College students typically dread waking up early, but for the Oregon club rowing team, it’s part of the daily routine.
While most everybody else is in bed, the 40-plus crew members leave campus for practice on a specially chartered Lane Transit District bus at 5:15 a.m. every weekday.
Club coordinator Danny Auerbach, a sophomore political science major, said the biggest thing crew changed for him is when he gets to bed.
“It affects our bedtimes,” Auerbach said. “We’re in bed by eight or nine, asleep by 10.”
The team arrives at Dexter Reservoir at 6 a.m. and takes a warm-up run from the bus stop down to its equipment shed near the shore. In the building, the team spends 15 minutes stretching mostly in silence as head coach Carly Schmidt, two assistant coaches, Auerbach and the team’s coxswains determine who will be on each boat that day. The coxswain is in charge of navigating the boat and commanding its rowers.
When the team is done stretching and the members of each eight-person boat are decided, the rowers take the boat down to the dock and put it into the water — carefully.
A new eight-person boat can cost upwards of $24,000, which would be crippling to a club sport.
The crews took to the water at 6:15 a.m. Tuesday and were greeted by their first rainy practice of the season.
Though chilly and damp, the rain helped clear the previous week’s fog, coxswain Abbey Rauch said. Decreased visibility from fog is dangerous and inconvenient when on the water.
Another major expense for the team is the specially chartered bus the team takes every morning. The club pays LTD $16,375 each year for running the route.
Nini Valerio, who is in charge of the team’s finances, negotiated the contract down from last year’s contract of $21,000.
“It’s something we decided to do. It’s not in the ordinary course of a club sport,” Valerio said.
The team is practicing for its first of three fall regattas, the Portland Fall Classic, which takes place Saturday on the Willamette River in Portland.
The premiere event of Oregon’s fall schedule is the Head of the Lake Regatta, which takes place Nov. 7 in Seattle and is hosted by the University of Washington.
During the fall season, the team competes in five-kilometer endurance races, while in the spring season, the team takes part in two-kilometer sprints.
The spring season has many more events than the fall, with the team participating in events nearly every weekend, Auerbach said.
The long-distance five-kilometer races, which have staggered starts, present unique challenges for the rowers.
“You really have to pace yourself,” Auerbach said. “You’re not going at full power, and usually have to make turns.”
The shorter two-kilometer races, where all teams start at the same time, take place at a much faster pace.
“The races are straight, all-out and more competitive,” Auerbach said.
The team aspect of crew is one that comes naturally, given the time that members spend together on a day-to-day basis.
Freshman crew member Marcus Hidalgo has enjoyed the camaraderie of the team, despite being on it for only four weeks.
“I really like the team; everyone is really laid back,” Hidalgo said. “They understand that I’m a novice and that I’m going to make mistakes.”
Auerbach has made the most of his time on the team.
“Crew really does become your life,” Auerbach said. “It really became a family to me.”
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