I can't even row? It was pretty awful. People thought I was dead, ya know? The entire team wondered where I was and that's my family. This was the first time all year I felt normal and rowers aren't normal. Adrian tells us everyday that what we do isn't normal and winning isn't normal and I had become used to that lifestyle. Having it taken away from me was hard, and admitting something was wrong was the hardest. I saw my injury as a weakness and although I'm fine now, I feel like I missed out on a lot and had to mentally start over.

Q: You said you were a poet, can you write a poem for us?

A: Can you handle being blown away?

Q: Can you write a poem about Mercyhurst Rowing just off the top of your head? As a nice way to finish this interview?

30 minutes goes by of Mackenzie trying to prove herself as the next great American poet 

A: Ode to Incoming Mercyhurst Rowers

Welcome to Mercyhurst Rowing, 

Our pride is always showing.

The lightweight men 

Weigh-in again

And ride ponies off in the sunset.

Welcome to Findley Lake,

The docks will always break

Adrian speaks

Rates will peak

And burritos will make us happy

Welcome to Egan Dining Hall

Where rowers go after study hall

Rhonda says hi

The eggs go goodbye

And I’m sorry but that is all.

Signing off - SoundSlide Project

This Blog started out as a project for one of my communication classes, but it has evolved into so much more than that.

First, I want to give a huge shout out to my blog partner and teammate, Chelsea Guida. This wouldn't have been such a success without you. Rock on girl.

I must admit, this process has turned out to be so rewarding. Throughout all of the interviews and posts I learned more about my team and myself than I ever imagined. The truth of the matter is that these guys opened up their lives to me during these interviews; so much so that I couldn't post some of the things they said because that's how personal and emotional it got. That being said, it was such a fun journey with far too many laughs to count along the way. My teammates continue to inspire me day in and day out, I hope by reading this blog and listening to their stories, you are all as inspired and motivated as I am.

Our final assignment was to make a SoundSlide story that went along with the theme of our blog. I wanted mine to be very visually appealing and to tell a great story. I thought, what better person to feature than my beautiful girlfriend Leah. If you are reading this Leah, you inspire me to be the man I am and you encourage me every step of the way. Everyone counted you out in the fall when you were injured, but look at you now. You are such an amazing athlete and even better human being. Keep doing you babe.

(Check out my SoundSlide story featuring my girlfriend, Leah Griffin)

http://hosting.soundslides.com/bp319

Signing off,
Brian Comey

P.S. - Many of you know me very well, especially how I turn everything into a competition. Since we launched our blog, we have received nearly 3,000 page views! That is a victory in my book. No one else in our class had anywhere close to that number. So for that, Chelsea and I thank you for assisting in this win, truly a team effort.

Men's Team Monday

This is the last Men's Team Monday of the season so I had to feature my boy. They say we were "randomly selected" as roommates last year, but I believe some greater force created the unbreakable 321 Boyz (Our room number Freshman year). Nick has taught me so much about life just over the course of two years that I actually went to my academic advisor and asked him if I could count living with Nick as my philosophy requirement. 

Nick always tells me that "You can catch flies with honey, but you can catch more honeys being fly"

Nick, if you are reading this, here's to being fly and catching honeys together 'till the day we die. 

Name: Nicholas "Wide Neck" Wnek

Class: Sophomore 

Years Rowing: 6

Degree of Study: Sustainability Studies 

Position: 3 Seat Varsity LWT 4+

Hometown: Philadelphia, PA (Fishtown)

Fun Fact: Enjoys Chick Flicks 

Philadelphia is one of the greatest cities in the world in terms of rowing (and in general). Growing up in the city, when did rowing become part of your life? 

"I started getting involved with rowing because of my Dad. He works with the Philadelphia Fire Department and he was a part of their Dragon Boat team. He would practice on the Schuylkill River and come home and tell me about all of the rowers he saw training out on the river. He mentioned how fit  they were and how it could help keep me in shape for football." 

