Eat, sleep, row: this was the mantra that thirteen rowers and coxswains from the HB Crew team lived by during winter break. The HB Crew team once again had the opportunity to train together with their long-time partner Concord Crew and to travel together to Summerton, South Carolina, to attend Camp Bob Cooper in order to train for their upcoming spring season.

While the HB Crew team is only in its third year, Concord Crew was established fifteen years ago, and has been attending this camp for many years. One of HB’s newest additions to the their coaching staff, Coach Mark Furler, has attended this camp nine separate times, both as a coach and as an athlete. “We have not bred the competitive culture that is required to be routinely more successful,” says Furler, “[but] the opportunity to work with Concord day in and day out for the week adds some spark and added drive to those athletes in attendance.” He hopes that the camp, and the interaction that the HB team had with Concord, will increase the team’s strength and ability to perform on the water.

The HB crew team would not be here today without the help of Concord Crew. The very first boats that HB Crew owned were donated by Concord, along with the rest of the equipment needed to run a successful program. The Hollis Brookline coaches continue to retain great relationships with the Concord coaches, and both teams share opportunities, such as Camp Bob Cooper, and meetings with college coaches and competitive university athletes. The team is excited to continue working and training with them in the future.

HB Crew hopes to become as established as Concord has been.

Crew team founder Nick Sengstaken ’16 says, “This camp is a stepping stone to greater things, because it is what’s allowed [Concord] to achieve everything that they have achieved,”

adding that there is much respect for the Concord team, and [for] how successful they have been in the past. Team captain, Shannon Fitzpatrick ‘16 says “[Concord Crew] is what we want to be [someday].” Hopes are high for the upcoming spring season, and although the team is waiting for the snow to melt, Sengstaken says that they should be back on the water by mid-April.