Coach Washburn and Coach Minzner, rowed in the Head of the Charles this year.
This past Sunday, Andover Crew sent two rowing squads to the Head of the Charles Regatta along the Charles River in Boston. The event catches the spotlight for crew every year, hosting over twelve thousand top performers ranging from high-school athletes to Olympic-level competitors. Both of Andover’s teams competed in a division composed of high-school rowers. Boys Crew officially placed 71st out of 90 boats. Before being given a one-minute penalty, their original result was 34th place. Girls Crew ranked 64th out of 90 squads.
One of the rowers in the boys boat, Cade Rutkoske ’26, described the way the Head of the Charles Race was structured, with all boats racing five kilometers in a staggered start.
Rutkoske said, “How the race works is that it’s five kilometers, and it’s a staggered start. There are mostly two lanes and you alternate lanes to start. Pretty much everybody races all the way down the course and you try to keep the people that started behind you behind you and catch up to the people in front of you.”
Under a bridge, however, an official deemed that Andover failed to yield or give space to a crew coming from behind. This call gave Andover a one-minute penalty. Thus, instead of placing 34th place, Boys Crew dropped down to 71st.
“If you catch up to somebody, they have to make room for you. So we [were originally going to be] placed, I believe, 34th in the race. Which was in the top fifty percent because there were 92 competitors. Unfortunately, we got really unlucky and the judge gave us a really, in my opinion, unfair call, where under a bridge, we didn’t yield or make space for this boat behind us. They didn’t even pass us throughout the entire race, but they gave us a minute penalty,” said Rutkoske. Although the team ended up placing 71st, he noted, “Everybody on the team knows in their hearts that we placed 34th, truly.”
The Charles River’s many bridges and turns, Charlie Domina ’27 detailed, make the regatta’s course difficult for coxswains, who are usually the smallest in the crew and in charge of steering to navigate. He commended the boy’s coxswain Tina Cho ’25, who steered the boat as efficiently as possible.
“The Head of the Charles course is infamously difficult for coxswains, and Tina did an awesome job of not only navigating us through it, mentally through the piece but also she had good steering. There was never a moment where I got demotivated because I felt like we could have taken a better line, and she was really aggressive with the other crews in a way that really helped all of us,” said Domina.
Avery Rodeheffer ’25, rowing on the girls boat, wrote in an email to The Phillipian about her teammates’ efforts during the race, praising the team’s hard work. She also noted the uniqueness of the environment and was impressed by the thousands of spectators watching the race.
Rodeheffer wrote, “Everyone on the boat was pulling with each other for something greater than ourselves. We raced for each other, for our coaches, families, and teammates, and for the legacy of Andover crew. We gave every last drop because we knew that the girls in front and behind us were doing the same.”
Rodeheffer continued, “The Charles was an unforgettable experience. It was my first time rowing in front of hundreds of thousands of people, and it was amazing to see all of the relationships formed by the sport.”
Despite finishing strong, Rodeheffer detailed an unfortunate collision, causing both boats involved to pause. She described the trajectory of the race from start to finish.
Rodeheffer continued, “We ended up having a flying start and then had to pause every stroke under the opening bridge before passing the slower crew in front of us. About 2,000 meters later, as we turned under the Anderson bridge, another crew collided with us, forcing both boats to stop. Our bow four were finally clear to row, and as soon as we were able to go all eight again, we sprinted and pulled away from the other crews, remaining in open water for the rest of the race. With around 1,000 meters to go, we approached no man’s land, and our coxswain, Samantha [Older ’25], made focused calls to maintain speed through the final stretch through Eliot Bridge and the sprint.”
Domina referred to the regatta as the biggest of its kind in the world, with the best rowers around the globe packed in one body of water. He also thanked the Andover community for their efforts in cheering.
“It’s the biggest regatta in the world. We saw so many crazy people, we got photos with Olympians, [and we] raced against future Olympians, it was just awesome to be a part of and get to row this year, and even more so to be cheered on by Andover fans. It was great to have people there, and I hope that they had a good experience watching their peers compete in the city of Boston,” said Domina.
Both Boys and Girls Crew will officially begin their seasons in the spring.
Editor’s Note: Cade Rutkoske is an Associate News Editor for The Phillipian.
