Coach Sands met with parents this morning after practice. He introduced his assistant coaches, Coach Jennifer McDonald and Coach John Polinsky, both former North Catholic rowers to the group. 

The coaches are very excited about the growing team this year and are pleased with the progress they have made so far. Your kids have been doing a great job recruiting their fellow classmates but we could use a few more boys to balance out the team. We are hopeful that we will see a few more rowers after the Fall sports season has ended. 

PRACTICE SCHEDULE
If we are going to be competitive this year, it is CRITICAL that all rowers participate in all practices. There are some rowers who will not join the team until after the Fall sports season and Coach is already aware of those rowers. That said, if a rower is going to miss practice for any reason, he/she must notify Coach Sands and make sure that the Team Snap site is appropriately updated. Also, it is a good idea to make sure that their teammates know that they will not be available. 

Practices will continue on Monday, Tuesday, Thursday after school and Saturdays at 7:30 a.m. until the 1st or second weekend in November, weather permitting. Throughout November and December, it is likely that the team will continue to practice at least one day (likely Wednesdays) after school so that they maintain some continuity. Below is the proposed schedule for the remainder of the school year.

• January - Monday, Tuesday, Thursday after school; Saturdays at 7:30 a.m. (practices will be held at school and some Saturdays may be at Millvale rowing tanks)
• February -  Monday, Tuesday, Thursday after school; Saturdays at 7:30 a.m. (practices will be held at school and some Saturdays may be at Millvale rowing tanks)
• March-May - Monday-Friday after school; Saturdays at 7:30 a.m.(practices will be held at Three Rivers Boathouse)

CHRISTMAS PARTY
Every year, Coach Sands and his wife, Cindy, treat the kids to a Christmas party. For nearly 25 years, that party was held at the Spaghetti Warehouse. Unfortunately, the Spaghetti Warehouse is now closed so we are in search of a new location for this year's party. If you have suggestions, please let me know. Such that you have an idea of timing, this party is usually held during the 1st or 2nd Tuesday in December. Once we get a little closer to the end of the year, we will provide more details on the date and time of this event. 

RACE SCHEDULE

Head of the Ohio
The first race of the Fall season will be the Head of the Ohio which will be held on October 2nd. The team will get more details from Coach on arrival time, what to wear, etc. prior to the race. At this point in time, Coach Sands plans to race in the following events:

• Girls Varsity 4
• Boys JV or Varsity Double
• Girls Pair (potentially)
• Girls Novice 4 (potentially if girls are consistent and continue to attend practices)

Halloween Race
The team will also participate in the Halloween race at Dillon Lake (Zanesville, OH). The Halloween race will actually be held the 1st week of November this year - November 5th. The team will depart from the school around 6 am on Saturday morning and racing should be complete by around 2 pm. This race is lots of fun and everyone will have an opportunity to race. 

Spring racing should start around the 3rd week of March. No schedule has been determined at this point in time. A lot will depend on how many rowers continue into the Spring season. 

SPRING TRAINING
There are several factors which will determine whether the team will participate in Spring training this year in Georgia. In prior years, the team would spend a week in March in Georgia practicing every day 3 times per day. In other words, they would eat, sleep and dream about nothing but rowing. And, they would forge important bonds as teammates. This rigorous training improved their endurance, technique and speed and really helped them to become fiercely competitive as they approached the Spring races. Coach will make a decision later in the year about whether the team will be able to participate in this training or some other format of intense training.

BUDGET UPDATE
The crew team currently has approximately $5-6,000 in our school account and the football pool fundraiser which is happening now is expected to net $6,800 (assuming all blocks are sold). Initially, the thought was that the team would purchase a Resolute Pair/Double given the smaller size of our team to provide more racing options. However, given our growth this year, he is now considering the purchase of a 2007 Resolute 8 shell for a cost of approximately $13,000. He is working on the details at this point with the school and the shell owner.  

TEAM SNAP
Coach Jenn has set up and is responsible for the Team Snap site. If you or your child have not yet been added to the Team Snap site, please make sure that you provide Coach Jenn with your e-mail address and let her know that you are not on Team Snap. This site will be used to determine attendance for practices and other events. So, it is important that your kids take the time to click Yes or No on Team Snap as to whether they will attend a given practice or event. This will give the coaches an opportunity to more efficiently plan ahead for practices. It will be the way that our coaches communicate with the kids and parents at the same time. 

Thanks again! Looking forward to another great year of rowing with our Trojan Crew.

Best regards,

Stephanie Lichauer