Episode 18: 1976 Ithaca Women

[00:00:09] Speaker A: Today, we'd like to take you on a little ride back in time with an incredible group of guests. First, to set the stage, let's talk about a few key years in the history of men's collegiate rowing. 1852 the first US men's collegiate rowing event between Harvard and Yale. 1895 the first official men's collegiate championships under the Intercollegiate rowing Association. The IRA 1900 men's rowing debuted at the Summer Olympics. Now let's talk about some of the key years in the history of women's collegiate rowing. 1952 the first collegiate US women's competition between Philadelphia Girls Rowing Club and Florida Southern University. 1971 the first collegiate women's national event under the national women's rowing association. 1976 women's rowing debuted at the Summer Olympics. 1996 the NCAA sanctioned women's rowing. Now, what was happening legislatively in the 1970s related to women's rights? 1972 Title IX was passed, prohibiting sex discrimination in any educational program or activity receiving any type of Federal financial aid. 1974 the equal credit Opportunity act was passed, giving women the right to have credit cards and loans without requiring a male co signer. 1978 the Pregnancy Discrimination act passed, making it illegal for employers to discriminate against workers based on pregnancy, childbirth or related medical conditions. We share all this to set the stage for our next guests. Theirs is a story of incredible grit, resilience and family. At a time when the deck was heavily stacked against them. Without knowing the history they would make, these women showed up against all odds simply to compete in a sport they love. Their collective indomitable spirit and love for each other that kept them rowing back then is still evident to this day, a tribute to the unbreakable bonds they forged along the way. We are thrilled to have with us the women and coaches from the first ever women's eight to row and win the Dadville Regatta from ithaca College in 1976. That was just a few months before women's rowing first debuted at the Summer Olympics that same year. Here is their incredible story. [00:02:26] Speaker B: Welcome back. We are here at the Gather and we're super excited to have you back. We are sitting at the 87th Jefferson Dadville Regatta and we are super, super excited to have the very first women's boat to ever race and win this regatta with us today. So we're going to take a second and we're going to do some introductions to the women in that boat. [00:02:47] Speaker C: Hi, my name is Jill Bartikowski and my nickname was Bart Bartolio and the Sun Maid, because I was the coxswain. [00:02:59] Speaker D: Hello. [00:02:59] Speaker E: My name is Julie Volk Thorpe. I rode seat number two port, and [00:03:05] Speaker D: my nickname was Vulcan or Trans World Volk. [00:03:10] Speaker F: My name is Marianne Sprague Erickson. I rode three seat behind this one and in front of that one. I'm right where I belong. [00:03:22] Speaker D: My name is Lori Creelman Heflin. I rode four seat, and my nickname was Keel. [00:03:31] Speaker E: My name is Julie Rife Vanhassent. I was a stroke of the boat, and my nicknames were Rif, Rafticus, Oblio, and Riff Butt. [00:03:45] Speaker G: Hi, I'm John Romaine. I'm one of the coaches, and with affection. They call me JT JT jtpr. [00:03:54] Speaker H: I'm Margaret Cooney Kearns. I rode and my nicknames were Kunolio and Kunbut. [00:04:04] Speaker D: My name is Ellen Andrew. I rode seven seat. My nicknames included Marmaduke Duke, Duchess of Or and Band Aid Queen. [00:04:13] Speaker I: I'm Barbara Brummett, and I rode seat five in the engine room, and my nickname was Barbolio or also Bar. [00:04:21] Speaker D: But, [00:04:23] Speaker B: hi, I'm Deb Kimball. My nicknames were Nimby Nimbolio, and I wrote Bow. [00:04:30] Speaker J: And my name is Jerry Dietz, and I was the CO coach with John Romaine. And we can't say any of my nicknames. [00:04:39] Speaker D: I have to interject because I think [00:04:40] Speaker K: there's something that said about the number of nicknames equates to just how much love your friends have for you. So obviously, we are here with a group of people who have a great, great life experience and obviously a lot of love for each other and how [00:04:54] Speaker I: much fun you're having, too. [00:04:56] Speaker L: So one of the amazing things about your boat is there was no crew team for women when you started, and one of you made that happen. [00:05:04] Speaker D: I'll tell you this story. Here we go. Okay. I'm a typical freshman checking out all kinds of activities and things. When I first get to Italy college, and I talk with this guy, and he's on the men's crew, and he says, oh, we have a race this weekend, and you should come down and check it out. I said, okay. I'm into water sports. I had been a swimmer, like, from the time I was, like, three years old and all through high school. But I was looking for something new, so I said, I'm gonna go check that out. So I go down, walk along the side of the inlet in Ithaca, and you. It sits up kind of high, so you look down, like, into the boat, see everything