Autumn 2019

PULLHARD THE

A COUGAR CREW PUBLICATION

F A L L 2 0 19 EDITION

2019 Spring Results 08

An Inside Look: Men’s Commodore John Michael 12

50th Anniversary Fast Approaching 15

Alumni Alert Huhta as LMU Woman’s Head Coach 18

INSIDE THE FALL EDITION 1

THE PULL HARD

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Spring 2019 Results

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Welcoming the New Coaches

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Meet the Seniors

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Cougar Crew History Project: Dave Arnold

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Letter From 2020 Committee

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Inside Look: John Michael

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Planned Giving

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Alumni Alert: Huhta as LMU Woman’s Head Coach

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Alumni Spotlight: Dave Worley

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SPRING 2019

RACE RESULTS

HUSKY OPEN Men’s V8+ 1 - Washington 5:43.965 2 - Washington State 6:07.181 3 - Western Washington 6:10.568 Men’s 2V8+ 1 - Washington 5:48.177 2 - Washington State 6:16.545 3 - Puget Sound 6:23.915 4 - Western Washington 6:25.184 Men’s 3V8+ 1 - Washington 6:00.167 2 - British Columbia 6:12.931 3 - Washington State 6:29.443 4 - Western Washington 6:57.350 Men’s V4+ 1 - Washington 6:19.276 2 - Seattle University A 6:47.615 3 - Lewis & Clark A 7:00.141 4 - Washington State 7:42.606

COVERED BRIDGE Men’s N8+ 1 - Washington State 6:39.78 2 - Western Washington 7:22.30 3 - Chico State 7:43.44 Men’s V8+ 1 - Washington State A 6:14.23 2 - Western Washington A 6:19.17 3 - Washington State B 6:34.20 4 - Western Washington B 6:47.12 5 - Lewis & Clark 6:50.75

Men’s V8+ 1 - Gonzaga 6:19.4 2 - Washington State 6:20.6

Men’s N4+ B Final 1 - Washington State B 7:25.99 2 - Lewis & Clark 7:54.25 3 - Western Washington 8:01.76 4 - Humboldt State 8:09.81 5 - Oregon 8:45.26

Men’s 3V8+ 1 - Gonzaga 6:50.1 2 - Washington State 7:16.3

Men’s N4+ A Final 1 - California Maritime 7:19.95 2 - Puget Sound 7:27.72 3 - Pacific Lutheran 7:28.58 4 - Sacramento State 7:40.56 5 - Western Washington A 7:43.95 6 - Washington State A 7:47.96 Men’s V4+ A Final 1 - Seattle University 7:04.94 2 - Lewis & Clark 7:10.44 3 - Humboldt State 7:10.79 4 - Washington State 7:15.56 5 - Western Washington 7:17.21 6 - Puget Sound 7:25.13 7 - Chico State 7:27.08 Women’s V4+ B Final 1 - Portland 8:05.55 2 - Oregon B 8:41.86 3 - Washington State 8:50.49 4 - Chico State B 8:56.56 5 - Chico State A 9:08.83

Women’s V8+ B Final 1 - Santa Clara 7:23.75 2 - Chico State 7:55.44 3 - Washington State 8:00.02

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FAWLEY CUP

Women’s N4+ 1 - Oregon State 8:01.44 2 - Seattle Pacific 8:02.76 3 - Portland 8:39.27 4 - Santa Clara 8:44.71 5 - Washington State 9:16.01 6 - Lewis & Clark 10:00.82 7 - Chico State10:17.16

NOVEMBER 2019

Men’s 2V8+ 1 - Gonzaga 6:33.3 2 - Washington State 6:47.7

Men’s N8+ 1 - Gonzaga 6:44.3 2 - Washington State 6:47.8

WIRA’s Men’s V8+ B Final 1 - UC Davis 6:01.4 2 - Washington State 6:02.4 3 - Western Washington 6:07.7 4 - San Diego 6:08.5 5 - San Diego State 6:34.7 Women’s V8+ D2/D3/Club B Final 1 - Pacific Lutheran 6:55.7 2 - Puget Sound 7:01.9 3 - UC Davis 7:21.5 4 - Lewis & Clark 7:26.4 5 - Mills 7:34.9 6 - Washington State 7:41.9 Men’s N8+ A Final 1 - Orange Coast 6:08.5 2 - UC Santa Barbara 6:24.7 3 - Washington State 6:36.7 4 - Southern California 6:37.0 5 - UC Davis 6:40.3 6 - San Diego State 6:45.2

Men’s 2V8+ B Final 1 - Washington State 6:27.2 2 - UC Santa Barbara 6:31.4 3 - Western Washington 6:45.7 4 - San Diego State 7:04.3 Women’s N8+ B Final 1 - Seattle U 7:41.7 2 - Washington State 7:50.9 3 - UC Santa Barbara 7:54.1 4 - Orange Coast 7:59.0 5 - Chapman 10:19.9

