In both teams’ first year as a club sport, the LSU men’s and women’s rowing teams already have begun to make a name for themselves.
The teams hit the water for their first competition Nov. 3 at the Louisiana State Rowing Championships in New Orleans. Rowing club president Susanna Derlein said she was very proud of both the men’s and women’s teams, which placed first and second, respectively.
“The men’s boat raced first, and when they came across the finish line, I got tears in my eyes,” Derlein said. “I was so excited that we were so successful and that we finally had our first race after two years of hard work in forming the club.”
The LSU men took the win with an 8:02.2 finish.
In the women’s competition, Tulane finished just under 17 seconds ahead of LSU’s 5:18.1 to edge the Tigers out of first place.
The rowing team currently is training three days a week in preparation for the spring season, which Derlein said is the most competitive season for rowing. During the spring, the rowing team will attend a regatta or rowing race every other weekend.
In the sport of rowing, a boat can consist of different numbers of crew members. There are races of two, four and eight or more rowers. If there are eight or more rowers, a coxswain is needed. A coxswain is a non-rowing member of the crew who sits at the stern, facing the crew, and steers the boat. The coxswain also is the strategist and determines the speed and rhythm of the rowers’ strokes.
As first-time competitors, LSU competed in the novice category of the state championships. Tulane swept the varsity categories and will be tough competition, as they have won the national championship three times.