Wow...Am I a slacker....

So have you all decided to fire me from blogging or what? I can't blame you. I've been quite absent lately but not because there hasn't been anything to report. Holy Cow we've had a ton going on! I'll try to catch up on a few posts but in general, we had a great fall season and while many races were cancelled, ours was pretty much PERFECT. It was a huge success and I'll post some pictures for you all to see.

We had a small group of kids this fall but man were they great! Getting some young ones which at times can be challenging (they are full of endless energy...) but it also means that we'll have tons of time to work with them and train them to be amaaaaaaazing rowers and hopefully gain scholarships. They all get along great and seem to have a blast.

We're now underway with our winter training - started a bit earlier than last year. We've changed locations but not because the YMCA wasn't awesome. It came down to communication and making sure that we had something in place by the end of the fall. Howland Place Fitness is teaming up with us this year but the YMCA is still a wonderful ally and we'll have some folks training over there as well.

All of the equipment is packed up and being stored - not up in Boston - but in Freetown at the New Bedford Water Treatment Facility Quitticas. Charlie Kennedy, Kenny Blanchard, and many others from the City of New Bedford made it happen for us so huge thanks to you guys!! We also had trouble getting enough bodies to come down on a particular night to load all of the equipment (that trailer is TALL and those boats are HEAVY) so Mark Monteiro with the New Bedford Trial Court brought over a group of workers and even recruited some from the Fall River Trial Court. It took 2 days but they came up with bodies basically overnight and really were incredible in helping to get everything loaded up. Thanks Mark and Frank!!!

Alright - that's a brief update for now but I'll post more later, including pictures, and hopefully you'll all have me back. I've missed you!!! :)

Our first race!

Wow, it seems like time is flying by! It feels like we've just gotten started and it's already time to race. This Sunday we'll be bringing a squad of kids and adults to race in Boston at CRI's Rumble on the River. They'll have bands playing, a ParaOlympic speaker (silver medalist!), food vendors, and races for all sorts of entries. We'll be putting out a mixed 8+ and then tossing a few of the newest members in the barge race. Even parents and friends are welcome to race in the barge! I think it'll be a perfect first foray into regatta season for our new rowers and their families.

I hope the music is good.....

Another successful LTR Day!

The weather was fantastic with little wind and no rain (for a change!) on Saturday as we held our last Learn-To-Row Day. We had 16 new folks try rowing for the first time and the feedback was all positive. Tonight we start our Learn-To-Row Class that meets twice a week on Monday and Wednesday evenings for two hours and runs for 3 weeks. There's always room for more!

Rain, Rain, Go AWAY!

Despite the crappy rain, we had the kids come out for their first day of Fall season. We didn't get the newbies on the water just yet, but we covered all of the paperwork and whatnot and the varsity kids did an erg workout. Tonight, it's raining yet again but we're going to try to go out with the LTR Class. Let's hope the rain dies down so they have a good practice. Tomorrow, the kids should be prepared to get wet cuz they got their one 'freebie' already!!

Fall Season

The weather outside is really making me realize that the summer is coming to an end. It's a bit chillier than it has been, and it's rainy. Not how I'd ideally like to kick off our fall season, but I'm excited for the season ahead. I hope to have lots of newbies come out so we can really attack the training. We haven't been able to get into the schools to do demos so we may be low on numbers, but that still won't stop us. Quality is always better than quantity anyway! We've got some great rowers from the summer so they'll help our 'newbies' get up to speed quickly. We only have 2 months for our whole season so that doesn't leave much time to get them race ready. Game on!

Portuguese American Police Association Scholarship Banquet

Hello everyone!

Just wanted to pass along details of the PAPA Banquet for any of you that may be interested in either attending, or possibly making a donation. One of our youth rowers' dad sent this to me so I know it's a good cause!

