The University of Alabama rowing team, led by coach Larry Davis, will compete in the Head of The Hooch regatta in Chattanooga, Tenn., Saturday and Sunday. The Crimson Tide will face various opponents, including Tennessee and Oklahoma.
Davis and the student athletes have been busy preparing not only by training, but also by creating a plan and organizing the team.
“Each week we’re trying to make adaptations in our speed,” Davis said. “Another thing I’d like to do is put our entire racing plan in place. We haven’t gotten to where we selected a first boat and a second boat, and we’ve had two boats about the same speed. What we’re looking to do at this regatta is to row a true first boat and a true second boat, so we can match up with the NCAA division events that will be coming up.”
For Caroline Blackington, a junior majoring in health development and co-captain of the team, a large part of training has been the experience the rowing team has acquired from past competitions.
“We’ve had two boats go up to Boston for the Head of the Charles, so a lot of our preparation for Head of the Hooch has come from competing already this past season,” Blackington said.
Under Davis, the rowing team has been competitive on the water and in the classroom. Alabama rowers have earned the Collegiate Rowing Coaches Association’s Scholar-Athlete Award 49 times and Academic Honor Roll 121 times during the past six years.
“Once you’re done with college, unless your going to row on the Olympic team, you’re not going to be able to get on a pro circuit,” Davis said. “One of the things that we emphasize with our girls is that you’re here to get an education. You obviously need to be able to balance that out and be a competitive athlete, but we emphasize that the girls are taking care of their studies.”
Blackington said the programs in place at the University are beneficial in helping her accommodate her studies and athletic career.
“I find a balance through the opportunity that the school provides us,” Blackington said. “We have the student athlete resource center, which gives us tutors if we need help. They just do a fantastic job with it. Our coach does a fantastic job in setting a team ideal goal of using our time wisely.”
Davis said rowing differs from other collegiate sports in that the team has to be unified and work in a rhythm to win. Unlike other sports, rowing lacks a standout athlete because the entire team depends on one another.
“When we give out team awards at the end of the year, we don’t even give out a most valuable player award because the way things operate with rowing is that you have to really be able to work as a unit,” Davis said.
Blackington said she values the team mentality at the University.
“There is an extreme sense of community. I’m from the Northeast, and there is more Southern value tradition than you would find in the North,” Blackington said.
