Sunday, April 29, 2012

Desktop Screen Saver

Here starts my Travels and Misc Desktop Screen Saver Series to download.

Taken in Amsterdam, Netherlands
Taken in Delft, Netherlands



Saturday, April 21, 2012

NK (Dutch Champs) on the Bosbaan

I'm here at the NK (Dutch National Championships) held at the Bosbaan in Amsterdam watching this huge event. I can't help but make a little comparison to the USA.
So at this regatta, you have all the clubs, and their loyal supporters and the club's heritage that brings a certain code of honour to the sport of rowing felt at the regatta. Then you also have the student clubs which would be somewhat equivalent to the universities of the U.S. You have novices and juniors, aspiring to be in the Senior A, all at one regatta, racing. It brings the whole family together. So there is a continuation from one part of your rowing, (junior, to university to senior) to another. Whereas it would seem like a very disjointed system where universities especially function like a closed entity. And in most cases, the dominent entity. NSR regattas are also distant, kind-of poorly attended, meaning in spectators, although wildly written about under pseudo-names (what kind of support it that)? I know rowing seems to have no status in the U.S being in the shadows of Football, Baseball, Basketball, so the experience of rowing in Europe is fantastic where suddenly your sport is revered and somewhat even recognized. (Tired of hearing the question, where do you put your fishing pole in that boat?!)
Bikes and Buoys
Last 500m
Bosbaan
Boats and Cafe
and here come the bike supporters following every stroke of the race, cheering athletes on
Clubs Together

So What Happens Now?

The USA double of Julie and Kristin must place top 4 in the first world cup in Belgrade Serbia (4-6 May) or the second world cup in Lucerne, Switerland (25-27 May). If they do, they will go to the Olympics. If they don't then we go back to trials in Princeton on Mercer Lake June 11-14th. Who ever wins this trial, goes to the Olympics.

Wednesday, April 11, 2012

Watch our Final Live 9:40am PST



WATCH IT HERE ON ustream.tv/usrowing

USRowing NSR II  - Schedule
Date: Thursday April 12, 2012


Event 33
09:40
Womens Ltwt 2x (LW2x)

Lane 3:
Lake Union Crew (Ursula Grobler, Hillary Saeger)

Results will be posted here

Live Streaming of Finals:
USRowing will live stream finals for this event online at http://www.ustream.tv/usrowing. Purchase race clips after the event at http://www.usrowing.org/Multimedia/VideoDownloads.aspx.

Photos on Row2k

Wednesday, April 4, 2012

NSR 2 - Step 1 to Olympics

It's National Selection Regatta (NSR) Time! First you have NSR 1 which is usually for singles and pairs. And then you have NSR 2 which features doubles and pairs again. For the Lightweight women double scull, abbreviated as LW2x this is the only olympic event. And through the USA trials system, this is the only selection procedure. You show up for the race, and who ever wins goes.

Our race schedule looks like this: 
Tuesday 4/10/12        9:00am    LW2x   Time Trial 1
Wednesday 4/11/12  10:10am  LW2X  Semi A/B
Thursday 4/12/12       9:40am    LW2X  Final A
    Our event entries are up to 10 boats. We are racing for Lake Union Crew and will be abbreviated ast LUC. Thank you to Rome & Mara and all the rowers at LUC who have housed us and supported us while training in Seattle. Rome is currently away in Haiti doing her outreach program. Its fabulous gift of humanity and you can read more about it here on LUC's Outreach >> Rome went to Lesotho one year, for her outreach program, which was close to my heart, being in South Africa! 
    JL Racing made us very cool gear, which I got the opportunity to design again! Thank you Joline!

    The Competitors:
    For Cal Rowing you have Julie and Kristin who were the USA double in 2011, and did very well, qualifying the boat for the olympics in the World Champs. Now this NSR 2 regatta is the race for who will be in that boat that qualified. Confused yet, doesn't make sense right? Go to Selection 101 for more details. Also racing are Jen and Jenny from Vesper/Pennac. Jen Goldsack was in the 2008 Olympic Lightweight boat. From OKC are the girls who medaled at the Pan Am Games last year October. Also from Seattle are the Pocock lightweights, and SRC girls who shared the waters with us. It's a stacked race! So looking forward to bringing out everyone's potential!

    You can watch the finals on TeamUSA.org and all results and schedule changes can be found on USRowing's website.