"Also, my cousin, John Snyder (he's a beast) rowed in high school and earned a scholarship to college for it, that lead to him to train a bit with the under 23 National Team" 

As you packed your bags to head upstate for college, what impact did the City and the Schuylkill have on you both as a racer and an individual that you carry with you wherever you go? 

"Well I was leaving home for the first time. I never really traveled that much growing up, I pretty much stayed in the neighborhood with friends and family. Being in the city I always had a shield up and kept to myself. Especially when I used to take the bus and subway to school everyday - I just had a guard up at all times. [The City] makes you a strong, independent, individual, not as accepting and friendly to strangers. I noticed this on move-in-day when some kids in my hallway were looking at me as I walked towards my room. At first I was like what the hell are they looking at? As they got closer they said "Hey, whats up?" I didn't know if they were talking to me, but after the fact it was kind of an eye opener to what it was going to be like up here." 

"Training on the Schuylkill throughout High School was very beneficial in terms of being around elite athletes all the time. It forces you hold yourself to high standards and to be mature on the river." 

I understand you were looking at a few other schools, what was it about Mercyhurst that grabbed you? 

"I kind of wanted to get away a bit, and the other schools were a lot closer to home. I wanted to experience something new. All of the grass and trees and big front lawns were all something I've never been exposed to. It still had that neighborhood feel that I embraced back home. So it was a combination of new experiences and the sense of community I grew up around." 

Don't start crying on me now, but as you approach the half-way point in your college career, what are some of your favorite things about this whole experience? 

"Connecting myself with people I could've never imagined meeting. I know have a group of friends that I consider brothers from all over the world. I now have brothers from Serbia, Germany, Poland, Canada, Connecticut, Pittsburg, Boston, Arizona, Miami, and DC....all linked by a common passion. It is a very unique experience. There is no better feeling in the world then going up to the line with eight other guys knowing they got your back and you have theirs and you're about to throw that thing down the course..HOT!"

As you approach your 7th year of rowing, as one of the top varsity athletes in this program, what is your philosophy on the sport of rowing? 

"My personal philosophy, when it comes to rowing, is: Don't try to make a boat, try to make a boat go fast. What this means is that I don't train to specifically to make a certain boat, I want to be able to adapt to whatever boat I am in and be able to contribute everything I have to the boat speed and make it go faster in any scenario. I try to achieve that goal by looking at every day as an opportunity to better myself and get faster. I don't do this by taking leaps and bounds. I take it inches at a time; Strokes at a time. If I take one hundred good strokes in the morning I try to take one hundred and one good strokes in the afternoon. Same as a race, you don't win it by strokes, you win it by inches." 

As you take on the role of being the eldest child back home, who is the most influential person in your life thus far that has made you the role model you are for your younger siblings and peers? 

"First off, I am not a child. I am a grown ass man. Getting back to the question, I would hands down have to say that my father is the most influential person in my life. He's the type of guy that wakes up every morning, packs his lunch, puts his hard hat on, and goes to work. He gets the job done day in and day out. He is, without a doubt, the hardest working man I know. He has taught me to be an honest working man who leads by example." 

Before we leave, drop some knowledge bombs on our readers.

"There are two things about integrity: 

1) If you have it, nothing matters. 

2) If you don't have it, nothing matters." 

Famous quotes from the man himself: 

-It is what it isn't 

-Expectations are premeditated resentment

-3. 2. 1. Boyz!

-Yo my boy Matt Weaver

-V-Quad Boyz

-Donkey Punch it down the race course

-Controlled caos boys...controlled caos

-FMP

-Lets Get SWEATY

Reflection: Knecht Cup

As you can see over on the right side of the blog, we only have 4 days until we hit the road for Dad Vails. ONLY 4 DAYS!

