<p>My daughter started crew at SPS this year and she loves it. One of the great things about the sport is that relatively few kids come in at the HS level with previous experience, so there’s more opportunity to compete if you’ve never done it before. </p>
<p>SPS has terrific facilities, including a beautiful new boathouse, and the erg room in the gym has a gorgeous mural painted by one of the art teachers. On the downside, there’s no fall crew, and the ice sometimes stays on the pond long into spring term. The newer rowers have only been on the water for about 2 weeks so far this year because of the ice.</p>
<p>Not sure if the advice you received is specific to your child’s school but mine was happy she tried out crew before her first season.</p>
<p>I should put in a good word for the Brooks program as well. It’s a small school but has produced a number of nation team and Olympic rowers. Alums are currently rowing for a variety of Ivy/Div. 1 and NESCAC schools. The school is right on a lake and they not only have plenty of ergs but two full sized indoor rowing tanks.</p>
<p>Last year, Andover’s B1, B2, and B3 swept NEIRAs, and has been one of the top programs in the nation for a couple of years. Two years ago, Andover’s B1 placed second at youth nationals for crew. We just had our boathouse renovated and I will say that it is VERY nice. The coaches here are legendary, and the program is top notch. Like most schools, Andover offers Fall crew and Winter crew (though winter crew only consists of erging) as sports for those wanting to try the sport out or who want to stay in shape for the competitive spring season.</p>
<p>Look up results for the 2013, 2012, 2011 SRAA ( Scholastic national) and Stotesbury regattas on <a href=“https://www.regattacentral.com/regatta/index.jsp?job_id=3101[/url]”>SRAA National Championships Regatta - Overview;
Those are typically where the top schools compete. Club teams do not row at Stotes or SRAA’s , but at Youth nationals.
You can also look at the athletes roster of The University of Washington, Harvard, Brown, Stanford, Cal etc. They always list where their rowers attended high school. You’ll see St. Joe’s, Central Catholic, Exeter, Chaminade, Winter Park, Gonzaga, Episcopal all over the place.</p>
<p>I know this is completely off topic, but one book we’ve passed around all summer and thoroughly enjoyed is: The Boys in the Boat by Daniel James Brown. I highly recommend it for rowers and non-rowers alike! </p>
<p>The quality of any school’s crew team is going to vary from year to year based on what rowers they have on the team…what I think you want to look for in addition to recent results are the school’s facilities…it shows what kind of investment the school has chosen to make in a program. This is true of most sports, IMO.</p>
<p>PE Jr Girls won the 2013 NEIRA, but I don’t believe they won the 2013 Henley Women’s Regatta. They advanced in 2007 (which was a big deal), but I think they came in 2nd to Canada (?). Maybe you’re thinking of Exeter University? </p>
<p>Anyway, Exeter girls are truly amazing and PE offers a great program for young men and women- no doubt about it.</p>
<p>If you’re looking for a BS rowing program and you’re serious about rowing- do yourself a favor: Ignore the shiny Empachers and glitzy boathouses. They’re nice, but they mean absolutely nothing to rowers who train/race year-round.</p>
<p>RE: Exeter Women’s crew. I meant to say 2012. Here is the note on the Exeter website:</p>
<p>"" June 28, 2012</p>
<p>In what everyone is describing as a spectacular final race against Mount Saint Joseph Academy (Flourtown, PA), Exeter’s girls eight won the Peabody Cup with a lead of just 2 feet, the estimated equivalent of less than a quarter of a second. The finish was so close that observers in the launch boat could not be sure which team had won. This victory marks the 1st win for an Exeter crew at Henley."</p>
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