that's happening. So I go down there and I wait for the races to start, and it was just like, incredible. Incredible. It's just this explosion of energy that happens at the start. And coxswains are screaming, water's flying. And I was like, this is just amazing. I mean, I'd seen it on tv, but that was all. So I thought, this is so cool. So then I waited to watch a couple more starts, and then I went down the race course a little bit where there's a bridge so I could go stand on the bridge and watch from above. It was just awesome. I loved it. So after the races were over, I went over to the Ithaca boathouse, and I walked in and I said, I'd like to speak with a women's coach. And there's a lot of giggling. And they said, we don't have women's crew here. In fact, we don't let women in our boathouse. And I was like, oh, isn't that too bad? So. And then I got the name of the men's coach and got his phone number. So I later called him, and he had an office in downtown Ithaca. And he said, why don't you come down to my office and we'll. We'll chat. And so I went down there and talked with him and told him, I'm really into this. I want to row. I'm looking for a sport. And we talked about the fact that there was no women's crew. And I said, yeah, I want to change that. And he said, well, what I need you to do is see how many girls you can get together. He said, and then come back and see me in a couple weeks when you can tell me that you've got enough for a boat. I said, no problem. So I raced back, talked with my roommate, and I said, we are gonna do this. And she was all on board. And in those days, you know, no phones. We made posters. I made up a whole stack of posters, went out, taped them up all around campus, like in the student union, in the dorms, you know, just all over around campus with a sign up sheet saying, okay, your name, your what dorm you live in, and the hall phone number, you know, because you had to call in the dorm. And so anyway, we did that, and I got. I want to say 32, 34, right in there. Girls that signed up. [00:07:48] Speaker F: Wow. [00:07:49] Speaker D: Just right out of the box. And I was like, wow, this is really cool. This could be something. So then I immediately called the men's coach back, Bob Tallman, and I said, derek can believe this. How many I've got. That are ready to check it out. He's like, this is fantastic. So anyway, so that's kind of how we started. He said, I'm a Cornell alum, and I'm going to take you girls up to the tanks, which are the indoor simulated rowing tanks at Cornell. He said, I can get you in there. So we're going to go in there, we're going to learn how to row. I was like, awesome. So one of the problems, we had to get rides for all these people because it wasn't any place you could walk to. So we had to get rides. And we were. Most of us were freshmen, so we had to get, you know, okay, you have a car. You have so many seats, and you have a car, and you have so many seats. But the kicker was we had a girl who had a pickup truck. So when we couldn't fit everybody into the cars, what we would do is then the overflow would sit in the back end of the pickup truck. This is an Ithaca, New York, where you can freeze your butt off in a short period of time. So we. Anyway, we loaded everybody up, drove them up there. Then I go to class one day, and I was a recreation major, and my dean was in charge of the boathouse. So I go to class. When I get to class, I get a message, and they say, oh, well, you need to go see the dean. You need to go see Dean Simpson. And I thought, wonder what that's all about. So I trot down to Dean Simpson's office. I go in there, sit down, and he says, well, I understand you're getting a group of women together to row. Is this correct? And I said, yes, and it's going quite well. We've got a big gang of us. We're learning how to row, and we're just loving it. And he goes, well, you have to cease and desist, he said, because I'm ending the men's crew program here at Ithaca. So I said, you're wasting your time. There's no point in you going ahead with this when there's not going to be any crew at Ithaca College. So he said, did I make myself clear? Do you understand? And I said, well, I understand what you said. I said, but I'm not promising anything except for you from that. Because I wasn't gonna say, oh, yes, I'm gonna do that. I was like, no, that's not happening. Anyway, after I. After that happened, I knew I had made, like, you know, a big time enemy. I knew I was in deep doo doo because he taught one of my classes. This was my dean. Yeah. [00:10:11] Speaker C: Wow. [00:10:11] Speaker D: So I was like, wow, this is going to be a perfect problem. But, you know, you do what you have to do. So I call. I called Coach Tallman, and I told him everything. And I could just tell from the phone he was not happy. I said, so what do we do? Is this, like, the end, or what's. What's gonna happen? And he goes, no. He said, here's what we're gonna do. He said, I will take care of Dr. Ronald Simpson. He said, what I want you to do is you make sure you get all these girls to practice. And he said, don't say a word about this to any of them. He