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The rowing program is currently entering into a new era of U.S. collegiate competitive structures. These structures require us to adapt extensively to maximize our position within a sea of tumultuous change, but without sacrificing our identity or culture. Divisions are now evolving at the national level in both genders of rowing as they have in other sports, we must be poised to maximize all this change by leveraging our resources responsibly and creatively so as to achieve the best possible standings nationally. We are committed at SPU Crew to maintaining our historical roots in being primarily a walk-on program dedicated to serving the best among the student body who desire to be athletes, moving them into the national competitive limelight with excellence in training and results. This approach however is the hard road. Competing against well-established and well-resourced programs who recruit extensively requires that Falcon rowing gain every advantage in every other possible area. 2052 & Beyond Fortunately this is a pivotal time as two big breakthrough technologies have emerged or are about to emerge that will aid our thrust into the next four decades of excellence. The first development is from Pocock Racing Shells, our traditional boat builders for 40 years, who are about to release their newest innovation: an elite level women's 8 hull. Years in the developing, it is being tested in early 2012 and looks to be available for production in late summer. This model promises to take advantage of all the latest design criteria as well as innovative technologies in boat manufacturing.
It should be appreciated that our women have managed four NCAA berths in the last six seasons with a rental hull acquired in the last few weeks of the season. This newest Pocock hull in our competent ladies' hands however will put them at the forefront of technologically developed hull speed, leaving the rest will up to our tenacity and training. The cost of these top of the line hulls is also fairly elite with a $50,000 price tag. It is however, typical for our program to keep our hulls effectively in winning service for 10 years on average, so on the cusp of its advancements this hull represents a vast jump into our next four decades. We need to have this hull in time for winter training no later than January of 2013. The second development SPU Crew is to capitalize on is a new rowing simulation system designed by Rowing Innovations out of Williston, VT.
The impacts of this revolutionary system for team sweep rowing is to be profound, in fact one of the designer's goals is to rend less effective and far more expensive rowing tanks altogether obsolete over the next ten years. The Swingulator is a simulator for sweep rowers that comes in two-seat tandem sections just like rowing shells.
Sections can be linked to whatever crew count is desired. Then utilizing existing rowing machines rigged with sweep (single side) oars as resistance units , this system allows the best individual land rowing fitness simulators to become the best all-around (team, sweep) land rowing simulators. See it in action at this video link. Our plan is to acquire two Swingulator units (four seats) like that pictured here above and actually house them in their own structure adjacent to the shellhouse.
This facility will have surround mirrors and live-looped video capability for the full enhancement of team fitness and rowing technique training.
The benefits of the Swingulator's close-up, individualized instruction in a team environment will provide invaluable capability for getting our students trained into both rowers and champion athletes in the shortest possible time. Sturdy and expandable, this is one of the most exciting developments from a coaching perspective and will be a constant contributor to our next forty years of Falcon crew. The cost on this entire new simulator facility will be $20,000 and our target is to have it available to train our new rowers in September 2012. 2052, What You Can Do Now These are very exciting projects but we need your help to reach these ambitious goals with your tax deductible donations today. You can sponsor either or both of these projects with any of the usual methods or instruments mentioned in our regular FRC site and designating them "2052". We greatly appreciate your assistance in helping us forge ahead for the next four decades of Falcon rowing. If you have any questions on either of these concepts or on how you can help please feel free to contact us directly. Seattle Pacific University Crew 3307 - 3rd Ave. W. Suite 301 Seattle, WA 98119-1997 Coach tel: 206-281-2931 fax: 206-281-2266 History
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