Opening Day Men’s Open 4+ 1 - Washington A 0:00.0 2 - Washington B +8.7 3 - Washington State 20.7 4 - Western Washington +30.2 *Timing error

PAC12 Men’s V8+ 1 - Washington 5:34.95 2 - California 5:36.22 3 - Stanford 5:56.91 4 - Oregon State 6:03.15 5 - UCLA 6:13.14 6 - Washington State 6:23.85 Men’s 2V8+ 1 - Washington 6:05.06 2 - California 6:08.63 3 - Stanford 6:35.48 4 - Oregon State 6:36.57 5 - Washington State 7:06.73 6 - UCLA 7:27.84 *2V8 under significant rain and wind. Whitecaps at the start.

Men’s N8+ 1 - Washington 5:50.81 2 - Washington State 6:23.23 3 - UCLA 6:23.80

ACRA Women’s N4+ A Final 1 - Liberty 8:01.4 2 - Washington State 8:05.1 3 - Virginia Tech 8:11.7 4 - Oklahoma State 8:12.3 5 - Illinois 8:22.5 6 - New Hampshire 8:27.8 7 - Arizona State 8:33.7 8 - UC Santa Barbara 8:37.2 Men’s N4+ B Final 1 - William & Mary 7:32.6 2 - George Mason 7:36.3 3 - Illinois 7:37.5 4 - Alabama 7:40.0 5 - UC Santa Barbara 7:44.7 6 - Washington State 7:45.3 7 - New Hampshire 7:45.3 8 - Florida 7:54.5

6 - Washington College 8:18.4 7 - Florida State 8:21.2 8 - Pittsburgh 8:28.7 Men’s V4+ A Final 1 - Seattle University 6:55.6 2 - George Mason 6:59.3 3 - Washington College 7:03.0 4 - Virginia Tech 7:05.3 5 - Clemson 7:11.4 6 - Michigan 7:14.4 7 - Washington State 7:18.4 8 - Delaware 7:23.3 Men’s V8+ C Final 1 - UC Davis 6:21.2 2 - Ohio State 6:25.3 3 - Washington State 6:27.5 4 - Georgia 6:28.9 5 - Pittsburgh 6:34.0 6 - Grand Valley 6:34.3 7 - Western Washington 6:38.1 8 - Vanderbilt 6:30.0

Men’s N8+ B Final 1 - UMass 6:36.7 2 - UCLA 6:42.4 3 - Minnesota 6:43.2 4 - Washington State 6:44.8 5 - Virginia Commonwealth 6:46.2 6 - UC Davis 6:52.6 7 - North Carolina 6:53.6 8 - Texas 6:58.1 Women’s V4+ A Final 1 - Grand Valley 8:00.9 2 - Washington State 8:05.5 3 - UC Irvine 8:11.3 4 - Chicago 8:16.1 5 - Rhode Island 8:18.0

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WELCOMING THE NEW COACHES Milos Aleksic

CLUB WOMEN’S COACH

Milos began his rowing career in August of 2006 with Danubius 1885 Rowing Club in Novi Sad, Serbia. Milos began competing internationally for his club and represented the Serbian National Team at the 2010 Balkan Rowing Championships.

In 2014, Milos was given the opportunity to come to the U.S and begin rowing as a student-athlete at Oklahoma City University.

Milos came to OCU with a strong desire to showcase his strengths and abilities on a larger international scene. The V8+, with help from Milos, would later qualify for the IRA Championship during his freshman year for the first time in OCU history, and again for his sophomore year.

While Milos and Coah Peter Brevick never consistently worked together in OKC, their paths crossed several times during the 2018 U23 National Team Selection Camp. During this process, Milos did several workouts while participating in the camp and was coached

by Peter. Milos made a strong impression on Peter, so when he heard that Milos was pursuing a graduate assistantship, Peter eagerly presented Milos the opportunity to coach for Cougar Crew.

Devon McCornack

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GRADUATE ASSISTANT COACH

After rowing for WSU Cougar Crew from 2015-2019, Devon McCornack has returned this year as a graduate assistant coach.

During his time as an athlete, Devon served the team as Commodore for two years, was named in the Pac-12 All Conference, ACRA AllRegion West Coast Team, and 2019 All-American Third Team.

Without any prior rowing experience, Devon joined the team in 2015. He started his novice year in the 3N8+, however he never let such modest beginnings discourage him. Through consistent hard work and dedication to the team, Devon earned his spot in the top boat of each race and a spot in the WSU Heavyweight Erg Hall of Fame. The work ethic and leadership that he demonstrated to his teammates led to Devon becoming one of only three athletes to ever serve as the team as Commodore for two consecutive years.

“Heading into the 2019-2020 season, one of my goals is help develop athletes who are committed to making Cougar Crew faster. While I am interested in creating a great freshmen year experience for these guys, I am even more interested in giving them the tools and fundamentals necessary to succeed as varsity oarsmen when I pass them off at the end of this year. It is a pleasure coaching a group of athletes who are buying into the program and hungry to succeed.”

MaryGlen Wilson

VOLUNTEER COACH

MaryGlen originally grew up in Kentucky, however her grandparents had a beach house in the Puget Sound area that she visited every summer where she learned to row. MaryGlen’s mother rowed for WSU in the late 70s and she grew up reading Boys in the Boat several times as a child. As she grew to love the sport, she eventually reached out to former Assistant Coach Hugo Moon, asking to join Cougar Crew.

MaryGlen came to WSU as a transfer student with only two years of eligibility. One of her most notable moments during those 2 years was when she helped the Women’s Varsity 8+ win Head of the Lake in 2018. While MaryGlen couldn’t row for 4 full years, this never stopped her from staying connected with the team and she has returned this year as a volunteer coach.

“I look forward to guiding the novice grow as rowers over the weeks to come and helping the team in any way I can.”

2019-20 COUGAR CREW COACHING STAFF

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SENIORS 2020 John Michael Najarian

John-Michael is from Bainbridge Island Washington. He is studying Civil Engineering and is graduating in the fall of 2020. As the team’s current Commodore, he is enjoying his final season of collegiate rowing. Outside of rowing and school he is the president of the Sports Club Federation. Post graduation, John plans to stay and work in the PNW.

Trevor Zook

Trevor is from Camas, WA and will be graduating this spring with a degree in Architecture. As Tevor closes in on his final year of school with a degree in Architecture it has forced him to look back on his time with Cougar Crew. This fall he has been studying abroad in Barcelona and is eager to finish off his last season strong. Trevor had some great races throughout the years from gaining on crews at ACRAs, to competing at Windermere. The bonds he has formed are the strongest he has ever made and this team has become a part of who he is.

Alex Welch

Alex is from Snohomish Washington. Alex is double majoring in Zoology (pre-med) and Philosophy (pre-law). He plans on going to med or nursing school and hopes to find a local club after graduation to continue rowing. Alex plans on staying connected with his class and will continue to row with them as long as there is an opportunity to row.

Daniel Moguel

Daniel is from Downey California and is pursuing a degree in mechanical engineering. Daniel started rowing his freshman year after being recruited by Arthur at an Alive session and he never looked back.

One of Daniel’s favorite memories was being able to race in the varsity lightweight 4 and winning at WIRA’s. “It was great seeing all the work my teammates and I did pay off. The team has become like a family to me and I wouldn’t have it any other way”.

Bjorn Elliot

Bjorn is majoring in Business Management/International Business and currently serves the team as Vice Commodore. Bjorn started his freshmen year after getting picked out from the crowd by Arthur and he has been sold ever since. One of Bjorn’s favorite memories is playing “Peter-ball” in the Smith pool and being told that the only clarification they need is “this ball is now in play”.

Connor Widmann

Connor Widmann is from Lake Stevens, WA. Connor grew up playing multiple sports and found rowing as a junior in high school after having several head injuries from both football and basketball. Connor is graduating in the Spring of 2020 with a degree in Mathematics Secondary Education. After his time at WSU, he plans to get his teaching certificate and Masters in Education while student teaching at his alma mater, Lake Stevens Senior High School. His goal after that is to become a high school basketball coach and teacher wherever he can find an opportunity to do so.

Harlow Bronstein

Harlow is from Pleasanton, California and she is pursuing a degree in Viticulture and Enology. She took home bronze and silver at ACRA in the V4+ in 2018 and 2019 respectively. “One of my favorite memories was a couple of years ago at an evening practice on the Snake in the late summer. The weather was perfect. We were rowing all 8 back to the boathouse, coming around the corner down by granite point and it had gotten pretty dark. Hardly being able to see each other’s blades, we managed to perfect our timing seamlessly with a really strong send. I was bow seat and the feeling of a weightless boat and the warm breeze behind me was nothing short of amazing, I remember smiling the whole time.”

Alexis Winnett

Alexis is from Vancouver Washington and she is studying Kinesiology. Alexis has been rowing since she was in high school and originally started out on the Women’s Varsity team here at Washington State University, and after some unfortunate injuries, she found herself starting out again on the Women’s Club Team. Since joining the team, Alexis has been a part of many successful women’s boats including the Varsity 4+ getting bronze in 2018 and then silver in 2019 at ACRA. The summer going into her senior year, she spent her time training with a master’s team in her area and competing at some fun races along with coaching middle school and high school age rowers at her home team.

