James River Sprints

Katya had to go to the regatta in Midlothian, VA one weekend in April, so we decided to make it a family affair once again and go all together for the day. It was about a 3 hour drive but we had to arrive on the night before as Katya always has to be at an early morning meeting of coaches and coxswains. 

The following morning the weather proved to be as cold as we had anticipated. It was 40-50s for the majority of the day but at least we were prepared with gloves, hats and coats. Sitting around for hours by the river and freezing is not fun. But being bundled up and eating while watching the boats go by is exciting and cozy at the same time:) Mark was a trooper for the most part--he read his book and snacked a lot, but it didn't stop him from complaining that he never wants to go to another regatta again. I hate to disappoint him, but oh well. 

Katya claimed she wasn't cold. Right...

And the Grovers came down on a spur of a moment to see Katya race! We were so happy to see them! Jack didn't care it was 50 degrees outside:)

Here is Katya's 8+ boat. She is the plus:))

And it looks like she is the boss. 

Katya and her boat. Actually, this was a borrowed boat from the venue. It looked like it hadn't been used for ages and wasn't very new at all. 

Getting ready to launch. 

And getting last instructions from coach Jim.

Finally, it's their turn to get on the water.

And they are off.

This river is a tricky race course. Towards the opposite side of the bank, the boats encountered undercurrent that made them slow way down and get off course. Katya's job was to keep them away from that bank. In the middle of the race, someone's shoe just broke off and so that girl couldn't row. Katya had to make a fast decision to tell one more rower to stand down so that the boat wouldn't go off balance. So here is how we saw the girls when they rounded the corner, facing their last passage of the race. We are the boat on the right. 

And here they are nearing the finish line. 

Fighting for second place! 

The yellow balls mark the finish line. And they overtook them! 

Such an exciting finish! 

It was very fun to watch and I am glad our girls pushed themselves so hard. 

Kudos to Katya for helping her team get second place. 

We are the Jordan Lake Rowing Club.

Exciting race and so proud of our team! I won't be posting a "fan" video of the finish as there was too much squealing coming out from behind the camera;)) 

Lyana.