September 15, 2011

Just a few days left to vote for USRowing's America Rows Initiative! The US Olympic Team will give $12,000 to the group whose video receives the most votes, and America Rows is in the lead! Please vote via Facebook here: http://www.facebook.com/USOlympicTeam?sk=app_189101121162807

September 6, 2011

Novice rowing starts today! Contact novice men's coach Neil Pettit or novice women's coach Tom Postma if you're interested in trying the sport out!

August 29, 2011

Varsity fall rowing starts today! The novice team starts on Tuesday, September 6. Check out the practice times and season schedule!

July 23, 2011

Well done to our crews at the Michigan Club Invitational Regatta on Saturday, July 23 in Ann Arbor! Nearly every crew medalled, with great racing by our novice master's crews in the Mixed 8, Men's 4+, Women's 4+, and Women's 8+, and golds for our Victoria Bujala in the Women's Junior 1x and Kyle Barnhart, Spencer West, Nick Maodush-Pitzer, Joe Van Drunen, and Patrick Lake in the Men's Junior 4+, taking the Sithe Global cup home for the second year in a row!
Full results are available online at RegattaCentral.

May 31, 2011

!!! Tonight's team picnic is no longer at Riverside Park due to flooding, but instead has been moved to the boathouse. See you at 5:30, at the boathouse!

May 12, 2011

We have just received the lane draws from FHC for Saturday's regatta at Riverside Park. The first race is at 8 AM so athletes should plan on being at the park no later than 7 am. Click here for the lane draws (pdf).

May 7, 2011

Congratulations to the women's varsity 2x of Mary Elise Jachim and Victoria Bujala for winning their event at the Blue & Burgundy Regatta in Hamilton, OH this weekend! Coach Amy Burton said this about their win:  "The girls did an amazing job racing against some of the top crews in the midwest.  This was the first chance that the girls have had to race against other doubles.  They have been working incredibly hard during practices, and I was very excited to see how they would do during this race.  We watched with excitement as the girls crossed the finish line more than 30 seconds ahead of the other teams.  I am very proud of the girls for doing so well in this race, and am looking forward to them racing in Cincinnati at the Midwest Junior Championships in two weeks.  We have a few things to work on over the next two weeks, but I am very hopeful that the girls will qualify for the national championships in Tennessee in June". 

May 4, 2011

VICTORIA BUJALA SELECTED FOR JUNIOR NATIONAL ROWING TEAM SELECTION CAMP

Northview High School Junior To Compete For Placement On Junior National Team

 

GRAND RAPIDS – Grand Rapids Crew women's junior Victoria Bujala was one of just twenty athletes selected from across the country to attend the USRowing 2011 Junior National Team Selection Camp. Bujala, who has rowed with the Grand Rapids team since fall 2010, will attend the Women's Junior Quad Selection Camp from June 15 to July 10 in New Milford, Connecticut. During the camp, USRowing officials will select four women (one crew) to represent the United States at the 2011 World Rowing Junior Championship Regatta. The championship will take place from August 4 to 7, in Eton, England.

 

The President of the Grand Rapids Rowing Association, Landon Bartley, was pleased to hear of Bujala's selection. “Victoria has shown dedication to the sport and a deep determination to push herself to the limit. Her commitment is the hallmark of a phenomenal rower,” Bartley said Wednesday. “Together with [women's junior team coach] Amy Burton, I've seen Victoria develop from a methodical and careful rower to a fiery and powerful athlete. She consistently handles anything we throw at her, and has completely exceeded our expectations.” Bartley coached Bujala at the prestigious Head of the Schuylkill race in Philadelphia last October, and has continued to work with her on an individual basis this spring.

 

In addition to her prowess on the water, Bujala maintains a 4.19 grade point average at Northview High School, is an officer in the National Honors Society and is also on the school’s student council. She has also played ice hockey with the Grand Rapids Area Hockey Association for over 10 years, and was that team’s captain last year. Bartley describes her as a role model for her teammates, saying, “Through her leadership, Victoria motivates the other rowers to really do their best. She is a young woman of exceptional character, and we are thrilled that she has earned this exciting opportunity.  Amy and I could easily see her going to Rio,” said Bartley, referring to the 2016 Olympics in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil.

April 28, 2011

The GR High School Invitational Regatta (FHC) scheduled for this Saturday, April 30, has been cancelled due to flooding in Riverside Park. We will still have practice at 8 am.

April 11, 2011

Practices cancelled due to high winds. VM squad seat racing delayed accordingly. See you on Tuesday!

March 31, 2011

Due to spring break at area schools, regular practices during the week of April 4-8 are cancelled. At least one coach will be at the boathouse at the late practice time for optional practice during break.

March 26, 2011

Well done all who rowed today at Forest Hills! Our athletes showed up with great form, high power, and walked away with medals, a course record, and several personal bests! The coaches are very excited for the prospects for spring racing. 

Results are available here: http://grspringsprints.wordpress.com/event-results/

March 22, 2011

Back on the water yesterday, and it's looking cold today! Bring layers.