“In the next year, I am very excited to see what the team can accomplish!”

WRITING COUGAR CREW’S CELEBRATING THE FOUNDING OF COUGAR CREW

Dave Arnold, ‘88

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n the summer of 1970, Rich Stager, a junior engineering student, watched rowing on television and was so intrigued that he arranged an organizational meeting on campus that fall. Stager’s meeting attracted thirty foolhardy students who founded the WSU Rowing Club with no boats, no facility, no coaches, and no experience. With the encouragement of administrator Ken Abbey and professor Dave Pratt, both former rowers at the University of Washington, Stager spearheaded an effort to build a boathouse.

By the fall of 1971 the boathouse was nearly completed when Bob Orr, another former Husky oarsman, arrived on campus to begin doctoral work in the education department. He had heard that WSU was starting a crew program from a newspaper article. He walked into Ken Abbey’s office and said, “Here I am. I’d like to be involved.” “Great,” Abbey responded. “How would you like to be the coach?”

And so it began.

What ensued in the next couple years was nothing less than remarkable. With few funds and handme-down equipment, the first generation of Cougar oarsmen, none of whom had rowed before, took a

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fledgling program and made it into an enduring organization. They did so in the face of strong headwinds, quite literally. In January of 1972, that first student-built boathouse collapsed during a ninety milean-hour gale that destroyed everything, including Bob Orr’s single scull, and nearly the program itself. But the disaster only steeled the resolve of Bob Orr and his rowers. Some frenzied fundraising, some generous donations, and the patronage of UW coach Dick Erickson allowed the Cougar Crew to race in their first regattas that very spring.

The next spring, on “Black Thursday,” Orr had the team row upriver above the unfinished Lower Granite Dam. In minutes, the temperature dropped drastically and a powerful squall swept up the canyon, catching the crew off-guard. Two boats were lost that day—the Tyee and the Loyal Shoudy. Ironically, a third boat, the Titanic, survived.

All of these obstacles were overcome with grit, more fundraising and, once again, the beneficence of Dick Erickson, who continued to send boats in spite of the Cougars’ propensity to wreck them. When the retired Erickson later visited Pullman to deliver the Keynote at

HISTORY Class Day, Bob Appleyard, another of those Founding Rowers, asked Erickson, “Coach, we kept wrecking your boats and you kept sending over more…what’s the deal?” Erickson replied, “Well, shit, those alumni of mine kept buying me new boats and I had to make room for them in the boathouse.”

Despite early setbacks, and perhaps because of them, the program continued to grow and thrive, establishing traditions in those first years that we still enjoy today: Class Day, the annual banquet, spring break two-a-days; even the design of Cougar Crew letter jackets.

In fact, those traditions were all drawn from Orr’s experience at UW. The generations of WSU oarsmen that followed often did not realize the important role that former Washington rowers— and one Washington coach—played in shaping the early program.

I know I didn’t. By the time I arrived in 1984, WSU had a gold medalist, Paul Enquist, and an established program that could realistically compete against anyone on the West Coast.

By then, names like Bob Orr and Dave Emigh were part of distant myth—names emblazoned on racing shells. I had no idea that just a decade before I arrived, the program was in its infancy. It seemed to me like it had existed forever. The traditions I encountered, including familiar sayings, like “We only have a bow man because the rules say we have to,” which Bob Orr told a nervous Doug Kee before the Cougar’s very first race in the spring of 1972, appeared timeless.

This sense of tradition that I immediately perceived, in spite of the newness of the program, and the guise of stability, in spite of the program’s always precarious finances, was a testament to the Founding Rowers, men and women, who were not myths, but determined athletes, like so many who would come after them, eager to achieve something memorable during their time in Pullman. Because of their determination, in just one decade, from 1970 to

1979, WSU crew had gone from an idea in the mind of one engineering student to a robust club that could now boast a national championship (the famed “Meat Wagon”), an All-Pac-10 oarsman (Rich “Flip” Ray), the Pac-10 Coach of the Year for 1979 (Ken Struckmeyer), and a strong women’s program.

This is a history that we can all share and celebrate at the 50th anniversary in the spring of 2020. As that event approaches, I hope you’ll consider writing your own Cougar Crew story.

I would love to hear it. I went from rowing at WSU to get a Ph.D. in history at UCLA, published a book with UW Press, of all things, and now have begun researching the history of Cougar Crew. It’s a story of grit, perseverance, personal growth, friendship and shared community. For many of us it was the most meaningful thing we did in college. I look forward to hearing your stories, if you’d be willing to share them.

Email me at darnold@columbiabasin.edu.

I look forward to seeing you at the 50th!

Go Cougs!

A LETTER FROM THE 2020 COMMITTEE Cougar Crew Days 2020, the 50th anniversary of Cougar Crew: Updates March 20th-22nd, 2020

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his coming March Cougar Crew will be celebrating 50 years of rowing at Washington State University.

To honor this milestone there will a special edition of Cougar Crew Days. Cougar Crew Days started in mid 2000’s as an annual event to bring alumni, coaches and those connected to the program back together in Pullman. The goal was to provide an opportunity for alumni and current team members to connect over the unique privilege that is rowing at Washington State University. This connection has enabled the Cougar Crew Alumni Association the opportunity to build a strong foundation for today’s student athletes and continue to build our alumni base.

Every Cougar Crew Days is special as new alumni and rowers are brought into the fold, but Cougar Crew Days 2020 will be an event you won’t want to miss.

If you rowed, coxed, coached or are connected to Cougar Crew in some way it will be great to have you back in Pullman as every person is a unique piece of Cougar Crew history. Those who have had the privilege to know Cougar Crew are part of a tradition, and a bond that stretches back 50 years. We want to hear your story at Cougar Crew Days.

The previous edition of the Pullhard mentioned some of the highlights from past Cougar Crew Days at a high level, but we wanted to give you all an inside track into why Cougar Crew Days 2020 will be so special. We welcome you to ease into your Cougar Crew Days weekend with an Ice Breaker event that will be held on Friday evening. Some of the highlights from Friday’s icebreaker will include; great food, catching up with old friends and making some new ones, an opportunity to meet the current team and coaches, a chance to tour the team’s current on campus erg/workout facility and a sneak peek of some of the highly coveted auction items that will be available on Saturday evening at the banquet/auction. This is informal gathering that gives everyone a chance to reconnect and reminiscence.

Stories will be told, tales embellished and old friends made new. Will it be about how many boat lengths of open water the lightweights beat the heavyweights by at that one practice? (Editors Note from Jaron: this never happened) Or that crazy cross training impromptu practice that was devised due to inclement weather?

You remember that one practice or race, that one time, right? These stories are something we all lived and can’t wait to hear more of them from you all. They are the shared experiences that bond Cougar Crew rowers

and coxswains across generations and as the years go on become a cherished memory that with each retelling become fonder.

If you are looking to see the behind the scenes of what makes Cougar Crew tick join us on Friday afternoon for the Cougar Crew Alumni Association (CCAA) Board meeting. This meeting lets everyone know where the team currently stands from coaches and officers as well as updates from the CCAA Board. If you are interested in getting more involved with Cougar Crew this is a great opportunity as there are many great activities to volunteer for at the CCAA Board meeting.

Whether you feel like testing your fitness with a run up our old friend/nemesis the Grade or can’t wait to get back out in a boat on the Snake, Saturday will be a full day of fun at the river. You can row in a Slow Row, a chance to just get back out and shake off the rust with your boat mates. For the more competitively inclined, test your mettle in a race against current team members as part of the traditional class day races. There is also going to be a boathouse tour so everyone can see the current facility the team uses and all of the shells Cougar Crew trains and races with.

Saturday culminates with a banquet and auction that will be honoring the past 50 years of rowing at Washington State University. In addition to honoring the past we will also be looking to build on the strong foundation to propel Cougar Crew for another successful 50 years. Without spoiling all of the fun about the banquet, it will be a great opportunity to reflect on the progress and growth of the last 50 years and see how we all can help for the next 50 years and beyond. It will be a 50-year celebration people will not want to miss!

If you coxed, coached, and/or rowed at Washington State University we want to see you at Cougar Crew Days 2020. If you have not had a chance to check out the revamped Cougar Crew website at http:// cougarcrew.com please do so as it has an enhanced look and a lot of useful information, pictures and details on the current team. You can even RSVP directly on the Cougar Crew website at http://cougarcrew.com/ ccdays.html The RSVP page also includes information to help you get hotel reservations. Please make those soon so we can expand the number of rooms needed as you all fill them up! We cannot wait to see you all in Pullman to celebrate 50 years of rowing at Washington State University. GO COUGS!

- Sean Martin (‘08) and Jaron Lindbom (‘10)

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INSIDE LOOK

JOHN MICHAEL GETTING TO KNOW THE TEAM Looking at the Men’s Commodore John Michael Najarian

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‘20 COMMODORE JOHN MICHAEL NAJARIAN former Head Coach Arthur Ericsson to look into Cougar Crew. Ericsson invited John Michael down to the boathouse before he had committed to WSU as a student. While he was expecting to just watch the team from the launch, much to his surprise, Ericsson had John Michael hop into a boat and row with the team. John Michael says in that moment, “I just sort of fell in love with the Snake River and everything it had to offer. It is the best place in the world to row I would say.”

Reflecting on his time with the team so far, what John Michael appreciates the most are the everyday tasks

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ougar Crew’s current Commodore is John Michael Najarian. He is a fourth-year oarsman studying Civil Engineering. He will be graduating in Fall 2020 and we are currently enjoying his impressive leadership during his final season.

Before coming to WSU, John Michael rowed for four years at Bainbridge Island Rowing (BIR). During his time with BIR, John Michael learned to row and got exposed to national scale rowing. His junior year of high school, he had the fortunate opportunity to go to the youth national championships in a lightweight 4+ where his boat placed 4th in the B final, 10th overall. There he experienced the competitive nature of the sport on a high level, inspiring him to move forward with a collegiate rowing career.

In April of 2016, John Michael came to Pullman to tour WSU. While he came to check out the university and pursue academic interests, he also got in touch with

such as going down to the river on early mornings or afternoons. While it can be difficult to get out there on dark mornings, John Michael is always excited to do something so unique and special with his best friends. Even with all his experience with rowing and his teammates, it never ceases to amaze John Michael how capable people can really be. Approaching something with very little experience and growing to do things you never imagined you could do “can be so amazing, productive and inspiring.”

John stroking the V8 at Head of the Lake, 2019 John Michael brings a unique experience to the team, allowing him to take on a leadership position right out of the gate his freshman year as the novice captain.

Following former Commodore, Devon McCornack, could be viewed as a daunting task, however, John Michael does not see it that way. Rather, he brings strong leadership skills and abilities that offer a different dynamic to the team. Regardless of his elected position as this year’s Commodore, John Michael continuously builds on the foundations of his early rowing years, doing anything necessary to make boats go fast.

Outside of rowing, John is a member of the American Society of Civil Engineers and is currently the president of the Sport Club Federation at WSU. Post college, John hopes to acquire a job in the environmental construction field. John Michael sees himself staying in the Pacific Northwest for the foreseeable future.

When asked what he would like to share with his younger teammates, John Michael had the following to say: “Take full advantage of every stroke. Even though

you might take ten or fifteen thousand strokes a week, take advantage of every single one because being off for just five minutes at practice could be the difference between going home with a tank or nothing at all.”

Go Cougs!

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PLANNED GIVING You Have the Power to Change Cougs’ Lives

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We know how proud you are of being a Washington State University Coug. Not only that, you’re part of a special breed of Cougs—crew alumni! Did you know that you can use your commitment to WSU to change the life of a student? After you turn 70 ½, you’re required to withdraw annually from your IRA, however, if you transfer those funds directly to the WSU Foundation, you can support the areas you care about and avoid paying income tax. When you make a gift through your will, revocable living trust, or beneficiary designation in support of WSU, you can maintain your current lifestyle and commitments while supporting the next generation of Cougs. It’s a win-win. Learn more about how you can change lives and make a tax-smart decision at the same time by visiting giftplanning.wsu.edu, calling 800448-2978 or emailing gpoffice@wsu.edu.

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ALUMNI ALERT CATCHING UP WITH KARL The New LMU Woman’s Head Coach

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arl Huhta is very well-known in the Cougar Crew community, but he’s been a bit tough to keep track of since he took his last strokes as a senior oarsman in 2008. As the new Director of Rowing & Women’s Head Coach at Loyola Marymount University, he was nice enough to carve out 30 minutes from his busy schedule and fill us in on what he’s been up to.

- Mitch Williams ‘10 Mitch Williams - What was your first coaching job after your time as an athlete?

I was a volunteer coach with the women’s rowing team at Washington State University. I took a 5th year victory lap. I had one more semester of classes and I also had to do an internship to get my sports management degree. I was the intern coach for the first year, then I came back for a second year and was the volunteer coach.

KARL HUTAH MW - Where did you bounce around from there?

After my two years as a volunteer coach I went to Orlando, FL and was a graduate assistant coach with the varsity women’s rowing team at UCF in Orlando. I spent three years at UCF and completed my Master’s degree in sport & fitness with an emphasis in sport leadership and coaching.

After graduating from UCF, I came back to the west coast and was a volunteer at University of California Berkeley in 2013-2014.

After Berkeley, I went back to Pullman and was the coordinator of operations and boatman for WSU Women’s Rowing for a year. I was promoted to novice coach for the following two years. Most recently, I was promoted again and was the associate head coach for the last two seasons.

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MW- How did the LMU job open up to you and what made you interested in it?

I’ve always loved Southern California and have always wanted to live there. I’ve also always wanted to be a head rowing coach. I never would have guessed that I’d be able to do both at the same time.

The job opened up and I knew I had to apply. They called me and asked for a phone interview. A few days later, they asked if I’d like to come down for an inperson interview. A week after that is when they offered me the job.

MW - Talk about the whirlwind of wrapping up things in Pullman, packing up, moving to LA, rounding out a staff, and starting your new role.

