Crews get to race at home in Head of Schuylkill Regatta

Strolling down Locust Walk, it is hard to ignore the bitter temperatures accompanying the fall season. Students bundle up in fleece jackets, turtle necks and wool hats to make their 10-minute walk to class a bearable one. Warmth is not so easily found, however, by the Penn crew team. Suffering the Schuylkill's frosty currents and relentless winds every day at practice, it shows the motivation of teamwork and success to keep them coming back for more. The Penn men's heavyweight rowing team is getting ready for its spring season with every practice this fall, whether it involves an erg test or a water workout. Two-, four- and eight-man combinations force each rower to evaluate his strengths and weaknesses. "Having the guys row in pairs really shows us their capabilities," said Penn coach Andy Medcalf of their practicing techniques. "When they go in eights, it's sometimes hard to tell who is really effective. With only two rowers, though, it's obvious. It's like a bicycle; if one of them starts to soften up, the boat stops." But while the fall season mainly consists of training for the spring, weekend races make it a competitive one too. These contests allow the coaches to experiment with new lineups and combinations and evaluate the team's improvement. Thus far, Penn has competed in the Navy Day Regatta and the Head of the Charles and this weekend will host Navy, Brown and Temple at the Head of the Schuylkill. "This weekend is one of the three biggest fall races. We're going to try to attack more than we did at the [Head of the] Charles," said senior coxswain Mark Redding. "We should do well on our home course." The Quakers will enter two varsity boats in the heavyweight-eight this weekend, and they will also start several four-man boats. Some rowers will double up, competing in both types of races. "We're going to experiment with different lineups. It's also important to see how the young guys are coming along," said Medcalf. Following the Head of the Schuylkill, the Quakers next goal will be defeating Princeton in the Princeton Chase on November 8. Princeton has been a Penn rowing rival for several seasons. In fact, the two teams managed to tie -- a rowing anomaly -- once last season. "They've been good," said Medcalf. "We're hoping to get back at them in New Jersey."

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