Oak Ridge, Tennessee
Saturday was the first day of Spring Training 2009 for the Northeastern University Women’s Rowing team. After traveling on Friday from 6:30am until 4pm by taking a series of flights, we found ourselves in a hotel in Oak Ridge, Tennessee. You’re probably thinking, why Tennessee? Can you even row in Tennessee? Just imagine my thoughts when I heard that we would be rowing in Tennessee rather than Coco Beach, Florida. Well, it turns out that Tennessee has an amazing race course in which races, such as national championship regattas, are held! Who would have known?
If you are looking to row somewhere, I definitely would recommend going here. They have a great place to row. Our trailer, the men’s team trailer, and a few trailers from Dayton, Ohio, are sitting on the grass right now with boats on them that are just ready to be launched. The launching area is great. While most places make you launch from the docks and directly to the river, you launch from a “lagoon” with calm water. From the lagoon, you can drift out into the actual river–which is also very calm. Best of all, this race course does not entail going under bridges or turning sharp corners. It’s a straight course, so all you have to do is worry about going fast. Super fast.
We’ll be here for the rest of the week; I’m so excited finally to be rowing on the water and in 50 degree weather. Even though it has been raining and it’s muddy, it’s better than icy cold Boston!
