March 28, 2008

Here's the thing: when you race one of the top two teams in the country, it's pretty tough to stay calm. Controlled, sure -- you can always fake it -- but if you look past the determined eyes and the tall postures, you'll see our hands clenching and unclenching and clenching again, and our leg muscles constantly on the go. Last weekend we found ourselves beginning our season head-to-head with Virginia, whose varsity eight is currently picked to finish second at NCAAs this year. We had a full weekend planned: after Virginia we were racing UNC, then George Mason and Delaware. This was indeed something we had never done before, and was an exciting start to a promising season.

Coming back from New Zealand, I had my doubts about continuing to row. With nine hours of class per week, a new country to explore, and more time than I've ever had before to spend with the people I cared about, it wasn't easy to know I would have to come back to Bucknell and be bombarded by life in the states. Chaotic schedules, early-morning erging, sleep deprivation -- who wants that? But something kept me going: the team that's become my family and best friends, the lessons I learn almost daily from being part of this sport, and the determination to not accept less than what I know I'm capable of are impossible to shake. Scientifically speaking, we remember the positive aspects of our lives more readily than the negative ones (it's true, I swear). I know that 10 years from now, when I'm graduated and -- gasp -- maybe even have a real job, I'll think of college and rowing as a single, inseparable unit. And I'll be proud of my years on this team, proud of the leaps my teammates have taken over the past three years, and know I wouldn't have wanted my college experience any other way.

Now, more than ever, as spring arrives and the weeks until the Patriot League Championships decrease at alarming rates, the excitement and anticipation of racing is coursing through my body and I can feel it coming out of everyone else's skin as well. Our accomplishments can only be as strong as our drive, and the opportunity to be exceptional is upon us.

So, ladies: Let's do this.

- Page Kannor '09