Rowing Headed to Prestigious Head of the Charles Regatta
10/21/2011 12:00:00 AM | Rowing
TUSCALOOSA, Ala. - The Alabama rowing team competes in the prestigious Head of the Charles Regatta in Cambridge, Mass., starting this Saturday.
"It's one of the regattas that we really look forward to racing at because we have an opportunity to compete against a lot of top-flight crews," UA head coach Larry Davis said. "It will give us the chance to go against not only college teams, but club and international crews as well. It also gives us an idea of how our overall boat speed is. We're looking forward to that kind of competition."
This will be the sixth year in a row that Alabama has competed in the Head of the Charles Regatta which plays host to crews from not only the United States, but also a number of international clubs. Last year, the Tide placed ninth overall in the Club 8+ race at Head of the Charles. Additionally Alabama has medaled at the venerable regatta during the last half-dozen years.
On this year's trip, Alabama is taking two boats to Cambridge, and will compete in the Club 8+ and the Championship 8+ races. Those crews will be led by UA's veterans, but the team is also relying on its newcomers to make headway against some of the nation's top teams.
"While we are young this year, I think we have an opportunity, based on our experience up to this point in the fall, to really go out and nail some solid performances," Davis said.
This weekend marks the Tide's second outing of the season. The team opened the season on October 8 at the Head of the Chattanooga, during which Davis learned a great deal about this year's team.
"We had an opportunity to really find out what we're capable of," Davis said. "I don't think we've rowed our best race yet, with that being our first one, but I think we really showed a lot of potential with what we did at the Head of the Chattanooga."