Information on GR Spring Sprints, the indoor rowing race taking place this Saturday at Forest Hills Central:

7:30AM                   School open to all athletes & spectators

7:50AM                   Main competition gym doors open

8:00 - 8:30AM        Check-in and Registration
(All athletes should be at FH Central HS by 8:00 am)

8:00 - 8:30AM        Weigh-in Scales Open

8:40AM                   Coach's Meeting

9:00AM First Race

1              High School Novice Men         9:00

2              High School Novice Men         9:13

3              High School Novice Men         9:26 

4              High School Novice Women    9:39

5              High School Novice Women    9:52

6              High School Novice Women    10:05

7              High School Cox Men             10:19

8              High School Cox Women        10:28

9              High School 150# Men           10:38

10            High School 150# Men           10:53

11            High School 130# Women      11:08

12            High School 130# Women      11:23

13            High School Open Men            11:38

14            High School Open Men            11:53

15            High School Open Women      12:08

16            High School Open Women      12:23

Door Prize Announcement                      12:45

Awards Presentation                              12:50

All athletes should plan to stay until the end of the regatta.

 

Race instructions from FHC (pdf)

 

Map to FHCHS (pdf)

 

Contact your coaches at practice if you have any questions.

March 5, 2011

 

Great job GR Crew at the Island Sprints indoor regatta! Several athletes, including Alison Stuby, Haley Willsea, Mitch Spaulding, and Kayla VandenBosch walked away with top three finishes. Reports from West Michigan are that our competitors in town are worried as we look forward to racing at Forest Hills.

January 3, 2011

Winter training starts today! Returning athletes should register by logging in (top right corner) and changing their membership level in their profile to "Grand Rapids Crew (Spring 2011)". See you at the YWCA!

November 7, 2010

An admittedly disappointing end to an otherwise great season... weather forced the cancellation of nearly all races at the American Heritage River Regatta in Wyandotte. Our Men's Varsity 2x reported from the course that the waves were "difficult" and that it wasn't the most fun imaginable rowing back from the start with the shell swamped to an inch below the gunwales. Here's hoping for better weather next year.

October 31, 2010

Congratulations to the Men's Senior 4+ (Tobin, West, Maodush-Pitzer, Beltman, Van Drunen) for a very respectable 23rd at the Head of the Schuylkill today, in Philadelphia. Her first time racing in a bow-coxed shell, Mary Rose Tobin coxed the 4+ against the top 48 teams on the east coast for a very nice final time of 16:03.43 on the 2.5 mile course in Fairmount Park. Victoria Bujala placed 9th in her race (Women's Junior 1x) with an impressive time of 18:50.27. Bujala was very pleased with her results, noting that the race left her in "the most pain ever"... certainly a success!

 
The Men's 4+
(Picture of V. Bujala is forthcoming)

October 28, 2010

Thursday AM practice for varsity high school athletes is cancelled, again due to the high winds. Keep your fingers crossed for a calmer afternoon & evening.

October 26, 2010

High School Practices are CANCELLED today due to dangerous winds. Practices will resume on Thursday.

October 17, 2010

Nice job all crews at the Forest Hills Challenge! Here are the official results from FHC Crew: FHC 2010 results.pdf

October 12, 2010

Here is some information from FHC for this weekend's Forest Hills Challenge:

Invited Schools: Forest Hills Central, Forest Hills Eastern, East Grand Rapids, Grand Rapids Rowing and Rockford.

 

Schedule: Coaches & Coxswains meeting at 1:00 PM with the first race scheduled to start to start at 1:30 PM.  Unless we experience some unforeseen problems we hope to be off the water by 4:00 PM. Races will run in the following order:

 

NW8+;  VM4+;  NM8+;  VW4+;  VM8+;  NW4+;  VW8+;  NM4+

 

Parking:  We’re going to have a significant number of athletes and their families at this event.  Unfortunately we don’t have the space available to let everyone park at the boathouse, stage the event, and still keep the road open for emergency purposes.  We’ve generally utilized the following scenarios to get everyone safely to the boathouse and still allow us to stage the event:

• 1.     Walk.  Ada Park is not far away and there is a nice paved walking path that passes through Ada Moorings and shadows the course that we’ll be rowing on this weekend, and ends at our boathouse.
• 2.     Drop Off:  We’ll allow a drop off area just inside the entrance to McGraw Park/The Boathouse Drive.  There’s a small turn around just inside the gate where you can turn after dropping off your athlete.
• 3.     Handicap permit.  Please just show the parking volunteers your permit, and you’ll be allowed to park near the boathouse.

Unfortunately due to safety concerns we do not recommend that you park along Grand River Drive but would encourage you to use you of the above-mentioned options.  (We will not have volunteers on Grand River; they will be positioned at the entrance to the boathouse only). 

If you’re having problems getting to the boathouse please call the boathouse at 682-9286 and someone will help you.