Amidst all of the excitement surrounding Dad Vail's week, I've been taking some time out of each day to reflect on this season. It has been a roller coaster of a ride, and totally different than any season I have had since I joined this sport. I want to take you back to the weekend of April 11th when the team travelled to Princeton, NJ to compete at the Knecht Cup on Mercer Lake. I never talked about this race because something happened to our boat that weekend. It was a coxswains worst nightmare...we missed our race. The regatta was unusually unorganized this year because Saturday racing got cancelled (for the most part), due to very high winds. This pushed almost all of the races into Sunday, forcing the regatta to be very hectic. My boat won the morning semi-final very easily, crossing the line about 10 beats (strokes-per-minute) than we normally would in a contended race. After taking the majority of the day to stay off of our legs, our boat returned to the course from the hotel around an hour before we had to launch for the final.

(Men's 4+ Knecht Cup)

As we arrived to the course, our teammates and coaches notified us that the regatta was delayed about a half an hour due to the amount of races they were trying to squeeze in. We adjusted our pre-race plan accordingly, and proceeded to warm-up when the time was right. Somehow, from the time we got to the race course to the time we started rowing up to the starting platforms, the regatta had caught back up to the original schedule. There was only one problem; we had no idea.

I had the guys running through our normal warm-up procedure and all of the focus was internal so none of the guys, including myself was that concerned with what was going on outside of the boat. As we took a break in warming up to get some water and strip down a layer of clothing, we began to look around and get a sense of what was going on around us. When we looked out onto the race course I could feel every heart in our boat sink into the bottom of the hull as we all realized simultaneously that the race we were supposed to be in, the final, the won we wanted to win; was already a quarter of the way into the race. Devastated is the only word that I can use to describe the feeling as the officials told us to row back to the docks since we missed our race. Not a word was said going back to the docks.

There is around 40 combined years of rowing in our four and not one of us had ever missed a race. I can only speak for myself, but I still have nightmares where in my dream my boat misses the race. I have had at least one every week since Knecht Cup. As a coxswain, I carry a lot of responsibility in terms of making sure everything is right on race day and I took a lot of the blame that day, even though no one else blames me. Obviously I have channeled it into a learning point in my career and another page in the story our boat is writing this season, but at the end of the day I still get flashbacks to the feeling I had that Sunday afternoon. I'm sure I sound ridiculous in saying all of this; perhaps you have to be in that situation to understand.

This is just one piece of the story that brings us into Dad Vails; look forward to reading more on the 'Road to Dad Vails' throughout this week!

Stay Classy,
B

4 Days 'til Vails: Visualization

Only the men's team raced this weekend, which meant the women's team finally got a weekend off from racing. However, our definition of a weekend off here at Mercyhurst is probably slightly different compared to what you had in mind. 

The men sent two eights to race this weekend and they departed at 7am for the Princeton Boathouse. Meanwhile back at Findley Lake, the women went out with a former Mercyhurst rower so we wouldn't miss any practice while both of our coaches were gone. Friday afternoon we did something a little bit different than our usual 2:20-5 tech practice on the water. Instead, each boat got together and did tech work in the tanks and then visualization. 

A visualization is when the boat all sits together, turns off the lights, and the coxswain "talks them through a race". Starting with the moment the boat gets off the bus, the coxswains tells them what the weather is like, what the boat is doing to prep for the race, the warm-up, all leading up to when they get hands-on. Following that the details of rowing up to the start, getting in the stake boats, who's in our race, and finally - the race. Just like they would in a race the coxswain goes through the entire start sequence and then is informing the rowers what is going on each 500 all the way until the boat crosses the finish line. The rowers then open their eyes and turn the lights on and the visualization has ended.

The reason for the lights out, race day discussions? There's a lot of solid research out there that supports the use of performance visualizations and the research shows that this can help build muscle memory as well as anxiety reduction. It's the idea that if you picture yourself doing something, and having it so smoothly, your body and brain will be more likely to focus on the task at hand when race day comes along without being anxious since it's technically done it before.

All of this leading up to one goal: Dad Vail Regatta

Women's Team Rankings

The plan was to post this on Wednesday for Women's Team Wednesday but the information hadn't been officially posted yet so here it is on a Thursday. 

"The main thing is to keep the main thing the main thing" -Adrian Spracklen
This quote has been the goal of the season since winter training, and even once I understood what it meant, it wasn't until this week that I was able to grasp why we were repeated told this. It was because having the focus and dedication that we've been able to have all season and the repeated hard work and sacrifice truly does have a pay off in the end. 

