NATE HOFFMAN He never rowed before high school but participated in a wide variety of sports. One day during his freshman year, his mom asked him if he wanted to try something new, he accepted and immediately became fascinated with the sport. Sports that he had previously played were not challenging enough, but rowing was. Even as a senior now, he is still learning new things and perfecting the technique every day. The sloshing sounds of water moving, the heavy wind blowing past his face, the screaming of the coxswain in front of you. This was Nate’s first race. This 5,000-meter race was a long, tiring race. Pushing himself past the limits, overcoming every obstacle. Finally, hearing the beep that signals that he had crossed the finish line. He looked around and realized that his boat had won. This feeling of relief and the rush of excitement, knowing that all of your hard work was worth it. Winning this medal meant so much to Nate, it paved the path for the rest of his rowing career. “It showed me that I had a place on the team, it helped build my confidence and ability to row.” This race established his friendships with the fellow novices, that he is still close to today. He was in a double, a boat for two people, and was paired with a new person. While rowing, his boat started to tip, they lost control and it flipped. Nate tried to swim to the top but realized his feet were still strapped into the boat. He couldn’t find the tie, he waved his hands around trying to feel for it but worry was rising quickly, he finally found it, pulled the strap with urgency, and got up to the surface safely. Now that he is graduating soon, he says that he is sure sad about having to leave the team, but he is excited to start his new journey rowing in college. He is eager to receive his oar during the end-of-the-year banquet. Every senior is awarded an oar that is wrapped with gold, silver, and bronze tape to symbolize every medal they’ve earned. He expressed that it feels like the closing of a circle and symbolization of his commitment to rowing over the years. Rowing is an immense commitment with early practices on Saturdays and late practices 5 days a week, on top of the constant pressures of IB. He said it was very hard to get through, but he is proud of how far he has come. One thing he is going to take away from this experience is when the team’s strength coach, Coach Shawn, always pushed him to try harder and never give up. He would push himself to hit these goals that seemed unreachable before, but once he completed them, he felt ecstatic. He will carry these habits to college and for the rest of his life.
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