Penn AC Rowing Association

We caught up with the Head Coach of our Jr. Boys' program from this past Summer, Dave Herrick, to ask him about the Summer '21 experience. He shared...

"2021 was an eventful camp for the Penn AC men. The loss of 2020 was felt by the coaches from a recruiting standpoint, especially in the face of an ever-expanding USRowing development system. Despite that challenge, recruiting coordinator Will Scully managed to bring in four 8’s worth of rowers and six top notch coxswains to Philly, easily one of the biggest groups the Gold program has seen in recent history, and one of the strongest.

The first week was challenging logistically, for several reasons. A large group of athletes, in an unfamiliar space, in a new city can be difficult in a standard year, let alone with covid precautions thrown in. Despite this, the squad found a groove and got to work cranking out more volume than many had ever done before. Even when exhausted they stayed positive and committed to each session, focused on unifying a group of athletes from a variety of backgrounds and styles of rowing into one. Day by day they got better.

The summer racing circuit proved to be faster than ever. The Independence Day Regatta was a good first step for the team. The Varsity 8+ took second behind a very strong Greenwich crew, and half the U19 4+ field was Penn AC before thunderstorms scrapped the final, a tragic end to what could have been fantastic racing. Summer Nationals had more cooperative weather, and racing was good. With few exceptions, every athlete was entered in two events to maximize their opportunity, and the vast majority made it out of their respective time trials. Notable highlights include a bronze medal in the U19 4+, a 5th place finish in the U19 8+ for the Varsity 8+ (half of which were in the U19 4+), and an outstanding race (despite delays) for the 2V8+ in their semifinal. For the whole Gold program, it was arguably the best finish at Nationals in the last five years.

Results aside, I believe the team learned a tremendous amount about not only rowing but themselves, rowers and coxswains alike. One of the new elements this summer was a designated coxswain coach in Coral Kasden. Coral worked closely with the entire coxswain corps (despite having to work on her PhD) and her efforts combined with their work ethic were huge contributors to what made camp so successful. I want to thank my assistants, Will and Kristen, for their unending efforts this summer. Will’s recruiting efforts were terrific, and I could rely on him for counsel when I needed it, which was often. Kristen’s inside knowledge of the club proved invaluable, combined with her extensive sculling experience she proved to be an excellent leader for these young athletes. Lastly, I want to give a massive thank you to Paul Coomes. Paul was the keystone for this camp and without a doubt we would have failed without him. It was a joy to be back in Philly with Penn AC, and I hope to see it again soon. Go Penn AC!!!"

Final Olympic Qualification Regatta Update:

Our Men's 4x finished 6th in Saturday evening's repechage, with a time of 5:54.28. They did not advance to the final. Coach Sean M. Hall spoke with Rowing News after the event, with the following message:

“First off, we are obviously very disappointed things didn’t go the way we had hoped they would,” said coach Sean Hall. “I’m sure we all had some expectations — I know I did — as all indicators at various stages were so positive, it was hard not to think we were sure to at least be in the final, if not fighting it out with Estonia for the win.

“But this is racing at the highest level. We have to remember most everyone we raced against has a shopping list of accomplishments, lots of international race experience, and medals. By contrast, these guys are brand new to this, with only Justin Keen having a few years racing at this level.

“They raced like they’ve been at it a while. And let’s be honest, this was only their 3rd full race together.
I think COVID is what got us this far. It gave the guys time to grow and mature as athletes, and I think that showed in the racing, starting with trials.

“But it was an unusual circumstance which will not happen again, and I hope the guys will realize this and use the time they have and continue to pursue their goals,” Hall said. “I also hope this will draw more talent to the group, and to the discipline. The most important thing is to keep it going.”

Read the full article here: https://www.rowingnews.com/2021/05/15/four-u-s-crews-out-two-advance-to-semis-in-lucerne/?fbclid=IwAR1WDbBPn3irdDxXevLkZkQ9-7cqjeM-luAu4G_Q60BNKCt9cWV9TdI0W5U