Whirlwind is putting it lightly. I had one week of

summer vacation between when my contract ended at WSU to when I had to drive down to LA. My first day at LMU was July 15. From there, I had to begin recruiting, had to find a staff, and had to find a place to live.

MW- What are the one or two things you take away from your time as a coach for the WSU Women’s Rowing Team?

The amount of information I learned cannot be put into words. Reflecting on the events, challenges, victories, and everything else that comes with the job.

It reaffirmed my love of the sport and sharing that love with others. I derive a great amount of passion seeing other people succeed and accomplish things they didn’t think they were capable of. I’m very appreciative of Jane (LaRiviere) for giving me the opportunities she did at WSU. She didn’t have to give me those opportunities, but she did and she did it repeatedly. I’m indebted to her for that.

MW - What do you carry with you from your time on the WSU Men’s Crew Team?

Hard work can get you everything. You don’t need a lot, but if you have the right attitude and the right work ethic, you can produce a lot of really good results.

The things I took away from my time with WSU Men’s Crew have been life-changing. I think about everything we had to do just to be able to row. All the work that went into what we did outside of practice to be successful.

MW - Any workouts that you took away and implemented from your time on the Men’s Team?

Boston Massacre? Hooverball?

(Laughs)… I admittedly wish I took better notes as a rower and was a student of the sport. If I would have paid more attention to what we did on a day-today basis, that would have helped me excel faster as coach. I was the type of person who showed up every day and said, “Tell me what to do and I’ll do it.”

Workouts are hard, but they can be fun, too. If you find a way to structure them and lay them out properly, you can incorporate a lot of fun.

MW - I’m going to name two places, give me the first words that pop into your head...

Snake River Beautiful. Can be the greatest place to row… and the worst place to row. It teaches you to row well.

Headwinds in both directions. She doesn’t like to be woken up on Saturday mornings!

Marina Del Rey Fact-check me on this, but I believe it’s one of the largest marinas in the United States. Stunning sunrises.

Palm trees. Flat water. Sea life – dolphins, sea turtles, lots of sea lions. Fantastic place to row and to train.

MW - What do you miss most about your time on Cougar Crew?

I miss the guys I rowed with. I miss being with them every day. I do feel like I was pretty good at staying in the moment and appreciating and being grateful for the opportunity to be rowing at Washington State. You don’t realize how good you have it when all you have to do is go to class and row.

MW – You are restaurant connoisseur. Name a can’t miss bite to eat or restaurant in Los Angeles.

Oooooh that’s a good one. I wish I’ve been to more places. There is no shortage of excellent brunch spots.

Everywhere you turn, you will find a brunch spot that keeps topping the other ones. Nighthawk Breakfast Bar & Bru’s Wiffle are two fantastic brunch spots.

Thanks Karl and Congradulations!

Go Cougs!

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ALUMNI SPOTLIGHT

D AV E W O R L E Y ‘ 06

DAVE WORLEY

D av e Wo rl ey in s e cond s e at at IRA s, 20 0 6

A NOTE FROM THE EDITOR

I

had always heard of Dave Worley as a prominent figure in WSU crew history. He was part of the 4+ that placed 5th at the IRA in 2006; the longtime WSU 2k erg record holder; a transfer to the University of Washington; and a U.S National Team rower. His story was one that had my attention early on. I was lucky enough to connect with Dave in late September to find out more about his path through rowing, starting in Pullman, and reaching up to near the highest level of the sport. I hope you find this interview as fascinating as I do.

- David Herrick ‘14 David Herrick: When did you row for WSU? 2004 - 2006

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NOVEMBER 2019

H: How did you get into rowing? What made it appealing?

The fact that someone at the rec said I would be good at it. Danny Brevick said “you should show up, you’re tall, you would be good at it”. My mom is English and wanted me to do it freshman year but I wanted to sleep in, so I didn’t start until my junior year.

H: When did it sink in that you might have a talent for the sport?

Not until I did the pair camp at UW. You’re always in an 8 otherwise so it’s hard to tell. I had decent erg scores but nothing nationally ranked. The pair kind of revealed that.

H: You were part of a strong 4+ that went to the IRA. What was that like? Any significant memories from that season or regatta?

Absolutely, lots from that regatta. We did have a good four. What I remember most is the boat we rowed in Pullman was the worst, you couldn’t set it, the margin

was so narrow, and the riggers were awful. We borrowed a new Pocock for the IRA, wing riggers, bow coxed, and it was like rowing on rails. Which of course only made me hate the other boat more [laughs].

Also, in our heat our strokeman’s rigger, his oarlock, came undone, so he couldn’t row the second half of the race, and we still managed fifth. We won our rep, and did well enough in the semi to make the final. I think the best race we had was our semi. We were a little gassed by the final.