Hi Folks

Could you let everyone know that the Portuguese American Police Association Scholarship Banquet (PAPA banquet) will be September 24, 2011

Where: New Bedford Sports Acushnet Avenue

When: Saturday September 24, 2011

Time: Appertizers 6-7:30 Dinner 7:30

Dinner Family Style Portuguesse Soup, Salad, Pork Alentejana, Fish Fillettes, Desert, Coffee

OPEN BAR 6-10

Donation $55.00 Per Person

ANYONE NEED TICKETS PLEASE LET ME KNOW

THANKS

It's an AWESOME Time

Emanuel Maciel
New Bedford Police
Director of Animal Control
President, Animal Control
Officers Association of Mass.
871 Rockdale Avenue
New Bedford, MA02740

Well, Irene has passed

I have to say, we were very lucky here at NBCR. We were able to borrow a truck and a trailer from CRI to load up all of our boats. Tons of club members came down to help load and they brought friends, relatives, etc. and the task went really quickly. The HDC helped us out again and let us store the trailer at State Pier and not even have to unload it. It worked out perfectly!

Then Irene came through and the docks, wakeless launch, and all trees, etc. at Popes Island were in tact. The only damage I really saw was that one of the Popes Island signs came down but our 'boathouse', the docks, the marina all looked in great condition. The office had power when I got back here and Irene left very little mark on us. One of our adult rowers, David Filipek, was gracious yet again and let me borrow his brand new truck to pull the trailer back to Popes Island to unload. I almost didn't give it back! We unloaded over the course of 2 evenings and got everything down. I gotta say, our members (and many of the youth dads) are strong!! Randy at the HDC even mowed the grass inside the fence for us!

So we're back up and running and while we were very lucky and made it through Irene unscathed, many others did not. It's been hard to remember how many people have gone days without power when I have it at work, at home, and the weather has been great. But I'm sure there are plenty of people that have spent the last few days removing fallen trees and branches, and buying all the candles and flashlights they can find. I hope all of you in that position are back to normal as soon as possible!!!

Good Night Irene

Who says New Bedford isn't exciting?! Crazy talk...it's plenty exciting here as we prepare for Hurricane Irene to pay us a visit. The last hurricane (Earl) ended up to actually be quite a nice weekend, but I'm thinking Irene may not be so nice.

No worries though. We've got lots of friends to help us out. CRI is going to loan us a truck and trailer to load up all of our equipment and the city is working on a place for us to stash everything while we wait out the storm. We've got lots of strong members so we'll load everything up, wait it out, and then back to business as usual.

We're gonna be ready for you, Irene!!!

BIG Day on Sunday!

Many many thanks go out to our awesome volunteers as we had our largest group of Learn-To-Row newbies come through Popes Island this past Sunday. We had 2 boats running for several hours and kids of all ages along with adults hopped into the boats and gave it a whirl. As the day went on, the winds picked up but our coxswains did a fantastic job steering the boats, and our experienced rowers worked hard to keep the boats on track.

AT&T was on hand again handing out ice cold water, and thankfully, when my phone got soaked with water, Curt Boardman was there to help me bring it back to life. Gotta love those AT&T guys! Ricky Rosario also hopped in the boat to try rowing, and Curt came in the launch with me to keep an eye on the boats. Curt's becoming a mini coach!

We also had fresh coffee and donuts thanks to the Dunkin Donuts at 150 S. Main St. in Acushnet. Mmmm, those were delicious!! Er, I mean, I hear they were.....

Our rowers were truly awesome as we were definitely busy all day long. It was go-go-go but everyone that came through had a really good time and several of the adults signed up for the Learn-to-Row Class that started on Monday. We had a fun time going over safety, equipment, and hopping on the ergs on Monday. They asked some great questions and we did quite a bit of work in just one day! I look forward to seeing them again tonight!

Learn-To-Row this Sunday!

It's that time again! Yes, we have another Learn-To-Row Day coming up THIS Sunday, August 21st. AT&T will be on hand again with ice cold water, and hopefully we'll have Dunkin Donuts there as well. Register online for your slot (we schedule in groups of 4 so register in order to get a slot). Ages 12 and up are welcome and even if you don't want to row, come check it out! Popes Island in New Bedford. See you there!

More pictures from AHA Night!

Bird Island Challenge

While you may have heard about the Bird Island Challenge, you may not be aware that NBCR also participated. No, we weren't in kayaks as you'd expect. We put out a mixed 8 with half adult rowers, half youth rowers. It was quite an adventure launching such a long boat at a normal boat ramp and several of our rowers ended up waist high in water but not a single one complained and they all went out there with determination.

We even won a plaque to go in our future boathouse and the rowers all got gold plated scallop shells for medals!

More Images from the Oyster & Wine Tasting

First of (hopefully many to come) Oyster & Wine Tasting!

On Friday evening on August 12th, 2011, New Bedford Community Rowing hosted it's first Oyster & Wine Tasting event at Tabor Academy's Fireman's Center. It was a lovely evening with great company, great food and wine, and lots of activity. We had a bar set up with 4 different types of wines that Martignetti's paired with our four different types of oysters (which were DELICIOUS, by the way). For those that aren't into oysters or wine, no fear - we had beer and non-alcoholic beverages as well as lots of little bites prepared by Pat Ball and Maria Pereira. We even had a couple of our youth athletes walking around with the bites (ever so cleverly displayed on a rowing seat) and mingling with the guests, including several of our adult rowers.

To make everyone relaxed and enjoy the evening, our very own Rachel Eisenhaure, a local Assistant District Attorney, was on hand playing live music. Not on a piano, not with a guitar - no, she played the harp!! And it was beautiful to not only listen to but also look at. She's an amazing, talented woman!

As if milling about with the other guests eating, drinking, and listening to music weren't enough, we also had 20 silent auction items on display, ready for bidding. Every item was bid on and we had many happy winners at the end of the night. Thank you to all that donated an item, and to those that bid on each item! There were a few hotly contested items but luckily no rower was harmed in the process...

To top off the night, we brought our two new (to us) fours for a christening/dedication. Through a donation by Walter Chang and his family (Ling Ling, Chris, Sharlene, and Darren) we were able to purchase two used fours for New Bedford Community Rowing this spring. One boat, a 'bowloaded' Filippi, already had a name. It's bad luck to rename a boat so we dedicated it to The Chang Family. The other boat, a Dirigo, while older had never been named. At the suggestion of Walter himself, we christened the boat "Integrity".

It was a very fun event in a beautiful location and we plan to host it again next year. I hope many of you can join us! Eventually, we'll have to host it at our very own boathouse that's not too far off in the future! Thank you to the organizing committee of Martha Maguire, Anne Eisenmenger, Margaret Ishihara, and Pat Lester for all of the amazing work they put into making this a top notch event!

Our set up at AHA Night. More to come!

AHA! Night 8/11 downtown was a huge success!

Well first off, thanks need to go out to Lee Heald for inviting us to participate in the AHA Night on Thursday. It was a great time and there were so many people milling about downtown! We brought out 3 ergs (rowing machines) and had lots of our adult and youth rowers on hand to either teach, or race any daring souls. We had quite a few takers and all but one of our t-shirts were won by challengers! We had quite a few youngsters like the ergs, but we did also have a WPI rower come out and take on our very own Walker Fuchs. I had my money on the tall, experienced, strong looking female WPI rower but Walker wasn't about to make it easy for her. She gave a good fight, pulled some good numbers, but Walker was victorious in the end! Congrats Walker!

We even had some parents of our athletes hop on to give it a try. In the photos below you'll see Bethany Mello and her mom Karen racing. We clearly need to get Karen on a team as she was the victorious athlete of the two lovely Mello girls!

Sippican Week

Check out the great article in Sippican Week (our very own Anne Eisenmenger's local paper for Marion, Mattapoisett and Rochester)

http://sippican.villagesoup.com/community/story/emptying-shells-to-buy-shells/139644

Come on out to support the club!

Busy week ahead!

