Mile High Rowing Finishes A Successful Rowing Season

​Reposted from The Denver Post, February 28, 2022

Mile High Rowing (MHR) athletes left their mark on national and international stages over the weekend of February 12-13, with rowers pounding out their 2,000 meter races at Wichita State’s Shocker Sprints and the CRASH-B’s National Indoor Rowing Championships. Both the Shocker Sprints and the CRASH-B’s took place virtually.
​

MHR’s winter season of indoor training resulted in many personal bests and medal finishes, showing the athletes that their grueling work on the rowing machines paid off. Max Xu took 2nd in the men’s lightweight 2k Shocker Sprints, with Louis Stempfer and Jake Mandes taking first and third, respectively in the Men’s Junior 2k. Alex Dawallu, headed to row at Syracuse in the fall, finished third at the CRASH-B’s, against international competition, beating out 14 other contestants.

​Results from indoor competition provide an objective measure of the rowers’ fitness and potential power output in the boat. College and national team coaches study the scores and reach out to junior head coaches with questions about a rower’s on the water performance and their leadership on the team.  Dawallu’s erg scores contributed to his recruitment to Syracuse. Kelly Roach and Violet Baker took the top 2 spots at the Shocker Sprints and attracted the notice of the University of Oklahoma City’s head coach.