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Did we catch your race? Check out pix taken from the commentary box on Saturday at the WA Rowing Club regatta. You can also find them on Twitter @warowingclub. [gallery type="slideshow" ids="889,890,888,887,886,885,884,883,882,881,880,879,895,897,899,901,903"]
A first win is like a first love: It happens hard and fast and is almost as surprising as it is unexpected. The elation of the moment dulls any worries and casts a bright hue over the emotional landscape.
This win, this first win, will be the one every future win will be compared to. It becomes the ground zero to each individual's rowing career.
The win is not about the glass (or medal, or whatever trinket they're giving away at the time).
It is about the outcome of a team's single-minded purpose and commitment. It's the ultimate expression of "I love it when a plan comes together."
It's about the high.
And when your win is one of only two for the club, it becomes a shared experience, one that all the athletes who lost by a length, a canvas or a bowball, live through vicariously. Those runners-up and also-rans celebrate a first win as if it is their own.
When that win is in front of a home crowd, it is all the more powerful.
This blog has often spruiked the benefits of rowing apart from the win. We've written that winning isn't why we do what we do. It's not always what drives us to get up at 4.30am and drag our sorry butts down to training in the middle of winter.
But let's not lie: winning is bloody great.
Once upon a time, it wasn't unusual for WARC to collect nine, ten or eleven wins at a regatta.
This year, it's different. This year we've raised the bar. We're not picking off the easy wins. We're pushing ourselves and are collecting a lot of seconds, thirds and fourths in events that, if we took the easy road and entered a grade down, we would win by a margin.
And so each win is all the more precious, all the more to be celebrated because it is all the rarer.
To the Womens' D8+ who took out their event on Sunday, be under no illusion: Your win was a win for all of us. It was a win for our club, our programs, our athletes and ultimately... a win for you.
As for the other club win for the day... Ah Janelle. There are no words mate. Inspirational.
It's Henley this week. The Europeans have turned their attention to the Thames so expect the world's rowing social networking to be full of iphone pix of blazers brash and bizarre over the next few days.
You can even buy a book on blazers - and I note the front cover picture has a strikingly familiar feel to it. We're advised Janet Smith has already put in her order.
WARC once upon a time had a blazer. There's one framed in the River Room, a heavy maroon-coloured affair safely ensconced behind glass, never at risk of being worn again.
The Boston Four, most recently famous for rowing as superheroes for Amy's marathon row back in November, have designed a WARC-inspired blazer of their own to wear when they take on the marathon row on the third Sunday of September. It's an all-black affair, with the cardinal-and-gold trimming an appropriate nod to their home club here at Wests.
Rumour has it that over at UWA, the fabric used to make their blue, green and gold blazers is safely guarded by a secret society, released for use only when athletes attain a level of significance either in their sporting or administrative roles. Then the club bestows upon them a blazer, usually tailored by a lovely chap in Bali.
As a club that has had its fair share of Dutch athletes pass through the membership, it should not come as a surprise that they have a unique tradition in relation to blazers - rather than having new blazers given to athletes who have achieved, the Dutch pass down blazers from one rower to the next. The more tattered and more threadbare the blazer, the more pride with which it is worn.
(Disclaimer: None of this is verified. We're just going on hearsay.)
And thus, we come to the point: All this talk has caused your President and Captain to turn their minds towards a WARC blazer.
There are many angles to consider: Should blazers be available for all, or provided as a gift from the club to those who have achieved above and beyond?
If there is a criteria, how do we decide it? Is it solely sporting prowess, or do we take into consideration those who have contributed above and beyond to the family that is WARC?
Perhaps we make the blazer available to all, and then create a level of "pockets" athletes can achieve, in line with Adelaide which has a coveted "black" pocket for their strongest and fastest.
If we opt the latter, who is it that makes the decision, given that office bearers may indeed by the types that would want a blazer in the first place?
Over at the Leander club in the UK, they permit all "full members" to wear the "coveted Leander 'Pink" livery such as Club blazer buttons and tie, or pachmina, cap and socks." I note full members are those who are "distinguished past and present oarsmen and women and the world-class athletes."
Right.
That said, given their logo is a hippopotamus, I totally want hippo-socks.
So, we throw the quandary open to the community of Wests: Should we have a blazer? What should it look like? (keeping in mind our colours are cardinal and gold, not actually black-red-yellow). Who should decide who gets one, and on what basis?
This is what @rowingblazers reckons:
@WARowingClub #Henley #blazer definitely left one - if you're going for it then Go For It! To be worn with 1 red & 1 yellow sock (& shorts)
— RocktheBoat Clothing (@rocktheboatrow) July 3, 2014
Let us know: Add a comment or email president@warowingclub.org and captain@warowingclub.org.
Ok it's not exactly baconballing. It's paintballing, but it's still awesome and it's something different to beating each other up on ergs.
When: SUNDAY 24th AUGUST
Time: 0800-1200, then lunch in the Swan Valley
Where: Paintball Skirmish Gnangara Road, Near the corner of West Swan Road, Henley Brook
Cost: $75 per person (includes gear, games, sausage sizzle & 600 paint balls)
The deal: Numbers are limited to 40 people so the first 40 to pay and confirm their spot. We have a tentative Wesley bus (22 seater) which would be $10 extra (pay on the day). We will then head to a winery or brewery for lunch
If you are not interested in paintballing, but would like to come to lunch, that is also an option.
What we need from you:
RSVP to nellsmells@hotmail.com with the following;
1. Paintballing:
2. Bus:
3. Lunch:
So – your email to me will look like one of the following responses:
a. Yes to paintballing, bus and lunch. b. Yes to paintballing and lunch (you are thus responsible for your own transport) c. Yes to paintballing, no to bus and no to lunch (you are thus responsbile for transport to and from paintballing only.) d. No to paintballing, yes to lunch. (you will be responsible for your own transport to and from the Swan Valley)
Nell will then write back with relevant banking details. Once your money has transferred through you will receive a confirmation email.
Let the banter begin.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3SnFJBo7kUk Dean and Trent Neal continue to impress with their remarkable camerawork. WARC is blessed to have this sort of talent both on - and off - the water.
If you can, put this video on full screen, sit back and let yourself get goose-bumps as you see the precision, power and beauty of our sport.
And also some awesome facial hair from the captain.
Feedback on this video is for burgeoning athletes, this is not just a beautiful thing to watch but also has a practical application. The smooth finish sequence of Wakeford and Matty is a joy to watch and something to aim for.
Here is a bit of a debrief on the Red Nose Regatta.
It started with a name:
[youtube https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JlXeQfhUuYc]
If you got through that without needing a tissue to wipe away tears of happiness/sadness and love, then forge ahead: Dean then got on 94.5 and talked up our efforts with Adrian Barich on the Dead Set Legends. Listen to it here.
And if that wasn't enough, journalist Natalie Brown from the West decided to share the love on their website and on page 13 of the newspaper as well.
https://au.news.yahoo.com/thewest/wa/a/24294505/red-nose-regatta-for-a-good-cause/
In total, we raised about $400 for SIDS and Kids WA, and we hope this will grow into the future.
[gallery ids="793,794,795,796,797,798,799,800,801,802,803,804,805,806,807,808,809,810,811,812,813,814,815,816,817,818,819,820,821,822,823,824,825,826,827,828,829,830"]
A story of love, loss, recovery... and rowing. This is Dean and Suz Neal:
When they're not travelling the world and posting photographs of their adventures on facebook in a very effective effort to make their mates jealous, they can be found doing this:
So when the Neals dug deep to donate to a new boat at the WA Rowing Club, there was much rejoicing.
Most of Dean and Suz's mates know they are a beautiful couple with a beautiful family who still, after almost 30 years of marriage, are very much in love. So it wasn't hard to decide to name the boat in their honour.
The Trent Damon was named on June 14 at a short ceremony at the WA Rowing Club. And with permission, this is the story behind the name, as told by Dean Neal.
During mid 1993 (yep THAT long ago!) Suzanne during pregnancy developed Toxaemia/Preeclampsia and was seriously ill, as a result she landed in hospital for several weeks (you can imagine how THAT would go down with her lol)!
Due to the health risk to mum and baby, an emergency C-section was performed to deliver our first borne Damon... 9 weeks premature.
