Winning Spirit

"Follow your passion" is time-honored advice that members of the Los Gatos Rowing Club (LGRC) seem to live by every day. 

Between September and May, the LGRC varsity teams train after school almost daily on the 2.5-mile-long Lexington Reservoir in the Santa Cruz Mountains. During the three-hour sessions, the 14- to 18-year-olds also get substantial workouts by running on nearby trails and lifting weights in the LGRC boathouse near the reservoir's northern shore. On weekends, instead of catching up on sleep, the juniors are back for more practice shortly after sunrise. 

Hard work has paid off. Last month, the LGRC varsity men received silver medals in the Men's Varsity 8 and the Men's Varsity Lightweight 8 categories, plus a bronze medal in the Men's Pair at the USRowing Southwest Junior Regional Championships at Lake Natoma in Rancho Cordova. The medalists will compete at the 2011 USRowing National Youth Championships on June 10-12 at Melton Hill Lake outside of Oak Ridge, TN.

Evan Bainbridge, the LGRC varsity men's lead coach, began rowing at LGRC in high school.

"Some of my parents' friends had kids that rowed and were getting scholarships to row in college, so my parents made me go try it out," says Bainbridge. "The second I got in a boat, I knew that it was something I wanted to do. I found that in rowing there is a certain amount of skill required to fully enjoy and succeed at the sport, but there is a much higher premium placed on pure hard work and determination. I think that is why I fell in love with the sport." 

The club was founded in 1979, and numerous members have brought home medals from championships since then. The LGRC Women's Varsity Lightweight 8 teams won the nationals in 2007, 2008 and 2009. 

"For women, [especially] there is a growing number of scholarships that are available," says Jaime Velez, the LGRC director of rowing. "Nearly all of our athletes go on to be recruited by a number of colleges, and most go on to row in college. While not all rowers will receive scholarships, the commitment it takes stands out in the college admissions process." 

During the 2010-11 season, more than 130 students from Santa Clara County high schools, including , were in the LGRC junior program. In addition, more than 100 adults are LGRC members known as "Masters," who also train for competitions at the reservoir.

Hilary Williams, vice president of the LGRC, began rowing five years ago and now competes as a Master in the 50-55 age group.

"My daughter was a varsity rower with Los Gatos, and I think that's how we get a lot of our people," Williams says. "Parents have seen their kids go through it, and once you're at a point in your life when you're not running kids to school in the morning, you're able to do that early-morning training." 

At the Goldrush Regatta in Lake Natoma, last month, 35 LGRC Masters men and women won 13 medals. 

"The boats I was in brought home two golds and a bronze," Williams says. "The first one was the Women's Masters D8 [an over-50 group], and we took gold in the 1,000 meters. We had a second entry, a  Masters Mixed 8, [men and women in one boat], category D-E, and were the oldest boat. We won that race by three-hundredths of a second against the Marin Rowing Association, our biggest rival. My bronze was in Women's Masters D4." 

The Masters season finishes with the Southwest Regional Championship July 10 on Lake Merritt in Oakland. The next championship for LGRC Masters women will be Boston's prestigious Head of the Charles Regatta in October. They did so well there last year, placing sixth, they were guaranteed entry this year. 

Visit lgrc.org for information about "Learn to Row" summer camps for teenagers and classes for adults.

About this column: Each week, Susan Wiedmann will write about nature or outdoor activities enjoyed by Los Gatans. Susan is a longtime freelance writer and photographer with a passion for capturing wildlife through her camera's lens. Please leave any comments about this article at the bottom of this page. You can contact Susan about possible topics at Susan@UpCloseWithMotherNature.com or atUpCloseWithMotherNature.com.