The crew team is gearing up for another competitive fall season, starting with key races along the Schuylkill River. The team is set to compete in events such as the Navy Day Regatta, the Head of the Schuylkill River, and the King’s Head Regatta. With their challenging long-distance formats, these races allow rowers to display endurance and technical skill. Boston’s Head of the Charles Regatta, one of the world’s most famous rowing events, adds excitement to the fall crew calendar.
The team started their season with a strong showing at the King’s Head Regatta, with the lightweight 4x earning gold in a fiercely contested race. This early success has motivated the team to push even harder during their training sessions on the river.
Head Coach Mr. Jonathan Stephanik has emphasized the importance of working together in unison, which has been a hallmark of the team’s approach. With top-tier competitors at every regatta, the rowers are committed to building on their recent success and making an impact in these fall races.
Sixth Former and Captain Noah Kanefsky thanks that, regardless of the tough competition, the goal is to row with the best of the best… and win.
“We have the most competitive group in Haverford history, [so] our goal as a team is simply to produce the best results in Haverford history,” Kanefsky said. “On an individual level, my goal is to win Stotes [the Stotesbury Cup Regatta, a championship regatta in the spring] and possibly compete at [Youth Nationals, the crew season’s High School Nationals] or [the Henley Royal Regatta, located in Britain] this year.”
Crew is not just a physical test; it’s a mental one, too. Rowers endure grueling practices that push their bodies to the limit, whether it’s fighting through the burn of lactic acid in their legs or the strain in their arms after a long “piece” of water. When things start to go wrong on the water, Kanefsky offers a valuable piece of advice.
“Everyone has a bad practice. My goal is to simply limit the disparity between my good and bad sessions, so going out on the water I know on my very worst day I can still push close to my peak,” Kanefsky said. “So when I go through a tough practice individually, knowing that pushing through that will help me succeed helps me handle that practice.”
This mentality becomes even more crucial in the context of team dynamics.
“What’s so unique about rowing is that you both literally and figuratively have guys in front and behind you in the boat,” Kanefsky said. “If you stop or let up in the boat, the guys feel that. I always have guys with close times which allows me to push off of them and go with them. This is also our last year at Haverford as a group. The thought of leaving a legacy isn’t taken lightly, and having that behind us is motivation on its own.”