Thankfully the staff at King Edward were amazing. In a matter of a few weeks, Damon was later transferred to a regional private hospital (Kelmscott) and Suz was able to go home. A couple of weeks later after that, Damon came home too.
It was around this time I secured a career through my tertiary studies as an IT Support Office at PMH! My work was coming together, my family was at the time too!
Then on the morning of October 14, 1993 - only days after Damon had passed his medical with flying colours and was around 11 weeks old and with no warning, I woke up to go to work and kiss him on the cheek, I then discovered he had died. He was still warm to touch... it was THAT recent I had discovered him...
I was later told that Damon's premature birth had nothing to do with him dying to SIDS.
By this stage - he looked like a healthy, normal baby. That just made the rocky road, that much rockier.
In a panic, I woke Suzanne and rather than ring an ambulance, we rushed him into the car with us and drove to the Kelmscott Private Hospital that was quite close and bolted in through the front doors carrying Damon. The sight of Suze trying to deliver CPR to our baby at the time was something I will never, ever forget....horrible. Horrible.
As we arrived at the hospital, the staff were amazing in their efforts but it was ultimately efforts in vain.
It was a mortifying day to say the least. I was 23 at the time and to confront already having outlived a child was dreadful obviously. To see hospital staff crying, even the police sargent coming in to confirm death and seeing him sob uncontrollably and hugging us himself is seared in my brain, forever.
It was almost impossible to deal with. My work suffered, I couldn't even go outside without fear. Through it all, Suzanne was amazing, she let her emotions out from the start and was strong.
Then as Suzanne was pregnant again and almost to the year - October 1994 - Trent Damon Neal was born. 1997 saw our daughter Felicity born and thankfully these two are fit and strong and wonderful kids. We are very proud of them.
However, I still hadn't completely dealt with what had happened to us was partying hard, not watching what I was eating or drinking. In 1999 I noticed I had become a 125kg 'big boy' and decided I wanted to be a fit and healthy husband and Dad. I wanted to run after my kids basically - and catch them!
It was at this time Suzanne through her mate Deb Mason, decided to take up rowing at the West Australian Rowing Club (Westies) - and she suggested I come along too... knowing my new-found desire to lose weight and be healthier.
Over the next 18-months, I fell in love with the people at the West Australian Rowing Club and proceeded to lose 40kg over that period by rowing hard and erg-ing literally...my ass off!
For the first time in the longest time, I felt well in mind, body and spirit.
In 2001, I completed a Half Ironman Triathlon and rest assured that was as far removed from where I was a couple of years earlier than you could get!
Later that year, our family moved to Sydney for work reasons and we stopped rowing. However the desire to remain fit and healthy on the back of what I discovered at Westies remained. We moved around for a few years but through it all, we missed rowing. We really did. It was my favourite sport.
I have cycle-toured thousands of Ks... climbed Spanish Alps on a Mountain bike... but whenever we saw glassy, still water...anywhere... Suz and I would always remark "Man...we could row the hell out of that!"
Rowing recruits every muscle, joint, ligament and sinew. Also your soul... yes it requires commitment from even THAT during those assorted moments of lactic acid bliss.
What I discovered by rowing, was that it opened up new opportunities for Suzanne and I.
From not being able to even walk down a busy mall in 1993 due to fears and phobias brought on by the loss of Damon, to where I am directing, presenting and producing motorsport TV in front of hundreds of thousands of people is testament to what I learnt!
Then in 2012, my career saw me relocate back to Perth. As soon as we made that decision - Suz and I said straight up... "AWESOME, we can row again at Westies!"
As before, rowing at the West Australian Rowing Club is wonderful, enriching, relaxing and in some ways enlightening.
The values of togetherness, teamwork, mental strength and tenacity are always on show when you row in this environment.
The WARC Club is awesome, a wide array of personalities and people who are as 'family' to me already as anybody.
Bottom line - and Suz can speak for herself- for me... rowing opened my eyes all those years ago to make every day count...and get busy living - for friend and family....but most of all... for yourself.
We support this Red Nose Day regatta passionately... simply because I made the mistake all those years ago in NOT seeking counsel or help.
