The crew team headed to Nashville, Tennessee, for their first regatta of the season on Oct 7.

“It is our first race and we tried really hard. I wasn’t expecting that we win, but that we try our best. That’s the best result,” novice rower freshman Mulan Duan said.

There were many new members to the crew team this year, and this was their first regatta ever.

“The first race made us all realize that racing is different from practicing and requires a lot more mental strength than we thought,” novice rower junior Ieva Taraskeviciute said.

This was not the first time the crew team had been on the water. They were practicing weeks before preparing for their races.

“We were working really hard before it, however, only a few weeks of rowing on the water together were not enough to win against the teams that had been practicing for several years. I believe that we will do better in the next race,” Taraskeviciute said.

However, the varsity team had prior experiences from last year’s races and had more understanding of what to expect.

“During last year’s competition, I feel like we had a great team full of people who really tried to do the best that they could. However, we didn’t really get much rowing time on the river due to the drought which affected our performance during our two races. This year was much better because we got to row almost right away which gave us more time to get better at our rowing techniques. By our second practice on the river, the girls’ boat was already rowing at all eight. Last year it took us almost two weeks to row at all eight so that tells you how much our team has improved,” sophomore Augusta Wayt said.

During every week the team spends time either in the weight room working out on the erg machines, running laps around the indoor track or using the weights for exercises. Other days they go to the boathouse and row for an hour and a half.

“Prior to racing, I was anxious as I hadn’t raced in Nashville. The water is different than what we’re used to,” senior Oscar Eakett said.

The race in Nashville was two kilometers long and took 20-24 minutes.

“We all tried hard in the race, and were exhausted after the race,” junior Tom Guo said.

Both the JV and varsity teams placed last in the competition, but this didn’t discourage either of the teams.

“Yes, we finished last, but it is a good kick of motivation to move forward and give our hundred percent in practice. I believe that we will do better in the next race. Not only will we row with more passion, but roar louder – at last, we are Darlington Tigers,” Taraskeviciute said.

There is always room for improvement, next year the team thinks they could improve on some things.

“Even though we lost, I felt glad that we have improvement of time from the last year and we all tried best in the race. I would like to train more about our technique about rowing in the future,” Guo said.

Rowing is more than just a sport to most people, but a fun activity that they enjoy and want to improve at.

Eakett said, “I think Coach Jacobs makes for a fine coach and mentor, I will truly miss being part of this team once I graduate.”