Geoff Bond

Men's Freshman Head Coach

Geoff Bond is a 1988 graduate of Brown University where he earned a B.A. in Classical Greek and Roman History. Bond rowed in Steve Gladstone's powerhouse Brown program between 1984 and 1988. During that period Brown won two Eastern Sprints Championships and four IRA National Championships.

After graduating, Bond and his wife, Hilary, spent two years teaching and coaching at the Salisbury School in Salisbury, Connecticut. Subsequently, they traveled to Japan where they taught English for two years. Bond headed the Berkeley High School Crew in '93/'94 and '95/'96. When Steve Gladstone returned to Cal in the Fall of '96 he asked Bond to join him as his unpaid Varsity Assistant. During his three years of apprenticeship under Gladstone, Bond helped develop the less experienced athletes. In 1999 he led the Bears' Henley Campaign which ended in a second-place finish in the Ladies' Plate at the Henley Royal Regatta.

Bond is currently in his eighth year at the helm of the California Freshman Crew. In addition to five straight PAC-10 wins, his crews have been in the medals at the IRA National Championships six of the last seven years. In 2004, 2005, and 2007 the Cal Frosh were Undefeated National Champions. The 2007 Freshmen punctuated their season with a win in the Temple Challenge Cup at the Henley Royal Regatta. This marked the first time a Cal Crew had ever won at Henley. With only two domestic losses since 2002, both in the Finals of the IRA, this has been an unprecedented period of success for the Cal Frosh Crew.

In the rare moments when he is not training his current athletes or recruiting the next generation of Cal oarsmen, Bond can be found preparing his house for the next big quake, hiking with his kids, or climbing the East Bay hills on his bike. Currently, he and his wife live in the Oakland hills with their three small children, Evelyn, Phineas, and Beatrix.