To lose a child in this dreadful way does not mean you are a bad parent... its instinct to appropriate blame on oneself when something like this happens. But it's not your fault.
Also I want friends and family of those who lose someone to SIDS to not stand back...to go and see these people, to hug these people, to tell them that you love them and that whilst you don't have all the answers as to why this happened, that you will always, always be there for them.
Also time does truly heal... though the scars of course, will remain as a timely reminder to live life. Simple.
We've been supporting the Red Nose Regatta for June 21 where we've invited rowers throughout Perth to buy a $2 red nose and put it on their bowball to raise awareness and funds for SIDS and Kids WA.
Check out this photo gallery of the boat naming - with thanks to Mike Smith for snapping on the day.
[gallery ids="788,778,779,780,781,782,783,784,785,786,787,777,771,770"]
This post includes:
Today
This turned out to be a five-minute interval:
So we all said:
And then this happened:
So turns out we ended up with a winged keel on the Irvine, and everyone did their 1500s on foot carrying a boat rather than out on the water. Of course, we need to say thanks to everyone who helped save the wayward rowers, particularly the random joggers who helped carry stuff, Nick B, John, Bobs, Shaun - who went all Hasselhoff to save the UWA rowers stranded in South Perth - some other people probably, and Nel. Nel pretty much took control and made sure no one panicked. Happily everyone is safe and sound - except other John who did have some fairly impressive bleeding going on. I am sure we'll have a post-crisis gear audit at some point to evaluate any damage, at a guess it was just the Irvine that took the hit.
At a guess, mornings like this happen once or twice a year. It starts out deceptively calm... then BAM: Poseidon turns up to smite us all. Of course I could say we all need to check the weather more blah blah blah, but I know you're not going to. I guess all we can really say is: At least we're not UWA.
Coffeegate:
It is possible I'm the only person who has found this situation ridiculous. Let me know. Here's the situation: Venues West at Champion Lakes has instructed Rowing WA to instruct clubs like WARC to not sell coffee when we host regattas.
Instead, Venues West is going to call out a coffee van (as we have done on occasion) and the profits from said coffee van will go to them - and not to clubs. We usually pick up $300 to $500 from coffee vans, sometimes a lot more.
I thought this was so ridiculous I wrote to Venues West. Check out the Coffeegate letter here. I will let you know if and when I hear back from them.
Speedboats
Please do be aware when carrying speedboats that it is worth waiting for additional help. Graham MacGregor has reported he has sustained a back injury from over-zealous dinghy carrying activity, and I know he's not the only one. For the girls, you will find it a lot easier if you have three people on each heavy corner. Guys, don't be stupid: Team up and share the load. Do not try to carry a corner by yourself. That includes you, Butz.
Why race A-grade?
All top WARC crews have been "racing up" in the A-grade events this year. We haven't always done that in the past, so here's a quick explanation on why we're doing this:
1. Quite often, the WARC crew is fast enough to race in A. In fact, when reviewing results, a WARC crew that places third or fourth in A-grade would have won the equivalent B event, very easily. Winning a race by a mile is good fun every now and again, but it's not a good look for the sport and it's not good for athletes, either.
2. WARC is a major club. We have an athlete in the national squad and are home to some of the most respected athletes in the sport.
3. WARC will not win the overall pennant this year. We haven't grown at the same rate as Curtin and UWA in particular which are bulking out the lower grade events. We might have a chance shot at a grade pennant, and we might as well give A-grade a crack. We are currently fourth in the A-grade pennant behind Freo, UWA and SRRC. We have a good chance of moving up to third at the next regatta.
5. Swans needs someone to keep 'em honest. There's nothing like a hard-fought race.
6. And of course, there's always the "personal points" argument. It goes like this: The more events you win, the lower your personal ROMS score goes. This reduces the flexibility you have as an athlete to row in different types of boats. A few wins in a B-eight and you'll find you've gone from D-grade to B-grade in one regatta.
"Racing up" is a challenge. It's about taking on the big kids in the playground, going the full distance and being proud of who we are and what we can do. Getting a cheap win will score you a glass with a club logo on it (which washes of in the dishwasher anyway) and ROMS points that make your rowing more restricted... but it won't make you more awesome.
Here are a few pix from the past week or so:
