Spring finally arrived this past weekend and thankfully so since both days were spent at the Dogwood Junior Championship rowing regatta in Oak Ridge, Tennessee. The weather was perfect – sunny skies, a cool breeze and boats galore competing on the picturesque Melton Lake.
It was our first taste of a two-day rowing event with time trials and semi-finals on Saturday followed by finals on Sunday. Asheville Youth Rowing once again made a fantastic showing, competing against teams from as far away as Milwaukee and St. Louis. Our boats won gold and silver medals.
Oak Ridge, also known as Secret City for it’s role in the Manhattan Project – is a beautiful venue with walking paths and bike trails running alongside the race course. Regattas start early at 7 a.m., when rowers are dropped off, and often go until 6 p.m. Keeping younger siblings busy and happy is often as important as cheering on the older ones. My youngest and I rented bikes to “race” the boats from the starting line, played a mean game of frisbee, showed off our skills with our Chinese Yo-Yos, and went bowling in Oak Ridge.
The regatta ended late afternoon on Sunday with many of our boats qualifying for the regional competition. We were sunburned and exhausted but glad we made it. Oak Ridge was a beautiful AND fun start to a warmer, sunnier season. (Took you long enough, Mother Nature!)
My favorite part of the regattas…early morning after I drop off my rower
Regatta officials prepare the course
Teams set up tents and food stations along the peninsula for rowers
And the rowing begins…
Spectators and rowing families relax in the park, like this tired pooch
Keeping little brother busy
And the silver medalists on the U17 8-man boat…
