Melbourne-bound rowers from Curtin University Boat Club with their coach Jo Boserio and coxswain Katherine Duncan are all smiles after an 8.6km race on Sunday.
By Nash’aa Nashid
If you thought rowing was a sport only for private school boys, think again.
Master rowers at Curtin University Boat Club (CUBC) are men and women aged 37 to 74 – and they have been deep in preparation for the Head of the Yarra, an 8.6 km rowing race held in Melbourne next month.
The crew of eight came second the Head of the Swan last weekend, a new regatta that serves as a warm up race for West Australian crews competing in the Head of the Yarra.
Coach Jo Boserio, who has been rowing for more than 30 years, says the crew has been vigorously training since September. Head of the Yarra is an annual rowing event held in Melbourne, and has more than 250 crews competing in an 8.6km time trial.
“Our crew get together three times a week and do about 12 to 15 km per session, we are not taking it easy,” Ms Boserio said.
“It is a good way to get some feedback, we need to see if the crew can maintain their consistency, see what works and figure out what we need to improve on,” Ms Boserio said.
“It is unusual in all sports, but it is really nice to see both men and women working together in the same team.
“We’re not bad for a bunch of old farts.”
Crew member Belinda Moharich, who has been rowing for 29 years, wants the team to work together to get the best possible result in the race.
“We have not been rowing together for very long, and it takes a while for things to click,” she said.
The newest member of the crew, Catherine Gangell, says there is room for improvement in the team.
“We need to improve on our balance. If the boat isn’t stable then it is difficult to take powerful strokes. It may sound counter-intuitive, but sometimes a faster stroke doesn’t mean the boat goes faster,” Ms Gangell said.
Ms Gangell is prepared to continue training until race day and hopes it will give the crew time to perfect any imperfections.
“I need to work on my fitness, I was pretty exhausted after the race,” she said.
The Head of the Yarra will be held on Saturday, November 25.
[iframe width=”560″ height=”315″ src=”https://www.youtube.com/embed/Nj0DEVTGfkk” frameborder=”0″ allowfullscreen]