ECAC Cancels All Lightweight Events

The ECAC has canceled all lightweight events, women's and men's. The men's lightweight event showed only one entry on Regatta Central, but the women had three entries. The ECAC, playing its historical role as Dad Vail spoiler, has left Dad Vail with only three lightweight entries while ECAC was scheduled to have three. If I were Ohio State, Ithaca, and Michigan State, I'd be on the phone to the Dad Vail organizing committee right now asking if I could race. They have the lanes and the race will be run anyway, I'd bet those three crews could get in. The ECAC may not be interested in lightweights, but Dad Vail apparently is. People like to talk about the ECAC's perceived advantages over Dad Vail - course, current, etc. - but one advantage Dad Vail has over ECAC is they actually hold a race! There may be a good reason for canceling these races, but it isn't the number of entries. [Update: See comment for more information on this.] If the ECAC is really a championship regatta, why is it running a third varsity eight race instead of a varsity lightweight eight race - so it can crown the third varsity champion? I don't really care if lightweights race at ECACs or Dad Vails, but they should all race at the same regatta. It does no good to split the entries and then cancel races when there isn't a full field. Despite all the talk of a bad course and poor seedings in Philadelphia, the ECACs started because a group of heavyweight men didn't want to race Temple. Now the heavyweight dog is wagging the lightweight women's tail. Whether Temple belongs in the Dad Vail or not is another discussion, but the irony is that now Temple is beatable by ECAC schools, but they're not racing them. At least ECAC never pretended to hold a lightweight four event so those boats all entered Dad Vail and will actually have a race.