August 2026 Newsletter
August 2026 Berkshire Community Rowing Newsletter
President’s Message:
Make sure you know how to stop. If you find yourself about to collide with a fishing boat (it’s happened to many of us), make sure you know how to check the boat’s forward motion (AKA Hold Water). I practiced this in a double the other day with Coach Soren. Rowing hard, we checked the boat in eight meters on our first try. Not very good. We got it down to 3.5 meters on our fourth try, so practice really helps. Team boat crews should know the various commands used for stopping (they are STOP! and CHECK! and HOLD WATER!) and be ready at an instant to Hold Water. Please don’t rely on the fishermen to call out to you in time. Keep a vigilant watch off your bow and practice Hold Water every season. Be safe
August Club Day:
Do you like to have fun around the lake? Interested in creating some camaraderie around BCR’s boathouse? Volunteer with a friend to organize a club day in August. Contact Connell McGrath for guidance, president@berkshirerowing.com
Random Rower’s Corner ~ Sean
Sean is August’s Random Rower. A rising sophomore at Taconic High School in Pittsfield, MA, Sean has been rowing with BCR’s Juniors for several years. He was introduced to rowing by a fellow Junior, Evan. Sean’s preferred position in the quad is Stroke or Two or Three – never Bow! He has competed in two events and prizes the socialization rowing brings him over competition. The most challenging part of rowing for Sean is holding his posture. He acknowledged his crew had flipped a boat near the dock once, and he and his boatmates swam the boat to the dock. Sean is one of seven or eight Juniors, two of whom are girls. It is unlikely that he will row after high school since crew is a pastime for him, and he will be focused on college after he finishes up at Taconic. BCR is so thrilled that Sean is part of the Juniors Program.
CrewLAB app – a must have!
Here is the link to connect with other BCR members through CrewLAB to work out together and use the app to find workouts you can do on your own…or both! Go to the CrewLab Page to download the app, crewlab.io/get-started/ Our team codes are:
- Masters: srk-lweu-pww
- Juniors’ Parents: jwn-etkt-hvg
- Juniors: taz-kloc-xyh
PS The Remind app is no longer in use by BCR.
Coaches’ Corner ~ Randy Oberle and Ted Humphrey
We’d like to welcome a crop of new, young rowers to the Juniors Program. When we started in fall of 2014, we had an age range from 11-ish to 14-ish. For the first couple of years, it seemed that we always had mostly the younger end of the spectrum. Since, maybe covid . . . we blame everything on covid . . . our rowers have skewed older. Suddenly, we have five new rowers under 12. From a coaching standpoint, we are privileged to watch them grow up. Such fun!
Simon and Tobias Age 11 in 2015
Foster, Tobias, and Simon Age 18 in 2022
Regattas ~ Save the Dates
Quinsigamond Sprints Regatta – August 9 – Lake Quinsagamond, Worcester, MA
Rockrimmon Regatta – September 12 – Connecticut River, Springfield, MA
Paper City Regatta – September 26 – Connecticut River, Holyoke, MA
Head of the Fish Regatta – October 24 and 25 – Fish Creek, Saratoga Springs, NY
Policy Review: High Viz Clothing and Liability Waiver
- All rowers must wear high-visibility shirts and/or hats: neon green, yellow, pink or orange.
- All members and program attendees must sign US Rowing’s liability waiver on their website.https://membership.usrowing.org/ If you need help with this, reach out to info@berkshirerowing.com
BCR Swag
Think we all need some new, matching BCR swag? Grab a friend and solicit your club friends to buy some stuff! Contact Connell McGrath for guidance, president@berkshirerowing.com
Best Resource Ever!
You can always find the most up-to-date information on the club’s activities by visiting BCR’s website, berkshirecommunityrowing.org.
Come Row with Us!
Editors: The Marketing & Communications Committee