S.R.C. Newsletter - Oct. 2006
Hello
everyone! Did you know that the Saginaw Rowing Club just competed in
its first regatta on September 30, 2006? The last known regatta took
place in 1886 in Grand Rapids, Michigan (that's 120 years ago!) I have
the invitation from the original Grand Rapids rowing club (the Owashtanonq
Boat Club) dated September 14, 1886 and will post it on our website.
The Saginaw Rowing Club, established December 1868, was named the Wah
Wah Sums. This comes from the Chippawa culture and translates as
"lightning on the water." (My wife, Arlene, thinks that "Wah
Wah Sums" is a good name to print on a tee-shirt for a fund raiser
and I agree; any takers?) Keep in mind, the year 1886 is before the
automobile and major highways. So these long rowing shells most likely
had to be transported by rail from Saginaw via Detroit to Grand Rapids.
That's dedication! |
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| It's been an incredibly long dry spell from the 1900's but Saginaw is back. The Saginaw Rowing Club is just about to complete its first season and, this being our first newsletter, we have many informational updates for you. | |
| First
of all I'll answer the most frequently asked question: "How
long can we row this year?" Answer: Rowing should continue
through mid-November or later, depending on the weather. One great thing
about our club is that memberships are annualized to the month each
member joined. This means, even if you recruit a new member or join
for the remainder of this season, you will still be able to
go out and row through most of next year before your membership has
to be renewed. |
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The
Saginaw Rowing Club is now a member of the U. S. Rowing Association
and has purchased equipment and liability insurance through this national organization.  |
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Sponsors: First we need
to thank our hosts, the owners of The Montague Inn (Dr. and Chinu
Mridha) who have graciously donated the use of their carriage
barn to SRC to house our shells and equipment this summer. This huge
two story carriage barn, built in 1908 adds a certain sense of charm
and cache' to SRC. Without its availability we would have been greatly
hindered. The Mridha's assistance has been invaluable to our new rowing
club and is one of the main reasons that we are having a successful
season. I hope that you will get to meet and thank the Mridha's at
the first SRC "Black Tie Event" (black tie optional) to
be held on Tuesday, November 2, 2006, 6:30pm. to 10:00pm at The Montague
Inn. More on that event later.
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Membership has several benefits:
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Keep
in mind membership is not just about numbers, but also about training
viable rowing crews to compete in the first Saginaw River Regatta. Our
goal is to commission a trophy to be called "The Saginaw
Cup" and to create a new valley rivalry with the Bay City
Rowing Club. The gold ring of this event will be crowned by having its
members names and club engraved on the cup each year. This makes major
bragging rights. It is also important to point out that social members
will play a very important role in this organization. They can help
us achieve some of the goals that rowers do not have time to pull together.
So please thank anyone who is a social member or wants to become one.
Social members add a certain class and reach to our organization. I
think this will become more evident when we are able to reach out to
the area high schools to form an all area-team. |
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ANNOUNCING! |
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Boathouse:
Future plans call for the construction of a three story, world class
boat house. It will feature a beach level boat storage with 12' ceilings,
second floor open span clubhouse/gym/kitchen, meeting room with fireplace,
outdoor glassed in terrace capable of holding the entire Saginaw Bay
Symphony Orchestra and lastly a third floor Coaches quarters with
equipment storage. |
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The
Black Tie Event: This
is our opportunity to invite the community to meet the rowing club
and talk about boats, races, the boathoue, the Saginaw Cup, while
they check out the current SRC location, boats, docks and facilities.
The Black Tie (optional) is to be held Thursday,
November 2, 2006,
at the Montague
Inn,
from 6:30pm
to 10:30pm
with a follow up afterwards at Saginaw's newest disco nightclub "the
Mixx" on N. Hamilton Street. We need
all members and other interested parties to purchase/sell as many
tickets as soon as possible. Tickets are $50 each and large donations
are welcome to help raise funding for SRC. Entertainment has been
arranged with a classical trio to open and the Celtic troupe "Equinox"
to close. "Oars" and champagne will be served with bagpipes
and kilts. This should be one of the "BIG FUN" nights of
the year.
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| Press Coverage: INTERLUDE MAGAZINE has contacted me about writing and expose' on the Saginaw Rowing Club and the sport of rowing. This will be great coverage for the club and spread the word of what we're all about. If you haven't seen a copy of INTERLUDE MAGAZINE, do yourself a favor and pick one up. They do a first class job of showcasing our community. This would be a good opportunity to publicly announce SRC's challenge to the Bay City Rowing Club for the first valley regatta in Saginaw with the race to start near Michigan Cardio Vascular Institute and finish near Ojibway Island near the Andersen Bridge (a 2000 meter/1.2mile course.) All we need do is choose a regatta date for the summer of 2007! Don't forget to visit our archives on the website for a look at our past press coverage by THE SAGINAW NEWS. |
Our officers and directors for 2005-2006 are as follows:
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Please submit your articles and ideas to me for the next issue of our newsletter. I am thankful that this has been a very eventful and successful first summer and that so many goals were accomplished. Best Regards! |
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