The Friends of Cal Crew is an organization of rowing alumni and friends of the California Men's and Women's Crew programs.
Cal Crew Friends Meeting Sparks Talk on Drawing New Members
As for the crews, coaches and stats say Bears are strong and on target
About 30 Friends of the Cal Crew gathered April 10 in the cozy confines of the Faculty Club’s Howard Lounge to eat, drink, socialize, and hear from coaches Steve Gladstone and Geoff Bond now that the 2008 racing season is underway.
First, Cal Crew Friends President Alan Mooers reminded the group that yes, individual dues were due again, and further that an additional $45,000 needs to be raised to meet the 2008 goal of $325,000 to support the Crew’s operating fund. The group is on target to meet and even exceed that goal. Then, Alan turned the topic to membership, and started a lively dialogue about how the group could draw more members.
Like many groups with maturing memberships, the Cal Crew Friends hashed over how to invite young people to join the fray. Young people with families and careers are busy, so what would it take to get them to come by, or, even better, join? What’s the secret? The Friends were happy to offer suggestions that included everything from extending personal invitations, to creating a tiered structure for membership dues, to posting race videos on YouTube.
The group needs to create a buzz around Cal Crew – thinking outside the box and reaching out to old friends are some good ways to spark interest. One member suggested creating a program around the meetings, and inviting speakers to present on nutrition or other topics of interest. Bringing in outside speakers will encourage the group to do more than just eat, drink, visit, and talk about business, and may just pique the interest of others, he said. As for former crew members who work and raise families, a great meeting burning a hole in the calendar is the ticket out of the house in the middle of the week.
The group concluded that drawing new members is the key to a vibrant club and key to its continued ability to support the success of Cal Crew year after year. Having more, young members is great and the group decided to renew efforts to invite members of all graduating classes to attend events.
Coach Gladstone and Coach Bond took the floor toward the end of the meeting. Cal crews did very well March 15-16 at the Pac-10 Challenge presented by Windermere at Redwood Shores. The men’s varsity eight beat
Cornell and the freshman eight beat Orange Coast College’s junior varsity boat.
Varsity Eight: Cal 5:55.42 vs. Cornell 6:00.71
Second Varsity Eight: Cal 6:07.84 vs. Cornell 6:19.23
Freshman Eight: Cal 6:17.52 vs. Orange CC 2V 6:23.04
The March 29-30 San Diego Crew Classic was another story. Cal succumbed to a perfect storm of events that included lane changes, course conditions, and course marshal decisions. The crew’s fitness this early in the season was also a factor in the loss to the Washington Huskies.
San Diego Crew Classic: Men’s Collegiate Varsity Invitational G Final Copley Cup:
| Wash 5:39.901 |
Princeton 5:41.807 |
Harvard 5:43.893 |
Cal 5:44.152 |
North- eastern 5:44.186 |
Stanford 5:44.385 |
Yale 5:47.37 |
The Huskies will return on April 26 for the Cal vs. Washington Duel at Redwood Shores. The specter of being passed on the home course serves as additional motivation for the crews. Coach Gladstone and Coach Bond will be working hard to ensure the dogs go home with their tails between their legs.
Coach Gladstone says the varsity crew is exactly where they should be. Washington has been doing a lot of speed work early in the season, and while they’re fast now, they may find it difficult to keep their pace. Cal just started its speed work (rowing at a cadence over 28 strokes per minute) and is working to reach peak speed for the IRA.
Coach Gladstone garnered a chuckle from the group when he mentioned a conversation he had with Harvard coach Harry Parker after the San Diego Crew Classic.
“Harry said, ‘it’s going to be a steep road ahead,’” Coach Gladstone said. “To which I replied, ‘Yeah? And what’s new about that?’”
We measure ourselves against our competition and raise our abilities accordingly, Coach Gladstone said. Our strategy is that we add speed at each contest, matching and outpacing our competition stroke for stroke, until we’re ahead.
As for the freshman, the game is on, and Cal has a deep bench of athletes this year, reported Coach Bond. The crew beat the field at the Pac-10 in Redwood Shores in March and lost in San Diego, but there’s no need to rattle the crew’s confidence. At the same time, Coach Bond doesn’t want them getting complacent, either. The strong win and the unfortunate loss remind them how hard they are going to have to work – and that’s good.
We’re not going to let the experience in San Diego distract us from the work at hand, Coach Bond said. We’ve been there before. We’ve also been undefeated, and the work is always the same. Coach Bond’s words to the wise: Concentrate on what you can control. There’s nothing outside the boat that is going to make you go faster. We have our work cut out for us – as we always do – and we will do well.
Go Bears!