said, because we don't want people to get discouraged and think that this program is not going to work out. So that's what we did. And then it started to get a little warmer in Ithaca, and I just avoided my dean and stayed away from as much as I could, Although my grade point average was plunging because he started grading me very, very severely. And this is right after Title IX had passed. So it got real nasty real quick. And then as the weather got better and everything started to defrost, and we really felt like we knew what we were doing, like we were experts in the tank. Oh, man, we are really cooking. So it was great then. So we go down, and Bob Tallman says, well, you girls, you're going to have to row in a real race, and not just in the tanks where the pool just circles around. He said, so now we're going to set up a race for you and get you out on the water and get you so you know what it feels like. So we got out on the water, started to really understand setup and doing all the things you have to do when you row, and started to feel pretty good about things. And they said, now we're going to set up that race, and what we're going to do is we're going to have you row against the Cornell women's varsity boat. They said, it'll be a humbling experience. You're going to get killed. They're like, don't worry about that. Because the whole purpose of this is to learn what it's like to race, to understand what it's like to start all of that. We're like, okay. So we just focused on that, did all kinds of drills, and worked hard at it. The day came for the race. We get onto the inlet, and we're like, okay, we're gonna do this. We get off to a great Start. And I mean, like, we're, like, right with them, and we're like. And the whole time I'm thinking, are they, like, playing with us? Is this, like, a setup? And so they're doing this, and then they're gonna, like, leave us in the dust. Like, what? You know? But we just kept going. Bart kept calling the race. She was fantastic, and she's the Sun Maid, because we are. We decided that we were going to be the Raisins since we determined who we were. So. So we were doing great. And then all of a sudden, she called, like, a Power 10. We started pulling away from the Cornell women's varsity boat. And then she. You know, she starts calling off the seats. Yeah, she. I've got there seven. You know, I mean, we did just another power 10. We just started just jumping seat by seat by seat, and we ended up winning the race by open water. I don't remember how many. The very first race and very first race against the Cornell women's varsity. And at first, we were all looking at each other like, what just happened? Or, like, again, is this a setup? You know? And then I turn and look, and I see Jerry, and I see John, the pain, Romaine back there. [00:13:24] Speaker I: And they're like. [00:13:24] Speaker D: You can tell that we had actually won, and we were just, like, overwhelmed. [00:13:30] Speaker L: So some of you, you would have been walking around campus, and there was a random poster somewhere. And so some of you, maybe someone in the back row, like, what? [00:13:39] Speaker J: What were. [00:13:40] Speaker G: What? [00:13:40] Speaker L: Where did you see a poster? And what made you think, hey, I think I'm gonna do this. [00:13:45] Speaker I: I'm the baby in the boat? And actually, I arrived in the fall of 75. 17, and I knew I wanted to row, and I had no idea of any of this. I'm 17. I just got there, but the men were out recruiting, and there was a shell, and I said, oh, I want to row? And they gave me the information, and I hooked up. The first meeting of the fall or something. I remember going to the Tanks, and I was the only freshman in the boat. I made the varsity boat. And. And so I'm eternally grateful because these women did all this work. I just came to Ithaca, got in [00:14:19] Speaker D: the boat and rowed. [00:14:21] Speaker K: It was there. [00:14:22] Speaker I: Not having any idea that all of this had been going on the two years prior that I got there. I just thought, hey, they got women's crew. [00:14:31] Speaker H: This is Margaret, and I'll say that we were in the towers. At Ithaca, there are two towers. When I say we, Bart and I are roommates, and Julie and Laurie were roommates, so we would get the daily blow by blows. Marianne was in one of the quads, and so she had a different experience than me. [00:14:52] Speaker F: Well, I remember seeing the posters. My grandfather was a rower at Syracuse. My father was a rower at Cornell. [00:15:00] Speaker D: Happy day. [00:15:01] Speaker F: I found my calling. [00:15:04] Speaker D: That's amazing. [00:15:05] Speaker F: I felt so good. And then I met all these guys and hung out with them and felt even better. So it was fantastic. [00:15:12] Speaker K: So you spoke about the men's coach, but you have your coaches here. [00:15:16] Speaker I: How did the two coaches. How did you get hooked up with [00:15:20] Speaker K: the coaches while you were doing this? [00:15:22] Speaker G: This is John. I was with the lightweight program. Now, it's been, you know, abolished in many of the D3 programs just because of costs and funding. But in the autumn of 76, I was a junior, and I had some technical skills. Jerry and I each rode draft of the heavies, and I had the lights in the seven seat. So we basically knew everything they needed to know. I thought, gosh, you know, I'm a history major. I'm taking education courses. When I'm done with all this, gosh, maybe I can, you know, teach in some swanky New England prep school and coach crew. Well, wouldn't that be fun? Well, that didn't happen at all. But Jerry and I had developed a very kindred, trusting relationship, as Margaret has described. I was Jerry's foil. And while Jerry might have been more enthusiastic and maybe temperamental, I was maybe thought to be a little more of a steadier hand on the tiller there. [00:16:20] Speaker M: It sounds like you complimented each other, though, pretty well. And sometimes you do need that back and forth. [00:16:25] Speaker G: Jerry was best man at my wedding. [00:16:27] Speaker I: Okay, so you guys worked something out. [00:16:30] Speaker J: Really, I never saw that one coming. I meant to say, I think the remarkable thing to keep in mind was I did. I wrote for four years, from 1971 to 1975 at Ithaca College as they tried to dismantle the program. As Keel is sort of detailed, all of that is very accurate. But like many of us had rode at Ithaca College, none of us came there with any experience. None of us had ever rowed before. We all learned the craft of rowing from people who have really learned it themselves just pretty recently. When I graduated in 1975, Bob Tallman, who had been my coach and had been instrumental in developing that program and keeping it alive, he and I were working on a project together, and he said, you know, I kind of need a coach for the women, and would you want to step in now? I'm sure every single One of these women will tell you that my reputation preceded me as being a bit of a beast from my four years of rowing. So they were all terrified. [00:17:40] Speaker H: Let me interrupt just one moment. We forgot to tell you what Jerry's nickname is. Jerry's nickname is the Rag man. Rag man. Because he would rag on us all practice long. [00:17:59] Speaker G: I always thought the name was Gerolio. [00:18:01] Speaker J: That was one of them. But. But. But I Actually, my. That was a nickname that I had acquired during the. My four years of rowing. I was. It did speak to my. My temperament, so to speak. I think when I think about this group of women and what I experienced as John and I began to work with them was their own dedication, their own desire, not just to be a crew and stay together, but to sort of join in that defiance of what was the school was trying to do to them. It was very empowering. I mean, it gave us all sort of a cause to coalesce around. And while being technically trained and conditioning them was John and my responsibility, there is nothing that puts the intensity into a crew like these guys have. You can't coach that into a boat. And that is what they themselves brought to. To their own success. [00:19:04] Speaker B: So I'm so curious if, in the moment you realized how important it was, what you were doing, or was it just like, I need to be on the water. This is what I want to do, and damn it, I'm going to be on the water. Was it more of that, and you didn't kind of have this sense of how big of a deal it was? [00:19:21] Speaker E: I think it was a matter of still trying to survive the program. I mean, we never. We. We weren't a club sport. We weren't a varsity sport. When we rode in the Dallas Regatta, we rode in the varsity event. We were pretty much nothing in terms of Ithaca College. So we were always trying to prove ourselves, prove it to ourselves, prove it to the men, prove it to the coaches, prove it to the college that, you know, we really could roll, and we were the real deal. But to answer your question, no, I don't think we realized, you know, what we were actually doing and the pioneering effect that we had for women's crew. [00:19:59] Speaker B: How does it feel now, like, walking around and looking at the women that you paved the way for here? [00:20:04] Speaker D: It's really bizarre because, like, when we rode, I mean, it was just at its infancy, and, you know, we even had this, like, when we went to the boathouse, at first, I would say it was 50, 50. We had some guys that thought, oh, cool, Women in the boathouse. And then we had some guys that were just like, get them out of here, man. I don't want to see them in the boat. Boathouse. They're invading our territory. There was a very split feeling and like, Jerry was. Was frightening. He was like, he was the beast of the boathouse. He was. He'd be off in a crowd. Such a nice guy, and he was kind of like grumbling. Every time I watch Beauty and the Beast and I see the beast shipper, I think of Jerry. [00:20:43] Speaker J: He was clearly I've mellowed over the years. [00:20:47] Speaker K: To those listening, the vision of him is not what is being. [00:20:51] Speaker M: He looks like the nicest man possible. [00:20:53] Speaker J: Come on. We had some fun, for heaven's sakes. [00:20:56] Speaker D: We had some laughs and then we