RowingRelated

Opening Day, 1987 via KOMO News (Screen capture) This week's combination #ThrowbackThursday-Video Of The Week post comes to us thanks to KOMO News, Seattle, and is a look back at the 1987 Windermere Cup, which saw the Soviet national rowing team come to the Northwest to race the Washington Huskies.

The Washington Huskies stepped up to the plate in a major way at this year's Henley Royal Regatta , picking up where Brown left off last year in the Grand Challenge Cup . (The above video provides a little background on the Husky boat at Henley.) While this year's field may be smaller than the last time round, the Huskies faced no small task on Saturday—between Washington and the final stood the Polish men's eight that had raced the Olympics in London (the same athletes, albeit in a slightly different arrangement), and which just took silver at the second World Rowing Cup at Eton Dorney. Despite the considerable pedigree of the Poles, Washington led from start to finish, edging out to an open water lead in the later stages of the race, and perhaps giving the GB crew (Leander Club & Molesey B.C.) something to think about for tomorrow's Grand Challenge Final. Also, we'd be remiss not to mention that the Northeastern men will be facing another GB crew in ...

Husky Rowing Triathlon 2012 from Washington Rowing on Vimeo . Two words: Winter. Training. The Washington Huskies are "putting hay in the barn" in grand fashion this year, and this video (shot in December, 2012) is further evidence that they are loving every minute of it. Following the traditional erg-run-stadiums triathlon, the Huskies earn 'recovery' food that is likely not at the top of every nutritionist's list—though undoubtedly part of a balanced breakfast (rowers run on Dunkin'). Props to Rick Gherst and the UW coaching staff for putting together another great training video! And, speaking of erging, the MidAtlantic Erg Sprints are in the books. There were some familiar faces doin' work in Alexandria, Virginia over the weekend. Former UVa standout, RR interviewee , and author of our first-ever ' On The Water ' series Matt Miller had another solid performance at MidAtlantics, successfully defending the men's open title in 5:51.8...

If you haven't seen the above video, then consider yourself among the few, but the fact is, it's well worth your attention. The Washington Huskies accomplished a rare feat over the weekend, sweeping the IRA Regatta and further solidifying their position at the top of men's intercollegiate rowing with an unprecedented sixth straight Ten Eyck Trophy as a result. The Huskies did this despite entering the 2012 season without the services of two of their top guns in 2011–Canadian standout Conlin McCabe , and physiological phenom Hans Struzyna , both of whom stoked the fires of the Husky 'engine room' last year. The Huskies also did this despite a late-season illness to one of their best international rowers, Mathis Jessen , who missed both Pac-12s and IRAs, causing head coach Mike Callahan to call up Austin 'AJ' Brooks into two-seat of the varsity eight (at all of 5'10" and 180 lbs, Brooks is a two-time USRowing youth national champion, a Henley win...

This week's video covers the history of Seattle's Lake Union, the waters of which served as the stage for the first ever meeting between George Pocock and legendary University of Washington coach Hiram Conibear  (after whom the new UW boathouse is named). Not only was this a fortuitous and fruitful meeting for both parties, but also it served as a seminal moment in the development of intercollegiate racing on the West Coast, and beyond. Thanks to RR reader Frederick Levy for sending the video along! Want to suggest the next 'Video of the Week?' Shoot us an email at rowingrelated [at] gmail [dot] com, send us your suggestion via Twitter ( twitter.com/rowingrelated ), or get in touch via our Facebook page . -RR

This past Sunday marked the 30th annual Crash-B Indoor Rowing World Championships, and there were some very familiar faces mixed in with a host of new ones in Boston. The University of Washington men dominated the Open event, with two elite level finishes from Conlin McCabe (overall winner in 5:48.0) and Hans Struzyna (second place overall in 5:52.6 -- he managed this while standing only 6'2" tall and weighing in at 185 lbs, according to the UW website). Is it just me, or is this maybe a statement about UW's intentions after last year's narrow defeat at the IRA? New York Athletic Club member and World Champion Jamie Koven showed that he still has much rowing ahead of him, crushing the Men's Masters (30-39) event in a time of 5:57 flat. This would be quite an achievement at any age, and is especially outstanding given the constraints his career places on his schedule. Outside of Koven, there was a noticeable lack of current men's US National Team members at...

Over the past few months and years we have seen a steady decline in the funding and support of 'non-revenue' men's athletics—or 'Olympic Sports' as Steve Gladstone called them while serving as Athletic Director at Cal. This process began with Title IX in 1990, and has recently picked up speed with a number of the state-funded schools experiencing financial setbacks due to the state of the economy. Just recently, we saw the latest victims here in the Bay Area fall to the economic pressures of rebuilding California and restructuring University of California finances, as the Cal Men's Baseball team was cut from the athletics department, along with the Men's Rugby team. Both were programs with a long history of success—the rugby squad was the most dominant such program in the United States, but when it comes time to cut spending, men's athletics are often the first item on the chopping block. In rowing, the few remaining varsity programs on the men's s...