Prestigious Head Of The Charles To Test Zags
10/18/2013 12:00:00 AM | Women's Rowing
SPOKANE, Wash. — Every year, when the third weekend of October rolls around, throngs of people line the banks of the Charles River to watch some of the world's best rowers thread their way through Boston's beloved dirty water. This year, for the first time, they will see a Gonzaga University boat navigate this legendary race.
A crew from the Gonzaga women's rowing team will compete in this weekend's Head of the Charles Regatta. The 49th edition of this prestigious event starts Saturday, with the Bulldogs racing in the Women's Championship Fours competition Sunday at approximately 11:39 a.m. PDT.
Generally regarded as the world's largest two-day rowing event, the Head of the Charles features 55 races, nearly 2,100 boats and approximately 9,000 rowers of all levels — from novices and top collegiate rowers to world-class club teams. This truly classic New England experience, complete with autumnal hues, crisp fall weather and festival-like atmosphere, regularly draws as many as 300,000 fans.
"Of all the races, this is the race everybody talks about," Gonzaga coach Glenn Putyrae said. "This is the race that everybody can associate with being the quintessential American fall race."
The crew chosen by Putyrae to represent Gonzaga at the Head of the Charles includes rowers Madison Keaty, Devyn Bell, Kara Soucek and Casey Burt. They will receive their directives from coxswain Laura Brasch.
"One of the key points of selecting the boat had to do with the consistency of the performance of the athletes that are in it," Putyrae said. "This group has definitely demonstrated they are not only the most consistent group, but they have also demonstrated they are the fastest."
It also doesn't hurt that the crew selected by Putyrae has experience on similarly grand stages. All five Zags competed in some capacity at the NCAA Championships last spring. Keaty, in fact, has even participated in the Head of the Charles before, twice racing as a high schooler.
"I think we understand that it's a big deal and that this is a chance to see where we measure up and what we can do going forward," the GU senior said. "I think it's another opportunity for us as a program to grow and get more experience racing against top competition."
The Bulldogs, who had to win a lottery just to gain entry into the regatta, will indeed face some stiff competition. In addition to collegiate powers like Yale and Notre Dame, there are also two entries from the U.S. national team.
"I think just racing on the same water and being able to compare our time to a crew of that caliber is a pretty exciting opportunity," Putyrae said. "To be able to finish a race and say, ‘Well, this is where we are relative to some of the best rowers in the world' is pretty exciting."
Held on the river that separates Boston from Cambridge, the serpentine course starts at Boston University's DeWolfe Boathouse and slices upstream for 3 miles before finishing at Herter Park. In addition to deceptively sharp corners, narrow passes and brisk winds gusting off the water, crews must navigate seven bridges, five of which feature triple arches.
Crews race not against each other, but against the clock. Each boat starts sequentially 15 seconds apart and any penalties — steering the hull outside of the buoy line, for example — are tacked on to a boat's final time. Gonzaga will be the last boat to start in its 21-team field.
"There is going to be a little wide-eyed wonder when they see the racecourse for the first time," Putyrae said of his rowers. "But there is a lot of excitement about going and finding out how our best stack up against the best from all over the country and all over the world."
