Boys Crew Co-Captain Trevor Moss ’23 began rowing just three years ago, after wanting to expand his athletics beyond dance. Although the start of his crew career was unconventional due to Covid-19, his balance, musicality, and sense of timing from dance allowed him to adapt quickly to the rhythm of the sport.
“I first started crew the summer after my Freshman Year. It was over Covid. I learned to row on an erg actually. And we would have our sessions over Zoom with the camera pointed sideways and then coach on the call. And then that transitioned into learning to row on the water in singles and then when things got a little more relaxed, I rowed in the fall and winter of my Lower Year,” Moss said.
According to Michael Williamson ’25, while competitive towards his opponents, he is a supportive captain to his fellow teammates. Williamson believes Moss’s approachability encourages camaraderie in the boathouse.
“There’s a really bad problem with the ego in a lot of crew… As a Senior who’s rowing on a pretty high boat, I think that he completely drops that [ego] on the water. I mean, he carries that great energy, he works hard, clearly. He just gives 100 percent on every practice… He is willing to give feedback. He’s amazing at accepting feedback,”said Williamson.
Moss has created a mindset for himself that he hopes to spread to the team. Throughout weekly practices, the team rows 25 times the distance of one race course, which is the thought process that Moss has. After a week of challenging workouts, going onto the water for five minutes gives maximum effort seems less daunting, explained Moss.
Moss described his mindset leading up to races, finding ways to make racing less daunting to his teammates. After a week of challenging workouts, Moss hopes that races are an opportunity for the team to showcase the entirety of its hard work.
“You’ll have a race on Saturday and then you’ll have five more practices…where you’ll take five times the length of the race course at the bare minimum during each of those five practices. So, the race is such a short piece that you’ve done all of this prep work leading up to it. You’ve done 25 times the distance at the minimum to prepare for the race. And now it’s time to go out there and show what you’ve got for five minutes,” said Moss.
Williamson admires Moss’s consistent effort on the water. Despite starting the sport not long ago, Moss leads by example and through a respectful attitude.
“When you see one of your teammates working so hard it’s just very motivating to watch. And he makes it if you’re making an error on the water, he’s [not] going to yell at you or anything like that. He just keeps it very real, gives you constructive and helpful criticism.” said Williamson.
Head Coach Taylor Washburn ’03 appreciates Moss’s authenticity. Through his recent introduction to the sport, Moss has especially been able to connect with novice rowers, supporting them through the challenging transition to the sport.
“Trevor feels a little bit more real, like he feels like someone who came to the sport later, has worked really hard, has seen success, but doesn’t forget that he was a novice not that long ago. For every rowing program, through Trevor, they can see this pathway to success. See that regardless of where you start, there’s an opportunity to go have a pretty big impact on the team. He does that by just giving his time and, and really working to connect with everyone on the team,” said Washburn.
