University of Virginia Library

Crew Team Winners

By Fred Leffel

Virginia's varsity crew made a
controversial last-minute decision
to forego a scheduled race at home
last weekend, but events worked
themselves out so that all four
Cavalier crews benefited in the end.
In Savannah, the varsity eight swept
to—the—championships of the
Southern Intercollegiate Regatta,
while the JV eight and Varsity four
triumphed at home.

Deciding Thursday afternoon to
pass up their Saturday encounter
with George Washington, the varsity
quickly packed their Schoenbrod
racing shell onto the trailer and
took off for Georgia. The Cavaliers
had to row their first qualifying
heat after just four hours of sleep,
but managed to qualify for the
finals by placing third behind
Florida Institute of Technology and
Jacksonville.

The outlook was grim for the
Cavaliers as they faced the Saturday
finals.

They had not rowed well in the
qualifying heat on Friday.
Conditions on the Savannah River
were poor, and Virginia is used to
the calm waters of the Rivanna.
Most importantly, Virginia had a
tradition of disappointment in this
race. In two previous trips to the
Southerns, the Cavaliers had twice
come in close second.

From the opening commands of
"Ready all? ROW!", however, it was
clear that this was to be Virginia's
race. The Cavaliers burst off the
starting line at 43 strokes per
minute to take a half-length lead
over FIT. Rowing the body at a 37,
Virginia moved out to a full length
margin and crossed the finish line in
a nifty 4:34.0 FIT was second, with
Rollins, Alabama, The Citadel and
Jacksonville following in that order

After the race, the Virginia
oarsmen were presented with their
medals and the U.T' Bradley
Trophy by the mayor of Savannah.

Back in Charlottesville, the JV,
first-year and varsity four crews
took on George Washington and
Washington College.

Because the varsity had taken
the trailer to Savannah, it was
impossible to transport the other
Virginia shells to Lake Monticello
and the regatta was moved to the
2,000 meter Rivanna Reservoir
course. The Cavalier JV had to row
well to nose out a stubborn GWU
varsity eight by less than a length.
Virginia's first yearmen were third,
followed by Washington College. In
the varsity fours event, Virginia had
little trouble swamping George
Washington by six lengths.

Virginia is now undefeated since
losing to Navy before Spring break.
The varsity heavyweight eight,
averaging 6′2′, 194 lbs, per man
has beaten 22 or the 25 crews it has
faced this spring.

Track Team Co-Captains Jim Shannon(left)and John Morris

The Virginia State Track Meet Will Be On Lannigan Field Today