The hardest part about racing three times is that we can’t go as hard as we would like in the first two races, since we need to save all the energy we can for the third one. At the same time, we are under pressure (from coaches and from ourselves) to win with a healthy margin; after all, we’re the national team. But how much is enough to be comfortable? And will we be able to save enough energy for the final race? The success or failure of the first two races won’t be apparent until after the third, which is a bit frustrating. The competition doesn’t stop after 2000m, it stops when we load the trailer to go home.
With luck, the first two races won’t be very exciting. Charlie and Banks will almost certainly win the pair. They are studs, remain undefeated this season, and have been rowing well. I’ll be racing a pair with Brett, and though we’d like to push them, our chances are slim. Even if we do have a chance to win, we have a more important race an hour later so we will likely be satisfied with a silver medal. If we win the pair, but are so exhausted that we can’t race the 4- and 8+ well, the day will count as a loss.
We’re fairly confident for the fours race, since we’ve been seeing good times in practice. Our main competition will be the Under-23 four, starring my friend from Stanford, Mark Murphy. They’ll be quick, but we have more experience rowing in a straight four than they do. We’re more concerned with putting together a good piece and less concerned with the other crews in the event.
After these races are done, we’ll race the 8+. For us, this is The Main Event. Unlike the previous two races, this one will be a surprise. Our eight will be formed from the 4-, the 2-, and two other guys from our training center here in Princeton (Tyler and Troy). Another boat is made of guys who have come in from all over the country for the 8+ camp. We expect them to be our main competition, but there are two U23 boats in the race as well, filled with guys who row eights more than we do. They could be fast too. This race has the big question mark hanging over it. It will be fun. ?=Good Times.
