The HBS Men’s Crew competed in the Head of the Charles on Saturday, October 23, earning an 8th place finish out of 43 crews in the Club Four event, with a time of 13:28. The crew narrowly missed out on a medal, finishing just 8 seconds off the third place boat.
This year’s boat consisted of Cordell Bennigson (OC), Dave Bordeau (NE), Jim Gancos (OI), and Boat Club President Charlie Ruch (OC). All of this year’s rowers were veterans of the Head of the Charles, having raced previously for their college and high school teams.
The crew managed to fit in four training sessions, despite suffering from Red Sox induced sleep deprivation all week. Mother Nature was on the team’s side, though, the morning of the race as high winds forced course organizers to move the starting line up, cutting the course length.
For those unfamiliar with fall “Head” racing: each crew starts about fifteen seconds apart and races down the course sequentially in what is basically a time trial. HBS’s starting position was 10th. The crew blasted off the line at 38 strokes per minute, the four managed to quickly catch up to the 9th crew. Choosing to save the fireworks for the loyal HBS boat club fans, Bennigson eased up on the rating and the boat sat on the stern of the 9th crew for 1,000 meters. Then, at the Weeks footbridge, the crew unleashed its power and darted past the boat ahead, much to the delight of the HBS cheering section.
Thanks to their 8th place finish, HBS is automatically qualified for next year’s regatta. The crew would like to thank everyone who came out to the river and cheered them on, especially new Section E.
