This Week in the Kennebecasis Valley, May 7, 2000

By Paula White

Each night many boats can be seen on the Kennebecasis River carrying on a tradition that dates back to the 1800s.

Athletes at the Kennebecasis Rowing Club do more than spend time on the water. Head coach Sean Creary explains some exercise techniques to Drew Simson, Sean Moore and Katie Reynolds.

Sean Moore prepares his boat for the water.

For many Valley residents, the sight of rowers making their way on the Kennebecasis River in the early morning light is pure poetry.

Singles, doubles, fours and eights cut the water neatly, leaving hardly a ripple. Oars dip and raise in perfect rhythm.

"Rowing is deeply rooted (in Rothesay)," said Sean Creary, executive director and head coach at the Kennebecasis Rowing Club. "I think the community really identifies with the sport. We're here on the river early in the morning. We're here from late afternoon and most of the evening. They see us out there."

The river has long proved ideal for the sport. It has been the training ground for a number of world class rowers - starting with the famous Paris Crew of the 1800s.

There's Wallace Ross who was a world champion sculler in the early 1900s. Hilton Belyea was also a world champion sculler who competed in the early part of the 20th century.

In more recent years comes Ed Winchester, a member of the Canadian Olympic team, and Katie Reynolds, who just received a full rowing scholarship to Michigan University.

"She was heavily recruited," Mr. Creary said. "She's been the Canadian champion the last couple of years."

In its 30th season, club membership is expected to reach a high with more than 400 members.

Mr. Creary, who has been head coach since 1996, first joined the club in 1986. There were about 30 members at the time. In 1996, the membership was about 100.

"Now, four years later, we're four times that," he said. "We have a lot more equipment than we did back then too."

He explained that the club has received a lot of media attention in recent years and this is part of the reason for the boost.

"A lot of interest started to generate and a lot of people started knocking on our doors."

The rowing club is located in Renforth, behind the Bill McGuire Memorial Centre. Rowers gather there as early as 5:30 a.m. to train. Some come in the afternoons and stay as late as dusk.

Inside the clubhouse, the boats, from the sleek singles to the 60-foot eights, line the walls. Upstairs, where the athletes work out on rowing machines, countless plaques, banners and awards decorate the walls.

"We've had great success in races, locally, nationally and even internationally," Mr. Creary remarked.

The club offers a number of programs throughout the spring and summer. Its school program is in full-swing at the moment, with about 150 students from five high schools training each morning.

Mr. Creary said the club doesn't have the resources at the moment to handle more than 150 students. To expand, it would need to purchase more boats and equipment.

"There’s no place in the schedule to fit (more students) right now unless we get new boats," he said. "The boats that we use for this program are on the water six times a day."

The rowing club is a nonprofit organization and operates without the help of government funding. All money raised through membership fees is put back into the club in one form or another. But Mr. Creary said it is growing faster than it can afford right now.

"A new eight costs $30,000," Mr. Creary said. "That's a lot of money, that's a nice new car."

Eventually, however, the equipment will come; especially if the club continues to gain new members.

Other programs offered through the summer are Adult Learn to Row, Youth Learn to Row and adult recreational. The club also offers a university program in the fall and organizes a corporate/community challenge where groups or businesses put together a team, train for about a month and then compete in a small regatta.

"We offer programs for pretty well everybody," Mr. Creary pointed out. "It doesn't matter your age or athletic ability. Rowing is a sport that anybody can participate in."

Mr. Creary's position as head coach and executive director started out as part-time, but in 1998 was changed to full-time. This showed the club's commitment to the sport, both recreationally and competitively

The rowing club places a lot of emphasis on competitive rowing. There are 18 coaches who prepare the rowers to attend a number of regattas throughout the summer, including the Royal Canadian Henley in St. Catharines, Ont. and the Canada Cup in Montreal.

There are always representatives from the Kennebecasis Club at the Canada Games. Mr. Creary coached the New Brunswick men's team at the 1997 Canada Games.

"Actually, 1997 was our best year ever," he said. "We had huge success. We had eight medals in total, we accounted for over half of all New Brunswick's medals - a gold, four silver and three bronze.

The club hosts a couple of its own regattas each summer as well. The high school students end their program this spring with the New Brunswick High School Championships and the Renforth Regatta takes place in July.

Mr. Creary is also executive director for Rowing N.B. Aviron and head coach of the provincial team. He was appointed Atlantic coordinator for the Canadian National team just last week.