Hello Mercer families and friends,
The boathouse is lively with all our programs back in full swing! The varsity teams had their first ever try out period with over 100 rowers participating in the two-week process. This surge of rowers is a great sign for future depth on the varsity side of the program. They now have their sites set on the Head of the Housatonic and the Head of the Charles coming up in October.
The novice program was split into the novice team and an 8th grade development program. This division will be important in teaching technical skill and time management to the younger 8th grade athletes. By giving them additional time in the sport at a lower intensity, we can foster not only good technique, but also a love of the sport.
The novice athletes, now consisting of 9th graders and above, are off and running! Both the boys and girls teams have about 30 athletes and a shiny new ‘barge’ to practice with. The barge was purchased from Peddie and is an incredibly useful tool for coaches and rowers alike. This extra-wide boat allows 12 rowers to practice their stroke in a much more stable environment. A coach can walk down the middle of the barge and help correct technique in a more hands on way, which makes getting into the racing shells more comfortable for the novice. We love it!
Our novice and varsity teams were given a special opportunity last week, the National team’s nutritionist, Liz Fusco, spoke with the athletes on proper nutrition and hydration. She gave an hour-long talk focusing on how to hydrate, recover, and replenish muscles for a more successful workout. This information is invaluable to our growing athletes, and many have started making healthy changes to their pre-workout diet (hint: simple carbohydrates, protein and water!). Recovery Fact Sheet 2015
We had varsity and novice parent meetings over the last two weekends, so if you missed your team’s meeting we have attached the handouts in a prior blog post. Thank you to all the parents for coming out and learning about your son/daughter’s sport!
GO MERCER!!!!
