Team’s confidence grows as season begins

By Katrina Craycroft

This past weekend, Dallas United Crew (DUC) concluded a successful American Youth Cup Series 1 (AYC1) Regatta at Nathan Benderson Park in Sarasota, Fla. The venue will once again host USRowing’s Youth National Championship, and the AYC1 offers crews familiarity with the course and a chance to face top-ranked teams.

AYC1 was DUC’s first regatta of 2022. Thirty-three clubs participated with more than 450 entries. Top-ten crews from the 2021 USRowing Youth National Championships, including Greenwich Crew and St. Joseph Preparatory School of Philadelphia, Pa. (gold medalists in the Girls and Boys Varsity Eights, respectively), Sarasota Crew and Chicago Rowing Foundation set the standard for speed. Of the sixteen boats DUC entered, five crews finished amongst the top six boats in their event, and 10 of DUC’s entries placed in the top 10.

“We now have a much better sense of where we are, and where we want to be,” reflects Girls Head Coach Amanda Perry. “Watching our crews, I could see nerves and jitters prior to the first race work out as the racing progressed, and their confidence grew. The Girls Varsity 8 was able to find a gel moment, and they learned the value of keeping their focus inside the shell with rhythm, rate and ratio. The Girls Second Varsity 8, made of both under-seventeen (U17) and under-nineteen (U19) rowers from opposite practice times, was able to come together nicely and bring a lot of positive energy to the race, which definitely elevated the entire squad.”

Head Coach Steve Perry added: “Overall, I was pleased with all of our DUC athletes. Everyone raced multiple times and demonstrated better results with each successive outing. I wanted to especially note our Boys and Girls U17 Eights who finished third and fourth, respectively, giving us our best results on the weekend.”

For those wishing to try the sport, DUC’s popular Middle School Team is now registering for the spring season. High-schoolers and middle-schoolers are also invited to register for DUC’s just-opened and highly anticipated Learn-to-Row Youth Summer Camps. Space is limited, so register early.

With 160 plus athletes from more than 50 schools, Dallas United Crew is North Texas’s largest youth rowing program. The keys to their success are expert coaching, a strong team culture, and proven training. The results — 22 USRowing Regional Titles and 61 collegiate varsity recruits — are indisputable.

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