Coast wins three-of-four races over the Bruins

MARINA DEL REY -- Orange Coast College men's crews took 3 out of 4 races against UCLA on their home course in Marina del Rey last Saturday morning.  

Conditions were sunny and warm, with flat water for the early races, and an increasing headwind for the latter races.  

The 2nd Varsity boats went off first, and after a fast start, our team settled in to the body of the race with a 2-seat advantage.  UCLA then made a big push, and worked out to a one length advantage by the mid-point in the race.  Digging in over the 3rd 500 meters, Coast gained back a half-length, and ultimately came up 2.2 seconds short of the victory.  It was a hard fought battle that will be repeated this weekend in Newport.

The Varsity eights went off next, and both teams got off to a good start.  Coast pulled out to a 1-seat advantage after 20 strokes, and then started slowly inching away after settling into their race pace.  Our Varsity broke into an open water advantage around the mid-point of the course, and went on to win by 12 seconds.

The Novices started third, and in a mounting headwind, blasted off to a good start and never looked back.  They steadily opened up distance on the Bruins throughout the piece, and went on to win by a 23-second margin.

In the final race of the day, Coast put a 2nd and a 3rd Novice Eight out against UCLA's 2nd Novices.  All boats got away from a tricky headwind start, with the Coast & UCLA 2nd Novice boats briefly clashing oars within the first 10 strokes.  Once things settled down, the two Coast boats pulled away, and engaged in an epic battle with each other.  The 2nd boat lead the 3rd boat by 2 seats up until the boathouse at the 1250 meter mark, then slowly started to pull away in the strong headwind.  They ultimately cracked an open water lead just before the finish to take the race by 5.6 seconds over our 3rd boat, and about 30 seconds over UCLA. 

Results:

Next Race:  Newport Regatta this Sunday, Mar. 23

This Sunday is the 49th Annual Newport Regatta, running from 7:30 to 9:30 am in front of the OCC Boathouse in Newport Harbor.  This is shaping up to be an important regatta coming into the San Diego Crew Classic, as all the top Southern California Crews will face off for the first time in the same race.  The Varsity 8 race promises to be especially exciting, with early season leaders UC Santa Barbara, UC Irvine, Univ of San Diego, UCLA and Coast all looking to take top honors in the 7-boat final. 

Schedule:

Parking / Spectating:

The best spectating will be from the upper deck or the docks at the OCC Boathouse.  Please do not watch races from the Sea Scout Base next door, as they have classes and programs running at that time, and need their parking & facilities for those.

There will be no parking available at the OCC boathouse, as the lot will be used for boat storage & staging.  Some parking is available along Coast Highway, but the best place to park is the public lot behind Garlic Joe's Restaurant, about 200 meters west of the boathouse on PCH.  (Click here for map.)  There are some free spaces there, as well as metered spots, and it is about a 10 minute walk to the boathouse.  Please make sure you arrive early to allow time to park.  

NOTE:  Do not park in the Sea Scout Base lot (next to OCC) or the lot between Tustin Ave & Riverside Ave.  These are tow away zones!