Dartmouth Womens Crew Team: Meaning (information, definition, explanation, facts)

Coached by Molly McHugh, Kate Woll and Chris Schmidt, the Dartmouth College Womens Crew Team ranks among the most competitive college programs in the country. The team considers itself very lucky to have the Connecticut River as its rowing venue. The over 15 miles of rowable river is only used by the Dartmouth Crew Teams, Hanover High School Crew and local scullers, so water time is not hard to schedule and traffic is minimal. Highlights of rowing on the Connecticut include frequent flat water, and gorgeous leaves in the fall. Downfalls include the late thawing of the ice in the spring and avoiding icebergs for the first week back on the water.
Women’s rowing at Dartmouth was founded as a varsity sport in 1975. Over the past 30 years of rowing the team has graduated three rowers that went on to compete in the Olympics. This reputation has made for a very popular program. Each year the team avidly recruits inexperienced freshmen to walk on, welcoming them to make an impact on the team. These walk-ons make up more than half of the team while the rest are recruited women, totaling nearly 60 at the beginning of the fall. Through cuts and self-selection, the freshmen compete in two or more eights by the time spring season comes around. They are led by a large varsity team, generally made up of around 30 women.
The team puts in about 16 practice hours a week, consisting of long endurance building rows, short piece workouts and weight training. Every day, each member of the team pushes herself past her limits. While the fall and spring are spent on the water, the most important training of the year is done in the winter. Our indoor facilities consist of over 30 ergs, an indoor rowing tank and Manley Weight Training Gym in the Dartmouth Athletic Center. The Friends of Dartmouth Rowing Boathouse boat bays are converted into winter training facilities. Here the team is able to practice on slide ergs on which trains of four erg together, practicing following as they erg.
The Friends of Dartmouth Rowing Boathouse serves as the home for the Womens Crew Team. It is this building, completed in 1985, where the women of the crew team can be found six days a week training for competition. As part of one of the most competitive college leagues in the nation, the EAWRC, the women set lofty goals each year in hopes of further program growth and success.