A Tale of Two Emails

When the Knecht Cup schedule came out last night, two things jumped out at me immediately - the stacked third heat in the light fours (also noticed by at least one reader), and the absence of Georgetown in the regatta. Finding both a bit curious, I thought I would write the regatta director and Coach O'Connor to see if I could learn more.

Those of you who know the Knecht Cup regatta director are already chuckling, I'm sure. He is a bit, oh, shall we say, mercurial? Anyway, sometimes the devil on your shoulder gets the best of you, and I sent him an email wondering if the light four heats were seeded and, if so, how it was done. I noted that I thought the third heat was a bit stacked. Here is his response:

If coaches have a problem they can email or call me, I do not need an outside source jamming up my email. Also the schedule will not be final until tomorrow after the scratches, additions and it is reviewed.

Given that he responded at all, it was quite civil compared to what I thought might come my way. Actually, most people I write to outside of women's lightweight rowing view me as "an outside source jamming up my email." In any case, although this wasn't stated on the web site, the schedule is apparently not set. Since the squeaky wheel gets the grease, coaches can email the regatta director here.

As I mentioned, I was also surprised that Georgetown wasn't listed anywhere on the schedule. I wrote a quick email to Coach O'Connor asking why they didn't plan to race. I quickly received a response saying, "There was a mix-up in communication that has been addressed and we will be racing in Camden this weekend. We will be racing a Varsity Light 8, Varsity light 4, Frosh/Novice Light 8 and 2 Freshman 4s." Not that the other crews entered don't make a good field, but the more the merrier so this is great news. When I suggested that the Hoyas might be the favorites this weekend, Coach O'Connor politely pointed out the quality of the rest of the field, and in particular noted that as reigning national champions with a talented group of athletes, Wisconsin should be considered the favorites at every race until they lose. The response of a gentleman, and one in marked contrast to what we might expect to see in other sports.