The annual Men’s Crew Class Day event will be hosted this Saturday, March 18 at the WSU boathouse on the Snake River at Wawaiwai Landing. The weekend starts with a BBQ reunion of alumni and friends Friday night at the Livestock Pavilion. The next afternoon the races begin at 1 p.m.
First there are heats and finals amongst the current oarsmen to determine which class (FR, SO, JR or SR) can field the fastest crew over the 1000 meter course. After that is decided, the winning class will have the honor of racing against an armada of alumni boats in the 500 meter grand finale.
Some of the alumni boats will include rowers or coxswains that were on the team since its formation in 1970. Others will feature oarsmen who may have graduated just last spring.
“The starting command for this final race is a countdown start, 5, 4, 3, 2, 1, Attention… Go,” notes Officer Karl Huhta (So. Sports Management). “Many of the alumni boats are already heading down the course before we get to 3. The more seniority they have, the more liberty they have with the start.”
But do not doubt that these alumni have come to race. “Last years final was separated by less than one second between the seniors and the recent grads, recalls Vice Commodore Chris Seaman (Jr. Mech. Engineering). And the rest of the field was very close.”
The weekend will also include the one year anniversary and annual meeting of the Cougar Crew Alumni Association, and a banquet with slideshow in the Lewis Alumni Centre. This year for the first time, the women’s team will be racing in the class day races as well.