had J.T. and J.T. is a bizarre, crazy guy, and he was all about the fun. And so we had the combination of the two and they perfectly balanced each other. And like, JT would always push us off at the dock and the last thing he would always say to us is, have fun. And then we were the raisins. So they would take boxes of raisins, you know, those large boxes of sun made raisins, and they would, they would go ahead and they would throw raisins at us as they shoved us off at the dock. So when we're rowing, if you looked in the bottom of the boat, there'd be water sloshing back and forth and you'd see the raisins going back and forth in the bottom of the boat. So we did all kinds of, like, wild and crazy and fun stuff. And then there'll be some things we won't talk about, like little tricks that we played on the men to try and get them to ease up a little bit and enjoy having us around. They were also sticklers about perfection in terms of our rowing. And, you know, we did a zillion drills to learn how to row and how to row properly and learn how to row with power. So, like, there were races that, that we went to later on. Like, I remember this woman that we raced against a group of girls. They walked out with their boat and they were all like six foot tall. Oh, gosh. And you know, these girls, they were like, they were massive. And we all looked at each other and we were like, oh, man, this is gonna be bad. We're gonna get slaughtered. And we. This was in St. Catherine, Ontario, and we ended up beating them by a lot. So between that and then that Cornell race, that first race we had, we Knew that we were powerful, that we had the power. And it didn't matter how tall you were, if you had really good technique, you could blow away any crew. And that's one of the things I would say to the women of today is you might not be as big or whatever as some of the other crews that you race against, but you can't let that deter you because you can have a great performance and it can blow away any crew. [00:23:03] Speaker B: That's right. [00:23:04] Speaker D: On any day. [00:23:05] Speaker L: So I want to have the Sun Maid tell us a little bit about. So the. What I was reading about your history was that when you were here at Dadvale, there was a hiccup where the boat you were supposed to row didn't finish the race in time. So you then had to be on a. You were all on one of the heavy boats for your qualifier. So you're going down the river and what was that like, knowing that you're on this bigger boat and you're having to move. [00:23:32] Speaker C: We just barely qualified for the finals. And then there was a mix up, like we couldn't get the boat that we were supposed to have. And then Jerry just said, you're going to row in this. I didn't realize it was a faster boat. I just thought it was a different boat. So we just did what we had to do. And then before we knew it, we were just, you know, know. And I remember talking to the stroke and she was on adrenaline, just total adrenaline. And you know, she was like, take it up, take it up. And I think some. One of the coaches was watching. Wow, they're rowing at this really ridiculous speed. And Julie, you know, I would say up 2 and 5 and we would just take off. And then before we knew it, we crossed the finish line, not even realizing that we were in a lighter boat. And that was how we. We won. [00:24:20] Speaker M: Can I ask what was behind the decision to come to Dadsdale in 1976? So they. Did they make an announcement that they were open to women's boats or did you all ask. [00:24:29] Speaker J: Well, the men. So the. Our men's program had been participating since. Well, since 1969 when the. When the program started at Ithaca College. And so we were aware of it. And as we prepared for the. The women to compete that season, we knew we had gotten word that the Dadvale was going to open up the rolling two women. And we said, okay, we're going to bring a. We're going to bring a boat. I think everybody here will also acknowledge that we were fortunate enough. I think as Keo mentioned earlier, when they put that sign up sheet out, they signed up 30 some odd people. So we were fortunate to have two and three boats that push these women. We were out to actually compete with each other for seats, which, you know, in a fledgling startup program you don't always have. So those, all of those women are really part of this success too. Although they're not here today. I certainly want to acknowledge that. [00:25:28] Speaker K: Right. [00:25:28] Speaker D: It's wonderful. [00:25:29] Speaker B: Definitely. I heard a story that I'd like to hear a little more about earlier, and I won't call anyone out for sharing the story, but it hit me and I think it might hit some of the other parents because we have, a lot of us have freshmen in college. And transitioning into college can be challenging, especially when you're with a roommate that you don't know. And so I heard that one of you had a challenging roommate situation that you were dealing with as you were going through this. So can you guys talk a little bit about that? I don't know who it was. [00:25:57] Speaker F: It's your worst nightmare