The First Row

I’ve said it before, and I’ll say it again: the first row sets the tone for the regatta.

This trip has been the most time consuming and financially challenging in terms of travel. We started our trip at 330pm on Thursday, leaving our OKC accommodations for the airport, and arrived at the hotel in New Zealand at noon on Saturday. Granted, we crossed the international date line which cost us a calendar day, but it was still a solid 24+ hrs of traveling.

Fortunately, it was all relatively smooth sailing. The week leading into the trip had been our toughest, trying to create a peak for Worlds, so we were already physically drained. The first 8 hours of the flight across the Pacific were spent drifting in and out of sleep. I started 4 full-length movies on the flight, but for three of them, I only caught the first twenty minutes before my eyelids lost their fight with gravity. Luckily, the logistics of the trip were well-planned, and we breezed onto our tour buses waiting to shuttle us to our hotel.

A quick lunch along with the amazing weather and views energized everyone as we headed down to the venue to rig and prepare for the next two weeks. Warm temperatures on a sunny spring afternoon put everyone in a good mood as we took over the grassy fields nearest the shipping container, unloading and rigging the USA flotilla. Several crews went out on the water to test their rigs, but most of us went for a light run in the countryside, snapping pictures. Everyone we passed said a friendly hello. The nearby mountains seemed to spring out of the rolling pastures that were dotted with sheep and cows. Everyone looked at each other, seemingly at once, and grinned, “This place is gorgeous!”

While I’m already convinced that this would be an ideal vacation destination, we all collected ourselves this morning as we stretched before our row, reminding ourselves that we are here with a singular purpose: to win. All weather reports from the previous two weeks had been horrendous. The winds had been approaching 30mph, the roof of the grandstands had been blown off, and the countries that had arrived earlier had not yet taken a stroke on the water. It was as if the Red Sea was parting just for us.

We took to the water, expecting to take a few laps just to settle the rigging, and make adjustments, but after the first 2k of drills and light steady state, everyone seemed more comfortable in the shell than we have been all summer. New oars with fresh, clean handles dipped in unison into the clear, cool water and right away the boat set up solidly. It seemed like every boat in the regatta was on the water at the same time, and while there was considerable chop and traffic, our first row in New Zealand was one of our best rows to date. Am I getting a little over-excited about one quality row? Perhaps. But for the amount of effort that has gone into this year’s preparation, I have no qualms about taking some comfort in a productive session. There’s still work to be done, but on the day, I am thankful to be truly happy doing what I’m doing. That’s a pretty rare thing.

- Matt Muffelman, 2010 USA LM8+

More Blogs by Matt Muffelman:
Holy Cow, We Leave Tomorrow!
Introducing Matt Muffelman’s First Blog

Please consider supporting the USA LM8+ on their journey to the World Championships. Not all boats are funded and many athletes pay the costs to represent our rowing community from their own savings. This year rowers in the LM8+ will have to pay just over $6000 each for their trip. Please consider making a donation at http://www.firstgiving.com/2010lm8. Every little bit helps.- shivs

If you are interested in sponsorship opportunities, please contact Matt Muffelman at muffelman@gmail.com.

This entry was posted on Monday, October 25th, 2010 at 8:30 pm. It is filed under Rowers, TEAM USA, World Championships. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed.