Four Bromfield Acton-Boxborough crews represented the team Sunday, Oct. 23, at the 53rd Head of the Charles Regatta the unofficial world championship of rowing’s head-style racing. The warm, sunny weather made for the finest conditions the event has enjoyed for years; according to regatta officials, 36 course records fell over the weekend. The 3-mile race runs from the Boston University boathouse to Christian Herter Park in Allston. The top BA-B finisher? Program director and girls varsity Coach Holly Hatton coxed her senior Grand Masters 8 to victory, grabbing gold in their age group.
The varsity boys in a coxed quad and an 8 had two challenging runs down the course, said Coach Brian DeDominici. “Both coxswains had to deal with crowded turns and heavy traffic for nearly the entire race,” he said. “They made some great decisions in tough situations, keeping their boats safe and in the best position to go their fastest.” The quad finished 20th, and the 8 finished 44th. Both crews gained time on crews they had raced against earlier in the season, DeDominici noted.
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The boys quad, from left, Alex Ewing of Acton, Spencer Tingle of Harvard, and Kevin Yu of Harvard. (Courtesy photos)
The varsity girls 4 finished ninth out of 85 crews, but a one-minute penalty for failing to yield to another crew bumped them down to 34th place. “This situation did not include any contact between the two crews, and clearly did not slow the passing crew down,” said Coach Hatton. “Referees on the shoreline make these snap decisions, and from this coach’s perspective this was an unwarranted penalty, since the passing crew never tried to take the course line from our crew. At the end of the day, I’d rather know our coxswain was driving her crew to be the best it could be.” Even with the penalty, the 4 finished in the top half, which means they have a guaranteed spot for 2018.
The girls 8 set off 53rd but finished 38th, locking up another 2018 spot for the team. “It’s been a while since our team has had the depth to secure two guaranteed entries for the next year,” Hatton noted. “The results of a crew can clearly be reflected in the steering and decision making of the coxswain, and I think both of ours did an excellent job in helping their crew achieve such good results.”
Harvard’s Rachel Shrives coxes the girls 8; the rower in stroke seat is Acton’s Summer Maxwell.
Learn to Row Coach Alison Thornton raced in the Director’s Challenge women’s quad event and finished 12th. Several BA-B team alumni also competed. 2017 Bromfield graduate Cammy Farren coxed a Champion four to fifth place, which was good enough for a medal; at Head of the Charles, the top five finishers are awarded.
On Sunday, Oct. 29, BA-B will finish the fall season with varsity crews competing at the Head of the Fish in Saratoga Springs, New York, and novices at the Massachusetts Public Schools Rowing Association’s state championship regatta in Lowell.
Race Results
Men’s Youth Coxed Quads: Christopher Clark, Kevin Yu, Spencer Tingle, Alexander Ewing, and coxswain Amy Zhu, 20th place, 15:35.954
Men’s Youth 8s: David Shlimak, Dwight Fairchild, Ben Buchovecky, Matt Adams, Connor O’Shea, Will Thompson, John Walsh, Kyle Veo, and coxswain Nilay Maity, 44th place, 17:09.500
Women’s Youth 4s: Kaylee Liu, Katherine Fay, Anna Shlimak, Erin Smith, and coxswain Sila Inanoglu, 34th place, 18:49.044 (19:49.044 with one-minute time penalty)
Women’s Youth 8s: Alissa Kong, Fiona Carrez, Valentine Bulpin, Alice Pope, Ella Bull, Zoe Flanzer, Grace White, Summer Maxwell, and coxswain Rachel Shrives, 38th place, 17:43.306
Coach and Alumni Race Results
Luca Basile: College of the Holy Cross, Men’s Championship 8s, 26th place, 14:59.820
Terry DeWitt: Cambridge Boat Club, Men’s Senior Master’s 8s, 29th place, 17:10.842; Directors Challenge Mixed 8, 18th place, 17:23.803 (16:46.803 with age adjustment)
Emily Erdos: Princeton University, Women’s Championship 8s, 12th place, 15:31.482
Katie Erdos: Dartmouth College, Women’s Championship 8s, 21st place, 15:49.135
Cammy Farren: University of Tennessee, Women’s Championship 4s, fifth place, 17:40.958
Holly Hatton: États-Unis, Women’s Senior Grand Masters 8s, first place, 18:44.592
Grace Remillard: Mount Holyoke College, Women’s Collegiate 8s, 24th place, 18:27.714
Sylvia Sarnik: MIT, Women’s Lightweight 8s, 6th place, 16:20.241
Ruth Kennedy Sudduth: Cambridge Boat Club, Women’s Senior Masters 8s, 17th place, 19:02.712
Kirsten Thiim: Trinity College, Women’s Collegiate 4s, 9th place, 18:46.711
Alison Thornton: Cambridge Boat Club, Director’s Challenge Women’s Quad, 12th place, 19:01.305 (18:16.305 with age adjustment)
Charles Watt: College of the Holy Cross, Men’s Championship 8s, 26th place, 14:59.820
Jill Maxell is the parent of a B-AB rower.