As if racing on Saturday and the famous New Bedford "Feast" wasn't enough, we've got a busy week ahead of us. We had several kids and several adults attend Narragansett Boat Club's Sweeps & Sculls race over the weekend and everyone had a good time. The junior boys double of Sam Carey and Tim McNamara won a silver medal - congrats to them! We had 3 other doubles and a four race as well. They didn't win medals, but that's not what it's all about. They raced hard, did well, and most importantly, enjoyed themselves.

This coming week we have AHA! Night on Thursday. We'll set up some ergs so people can try out rowing for themselves. We'll have several of our rowers on hand to "challenge" those that are ready for battle. 500 meters, anything goes, a t-shirt to the winner. Are YOU bold enough to try it???

Friday we'll opt away from a sweaty endeavor and move toward an equally enjoyable direction - wine! We'll have several wines on hand paired with 4 different types of Oysters, all grown locally. For those of you that aren't fans of oysters (I'll take yours) we will have other bites for you. One of our very own rowers who also tutors our kids (Rachel Eisenhaure) will be on hand playing the harp. Yes, live harp music!! We'll also have a few tables loaded up with some silent auction items for you to bid on. It's sure to be a very fun event and I look forward to meeting a few new friends, and laughing with some old ones. Come join us!

AHA! Night 8/11 downtown!

NBCR to participate in AHA! Night August 11th!

Posted on 02 August 2011

	Save the Date! August 11th, 2011

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Stop by the Blood Mobile at Custom House Square, 3-9pm

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• Navigating the #1 Fishing Port in the Nation: Cruise the New Bedford Harbor with Port Officials Aboard a Whaling City Expeditions Vessel
• Scallop Celebration @ the NB Whaling Museum!
  - Author’s Talk & Book Signing for Scallops: a New England Coastal Cookbook
  - Scallops on the Plaza: a Cooking Demonstration with Chef Henry Bousquet
• William Street Art on the Block Party!
  - presented by the Cummings Building Artists & Dream Out Loud
  - Brazilian Music, DJ Set & Transient Authority
  - Art and Fashion Showcase with Live Painting
  - Journey Dance with Artworks!, Yoga on Union & Riff Parade
• Back by Popular Demand! NB Ocean Explorium & Friends Present a Science Street Fair
• Grand Opening for NEW AHA! Partner For Veda Boutique
• Performances by the SouthCoast Children’s Theatre
• Seismology Presentation @ the R-J-D House & Garden Museum
• Maritime Music with Yankee Notions in the National Park Garden
• ERG Machine Rowing Race with NB Community Rowing
• Making Waves with the Buzzards Bay Coalition
• Whaleboat Rowing in the Harbor with Whaling City Rowing
• Musical Magic with Mostly Mikes @ Cork Wine & Tapas
• Rose Alley Ale House Presents the Strong Arm Challenge
• Downtown Farmer’s Market @ the NB Public Library
• Reading & Book Signing with Author Dawn Tripp of “Game of Secrets” @ NBAM
• The Summer Tradition Continues! Centre Street Sessions Presents the Too Human Band
• You’ll never guess “Who’s Coming!” Zeiterion 2011-2012 Season Kickoff Party!
• Eat. Art. AHA! Food Photo Contest: Show Us What’s on Your Plate & Win Big
• We Art NB! NEW Shows, *NEW Galleries, & Artist Demos: Artworks!, Crowell’s Fine Art, Gallery 65 on William, Gallery X, Judith Klein Art Gallery, OKOarts, Paradise McFee Gallery, UGLYgallery, & more!

Tidying up the place

A huge thanks to the HDC for sending someone over to cut the grass inside our fence today! It was starting to look like the wilds of Wareham in there but now, thanks to the HDC, it's all been trimmed and looking good again.

Also, big thanks to Pete "Thunder" Hawes for getting more hose so we can rinse the boats on the blocks rather than taking out slings and setting the boats there before putting them away. This should speed up the process, especially during the week when rowers have to dash off to work, but we will still be using Saturdays for a thorough cleaning inside and out. Gotta keep the equipment healthy, just like our bodies. :)