Julia Darnton has blog about her Summer Rowing Adventure

Julia Darnton's Excellent Rowing Adventures


Reflecting

When we crossed the New Jersey-Pennsylvania border early this morning, my stomach churned with anticipation. Tomorrow I will be racing at the United States U-23 trials. I kept thinking to myself. “What a mind blowing concept.” During the hour long car ride to the race course, I reminisced about my beginnings in rowing.

I went to Pioneer High School in Ann Arbor, a place where rowing is kind of an undercover sport. During the school day, we spoke in rowing lingo, talking about "feathering," "starboard vs.port," "coxswains," and other rowing terms that the rest of the student body did not understand. At the end of every afternoon, we went down to the simple and rustic boathouse to take thousands of strokes at each practice. Those early evening practices on the Huron River are where I realized that I really loved rowing. Though my high school team didn't have a huge boathouse, and we didn't buy a brand new boat every year, I am so proud of the program that nurtured my passion for this sport.

I attribute the strength and fitness that I've gained to my training at Michigan, and I race for the M every day. But the passion and the fire with which I row was instilled in me by my high school coach, Michael Dove. As I sat in the car this morning, I thought about Coach Dove, a man of few words and much wisdom. Without his guidance, I wouldn't have become a Michigan athlete. During my race on Friday, I'll be racing for Michigan, but I'll also be racing for Coach Dove. With that double dose of passion, I'm definitely excited to see what I can do.

Ready to unleash my Wolverine power,

Julia

Kilometers rowed: 201 kms

Weight lost: 4.6 lbs

Julia ultimately became National Champion in the Women's Intermediate Lighweight 1x this summer. It makes me extremely proud.