9:05 PM on a this Tuesday night, the women's team received a text message from Coach Adrian Spracklen....

Hearing the news that Mercyhurst had moved up to third was one of the highlights of the season so far, not just for myself but for the entire team. We kept telling each other that the current D2 standings weren't accurate in regards to us being fourth and that we were ready to put the work in and prove everyone wrong. "This is going to be our year" has been another phrase said around practice this season and moving up from our #4 spot proves that this team is ready to do what it takes to win it all. 

Third is an amazing accomplishment, but it still isn't were we want to be for this season. While the goal is to make it onto the podium at NCAA Championships in Sacramento this year, it's a gold medal that is really pushing all of us. As a team, the goal is to continue to work hard and continue keeping the main thing our main thing and get ready to battle it out in California.

Throwback Thursday

This week I am throwing it back to the Fall of 2013.

This is a photo from my third ever collegiate race. It was such a great feeling when coach told the team we would be racing in Virginia that fall. I had only been at school for a month or so and I was already notifying my family that I would be coming home for a race in a few weeks, let me tell you, they were excited! The course were we raced at, the Occoquan River, was my home course all throughout high school and I won three State Championships on that river. The race we raced in, The Head of the Occoquan was also a race I won many times during high school so I felt as if I had the home court advantage coming down that race course a year and a half ago. (Not to mention it was a beautiful day)

MACRA Championships

This weekend we raced is Ypsilanti, Michigan in the MACRA Championships and for the women's team, this is was our last time on a 2,000m buoyed course until the Dad Vail Regatta in two weeks. The weather was dreary but the rain held out thankfully and the wind stayed minimal. And if you're a seasoned rower you know that a regatta, races rarely run on time, and sometimes you have to wait behind the starting blocks for upwards of 20 minutes. This past weekend, races reached a delay of an 1.5 hours and the slow process up at the start had some boats waiting 40 minutes up by the start.

Despite the delays, the women's team was able to race and all boats advanced to either the grand or petite finals. The Mercyhurst women were able to take home two medals this past weekend and are ready to compete for more as the season starts to come to a close. You can read more about this weekend by clicking here.

Women's 8+ : Second in Grand Finals
Women's 4+ A : First in Grand Finals
Women's 4+ B : Second in Petite Finals
Women's Frosh/Novice 4+ : Sixth in Grand Finals


Want to find out more about upcoming regattas or results from past regattas? Check out RegattaCentral for all the information.

Men's Team Monday

Name: Doug Riethmuller

Class: Senior

Years Rowing: 4

Degree of Study: BS Anthropology/ Archaeology

Concentration/Minor: Archaeology (Concentration) Geology (Minor)

Position: 3 Seat/LWT 8

Hometown: Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania

Fun Fact: My eyes are each two colors.

1) Describe your coming about with the sport of rowing, what made you decide to start rowing?

"In order to explain why I started rowing at Mercyhurst I need to take you back to junior year of High school.  I decided that year to become involved in some athletic pursuit, and the options that were available were Rowing or Ultimate (Frisbee). These were club sports at school, and were both very welcoming to new faces.  I decided to give Ultimate a try, ultimately (pun intended) because it was cheaper and most of my friends were on the team. So I played until I graduated, had a lot of fun and started to foster a self-competitive attitude. Once here at Mercyhurst, I saw the flyers for a rowing informational meeting, and decided that I’d give it a whirl and see how I enjoyed it.  After starting to get the hang of it my freshman year, and starting to see success, I was hooked.  The upperclassman and my fellow freshman all were very welcoming and provided a great environment that I wanted to stay involved with."

2) What ultimately brought you to Mercyhurst?

"The strength of the Archaeology department, hands down.  Mercyhurst Archaeological Institute (MAI) has worked on some very high profile and well known sites, been involved with really neat artifacts, and has some professors that literally wrote the book in their respective fields. This coupled with the small liberal arts college feel, and the convenient distance from home (not too far, not too close) made it a very good choice.  It was actually the only school I applied to."

