Men's Crew Beats Elites at the Charles

The Brown men’s crew turned in a terrific performance at a snowy Head of the Charles in Boston over the weekend, with the men’s crew going head-to-head with some of the top competition from around the world and more than holding its own. Racing against a number of national teams and top collegiate squads, Bruno’s varsity eight placed fifth in the Championship 8 divison, just four seconds out of second place.

The Bears blazed out of the gates, passing the Riverside checkpoint in the fastest time of the day, a very impressive 3:21.8. However, one of the most prestigious fields in recent memory pushed the Bears down to fifth overall, with a final time of 14:49.4. Tideway Scullers, a collection of the top eight scullers in the world, took first in 14:33.3, while Cal was second in 14:45.6. The University of Washington and the US National Team rounded out the top five. Among the teams finishing behind the Bears was a collection of German national team members, several former Olympians rowing for Leander Club, a prestigious British organization, and a boat of French elite rowers.

Bruno also had another pair of top-15 boats in the Championship 8 race, as the Brown “B” boat and the alumni 8 finished 13 and 14th respectively. The second eight very nearly knocked off the top Yale boat, coming in at 15:15, just five seconds behind the Bulldogs, while the alumni boat came in at 15:18.

On Saturday, the men’s freshmen eight turned in a solid performance as well, taking sixth place in the Club 8 division with a time of 15:42 and knocking off a number of highly competitive clubs. The Yale crew won the event with a time of 15:22, with the BMA Boat Club and a Northeastern 8 rounding out the medals dock.

The Bears will be back in action on November 21, when they wrap up the fall season by competing at the Foot of the Charles.