First strokes at Tail of the Fish
SARATOGA SPRINGS, N.Y. >> Fall rowing can be one of the cruelest seasons for an athlete.
Many of the Saratoga Rowing Association competitors started their season in mid- to late August and Saturday was the first time they were able to wear their SRA uniforms and pull an oar against someone not in their boathouse at the annual Tail of the Fish Regatta on Fish Creek.
Starting above the Stafford Bridge, the rowers raced against the clock, negotiating an ‘S’ turn below the Skidmore boathouse and then heading towards the finish in front of the Route 9P Bridge.
“I think we train a lot towards the spring,” SRA executive director and freshman girls coach Eric Catalano said. “Getting into the fall we are testing ourselves against the other teams, but a lot of the training is geared to where we want to be in the spring so try to keep a long-term perspective while still being competitive in the short-term.”
The scholastic sports season at Saratoga Springs High School started Aug. 13 and with a green light across the state, many rowing teams also used the universal date to begin, but have an option to delay their start.
“We run into the same catch-22 with those sports, if we don’t start in August, we give up part of our summer to start early or we don’t start
early, you’re three weeks behind,” SRA regatta director and boys freshman coach Chris Chase said. “You are rowing at a 26 rating up against teams that are rowing 36 strokes per minute.
“They don’t want to start in August, but if they don’t you’re playing a season in mid-season form and you’re just ironing out the kinks.”
The Tail of the Fish is often the first competitive race of the season for some teams, but for the deep and talented SRA boys contingent, it’s just a different line-up or boat to race.
“We create a very competitive environment and we’ve got 53 guys sophomore to senior that we’re putting in boats and the only way we can do it is by racing them against each other,” SRA boys head coach Brad Maxwell said. “They’re used to racing by this time.”
With less than 250 boats entered in Saturday’s regatta it is a chance for new rowers and their parent volunteers to get a real taste of what a regatta weekend is like with the organization.
Saturday’s event hosted 40 teams compared to the Oct. 27 and 28 Head of the Fish when more than 175 teams and 2,000 shells will cover the same course, ten times Saturday’s traffic on and off Fish Creek.
“We need to teach our new volunteers their roles in the regattas,” Chase said. “Having something manageable, really manageable for new people is better than throwing them to the wolves at the (2-day) Head of the Fish.
Saturday delivered on the weeks of practicing and of things to come even if it is a month away before the shells are put up for the winter and the focus becomes on rowing machines indoors.
“We have had a solid month of training now and they’re anxious to race against somebody other than their teammates,” Catalano said. “They’re excited about that.
“I’d love to have the season just keep going through the winter, but Mother Nature doesn’t usually help out on that. We’re hoping to get some good training in even after the ice comes in, we’re hoping to get some good indoor training and they’ll be anxious to get back out on the water.”