3) After rowing all four years here at Mercyhurst, what has rowing taught you? 

"It taught me discipline both physical, as well as mental. It has fostered time management and the ability to put aside differences for a greater good. I have learned a lot about myself and what I am capable of. Had I not rowed, I really do not know how different my life would be right now, however I couldn't imagine college without it."

4) Can you talk about one of your most memorable moments with the team?

"I really couldn't isolate one experience. The entire process of learning to row to competing, and the intense training in between has been an experience that I doubt I will ever truly forget."

5) You graduate in a little over three weeks from now, where do you see your life taking you next?

"Right after graduation I’ll be working with a company called SWCA, and environmental consulting agency, and I will be doing archaeological field work.  This consists of examining/testing the ground ahead of any building projects that may disturb sites of archaeological importance. If the project will impact these sites, we will be responsible for mitigating any damage by excavating them.  I plan on doing that sort of work for the near future, then potentially back to grad school probably for an advanced archaeology degree."

6) As one of five graduating seniors from the Men's Rowing team, what is the biggest take-away message to the underclassmen?

"To always keep the primary reason that you row at the forefront of your mind, during the great days and the bad."

"Also tip your waiters and waitresses."

Fun Fact Friday

Sticking to the trend of being late this week, I missed "Throwback Thursday" so I bring you: "Fun Fact Friday!"

Fun Fact: The Men's Rowing Team at Mercyhurst has transitioned into an entirely Lightweight Program over the past few years. 

This means that all of the guys have to weigh in under 160lbs on race day. The part that makes it even more interesting is that most of the races require each boat to have an average weight of 155lbs. This means that while the guys have to be under 160lbs, many of the guys have to be even lighter in order to bring the boat average down to 155lbs. I have seen some of the guys cut weight in the most ridiculous ways while at college and it only goes to show how much of a commitment this is to them. One of the most eye opening things when I came here was sitting in the dining hall after practices and watching how much thought the guys put into what they are eating. It comes down to a science for most of them, and this sport engulfs every aspect of their life; on and off the water. 

Women's Team: Mairead Manke

Mairead Manke
Biology Major
Senior
Varisity 4+

This is a little delayed but fits that I'm not doing this on a Wednesday since this rower isn't just my #wcw but my #wce. Her witty personality shines through off the water and the moment you put her in a boat, she has focus like no other rower and will do whatever it takes to push herself and win. I introduce to you all the sassy senior, Maired Manke.

Tell me, how did you get into rowing?
Oh lordy, okay so it was the second day of school and I was still getting acquainted with everything and went down the hall to hang out with some friends my roommate had met. Later on, one of them said they were leaving to go to a meeting and I said I would go with her. It turned out to be the rowing meeting for the novices and Jamie and Adrian were there and they just talked about it and I just kind of put my email down and started coming to practice...and I never quit. I must have a real sadistic personality but it was good, it helped me meet a lot of my friends and create new outlets in college. 

What was it like when you first got in a boat?
Well it was an old pocock and it had these clog shoes and I was thinking, "Good god this is gross, I hope we don't go in. I don't know what I'm doing" pretty much. I remember the first couple practices we didn't even get off the dock, we just sat in the boat and hung out on the docks because that was al we could do.

What was the reason that made you stick with rowing for these past four years?
Well I have a really competitive sports personality. I'm not competitive with board games and that stuff but with sports it's like I have to good and something and then I stick with it. Rowing was really different from any of the other sports I had played before, I was previously involved in hockey and softball which are more of contact sports and require certain skill sets. While rowing on the other hand is kind of like a free for all, you can be anybody and you can figure it out. It was really cool being able to adapt and be good at a  spot that I had just started, I wouldn't have been able to do that with any other sport.

Why did you decide to be a rower instead of a coxswain? 
(For those of you who haven't had the pleasure of meeting Mairead, she stands just over 5'4" and is a lightweight)
As soon as a I learned what a coxswain was and what they did, I  made sure to not become one. It's not that they sit back and don't do anything but they sit back and they steer and I'm not about that. I have to be in the action, so there was no way that was happening.