October 4, 2010

Well done to all crews at the Grand River Challenge! Several of our crews medaled, but everyone raced well! Results are available here: https://www.regattacentral.com/regatta/index.jsp?section=results&job_id=1651

September 9, 2010

Practice is going great! All athletes, please remind your parents to come by the boathouse following practice (10:30 am) on Saturday, September 11 for a brief welcome meeting. We will go over the season schedule, regatta details, etc. and be available to answer questions. See you then!

August 19, 2010

Practice times & the fall schedule are online. Returning rowers, please log in (at upper right corner of this site), click on "View My Profile" and change your membership level to "Grand Rapids Crew (Fall 2010)". Varsity athlete dues are $200 and must be paid by September 13.

August 16, 2010

Returning varsity rowers... plan to start fall practices two weeks from today, on August 30. Keep watching this site for more news re practice times, costs, etc.

Incoming seniors: Please review the USRowing Honor Roll application (pdf). If you are eligible to apply, please do so! Applications are due by September 10, so don't delay!

July 26, 2010

Some nice coverage from WZZM13 of senior Mary Elise Jachim (and the rest of the team)!

July 24, 2010

Congratulations to the Grand Rapids Men's Junior 4+ (Barnhart/West/Lake/Beltman/Van Drunen) for winning the Sithe Global cup at the Michigan Club Invitational Regatta in Ann Arbor today!

June 26, 2010

Nicely done to Grand Rapids junior crews at today's Grand Regatta/State Games of Michigan! Grand Rapids took first in the Women's Jr 2x (Bujala/Jachim), a close second in the Men's Jr 4+ (Tobin/West, S./Lake/Beltman/Van Drunen), and a good show by our Men's Jr 2x (West, F./Barnhart), which was edged out for 3rd by Wyandotte. Great racing!

May 8, 2010

THIS MORNING'S REGATTA AT EAST GRAND RAPIDS HAS BEEN CANCELLED! Please meet at the boathouse at 8 am to unload the trailer.

May 3, 2010

SATURDAY MAY 8 East Grand Rapids Regatta... please be at John Collins Park (see regatta directions page) no later than 7:00 am. Park in the East Grand Rapids city parking garage, located at the north side of the Wealthy/Bagley intersection.

Also, practice is at 5:20 Tuesday morning (5/4) for the mens' squads. All rowers should be at the boathouse on Thursday evening to help de-rig and load the shells onto the trailer.

April 30, 2010

All squads... nice job at last week's Riverside Regatta! Results are available here. ALSO: Practice on Saturday, May 1st is at 7:30 AM (still ending at 10:30)

April 20, 2010

The team pasta party is this Friday, April 23 at 6:00 pm at the boathouse. All rowers should bring beverages for themselves and a couple of lawn chairs. Girls squads: Please bring a pasta dish. Boys squads: Please bring a salad or dessert.

March 29, 2010

Varsity Womens practice is rescheduled to the later practice (5:00 - 7:00) on Monday, March 29 and Tuesday, March 30.

March 22, 2010

The Forest Hills Spring Sprints indoor regatta is this Saturday, March 27, at Forest Hills Central HS. Athletes should be at the high school by 8 AM at the latest! Events begin at 9 AM and are scheduled to end at 1 PM.

The team pasta party originally scheduled for this Friday, March 26 has been rescheduled to Friday, April 23. Details forthcoming.

March 3, 2010

GROSSE ILE: The Grosse Ile ergatta is Saturday, March 6. All athletes should meet at the Grand Inn parking lot (I-96 & Plainfield) no later than 6:15 AM. We will be leaving no later than 6:30 AM and will return in the late afternoon. All athletes must supply their own food and something to pass the time with after their race.

February 16, 2010 will be a parents' meeting at the YWCA. It is very important that parents attend this meeting! The meeting will begin at 6 pm.

February 9, 2010

Today's practice has been cancelled due to bad weather. Practices will resume on Thursday.

February 3, 2010

This Saturday's rowing tank practice in East Lansing has been cancelled. Please attend Saturday's practice as usual. (Novice rowers: make sure to put the next tank practice on your calendars now: February 20 we will be traveling to East Lansing for rowing tank time).

November 1, 2009

The Varsity Women's 2x easily placed first at the American Heritage River Regatta in Wyandotte, although other crews had a tougher time in their races. Either way, the GR Crew coaches were happy with the results today - the rowers working hard and looking very good against some extremely competitive teams. See you in the winter!

October 24, 2009

Grand Rapids Varsity Men's 4+ took first and second place at the Grand River Challenge, with Women's Novice 8+ narrowly missing first place against a fast East Grand Rapids shell. And everyone was a winner in the stake race!

October 10, 2009

Well done to the Grand Rapids High School rowing team at the Forest Hills Invitational regatta today! Both women's and men's novice squads were first place in their races, and the men's varsity squad had a great race with a (disputed) third place finish.

October 1, 2009

Varsity unisuit payments are due Saturday, October 3! Please make checks ($90.00) payable to Grand Rapids Crew.

September 14, 2009

Article in the new online magazine The Rapidian: Community rowing program unites different schools into a crew

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Forms for Spring/Winter 2011 Rowing:

Online Application
GR Crew Waivers (needed for all athletes, once per calendar year)