A little wind and rain were no trouble for third-year rowers Courtney Cave and Lydia Kinasewich at their first official rowing event in Vernon on June 11.
This was the first step on the road for Cave, Kinasewich, and fellow South Cariboo Rowing Club (SCRC) members towards the BC Summer Games, July 21-14.
“I think we did well,” says Cave.
“The weather wasn’t really in our favour, but it was still a lot of fun.”
Kinasewich says she shared Cave’s enjoyment.
“It was a little rough, but we still did pretty good.”
Cave and Kinasewich competed the 3.5-kilometre Lap the Lake race in Women’s Junior Doubles in 22:03. They were less than a minute off the best women’s doubles time of 21:21.
Throughout the event, Cave says she kept a cool head.
“I just kept pushing myself and tried to keep positive.”
The SCRC Adult Men’s Quad team completed their event in 23:25. The top overall time was 16:71.
Aidan Fentiman finished with 20:50 in Adult Men’s Singles, James Edge finished in 26:39 in Men’s Junior Singles, while Donri Heise completed her run in Women’s Adult Singles in 23:20.
Edge’s riggers came loose and detached halfway through the event, but he was able to fix them and complete the race.
SCRC coach Will Van Osch congratulated his rowers after the race, and says he is especially proud of the juniors participation and composure.
The SCRC began preparing for the new year with weightlifting and indoor rower training at Action Fitness in January. The team’s first dip in the water began in May with runs on Watson Lake four times a week.
With the Summer Games now in their sights, Cave and Kinasewich can barely hold back their anticipation.
“I’m really excited for this because I love being out on the water,” says Cave. “I’m just so glad to be able to go to the Summer Games and compete.
“I don’t want to be crazy competitive, but I’m really looking forward to going to it. It will be my first time at the Summer Games.
The girls will be competing in singles events at the Summer Games. This a concern for Kinasewich, but also a welcome challenge.
“It’s different when you’re alone. You really have to push yourself and I’m looking forward to that.”
Cave and Kinasewich will row at the Summer Games in Junior Women’s Singles, while Edge and Betz will compete in the Junior Men’s Singles category.
