Fall Athlete Spotlight: Crew Captains Ready for a Big Final Year
Fall brings new beginnings for everyone, but for the seniors on the CBA crew team, it is the beginning of the end.
After being appointed co-captains, Tim McGuinness, Jack Amyot and Hayden Friend know that they’ve been a part of something special over the past three years. Now as they enter their final year rowing for CBA, they have nothing but great memories.
In May of last year, Amyot helped lead his lightweight four to victory in the Stotesbury Cup, one of the most prestigious regattas in the country.
“We put a lot of hard work into that lightweight four and I was really happy when we were able to come back from third to first and take it all,” Amyot explained.
McGuiness, however, enjoyed the bonding time that the team experienced racing in the Royal Canadian Henley Regatta.
“Our boats did pretty poorly, but it was a week-long race with a lot of experience, fun in the hotel, and dinners every night,” he said.
On a team like CBA Crew, it is not always about the results, but more about helping one another become the best rower and person they can be.
When Friend looked back on his time with the team, he said that his favorite race was Stotesbury during junior year.
“We raced in the junior four and we won it with back-to-back races in our semis and our finals, and ended up pulling it out in the end,” Friend said.
The crew team reintroduced the “fleet captain” position this fall after nearly 20 years. Senior James Penczak was appointed fleet captain, tasked with making sure the boats, oars and teammates are ready for the next race.
“The fact that the coaching staff created this captainship speaks volumes to their commitment to this sport and to the safety of each oarsman and coxswain,” Penczak said. “It’s an honor to be appointed fleet captain, a role I take seriously, and I am looking forward to a great season.”
Of course, it was a long journey for these captains from freshman year to now. McGuinness immediately knows what the biggest difference between his freshman self and now.
“One thing that you learn how to do in this sport is to work yourself to points you didn’t know were possible,” McGuiness said. “You have to put yourself into a level of discomfort that you didn’t know you could handle.”
Hayden, on the other hand, thought that the biggest thing that changed for him was his ability to become brothers with his teammates.
“I learned to understand everyone, how they take advice, how to talk to everyone, and how they are in and out of the boat. I learned to become close to everyone on the team,” he said.
Second-year head coach Brenin Ford jumped in with a similar sentiment on teamwork. He has a unique perspective as a former CBA rower turned freshman coach and now varsity coach.
“Crew is a sport that is all about teamwork. A boat cannot move, let alone go fast, if everyone is not in sync. You have to understand yourself and your teammates to make a boat the best that it can be,” Ford said.
The crew team is looking forward to the fall regatta schedule, which kicks off with the Navy Day Regatta on October 16 in Philadelphia. That regatta is the first of five straight weekend events, including the famous Head of the Charles on October 22 in Boston.
