RowingRelated

This week's VOTW comes to us thanks to the efforts of Michigan men's head coach Gregg Hartsuff and the ACRA regatta committee, and features a great race between the top club varsity eights in the country. Michigan and Virginia fight it out all the way down the course, while the rest of the field is left to battle for third place. 2011 Collegiate Lightweight Crash-B Champ Greg Flood , one of the captains of the Notre Dame varsity squad, helps the Irish gain a place on the podium, rounding out the medals with a best-ever finish for ND at the event. This Friday, RR interviews Matt Miller of UVa's varsity eight, about the season, this race, and the team's plans for Henley coming up in just a few short weeks. Also, be sure to check out the coverage of the 109th IRA Regatta posted by Bryan on RowingNews.com , featuring photos and links to interviews with Mike Teti , Michael Callahan , Luke McGee , Crash-B Champion and Husky oarsman Conlin McCabe , as well as Hans Str...

Flood on the podium If you haven't heard the name Greg Flood yet, you will. Soon. Having started rowing as a college freshman at Notre Dame, Flood began his rowing career with a win in the Novice VIII at the ARCA Championship regatta in 2008, and has since racked up hardware of a different, perhaps more utilitarian kind. This past February, Flood won the Collegiate Lightweight division at Crash-B's for the second time in as many years, taking home the hammer in 6:12.8 -- still the fastest time of any US lightweight so far this season. In the U23 category, he placed second, behind only Steffen Jensen of Denmark. Here, Greg talks with RR about how he got started, what motivates him, and where he hopes to go with the sport he has taken to so quickly. RR: How did you get started rowing? What was your athletic background prior to college? GF: I, like many club rowers, took my first strokes when I got to college. However, I had already developed an interest in the sport bef...

There has been a ton of back-and-forth lately on the Rowing Illustrated boards about a new feature of the ACRA -- that being an 'All-Star' camp this coming summer under the guidance of none other than Gregg Hartsuff of Michigan, arguably the most recognizable club rowing coach in the US, and certainly one of the best. The idea is that club athletes who have a great deal of potential, but who fear that they will be given short shrift by the USRowing camp system due to their non-varsity backgrounds, will have the chance to develop their talent and be appreciated based on what will (hopefully) be some positive results at U23 Trials. While the idea in and of itself is a compelling one, it raises a number of issues that could further widen the rift between club and varsity sports, as well as between American collegiate rowing and our own National Team. (Note for non-US readers: US collegiate rowing is essentially split into two categories. While it is in reality slightly more com...