Just briefly describe the journey of going from sitting on a dock because that was all you could do, to racing down the finals at NCAA all in one year.
Well freshman year in particular was torturous, it was the hardest physical exertion period of time in my entire life. I've never been more exhausted and sore. And we had sort of a smaller team way back when and there were only 13 or 14 of us that were even eligible to row. I was able to squeak my way into the four and I remember at the time we had  really competitive eight and a freshman four and we made it work. We got to go to NCAAs so we didn't mess it up that bad and Kristine and Leyla who were also in the four are still hanging around. 

Sitting here now, what is it like on your way to your last NCAAs?
Ugh, well it's really exciting because the group of people we are going with are an exceptional group of people. They are really good at rowing first and foremost, and we always talk about team chemistry and how it's really important for speed in the boats and this year it seems like we seem to be clicking even though we're all from different corners of the world. And then, Sacramento. I mean come on it's going to be really fun and I think it's going to be a really good course since Indianapolis was always windy and was had to get a good row in at times so I think this course will be a really good test of our true speed.

And how have you had to adapt by being tinier than everyone else?
Oh sweet mama jamba, well... I have to try and eat more than I want to because caloric intake is really important for me to maintain the little weight that I have and we have a really rigorous training so it's hard to keep that weight on. I know that I'm never going to be big though, so instead of worrying about it I just know that I have to be the best the way that I am. I've been trying to optimize my length, that's been a huge thing I've been working on the past three and a half years and I think I've finally gotten to a point where it's really good. So with that it doesn't matter that my legs are rally short because I row the same length and the fact that I weight 20-30 pounds less than people is just an advantage for me because I don't bog anything down. 

Would you say that rowing has changed you in any way?
Yeah, I thought I knew what blisters were before I started rowing and now I really know what blisters are. But yeah, it's taught me a lot about my mental limitations and being able to get past them. It's taught me about my physical limitations and how to exceed them through training. It's also taught me incredible things about her people and how to deal with the differences between you and how to incorporate different personalities into a competitive situations. I would say it's brought primarily positive things, aside from the sore butt and hurting hamstrings.

Last question, you know that's all going online right?
You're not going to transcribe everything... Oh that's awful, this is just twelve minutes of shenanigans.

Mairead and Taylor showing that Women's V8+ beat Barry by 2 seconds in the heats at Knecht Cup

A big thanks to Mairead for letting me interview you, and for making me laugh multiple times throughout it! 

Throwback Thursday

I apologize for the delay on the Women's Team Wednesday, my bow seat is a busy gal but her story on how she went from a novice to the finals at NCAAs is on its way! Never fear though, Throwback Thursday is here :)

I'm throwing it back to this week actually, because we have had some pretty bad weather at Findley Lake and yes, yes there has been snow in late April....
Don't believe me? Check on this picture our coaches snapped as we were heading out to row in the tundra.

We managed to have one or two days this week without a snowy surprise and I was able to capture it on video and thought I would share it for this week's throwback. I was able to get some video of this year's promising Frosh 8+ as they prepare for our race this weekend in Michigan and you can hear the wise words on Coach Adrian
Spracklen in the background as he helps them fine tune their rowing. 

Men's Team Monday

Name: Blaze Kelly

Class: Junior

Years Rowing: 9

Degree of Study: B.S. Sports Medicine; Minor in Biology

Concentration: Pre-medicine

Position: Bow Seat LWT 4+

Hometown: New Milford, CT

Fun Fact: Dobro Jutro

1) How did you first get into rowing? 

"Before we begin, is this for the record?"

Me: "Yes"

"Ok lets begin."

"I have an older cousin who rowed throughout high school for Miami Beach Rowing Club and was offered a full-ride to row at University of Florida. A few years later, around 2006, I saw a poster for a rowing club in my town in Connecticut, so I decided to sign up. When I signed up I was pretty short and so it was suggested I become a coxswain. After a few months, about the same time they realized I wasn't the best coxswain, I grew (a bit) so I was put in a boat. The first time I rowed I was bow in a quad with three other older guys in the program, it wasn't pretty. I was basically chasing them up the slide, putting my oars in and letting the water pull them to the finish, [Laughter] when I got off the water I thought to myself, I can't imagine they are going to let me do this again. Eventually, I got a better feel for it and really focused on perfecting my technique, as my coach at the time said it was the most important thing I could work on. After a rough season, or two, or three, I started to work hard and went to a few national championships and got a taste of success... Now Im gearing up for my third Dad Vail Championship."

2) What brought you to Mercyhurst?

"It wasn't an immediate decision, Mercyhurst was always in the back of my mind, but I was talking to a handful of other schools as well. While I was in highschool, three guys from my club were all recruited to row at Mercyhurst and they were rowing at Mercyhurst. All three of them won Dad Vails and it looked pretty awesome. I didn't even know what Dad Vails was, I definitely didn't know who Mr. Vail was or his Dad, but I wanted to win one. The guys told me about the program and only had good things to say, so they pretty much sold me. Overall, it was basically a combination of the programs winning reputation and the guys who I knew who rowed here that made me decide on Mercyhurst."



3) What is your favorite part about rowing?

"My favorite part about rowing is winning, not to be shallow, but I'm a goal oriented person and winning is a tangible product of hard work. After a few seasons of being dead last in races (PBL), I eventually got a taste for winning and I was hooked. Going off that, the other thing that is up there would be when you get a crew that has really good chemistry and a really good feel for the boat and you are able to row relaxed and have finesse, yet be explosive and powerful at the same time, thats really the feeling I'm after in every boat I row in."

3.5) Favorite part about Mercyhurst?
Germans. (Jonas Weller)

4) What has been your hardest day at Mercyhurst?

"To start, the only easy day was yesterday. There have been more hard days than I can count, but that comes along with the sport. It's not an easy sport so you're going to have hard days, but that makes it even more rewarding. A challenge for me is trying to balance my schoolwork, sleep, and rowing. Sometimes my schoolwork cuts into my sleep which cuts into my rowing. I've learned the hard way, it is not easy getting up at 4:50 if you were up late working on something the night before.

5) What is your outlook on practice?

"I basically look at practice as my job. The coaches or coxswains give us the workout, so we know what we have to do, and it is our responsibility to get the job done. This is the same outlook I had in high school. My coach G-man, would tell us what to do (the workouts, the training, etc.) and I would do it exactly as he said to. I carried that over when I came here to Adrian's coaching. I'm confident that Adrian and Jamie know what is best, and have much more experience behind them. I'm always appreciative of the advice they have to offer."

6) What is the biggest take-away from rowing at Mercyhurst?

"I think the biggest take away would be the camaraderie between the guys on the team. I wasn't used to this before coming here, because there were only a handful of guys at my club back home, and here we have around 30 guys and 1 girl....and we are all really close."

7) What are your plans with rowing after you graduate?

"I've been rowing for nine years, next year will be my tenth year. I plan on using my last year here as motivation for me to finish my colligate career strong. Although in the future, down the road, I see myself rowing. My sights after graduation are set on Medical School; that is my number one priority. The best way I can describe continuing rowing at the caliber I do now, is by the following Steve Redgrave quote, "Anyone who sees me in a boat has my permission to shoot me."Although I'm 20 years, four olympic golds, and 10 inches short of Redgrave, what I'm trying to say is; I try to give everything I've got right now on a daily basis and that doesn't come at an easy price."


8) Can you talk a little bit about what it is like living with a Serbian? 

"I would say living with a Serbian is basically like living with any other college roommate one would encounter. During the middle of the night you might wake up to cursing in another language, sometimes the apartment smells like traditional Eastern European food, and I learned how to say good morning in Serbian; Dobro Jutro (Or at least I think that's what it means)."

Throwback To Ergs

(There were some problems posting this on Thursday so here's a Throwback Sunday!)