when you go to college and you start talking to your roommate and you realize that you have absolutely nothing in common. And she really disliked you and she told you very pointedly how much she disliked you. And so that's why I say crew was my savior. I met these women, we had Jerry, we had John. I felt good again. And it was my entry into college. It was. Yeah, I can get all emotional. It just was my entry into college. And it, it solidified the fact that I can accomplish things, that I'm a good person and I work hard and I have these people. These people have my back. [00:26:45] Speaker B: And look at you now. You're sitting here with them. [00:26:47] Speaker D: Yeah. [00:26:48] Speaker B: And I don't look at the legacy. [00:26:49] Speaker J: I don't know if, if all you know this on the gather, but one of the things that that this crew did with John's guidance in preparation to celebrate this landmark occasion was each woman in this boat wrote a letter to the 2026 women's crew at Ithaca College. [00:27:11] Speaker B: No, we didn't know that. [00:27:12] Speaker J: And about this experience, about their experience of winning the dead veil and, and John, well, you might want to talk more about this, but he could compiled it into a booklet that was presented to the women this past Wednesday night at their year end banquet. Because I live in Ithaca, I had the good fortune to present this. This letter which was really nine letters with a. With a beautiful preface written by John and a forward written contributed by Gail Cromwell, who rode in the 1975 Red Rose Silver medal crew. And it was. It was really touching to watch the faces of these 20, 26 oars men and women realize the history behind the crew. And when we started to hand out these books, we had made books for all of them, even the men. The men goes, oh, I want one [00:28:02] Speaker I: of those books, too. [00:28:05] Speaker J: It's really a remarkable piece. So my hat goes off to all the women for the beautiful letters that they wrote and for John's really great creative mind to. To put it all together. [00:28:15] Speaker G: Where do I send the bill for the composition? It's not cheap, but, yeah, we had. For reasons that exist, I put the design together. The sun made provided dozens of photographs that are included in it. This crew has not seen the letter yet. Oh, they have not seen it, and they will tonight. But there's still a surprise that they don't know about. But I wrote a preface. Gail Pearson Cromwell is a good friend of mine. Wrote a forward. And then everyone in the boat contributed their perspective, what they went through to the writing. To the women rowing at Ithaca today. [00:28:48] Speaker K: To honor these women, Ithaca College released the following proclamation. Proclamation from the Ithaca College Board of trustees. Whereas in 1976, the newly formed Ithaca College women's crew team achieved a landmark victory at the Dadvale Regatta, marking the first year in which women competed in. In this esteemed intercollegiate competition and whereas this accomplishment represents a defining moment in the history of Ithaca College athletics and in the broader advancement of women's participation and equity in collegiate rowing and whereas the team's victory demonstrated exceptional athleticism, discipline, teamwork and perseverance, setting a standard of excellence that continues to inspire generations of student athletes and whereas the 197576 Ithaca College women's crew team helped pave the way for expanded opportunities for women in competitive rowing, contributing to the growing recognition and support of women's athletics nationwide and whereas Ithaca College takes great pride in honoring the legacy of those student athletes whose achievements have strengthened the college's tradition of leadership, inclusion and competitive distinction. Now, therefore, be it resolved that the Ithaca College Board of Trustees hereby recognizes and celebrates the 1975-76 Ithaca College Women's crew team for their historic victory at the inaugural women's Varsity A race at the Dadville Regatta and be it further resolved that the board expresses its deep appreciation for the team's enduring impact on the college community and on the advancement of women's athletics. In witness whereof, this proclamation is adopted by the Ithaca College Board of trustees. On this 9th day of April, 2026, [00:30:39] Speaker G: we started thinking about this reunion for today and tomorrow in early January. We've been having zooms every Saturday for two weeks. And one of the things I stated when we began meeting in January was, was that when we come together for this weekend and then we depart, we go our separate ways. We don't want to have any regrets that we left anything on the table. So we're here to really enjoy what the venue has to offer in an exhibition row, weather permitting. Tomorrow, dinner tomorrow night, the reception this evening. And for reasons that exist, I think it was Marianne or Margaret who offered and has been accepted that this crew will present the medals tomorrow. [00:31:18] Speaker B: So cool. [00:31:19] Speaker D: That's wonderful. [00:31:20] Speaker