2000 SPRING WRAP-UP
Spring Season 2000 Wrap-up
The philosophy of McCallie’s Crew has always been centered on teaching boys the art of rowing well, learning to work as a member of a team, providing an opportunity to get in great physical condition, and to have some fun along the way. We believe that if we do these things well winning will take care of its self.
By any measure we have accomplished our mission. There were many highlights of the spring racing season beginning with the first regatta at Clemson in which our Varsity 8 and 2nd Varsity 8 finished first and second in the same event. Winning the Raoul Cup is always great; winning by several lengths of open water was even better. Our trip to the Midwest and a second place behind defending national champions, Cincinnati, gave us a sense of how good we really were. For the first time in ten years of trying McCallie’s Varstiy 8 won the championship which also gave us the right to claim that we are the Tennessee State Champions. The Lightweight Varsity, 2nd Varsity, and Novice A 8’s also won gold. With G.P.S. we claimed the team title for the second straight year. The story at the Southeastern Championships in Augusta can be summed up in a word, sweep. McCallie won all five men’s 8’s races. Again with GPS we won the combined points championship and the award for the top Novice program.
It’s an honor to send a boats to the U.S. Rowing Youth Invitational, a.k.a "the Nationals." It is a chance to race against the best in the country; in each event only the top two boats in each of the seven regions of the U.S. are invited. McCallie’s Varsity Light and Heavy weight boats preformed beautifly. The Lights, Josh Worthington, Grant Hixson, Josh Barnett, Tommy Thompson, Adam Kent Peterson Hostetler, Josh Mackler, Thomas Hoy, and Sumit Patel finished eighth (second in the Petite Final) with a tremendous finishing sprint. The heavy weights made the Grand Final in much the same way a our fine 1995 Crew did; to make the Grand Final both boats pulled a school record time. McCallie rowed the fastest 2,000 meters in school history with a 6:01 to finish fifth. McCallie’s line-up was Mark Richmond, Prentice Stabler, Trey Straussberger, Wayne McLemore, David Gardner, Taylor Banks, Chris Underwood, Anders Swanson, and Ashby Graham.
The teams in the final truly made this a National Champship race; they were in order of finish Greenlake from Seattle, Cincinnati Juniors, St. Joseph’s of Philadelphia, St. Paul’s from New Hampshire, McCallie, and Marin from the San Fransico area. The ’95 will see some familiar names in this list.
It was a great end to a great year. I told the guys that in a very real sense we have done what McCallie’s Crew sets out to do. We rowed well, worked together, we in magnificent condition and we had fun. The fun part was that all of us from McCallie the athletes, coaches and parents who were there made some fine memories that will last a long time.
R.A. Swanson