Regionals Photos

What made me happy at this regatta was how well each boat attained the style of stroke we were going for in such a short period of time. Here is the 4V4 holding decent length in the last 300 meters of their race.
A fearsome high school 8+, indeed...
Launching the young lighties. There are not many people in the world who can make me feel tall. These are some of them.

Why am I so fortunate?

What an amazing weekend! I have more than a little bit of a pep in my step now, and am pumped full of energy that I was otherwise lacking previously.

I was accepted to the Oklahoma National High Performance Pre-Elite Team for the Summer. I am hoping that this camp become a first step to making a World Championship boat for 2011. I will absolutely tear myself asunder to get a seat on the US Team. I have been giving my all for these last years and am ready to continue to do so. I will be living with my Aunt Teresa, bless her generosity, and my Dad is bringing me an old car and bike to use while I am there. I will be keeping all of my belongings in my car in Seattle under the watchful eye of my teammates and coach, and I will be taking my boat with me to OKC. Huzzah!

On top of that, Holy Names Academy had a high;y successful Northwest Regional Championship Regatta. We qualified 18 athletes for nationals and brought home medals in 6 events. All our athletes put forth a strong effort, and all of our experienced rowers made it to the A final and gave strong performances. It makes me so excited, especially given the high level of success enjoyed by our younger athletes. They have big shoes to fill in the coming years.

All is well in Seattle. This weekend I am off to Austin to visit a college teammate for an engagement celebration. After that, I have a week in Seattle, and then I am heading first to Oak Ridge Tennessee for Youth Nationals and then to Oklahoma City!

Hopeful Summer

I've decided that it must be my destiny to become an Olympic Lightweight rower. Born and raised in Norman, Oklahoma, just minutes from Oklahoma city where most of my Dad's family was settled, I gradually made my way westward. Enrolling at the University of Puget Sound for little more than a pretty brochure and a healthy financial aid package, it was there I learned to row, near the Mecca of rowing in the Western United States. In the Northwest, I learned to row and became a member of a deep and strong community spread between Central Oregon and Northern Washington on the I-5 corridor. Within this community, I would have access to some of the bet coaching in North America, find inspiration in hard-working teammates, and be able to draw strength and help form a number of friends in Seattle.

Now I find myself making plans to return to Oklahoma, where I will live with family and make an attempt to find a boat on the 2011 US or Pan Am teams. It seems that if things go well this Summer, I will be able to split my time and resources between Seattle and Oklahoma City going forward. An interesting prospect given my thoughts since moving to the Northwest that I would never return to Oklahoma again...