B: So cool. [00:31:20] Speaker D: I think what. [00:31:21] Speaker M: What you're showing is that. And one of the things that makes us all love rowing is that hard work, athleticism, practice, that makes fast boats. But I think what we've all seen is that love and passion and care and heart is what makes them even faster and what makes them endure and become champions. And I think you guys have really [00:31:41] Speaker B: embodied that and become family. [00:31:43] Speaker D: We really meshed as a group. It sort of became a family. Family thing. Because the other thing is you find that you can't really hang out with a lot of other kids that have a completely different schedule than you do. Yeah. So you kind of automatically get pushed together. And for us, we just loved it. I mean, it was just great. You know, we're all completely different people. But as a group, we were just, you know, it was just fantastic. And when you do that through your college experience, you get to know each other, really respect, really well. So we just became a family, you know, and we still are today. Yeah. [00:32:17] Speaker B: I mean, clearly. [00:32:18] Speaker D: Crazy. [00:32:19] Speaker B: Clearly. But we can't wait to see you guys present the awards. [00:32:23] Speaker D: I know. It's gonna be fun. [00:32:26] Speaker H: Okay, we have a special message for you, but we have to do a quick huddle. [00:32:30] Speaker I: Oh, okay. [00:32:33] Speaker B: I'm excited. [00:32:34] Speaker H: I know it's like the suspense for our listeners. [00:32:37] Speaker M: They're all whispering with each other right now, and we have no idea what they're saying. [00:32:40] Speaker I: I wanted to tell one more quick story. [00:32:42] Speaker G: Sure. [00:32:43] Speaker I: You asked about when we finished the dead wheels. One of the deals that I remember when we started rowing was we were responsible for the equipment. We had to carry those suckers. And these were the old wooden shells, and they were heavy. And I remember after we finished the race, I was like, oh, cool, we won the race. But I'm like, how are we going to get this damn boat out of the water? I am wiped out. And don't, you know, all the Guys came the one single time they took the boat out of the water for us. They all came down to the dock and they took the boat out. And I kept thinking, oh, so awesome. [00:33:12] Speaker D: Yes. [00:33:13] Speaker B: What a perfect day. [00:33:14] Speaker E: Thank you. [00:33:14] Speaker D: Boy, I love that, because I know [00:33:18] Speaker I: they're not gonna be able to get [00:33:19] Speaker D: this sucker out of the water. One other funny little thing that happened was that when we go to these races, of course, we had no financial support from the college. They didn't acknowledge us, wanted nothing to do with us. So when we would go to these races, I hate to say it, I think it was. I don't really know this for certain. I think it was probably Jerry JT out fundraising from God knows where to pay for our entry fees. Wow. And, you know, because we were struggling college students that really didn't have the cash. And then there's the travel to the races. There's hotel rooms. And the night before the dad Vails, we were in the Ben Franklin Motor Lodge, which I don't even think it exists anymore in Philadelphia. And it was this kind of old, rundown flop of a place. And we would go into the room and we would split the mattress and the box spring, and we would, like, basically draw straws, and we would bring sleeping bags, and we would draw straws as to who ended up where. And I remember sleeping on the floor underneath the heating air conditioning unit the night before the dad veils. So my sleep was less than fabulous the night before we won the dad veil. So that was my crushed it. But if you can imagine this whole group in a hotel room with the mattresses and the box springs all over the place, it was hilarious. [00:34:42] Speaker C: And the boathouse did not have a women's restroom, just the men's restroom. And you just didn't go to the restroom. [00:34:50] Speaker D: Oh, my gosh. We would set off the JV boats. We'd start really slow, and we'd start with. It's raisins that make the Amazon so powerful. It's raisins that make the Amazon so powerful. It's raisins that make the Amazon so powerful. It's raisins that make the Amazon so powerful. [00:35:20] Speaker G: That's amazing. [00:35:21] Speaker A: That's amazing. [00:35:24] Speaker D: That is awesome. That's where the raisins came from. [00:35:29] Speaker M: That is fantastic. [00:35:30] Speaker D: And that was much better than the effing Amazons, which we noticed when we started. So we're the amazing raisins. [00:35:38] Speaker C: You are. [00:35:39] Speaker D: You really are. I love it. Power. Supporting each other, believing in each other. That's what you learn in a team sport. And this is the ultimate team sport of rowing together. [00:35:52] Speaker B: Well, I cannot tell you how much we appreciate having you guys talk to us. This has been a real incredible. Honestly, really incredible. Thank you, guys, for listening. Don't hit pause. We'll see you on the other side of the splash.