I am often so overwhelmed at the beauty and general excellence of our Camden environment that I exclaim to whoever is listening “We live in an earthly paradise!” This is nowhere more true than when I am rowing on Lake Megunticook. Whether it is springtime with baby loons and goslings dodging our shells, summertime when the sun peeks over Mount Megunticook at 5:45 as we are rowing across the basin, or the fall where the colors of the leaves reflect in the mirror-smooth water as we glide over it, I know that almost every day I row I will see or hear or smell something beautiful and remarkable. When my alarm goes off at oh-dark-hundred for practice, it’s nice to have the extra motivation that I am likely going to see something lovely on the lake that morning if I just get out of the bed.
The fact that I came to rowing as a thirty-something adult in Philadelphia maybe makes me appreciate this all the more. Although I love racing other boats, I didn’t start out competing. I was so busy trying to keep my single upright and understand the basics of the sculling stroke that I never even thought about trying to race until much later. Rather, I learned to love the beauty of the stroke when it works, the way the boat speed jumps up when you hit a stroke just right or your crew suddenly syncs up and starts swinging together. There are few things better in rowing, or in life in my view, than a long steady-state row at a low rate with a well matched crew. The timing of the catch, the drive, and the finish lines up and the boat almost moves by itself. It is teamwork in a way that few other sports know, where perfect synchrony and the submission of your individual quirks to an alignment with the crew brings outsized gains that you can feel for as long as it holds together.
Why am I telling you all this? Well like I said I love racing, and when I talk about rowing I often find myself talking about going fast and trying to win races. But as we gear up for what I’m hoping will be a record-breaking 2025 for Megunticook Rowing, for new members recruited as well as races won, I wanted to take a moment to emphasize all the great reasons to climb in a shell that don’t involve racing. There’s fitness, of course, and camaraderie, and all the usual stuff you read about all kinds of team sports. But what I mean to say is that rowing is different. It is a way to connect with natural beauty, with inner peace, and with your crewmates that is as far as I know unique among sports. I hope you will join us on the water this spring and see for yourself.
I know that the draw of the rowing experience is infectious because I live it every day as president of the Megunticook Rowing board. Every one of the board members are engaged and working really really hard to get their particular aspect of the program pulled together and ready to go for spring. In this update I want to highlight one of our new board members Sam Grinnell, as well as veteran junior board members Connor Howland and Laura Riordan. The three of them are working overtime to build an outreach program in the high school and our local middle schools with an aim to doubling (or more!) the size of our Varsity and Novice teams – if not by this spring then certainly by the fall. If you are a Rowing Parent reading this, please make sure your child is ready for the season and take note of the various events our team is planning. I want to highlight especially the Dirigo Sprints, our own Megunticook Rowing junior regatta. I was only able to attend this event for the first time in 2024 and I was amazed and delighted to see the huge number of students who turned up and the amazing time they all had rowing and enjoying each others’ company that day. It was a great thing that I am really proud to be part of again this year.
One last thing: Winter training continues at MRC all the way through the end of March. Remember, the shape you’re in April 1 is the shape you’ll be in September 1, if you’re lucky! So join us mornings and evenings for workouts with coach Sam (MWF evenings) and coach Will (TTH mornings). I hope to see you there!
Hugh Brock, President