Freshman Boat Bow Woolsey Johnson 2 John Gottsch 3 Hamilton Clark 4 Douglas Lake 5 David Livingston 6 Philip Manker 7 Bob Ellis Str Robert Lawrence Cox William Schaeffer Coach Bill Young '69
Trinity's Finest Hours On the Water By R. MALCOLM SALTER Director, News Bureau
A heavy snow still covered the Connecticut hillside as crew ¡coach Norman Graf responded to a query about the prospects for the coming season. "They are talking about winning the Rusty Callow, the Vail and going on to Henley," he said. But as the wind howled outside his office in Williams Memorial, where Graf doubles as assistant registrar, the coach added, "I told them there would be no more talk about Henley until after the Rusty Callow and the Dad Vail ; but that is how serious they are about the season." HENLEY- that six-letter word that makes every oarsman's pulse quicken -is a long way from Hartford , and somehow it seems even further when ice is flowing down the Connecticut River. The 1969 Trinity crew was shooting at the stars. This brief account is how they hit them. But more than their vicMr. Salter, who accompanied the crew to England, is preparing a m ore detailed account of Trinity's participation in the famed Royal Henley Regalta. It will be available in booklet form later in the year.
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tories on the water was their triumph in gaining the respect and affection of all who came to know them. Trinity's first hurdle was the regular schedule before the Rusty Callow, and months of hard work, training and practice were to pay off. The result was an undefeated performance for all three Trinity boats, freshmen, junior varsity and varsity, with the Bantams sweeping past their counterparts from Wesleyan, Amherst, LaSalle, C.W. Post, University of Massachusetts and George Washington University. On May 3 the crews cleared a second hurdle and established another first for the Blue and Gold by sweeping all three races on Lake Quinsigamond at the Rusty Callow Regatta, symbolic of the New England College Division Championships. A year earlier Trinity had missed a sweep when the varsity lost to Worcester Tech by inches. This year they defeated Tech by two lengths with six other crews further back. Here are the Trinity oarsmen who completed the undefeated season and won the New England C hampionship:
Junior Varsity Bow John Rollins 2 Jeffrey Clark 3 James Hubbell 4 Jonathan Miller 5 Robert Benjamin 6 Daniel Drury 7 William Newbury Str Donald Pugh Cox Alexander Belida Coach Norm an Graf and Manager Gary Smith Varsity Bow Steve Lines 2 Co- capt. John DeLong 3 George Wheelwright 4 Mike Davidson 5 Co -capt. Bill Melcher 6 John Reale 7 Keith Pinter Str Steve Hamilton Cox Dick Dale May 9 and 10, The Dad Vail - the third hurdle. After two days of keen competition against the best of the nation's college division crews, the Trinity freshman had finished t)1ird and the junior varsity, second. Both excellent performances and a clear indication of the future of rowing at Trinity. But at the Vail the varsity eight tasted both triumph and disaster on the same day. After qualifying on the opening day, the varsity found themselves Saturd ay morning on the rough side of the draw. In their semi-final heat were both the favorite St. Joseph's and the defending champion Marietta. Only two in the six-boat race would qualify for the final. Trinity rowed brilliantly forcing St. Joseph 's to extend themselves and nipping Marietta for second place and a berth in the fina-ls for the championship. It was Trinity 's first victory over Marietta, the 1968 champion and the first U.S. entry in the Ladies Challenge Plate at Henley in 1967. But the triumph was short-lived, for in the afternoon final Trinity, after taking an early lead caught three disastrous crabs on the Schuykill River,