The Evening Times Globe, Saint John, N.B., Thursday, July 18, 1974

Coach Predicts They'll Reach Finals

By Steve Belding, Staff Writer

It's an eight and sometimes nine-day-week for Kennebecasis Rowing Club's oarsmen.

They're out there on the windswept, choppy river every night, rain or shine, and lately it's been twice sometimes on Saturday and Sunday - flexing their muscles.

Because the time is nigh for their first big event of the season - the Canadian Henley Regatta at St. Catharines, Ont. July 24-28.

It is the first-time the two-year-old Kennebecasis club, which is the only rowing club in the province will be represented in one of the most prestigious rowing competitions in North America.

Club coach Garry Lienert, a former Olympic rowing coach, says they will be entering in two junior heavyweight four (a racing shell in which four oarsmen row) events - with and without a coxswain - and two junior lightweight fours under 145-pounds events - with and without a coxswain - at St. Catharines.

In an interview conducted from his motor-powered coach's boat Lienert, between communicating instructions to his two crews via a megaphone, said "their times are good. They'll be in the finals."

Lienert wasn't speaking with tounge-in-cheek and coming from a man with his qualifications you'd have to take what he has to say on the subject seriously.

Unlike many sports in Saint John and the province a poor showing in rowing by the Kennebecasis club cannot be sloughed off as being caused by lack of adequate coaching. Lienert, a native of Port Dalhousie, which is now part of St. Catharines, Ont., was brought up in the hotbed of the sport. And for 11 years he was coach of the St. Catharines, Ont., Rowing Club - probably the tops in Canada.

In World Championships

He was also the assistant coach of the Canadian rowing team which competed in the 1964 Olympic Games in Tokyo and head coach of the Canadian rowing contingent in the 1966 world championship in Yugoslavia.

However for the past two seasons, since relocating in Saint John area, he has been handling the coaching chores for the Kennebecasis outfit.

Last season, the club was merely getting off the ground, but they took part in the Nova Scotia Sprints at Halifax, the 1973 Summer Games at Burnaby, B.C. and their own club rowing regatta, which is now the annual Renforth Regatta.

The Kennebecasis team finished with three firsts, a second an a third in five events at Halifax. It finished second in their own three-club regatta behind the Quebec Rowing Federation Team (the Mic Mac and North Star rowing teams from Nova Scotia made up the other entry).

Last season they didn't place in the tougher competition in the Summer Games.

But this year, starting with practically an all-new cast of oarsmen, Lienert says things will be different. "We have a couple of good crews out there," he said. "Wayne Messer and Mark Allen, for their age are really good."

The Kennebecasis club's junior heavyweight crew is: bowman Wayne McConnell, second Paul Donaldson, third Allen and Andrew Messer.

The lightweight four is bowman Pat Flood, second Dennis Demers, third Mike Chapman and stroke Norm Demers.

Bob Donnard carries out coxswain duties for both crews. The oarsmen range in age from 15-20 years.

To be classified a junior in rowing, Lienert said means any oarsmen who has not been a member of a winning crew in a designated competition which includes: The Canadian Henley, international rowing championships, "Conceivably," the rowing coach said, "you could have a 40-year-old junior oarsman."

The rowing season is a demanding one - beginning in February and not ending until the end of August. For the first few months Lienert said he had his athletes running and lifting weights to get in shape. He's had them in the water since April.

Currently warming up for the rowing season's actual competitions, Lienert says he's been drilling the crews mainly by 100-stroke intervals - "at least six or eight a night" - he says. His two strokes, Messer and Demers pace the crews at about 35-37 strokes per minute.

Heats in their events at the Henley, Lienert said, were all 2000 metres which would amount to about 250 strokes. The number of heats for each event in the St. Catharines competition will depend on the number of entries.

If the Kennebecasis oarsmen come up with a good showing in St. Catharines, the coach says they may enter the Canadian championships at Burnaby B.C.

The Kennebecasis club earlier planned to have two more racing shells for this season - two pairs.

They've been on order from a manufacturer in Italy since last year, says club president Dr. Humphrey Bonnycastle. However their has been a long delay in their arrival. As far as he known, Bonnycastle says, the two pairs are in Montreal at the moment packed in containers on a freight car.

"We're putting pressure on as fast as we can to have them (the two shells) clear customs." However is doesn't look as though the Kennebecasis Rowing Club will be featuring any pairs on their roster this season.

The cause of the delay in arrival of the two shells, Bonnycastle said, was because of the energy crisis - the manufacturers had trouble acquiring plastic for certain areas of the boats and because of a shipping strike in parts of Europe.

"We've had three or four oarsmen that we had to let go because of no place to put them," says Bonnycastle. "But we'll have them next year."

Lienert said he had just about given up on entering the Kennebecasis club in pairs' competition because his oarsmen just wouldn't be accustomed to them. However he added there is a possibility if things go well in St. Catharines of entering a couple of oarsmen in a two-man shell competition.

Before the rowing season was in full swing Lienert was quoted as saying that if he found the right caliber of individual to work with, that "within a couple years I can have him participating in international competition. But it depends on the individual."

He says now that Messer and Allen could be two prospects for the Canadian Youth team next season if they are interested in trying.

Allen, a five-foot-11, 170 pound grade 11 student at Rothesay High School says he would definitely be interested in pursuing such a course next year but right now he and his club mates are concentrating on the Henley.

"I'd say we have a chance (to win)," he says, "I know what we're up against."

Allen is one member of last year's team which participated in the Summer Games.

Allen, who participates in other interscholastic sports as well, says coach Lienert's tutelage has been demanding but worthwhile. "He's the best coach I've ever worked under in any sport. He known what he's talking about and he makes you do the work."

The Kennebecasis rowing team will be flying to St. Catharines, on the Tuesday before the Canadian Henley which is slated to start running heats on Wednesday.

Club captain Tim Frink said he would be transporting the club's racing shells from Renforth by truck, Frink has been actively aiding Lienert with the coaching duties of the club and will be handling the lightweight four drew in the Henley Regatta.