History of Vassar Rowing
Rowing at Vassar began with one young coach, two old wooden shells, and a handful of students who were eager to spend some time on the Hudson River and learn more about competition beyond the classrooms of the Vassar College campus. Rowing was so accurately named "the champagne of sports" by Vassar's very first coach, Scott Sanford, who founded and launched the program in the fall of 1983 as a part-time coach. Though principal of Spackenkill High School at the time, Scott Sanford saw a vision for the future of athletics at Vassar. Initially rowing out of a local high school's boathouse (F.D. Roosevelt) with a pair of donated wooden eight-oared shells, rowing took on popularity with student-athletes at Vassar. Within a couple of years, Vassar was able to move their small contingent to their own small, but much needed, space donated by A.C. Dutton Lumber Corp. This structure was altered to best suit the housing of the shells and stood next to the Marist College Boathouse, about 2000m down-river of the previous FDR site. Sanford and the team themselves built the docks off of which they rowed. While Sanford coached the men, long-time friend Ed Clark helped Sanford by coaching the women's squad. It wasn't long before Sanford and Clark began to see success as the hard work of their time and efforts began to pay off.
Seeing the need for more space, additional boats, and equipment to support the growing team at Vassar, President Fran Fergusson went forward with plans to help the team expand. In 1994-95, Vassar purchased the remaining riverfront property adjacent to the small boathouse owned by A.C. Dutton Lumber Corp. that included three buildings to be renovated and utilized by the Rowing team. These are the same facilities currently being used by Vassar Rowing today: a spacious boathouse that is home to seven eights, four fours, and four pairs, a locker room with bathrooms and showers, a club house where the team often reviews videotape from practice and competitions, and a launch house where coaching launches and equipment are stored. In addition, new and larger docks were installed on the property that allow for three eights and two fours to launch simultaneously.
In 1997, rowing was elevated to varsity status at Vassar. The men's team continued racing in the fours competition where they earned much recognition, including a bronze medal at the NY State Championships in the spring of 1998 (see Honors page). Since hiring Head Coach Mike Alton in 2000, the focus has remained with the fours competition while the caliber of rowing has greatly increased to a higher level. At the 2001 NY State Championships, the Men's Varsity Four won a silver medal, qualifying them for a spot at the Avaya ECAC Collegiate Championships. Here they went on to win a bronze medal in the grand finals defeating Hobart, Tulane, and Mercyhurst.
In 2002, the men saw good success again with the Novice Eight placing 5 th at the NY State Championships and the Varsity Four placing 4 th . The Varsity Four qualified again for the ECAC Championships. The 2003 spring season brought in a smaller team but another round of high-ranking results. Both the Varsity and Novice raced in the fours competition, with the Novice Four taking the bronze medal at the NY State Championships among 11 other crews. The Varsity Four placed 4 th at that same regatta, which qualified them for a bid to the ECAC Collegiate Championship once again. Here they proved their strength and experience with a strong heat and advancement to the grand finals where they placed 6 th overall among 18 schools.
The spring of 2004 revealed a number of team highlights for the Vassar College Men's Rowing Program. Head Coach, Mike Alton (5 th Year) experienced one of the most successful seasons in his career at Vassar as the team consistently raced a Men's Varsity Eight throughout the spring season for the 1 st time in history; typically, the team focuses on fours. The eight included three four-year rowers, and one four-year coxswain. At the Knecht Cup on the Cooper River in Camden, NJ, the Men's Varsity 8+ placed 3 rd in the DIII event, just 6 seconds and 1 second behind Mary Washington and Skidmore, respectively. The Novice 4+ competed in a tough heat for their first race in the 4+ against other DI and III schools, placing 5 th behind Army, UConn, Fairfield, and NY Maritime. At the inaugural Upstate Collegiate Athletic Association Conference Championships, the V8+ placed third in their heat behind Rochester and RPI, but came back to win the Petite Finals, defeating St. Lawrence, Skidmore, and Clarkson with a solid race. The Novice men also proved to be more comfortable in the 4+ as they put together a great race and sprint, finishing 2 nd only to Skidmore. The Varsity 8+ also advanced to the petite finals at the 2004 New York State Championships (the finals were later cancelled due to bad weather).
Unfortunately, the V8+ did not earn a bid to the season ending ECAC Championships, but were pleased with the progress they made throughout the season.
For more information about men's rowing at Vassar, please contact:
Head Coach Rodney Mott
Box 750
Vassar College
124 Raymond Ave.
Poughkeepsie NY 12604
(845) 437-7218 (W)
(845) 437-7033 (F)
E-mail: romott@vassar.edu
