John Foley’s Column

Kennebecasis Rowers Overcome Odds

Rarely does public interest or support direct itself to the smaller, financially limited sports.

Tradition has been to overlook or ignore what might be considered a shoestring outfit and madly applaud the big exposure sports.

But the Kennebecasis Rowing Club of Renforth, just outside Saint John, has battled exceedingly high odds and made a name for itself across the country despite the prejudices of tradition.

The club is small indeed, hasn’t got a great amount of money nor has it received much public support.

In the past month the club competed at the Canadian Henley Regatta at St. Catharines, Ont. and the national championships at Montreal. When the waves settles it had racked up eight gold medals.

"Our performance at the Henley last year and this year has puzzled people from B.C., Ontario and Quebec," club president Dr. Humphrey Bonnycastle of Rothesay related in an interview earlier this week.

"People can’t figure out how we can produce Canadian champions with our club being as small as it is," Bonnycastle, 72, added.

Brothers Mark and David Allen of Renforth each won gold medals in the junior heavy pair competition at the Henley and repeated that performance at the national championships. The duo teamed up with Andy Messer of Saint John, now a member of the Ridley College Rowing Club in St. Catherines and Wayne McConnell to win the remaining four medals in the heavy fours at the national tourney.

Don MacGowan, one of the publicity officers with the club feels people in the Saint John area should be proud of the oarsmen’s performance.

"We’ve proven that all it takes to do well is little time hard work on everyone’s part." MacGowan said. "We’re not a big club and we don’t have a lot of money. We’ve worked for things like this and we’ll continue working harder to do better."

The club has a $3,500 debt taken on in purchasing equipment in its five year existence.

It has all the required equipment with the exception of an "eight" boat which will be purchased later this year from a company in England for $6,000.

It is competing at the Nova Scotia Sprints in Dartmouth today and is looking forward to defending the Renforth Trophy at the Renforth Regatta here next weekend.

Keith Ratcliffe has been coaching the boy’s heavy four team for the past two years and Bonnycastle feels Ratcliffe is partly responsible for their gold medal winnings.

"Keith is training the boys seven days a week on the water and I think his dedication has influenced them to do well," Bonnycastle said. The heavy fours train every week night, Saturdays and Sundays at 8:30 a.m. on the Kennebecasis River in Renforth. The club also has a winter training program.

Tim Frink, Norman Demers and Mike Chapman coach the boys’ light fours until the group broke up because of one member becoming ill. A light pair of Paul Plume and Rick Cassidy has taken the fours’ place although Bonnycastle said it hasn’t taken part in any form of competitive racing. He said probably next year the boys will undertake rowing on a more serious note.

Lorne Kilpatrick coaches the girls’ heavy fours that place first at an international regatta at Buffalo Invitational, the Henley and the nationals in that order.

Steve (Butch) Gaunce broke his hand prior to the heavy fours’ race at the Henley. At Buffalo the same fours teamed with Andy Messer replacing Gaunce, had equipment problems and thus finished second in the regatta it won last year.

And who knows what the club may have won not barring those problems?