Simsbury Crew Wraps Up Fall Season at Pumpkinhead Regatta

Farmington Crew hosted its annual Pumpkinhead Regatta on Sunday, November 4, bringing together local high school crews from Avon, Burlington, Farmington, and Simsbury to celebrate the end of the Fall racing season.

Families and friends filled the grounds at the Farmington Boathouse at Tunxis Meade Park, sharing food and conversation while cheering on their athletes in the head style race. In keeping with the spirit of Halloween, boats were encouraged to adopt "theme" costumes, fostering creativity and camaraderie among athletes. Rowers also enjoyed a challenging course on the river, which featured sharp turns that had boats reversing direction during the race.

Simsbury's athletes rowed well against the local competition, with the boys and girls first varsity boats and the boys and girls junior varsity boats each taking second in their races. The girls novice and girls second varsity boats each placed fourth, and the boys second varsity boat placed sixth.

Simsbury's novice boys had an especially good day, with their first and second boats taking the top two spots among the nine novice crews competing.

Simsbury's coaches (Head Coaches Ann and Paul Carabillo, Assistant Coach Adam Askham, and Novice Coaches Jenna Nalband and Elizabeth Austin) have expressed pride in how much their athletes have been able to accomplish this season. An abundance of rain this fall meant that athletes were able to put in consistent practice on the water, resulting in solid performances throughout the fall racing season.

Athletes and coaches will now take the winter off from racing, but are already looking forward to the Spring season which will begin in just a few short months.

For more information about the Simsbury Crew program visit www.simsburycrew.org.

Photo credits: Elizabeth Derway