I decided to bring it back to to J-term, which is a three week period during our six week winter break where Mercyhurst students can come back to campus and take a class. It's one class a day, three hours a day, for three weeks and really helps to get a class out of the way. 

The rowers all come back for J-term so we can then take one less class during the hectic spring semester and to officially kick off winter training. 

We practiced twice a day, cross-training/lift in the morning and erging in the afternoon, and questioned our sanity approximately twice a week. J-term may have been hard at times but it brought the team closer together and got us one step closer to Alabama!

For the women's team we made a banner that we all signed that read "We Row For Cali" to remind us the every painful erg piece was all working towards a greater goal: NCAAs in Sacramento. We also figured out that Sacramento is about 4 million meters from Erie and decided that we were literally going to "row to Cali" and row 4 million meters as a team over winter training. 

Here's a photo of our assistant coach Jamie Francis showing off the meters rowed in January, such a proud coach!

Picture of the Day

The world famous rowing website "Row2k.com" is a rowers hub for pictures, results, blogs, polls, and anything rowing related. Thousands of rowers use this website daily to stay in-tune with the rowing world news. Nearly and photo and any result form any race can be found in the pages of archives dating back to 1997!

One of the neat features on the home page of 'Row2k' is the Photo/Video of the day. Our very own Alexandra Kleckner, on the Mercyhurst Women's Rowing team, submitted a picture of the sunrise at Presque Isle here in Erie, Pa where you can find the Mercyhurst Rowing team rowing in the early hours of the morning (that is if you are awake at 5A.M.). It is always exciting when Mercyhurst receives national and sometime global attention in the rowing community!

Here is the photo:

"A Mercyhurst Morning"

Women's Team Wednesday

Margaret Kneuer 
Freshman
Psychology Major
Coxswain for the Varsity 8+
Fun Fact: her sister is also a coxswain (for Michigan State)

How did you start coxing?

I started coxing the summer going into my eighth grade, I was on learn to row and I wanted to be a rower and the novice coach pulled me aside and said, “You’re not allowed to carry a boat, you’re too tiny  - so you’re going to be a coxswain”.

What were your reasons to want to cox in college?

It’s my passion and I had fallen in love with the sport in middle school and it continued into high school and now I can’t imagine my life without crew.

So what made you choose Mercyhurst?

Adrian. To begin my search I wanted a balance between academics and athletics and Mercyhurst being division II made it out to be the best fit. As soon as I met the team and got to understand their rowing philosophy and they team organization I know it was perfect. 

What was it like for you to go from the high school to collegiate level?

I think the transition was subtle because I couldn’t pinpoint the differences, you have the experience but you’re still also rowing and learning and you have to learn brand new ways of rowing.  Luckily in high school I had four different coaches so I was used to the different rowing styles so I was able to be very adaptable in that sense.

I think the difference is mainly that it is very competitive and every single person in college rowing is there to compete. Not to say that high school isn’t, but the team as a whole is more professional and more competitive. You’re now training very hard and every single person is putting everything they have into it. 

Tell me about your season so far…

I think the season is going better than I imagined it going at this point. We’re very competitive, we’re off to a strong start and winning. It’s very obvious that the winter training has paid off. It was very hard and stressful but we are now seeing the results and we’re getting faster. Every day we’re getting faster and are getting more in unison with each other and we’re growing and I’m ready to race - I’m ready to continue to race. 

Let’s talk about the rankings right now for Mercyhurst. It’s going around the team that they seem inaccurate, would you agree with that?

YES. Absolutely! I’ve been looking at them and I understand that Nova has higher numbers than us and maybe i’m confused with the ranking system… they did get points subtracted but it’s a little different to see that they are still ranked above us even though we beat them with open water. I want to learn the system a little better but I do think that we’re ready to prove them wrong.

After graduating from Mercyhurst, where do you see yourself in the rowing world?

Coaching. The goal is to be a coxswain coach but I would at least like to be some kind of varsity coach. Having that as a side job alongside psychology would be ideal. And hopefully someday I’ll be able to encourage my children to try rowing and potentially find the same passion I have for the sport.