Newsletter January - February - March 2024 - SSYRP

New from the Scullers January - March 2024

The new year … and I am very late to write about our January and February 2024 but many things happen. The preparation of our Spring Season, new rowers, the Million Meter Day, fundraising, Clay Shoot … everything at the same time.

The first three month of the year have been busy. The Scullers recruited and recruited, and a fresh new team starts to build up the future of our club.

Three months of event to event … changes and changes

Million Meter Day

Giving Challenge

Clay Shoot Tournament

Racing at Benderson and at home.

Everyday a new rower tries out our sport and even an Olympic hopeful Casey Fuller joined our ranks to train with the Scullers and inspire our team.

JANUARY

The Lagacy Trial became a big focus of our training. Learning to ride a bike again (Matej) and preparing for our first home-made event the Million Meter Day. The Clubhouse hosted 20 bikes of our rowers and every second day you could find the team biking to Venice and back. Congrats to all of team.

The big event following our training was of course our Million Meter Day. See our YouTube Video and relive the event. Thank you to all our fans and sponsors!

FEBRUARY

Besides our preparation for the Million Meter Day our preparation for the first regatta of 2024 began simultaneously. The American Youth Cup and SIR knocked at our door and the racing begun with our new team.

Lilly - Anise - Ashley - Chaeli - and more … new names to our team. The training in the past five month was not easy for our oldies in the team. Every week a new person showed up and needed to get boated. Sydney, Leon and Luke became the front runners of our team and helped the newbies to settle and learn what needed to be learned fast so that the next upcoming regattas the Novice and Freshman categories would become the new playground for the Scullers.

Lilly and Anise (both 13 years of age) found friends in our team and in a few weeks time we could send our first combined new and old Scullers on the water.

The American Youth Cup was the beginning with a small team - followed by the Sarasota Invitational Regatta. Combined with our Masters and as a composite team with our friends from Cape Coral the day has been busy for the the Headcoach of the Scullers. Running from one launch and the return dock to another … collecting medals (never Gold … but next year we plan to do so) we showed a great return to the scene. Some picture impressions here:

TRAINING and missing new-comers

To grow a club is not easy. New athletes come - try out - like it - do not like it. How much can a team do. How much can a coach do to send the message that rowing is one of the greatest sports (totally subjective opinion hahaha). Sage is one who just lost one of our new additions. Connor started to come for the two-week try-out. He joined us also because Sage is a good friend of him. From the first moment - I was happy … for me as a coach I saw a great team might grow together and Sage and Connor would use this unique situation to form a unbreakable team.

Putting them together in a 2- from day one is an odd choice - but also who does not like a challenge in that age. 15 years, trying something what seems impossible - not flipping in one of the most difficult boats. Sage and Connor enjoyed the two weeks.

We never know what triggers the joy in our sport, and for Connor the spark did not came. Maybe next year - when he grew older and goes again for a challenge. That challenge is what rowing will teach us in our everyday life. We try, we fail, we stand up again and try again. We help each other and one of the days we will master something what seemed days or weeks ago impossible (that was for Chaeli for one of our new female members).

So, for Connor - if you still up for the challenge … you are welcome to try again.

Training can happen at the beach

The Scullers are not only training in the rowing boat or their Clubhouse. Twice (sometimes more often) our team rows to Midnight Pass and spends over 60min of land exercise. Beach run starts first and swimming in the ocean finishes the training. Here some impressions of the training.

Training in the Clubhouse (Coach is not so much fun)

Training in the Clubhouse seems to be a non-fun exercise and yes…mostly it is … but it teaches our athletes more than just the physical workout. Being in a contained environment, just watching themselves and their teammates teaches sometimes more then we want to know about us. Who is still smiling after 120min. Who constantly challenged himself. Who actually came to the Clubhouse and faced the truth of a lone-wolf experiences. Luckily coach Stompo throws once in a while a movie into the ring to “shorten” the 3×35min erging.

SCRIMMAGE - SCULLERS vs Cape Coral

March - it was time again for us to race our favorite competitors. The athletes from Cape Coral (CC). Shaundra Weston (coach of CC) brought them up all. Over 16 races throughout the morning in which our athletes - from Novice to Star - showed their abilities to sprint 600m in our buoyed home course. While Coach Stompo managed the water side Coach Shaundra picked the teams on land. From single to 8+ every boatclass showed up at the start line. Scullers practiced a lot of early starts with the result to be pulled back. Races in which we could not identify the winner had to redo their race. Sometimes the winner was surprising and the laughter and fists in the air have been welcomed emotions.

Thank you to Cape Coral to return to our Boatyard and we cannot wait to see you guys again.

February - March

Who is Casey Fuller??? (Is he even still in school????)

Coach Stompo took on an intern coaching assignment in February and March 2024. After Casey finished at the US Speed order at the end of the field, he asked for help … and by recommendation he found the Coach Stompo from the Scullers. In morning hours and times when our athletes spend their time in school to learn for their future, Stompo worked on the future of Caseys rowing.

Coach Stompo worked with Casey not only on the water - but biking also became a long and exhausting second exercise. Day by day Casey was more amazed about things he missed during his training. His good physics to begin with, his not trying to “kill” himself during the harder workouts and finally the long talks about how to approach the Olympic Trials made him ready for the ultimate goal to become someone who is worth to try-out for the Olympic team of the USA.

Having his last result (Speed order) still in his head, Casey was not completely ready what might happen … and after Coach Stompo told him to get faster race by race (in opposite what he did in the past competitions) he started his journey through the Olympic Trials.

After three days of racing Casey found himself in the A-Final of the Olympic Trials and confronted with the sentence - today you will go out and win your first race … against people you never beat before :-)

Casey finished second - one place behind Jacob - one place what might brought him to the Olympic Games to Paris 2024. But Casey won. Casey won something else - confidence, everything seems possible and that their are more roads to “Rom”.

Congratulation to Casey and I hope we will see him in LA 2028.

Oxford vs Cambridge

Of course, our team-race-viewing tradition Oxford vs Cambridge had to happen in 2024 again. Thank you to the family Degroote we could enjoy the women and men race at their home. Our team arrived in the morning ours and after Cameron told a day before that “he” owns a pool - our team was in bailing suit not long after arriving.

The “betting office” Oxford - Cambridge opened and besides athletes the parents throwed their bits into the hat. Lilly and Cameron gambled right at the women’s race. The Men race saw an early leader and again Cameron guessed right - not only the outcome he also guessed the margin between the two teams. Besides Cameron the big winner in his own home and the team had a great team experience and grew again closer together.

Thank you again to the family Degroote who hosted us for this incredible rowing event.

Nice to be recognized

2023 … our team went through a lot of changes. But one thing what always happen is our voluntary commitment to the community. The appreciation certificate reached us in March, and we are happy to share this with our members. Thank you to all who are supporting us and being part of the Scullers family.