Rowers begin testing the waters
High school crews compete in Early Bird Regatta on Henley rowing course
Sunday’s Early Bird Regatta in St. Catharines lived up to its name, and not just because of the date of the calendar.
Equally timely, perhaps even more so, was the weather: rainy and unseasonably cold in the morning.
But the early birds nonetheless got much-needed reps on the water, with their coaches getting glimpses into what seat assignments will, and won’t, work going forward in the all-too-short high school rowing season.
In all, 11 schools, all but three from Niagara, participated in what for many athletes was the first outdoor competition of the season.
Dominating the field at the one-day event on the Royal Canadian Henley rowing course on Martindale Pond were crews from St. Catharines.
Eden, Governor Simcoe, Holy Cross, Ridley College, St. Francis and Sir Winston Churchill entered boats, as did Blessed Trinity and Grimsby and A.N. Myer from Niagara Falls.
Toronto’s Branksome Hall and Buffalo’s Canisius High School were the out-of-town crews who towed their shells to Henley Cup for the unofficial start to the outdoor season.
Churchill had the most entries, with 15, followed by Branksome Hall and Ridley, 12 each.
Myer entered the fewest races, competing only in the senior women’s single and senior men’s 72-kilogram single.
The event attracting the most according to the Regatta Central website was the junior women’s eight, with nine boats in all.
Upcoming regattas in the region include the annual Mother’s Day Regatta, taking place Sunday, May 13, in St. Catharines; and the South South Invite Regatta, formerly the High School Invitational, May 19 and 20, Welland International Flatwater Centre south course.
High school rowers from Canada can also prepare for the national championships by competing in the Stotesbury Cup Regatta, May 18 and 19 in Philadelphia; as well as the U.S. Scholastic Regatta, May 25 and 26, Camden, N.J.
The high school season wraps up with the 73rd annual Canadian Secondary Schools Rowing Association Regatta June 1 to 3 in St. Catharines.