I also remember we really wanted to beat Gonzaga, and they did one place better than we did, so we were kind of pissed. You know how it is.

H: You eventually transferred to Washington, how did that come about?

I did the pair camp over the summer; I stayed with Pete Brevick and his family. I was beating these UW guys, and I was thinking “they should want me to row here” and I wasn’t aware of this, but there was a rule that coaches couldn’t recruit other collegiate athletes.

So, the coaches never spoke about it.

Anyways, I got back to Pullman, and I think I was in class for about three weeks, and a UW guy who I rowed with texted me saying “it’s a shame you didn’t row here”, I responded “yeah, I absolutely would have come, but Bob (Ernst) never said anything”. Turns out he runs down to the boathouse and talks to the coach.

I got a call about 45 minutes later from Bob saying “I hear you want to transfer?” I said “yeah yeah, for sure”.

He told me he wanted me there by Saturday, it was Thursday then. So, I dropped all my classes, packed up my stuff in a Uhaul, and was there that weekend. It worked out but I had to take 400 level classes all year to graduate.

H: What was that year like? Were the guys welcoming or did you have to earn your place first?

I wouldn’t say they were super welcoming at the beginning, you had to earn respect first, but I certainly didn’t have any problems. UW to WSU there’s a rivalry, but not exactly in rowing, they’re more focused on Cal. There were a few little hiccups in terms of politics and how they set the boats in the fall, I didn’t understand those sorts of things. All I was doing was trying to row fast. But there was nothing where I felt concerned.

Once you’re in the boat with everyone you build that comradery. We had a lucky situation (that spring) where our top 8 guys were clearly the top 8, and the JV

was the JV, so there wasn’t quite as much inner-squad competition, which made it less stressful on everyone. It gave us time to work together and improve.

It also helped that almost every row for the first six months I was there I would have said “that was the best row I’ve ever had” and it just kept getting better from there.

H: Looking back, can you describe a typical day for a husky rower?

Probably not much different than a Wazzu rower.

We didn’t have to get up quite as early in the spring.

But compared to the other guys my day was different.

Normally we did M/W/F morning and then M-F in the afternoon. Then single practice Tu/Thur in the afternoon, which would be an erg and a row, or weights and an erg. I got paired up with a guy who couldn’t row certain days, so I was rowing two-a-days every day in a lot of small boats which helped a ton, especially against guys who had been rowing since middle school. The Saturday practices were nice because you would come back in, watch some video, have coffee or a bagel, then go back out and do some technical stuff.

There was a lot of inner squad racing too, so a ton of racing all season long.

H: You finished your collegiate career as a National Champion in the Husky Varsity 8+, what was that experience like? Was there confidence going in or did it catch you by surprise?

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ALUMNI SPOTLIGHT

D AV E W O R L E Y

DAVE WORLEY

D a v e Wo rl ey rowing f our s e at at H ead of the Charl es, 20 07

I’d say somewhere in the middle. We had an undefeated season up to that point so we had some confidence. We were feeling pretty good, but there’s always a little doubt like “are we really that fast?”

I remember vividly Steve Gladstone (Head Coach of Cal at the time) was giving an interview between semi’s and finals and someone asked “who do you think is going to win?” and he said “Well if Washington isn’t down by open water at 500m to go, they’re going to win” so that was great to hear.

The final wasn’t the hardest the race but it was still tough.

H: Which was the hardest race?

W: The Cal dual, the rivalry is so fierce. Plus, it was In Seattle that year which is always a mess in the first 400m. I think I washed out a stroke 300 in and that fueled me for the next 1k. Once you get out of the wind though it turns to glass.

H: Did you do any rowing after college?

Yeah, I rowed for the U.S team for 2 years, I was in

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THE PULL HARD

the Olympic selection group for Beijing. They selected 14 guys (for the 8+, 4-, and 2-), and I was part of the unfortunate 6 who didn’t get selected. I had mixed feelings about that; it wasn’t nearly as fun as college. I trained another year after that in Seattle but eventually decided it was time to move on.

H: Did you compete internationally?

At UW, we did a fun race in Moscow, Russia, and were in the marquee event against the British, Italians, Russians, and French as the U.S entry. There was a lot of prize money that of course we couldn’t accept as collegiate athletes. It was a long head race that we eventually won by like 30”. I don’t think they sent their best boats.

H: Last question, but an important one. During the Apple Cup, who are you rooting for?

Oh man, I was at Wazzu for four years, I was UW for one, I always root for Wazzu. There’s a huge difference in school spirit, the UW kids go home on the weekends and do their laundry at their parent’s house.

Thanks for taking the time Dave, and, of course, Go Cougs!

NOVEMBER 2019

THE

PULLHARD @WSU_CougarCrew

@wsucougarcrew

WSU Men’s Crew