RegattaCentral

this page and all event info current as of 4/21/09

DC Strokes Rowing Club and The Stonewall Regatta Organizing Committee (ROC) are pleased to invite you to the 16^thannual Stonewall Regatta on Saturday, May 30, 2009.  As in past years this will be a USRowing sponsored event. We look forward to welcoming back competitors who have attended and supported our regatta since 1994, and we welcome all new participants.

Rules and Registration Information

Registration:  All registrations before the deadline will be done this year through Regatta Central at www.regattacentral.com.

Registration closes at MIDNIGHT, Friday night, May 22.  Entries may be accepted after that date with a late fee only if space permits and at the discretion of the regatta registrar.Events not having at least two entries from at least two different clubs will be canceled at this time.No additional heats will be added after this date.

**PLEASE NOTE**Masters event entries must have BIRTHDATE information on ALL rowers in order to be considered 'on-time' to avoid a late fee. Please provide all birth dates for masters rowers with the entry.

USRowing Registered Regatta; 2009 Rules of Rowing apply

Rule 2-311,all broken equipment in the starting area will be given 5 minutes to repairwith an immediate restart following the repair
Rule 3-105, Bow ball; every boat must have a bow ball 
Rule 3-109, Footgear Release; the heel shall not raise more than 3 inches
Rule 4-107, A female rower may not compete in events for men, and a male rower may not compete in events for women.
Rule 5-203, all clubs must be USRowing organizational members.  Single entries, if unaffiliated, must be full-privilege individual members of USRowing.
A competitor shall represent only one club

Hot-Seating:All competitors are expected at the start line 5 minutes before the scheduled start. Hot-Seating of rowers/coxswains/boats is permitted, however rowers/coxswains/boats should not be registered for heats scheduled within 30 minutes of each other.Race starts will NOT be delayed for late arrivals.

Waivers:  All rowers will need to sign a waiver of liability prior to competing.  Waiver submission is STRONGLY RECOMMENDED to be done online through RegattaCentral: https://www.regattacentral.com/athletes/.  Paper waivers can be submitted on the morning of the race at the registration.

Scratch Policy: An entry to an event may be withdrawn up until the registration deadline, midnight Friday night, May 22), with a full refund of the fees.  After May 22nd, no refund will be given. Substitutions among the same size boat, however, will be allowed if space permits, i.e., there will be no penalty for moving an entry among same-sized events (e.g., from a masters to an open race).

Regatta/Event/Heat Cancellation Policy: In the event that it is necessary to cancel either the entire regatta or a portion of the regatta due to weather or hazardous river conditions, no refunds will be given. The decision to cancel the Regatta, event, or heat will be based on the recommendation of the Chief Referee, but is the final call of the Regatta Director.

If scratches on the day of the regatta result in an event having only one competitor, that event will be scratched and the entry fee refunded for the remaining entry.

Refunds will be made within 30days of the date of the regatta.

Race Fees

1x   $20.00       1-   FREE      2x/2+/2-   $30.00        4+/4x     $45.00       8+     $85.00

Rower Qualifications

Although Stonewall Regatta XV is sponsored by DC Strokes Rowing Club, the nation's first Gay and Lesbian rowing club, participation is open to all rowers, regardless of sexual orientation. 

Novice:  The Stonewall Regatta defines a novice rower as one who is within 1 year of his/her first regatta. For example,if a rower rowed his/her first ever race at last year's Stonewall Regatta, he/she would be ineligible to row again as a novice at Stonewall Regatta XVI. ALL rowers competing in a novice event must be novice, although the coxswain does not.   In addition, an experienced sweep rower learning to scull may compete as a novice sculler (and vice versa), assuming it is within the first competitive year as noted above.  Novice races will NOT be age handicapped.

Masters:  Masters events are age restricted.  A Masters crew shall be comprised exclusively of Masters rowers, coxswain excepted.  The age of a rower is whatever age he/she will attain by December 31, 2009.  For a crew, the age is determined by averaging the ages of all rowers in the boat (excluding the coxswain), and rounding down to the highest integer (e.g., a crew with an average age of 34.7is counted as having an average age of 34).  If possible, Masters heats will be set by US Rowing age class, so that handicapping is not necessary.  If it is necessary to combine age classes, we will handicap the event in accordance with US Rowing procedures, which can be found in the USRowing manual 'Rules of Rowing.'

Mixed crews:must be composed of an equal number of men and women.

AA Masters:  Rowers aged 21-26 are eligible to compete in Masters events, but there will not be any dedicated AA category events; these rowers should compete in Open categories.

Coaches/Coxswains Meeting

There will be a mandatory meeting for Coaches, Coxswains, and scullers in front of the boathouse at 8:00a.m (subject to change).  At this time, attendance will be taken, regatta protocols and safety procedures will be reviewed, and changes made to finalize the schedule, if necessary.

Awards

All races/heats are considered finals.  Only first-place medals will be awarded for all races.  For races with multiple heats, each heat will receive its own medal.  Medals will be distributed after the event once its results are made official, and will be available at the registration/results desk. 

Race Course

The regatta will be held on the Anacostia River.  All events are 1000 meters.   The start of the course is just downstream of the Pennsylvania Avenue (aka John Philip Sousa) Bridge.  The finish line is in between the two spans of the I-295 freeway bridge in front of the boathouse.  The course,which is not buoyed, has five lanes.  Spotting points for coxswains and scullers will be hung on the upstream span of the 295 bridge and distance buoys will be placed at 250, 500, and 750 meter points.  A course map will be available at the regatta. 

Equipment

Bow numbers will be provided by the ROC.  Scullers are requested to ensure their shells have bow clips to accommodate lane numbers.  All shells must have a bow ball.  Shoe ties will be checked.

Boat Storage/Parking

Trailers will be accommodated in the yard behind the boathouse and in the dirt lot at the corner of 12^th & O Streets.  Parking on O Street will be restricted to car-topped sculls east of 12^th St.  Car parking will be at the adjacent Navy Yard ? enter through the gate at 11^th& O Streets.  If your plans require you to arrive the day before the regatta, please let us know to expect you so we can try to ensure parking in the boathouse yard, which is locked at night.  Trailers can also park in the lot at any hour.  Storage in either location will be at your own risk.  DC Strokes Rowing Club and the Regatta Organizing Committee cannot be held responsible for mishaps.  You must provide your own slings/racks and tie down straps.

Concessions

As in previous years, food, snacks, and drinks will be available for purchase. There will also be a Stonewall Regatta XV t-shirt and other DC Strokes merchandise.

Contacts

Questions about the regatta, its operation, and policies, may be directed to Jarrod Shirk, Regatta Director, by email at [email protected].

Questions regarding registration and the status of your entries may be directed to the Registrar, Joe Henderson, by email at [email protected]

Questions regarding boat rental availability for visiting clubs may be directed to Andy Rabus at [email protected]

We look forward to seeing you on May 30^th.  So far the weather forecast is very promising!

Joe Henderson, Regatta Registrar

Jarrod Shirk, Regatta Director