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By Brian Conley_______________________________________________________________
The overall standings of the Manny Flick Regatta Point Trophy shows that the Men were the 8th best overall men's team on the river with 120 points out of 38 teams competing. The women were the 7th best overall women's team on the river with 140 points out of 38 teams competing. This is an outstanding accomplishment as the program beat programs that are much larger and therefore have a greater depth of a team to pool from for their top boats. What a great team effort! The improvement of this year's program is especially noteworthy since last year the women were 12th and the men were 18th.

By Mike Wood_______________________________________________________________
The fifth Flick definitely didn’t turn out as well as the previous week.  It was a little colder out, my bike tire went flat in the middle of the race, and my guys (frosh 4) didn’t row up to their potential.  I was a little disappointed that they didn’t row as well as they could have, but it was nice to see the guys still in good spirits.  We are rowing better, but still have much to improve on. Congrats to the Heavy 4, nice race.  I’d like to end my short write-up with a quote by John Wooden who coached UCLA to numerous basketball championships.

 “What is competitive greatness?  It’s enjoying the challenge when things become difficult, even very difficult.  Competitors love that challenge.” 

By David Greenspan _______________________________________________________________
So is this the best of times or the worst of times? A bit of both usually applies and so it is true with LM Crew. The weather was much more April like. Fortunately, the rain held off, but it was windier and early spring like colder today than the last two Flicks. Head winds help set up the boats, but the chop catches oarblades, and the air plays havoc when the blades gets square. Lots of struggling by many a crew today, LM and others. Times between heats will be much less informative as weather conditions can vary a great deal in those 5 minute intervals.

Ahhh those men. Having come off a brilliant week, the frosh men rowed their head race finishing 15 of 16. I spoke with Mike Wood for a few moments. "They didn't think they rowed well, but at least they aren't more than 45 seconds out of first". Its one day at a time. The JV 4 also rowed in a head race. We wait to hear a report, they finished 16 out of 22, 30 seconds off the pace.

I think we all heard about the twists of fate and new found adversity for the ltwt men. The 4 came in 5th of 5 in their heat without Steve Krajewski who broke his hand a couple of days before. A new lineup, and a new challenge to be overcome. The Heavy 4 must be glowing today, however. Starting in 5th through the bridge, they were relentless in their pursuit of first. Slowly walking through the challengers, they moved into second by the top of the island, whereas the early leader -- Hun School -- fell back into third as Atlantic City took the lead. But with 250 meters to go, our LM boys looked like they might pull it out, walking on AC to within 0.69 seconds finishing second.

And the ladies? Yes, those ladies. Two frosh 8's in the head race, coming in 7 and 14 out of 17 were cheered mightily by the tent crowd. The "B" boat looked strong, with flashes of brilliance as they cruised past the island with a minimum of splash. The "A" boat also looked tough. We all had an education when a gust of wind swept across the tip of the island and down onto the ladies resulting in a crab. A superb recovery by the LM crew showed their metal as often crabs in this kind of weather usually puts the rower out for the rest of the race. The JV 4 followed in their head race, finishing 17 of 21. Despite their placement, they looked strong at the island being in the toughest water near lane 5/6 during the middle of the race.

The ltwt 4 copied the men, finishing 5th in their heat. I have been promised a full report from the cox. The Heavy 4 continued their competitive showing, cruising to 2nd barely a length behind Upper Merion and 1/2 length over Harriton. I look forward to hearing more from these boats as I was not able to watch either race.

So why row if you don't win? I was saddened to hear some of these sentiments, for surely there are lots of reasons. We can all take lessons from this year's crew. Though a crab in front of the tent may be an initial embarrassment, overcoming that crab is something we can all take heart in. Surely we have all been down there, but have we always done that come back thing? The Heavy Men and Women's varsity don't quit, but power on, getting better, remaining competitive, and showing what they are made of. The lightweight men, what about them? Though they had a tough go in tough water, think of what they were up against? Rough conditions, a new lineup, a head full of disappointment, a colleague stranded. Yet as they say, "when the going gets tough, the tough get going". Okay, maybe its a little overused. But to me, it sure sounds alot better than "winning isn't everything, its the only thing". Surely, our kids are showing us that that isn't even close to being true. Go LM Crew!