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About Yale Alumni Magazine | View Entire Issue (June 21, 1899)
Vou. ‘VIEI.--No. -38. | NEW HAVEN, CONN., WEDNESDAY, JUNE 21, 1899. Price Tren Cents. YALE CREW IMPROVES, Harvard Boat is Speedy and a Fast. Race is Expected. ' (Correspondence of YALE ALUMNI WEEKLY J] Gates Ferry, Conn., June 20.— With favorable weather conditions, the race over the four-mile course on the Thames on Thursday of next week will be a fast one. This is a point on which both Yale and Harvard sympathizers have come to an agreement within the past week. The Harvard Eight reached Redtop on Tuesday, June 13, and their stretches against time, and work in. general justify the opinion that Yale will have to be fast to defeat them. Harvard’s° crew does not appear to equal the Yale boat-in regularity and finish, but their work is characterized by great life and snap, and considerable speed has been shown in the recent trials. eee The Yale Eight were rowing well to- gether when they began their practice on the Thames. The early . time stretches however, were disappointing and it was apparent that the lack of. speed was due to a deficiency in power and snap, rather than to the minor faults in form. Accordingly the coaches devoted all their attention to securing a hard, fierce catch and sustained power throughout the stroke.. The men re- sponded well and the middle of the week a most gratifying improvement was noted. The driving power in the boat is enormous, but the Eight had fallen into something of a rut. It sim- ply required the exhortations of Messrs. Gallaudet, Cowles, Armstrong and Bol- ton. to bring them to realize their strength and to apply it. The Yale Crew is well up to the stand- ard expected from-a Yale crew ten days before the race. The outboard work is good, the men are steady on their slides and the improvement in action and driving power continues. The length of reach, which was the source of con- siderable comment earlier in the season, has been sacrificed somewhat for the sake of getting into better position for the catch. | PATR-OAR WORK. Pair-oar practice was added to the daily routine last week, Dr. Gallaudet himself occasionally rowing at stroke. On Thursday the Eight was sent over the four-mile course, but aside from a half-mile, mile and two-mile pulls against time, the other work has been confined to short stretches up and down the river. On Saturday morning the second mile of the course was covered within five minutes, but coaches and captain are unwilling to make public the exact times recorded which have been made. The new shell arrived from Davy of Cambridge on ‘Tuesday and has proved thoroughly satisfactory. It follows the general lines of last year’s boat, al- though a foot loneer and somewhat broader at the bottom to render it more buoyant under the heavy crew. On Thursday morning Captain Allen or- dered out the oars with six-inch blades used previous to the arrival in New London, when a new set of sweeps with blades half an inch broader were tried. The following day the new oars were cut down, so it seems definitely settled that the narrow blades will be used in the race. YALE CREW AND SUBSTITUTES. Greenway, sub. Brow Greenleaf, bow. Flint, 4. Wickes, 2. Mitchell, sub. rhe; Cross, sub Allen (Capt.), 5. Niedecken, r¢ Williams, stroke. _ Brock, sub. Walton, cox. Griswold, 3. Photo. by Pach. - THE FOUR. The substitute four have continued their regular practice and considerable improvement has resulted from the coaching of Messrs. Bolton and Arm- strong. The boat seems to be a bit too light for the four regular substitutes and on Saturday two of the Freshman squad were tried at stroke and bow. The shift, however, was. not a success and the day’s practice closed with the regular four. There are liable to be further changes almost any time, and it is doubtful if a final choice will be made until very near race day. The addition of this substitute race has worked a most beneficial change in the training system of the Crew, affording an incentive to regular practice for those directly concerned and adding much to the general life at Broadview. The Harvard four has a great advantage in being many pounds lighter than their Yale rivals, and have displayed great speed in their recent practice. THE FRESHMEN. Messrs: J. --O.. “Rodgers, -'98, and Payne Whitney, ’98, came down from the Harvard Law School during the early part of the week and took charge of the Freshmen Eight. The make-up of the Crew has been unsettled, Benner and Warmouth alternating at stroke and Swan and Lincoln at three. The Freshmen, while rather ragged as re- gards form, have a strong catch and pull their stroke through well and may be expected to develop good speed by the twenty-ninth. The Harvard Fresh- men arrived at Redtop Tuesday night. Although little is known here of their ability, the boat is said to be fast. very pleasing feature of the sea- . son’s training at New London has been the ‘pleasant relations apparent between the oarsmen of the two Universities, and their coaches. The tendency has been entirely towards the abandonment of secret tactics of past years, and the rival boats have had an opportunity to see each other work at short range. The University fours have met several times in impromptu but sharp brushes, which besides showing the greatest good feeling seemed to show Harvard a trifle the faster. Race Arrangements. A change of hour for the University and University Four races was made last week, after.a conference between the. Yale. .and= flarvard which will in all probability be final. Unless weather too bad to row in, pre- vails, the races will be run off on June 29, at these hours: Freshman race, two miles—Started at 10 A. M. at drawbridge, and rowed upstream to finish at Navy Yard. Universitvy-Four race, two miles— Started immediately after the Freshman race ends and rowed up stream from the Navy Yard to the starting point of the four-mile course. Each four carries a coxswain. University race, four miles—Started at 5.30 BP. M. and rowed downstream. to the finish at the drawbridge. The old straightaway course used by Har- vard and Yale prior to the triangular race last year, will be used, as it was - considered better to have a four mile course without turnings. Observation trains will be run for the Freshman and University races as in former years. Tickets for the Fresh- man train and the University Four train will be on sale at the railroad depot. , Observations trains will be run on each side of the river. The West side, or old route, is well known to race goers. The East side, or new route, follows the river's edge very closely from start to finish and the view is ob- authorities, — scured only for a few moments as the train passes behind a few houses at the Navy Yard. , There will be no press boat to follow the crews. A referee’s tender will fol- low the referee’s boat and will keep the observation trains posted as to changes or postponements., Yale Crew Statistics. Stroke — William. Biddle Williams, 1900, of Haverford, Pennsylvania. Mr. Williams prepa-ed for College at the Delancey School and stroked the 1900 Freshmen and the 1808 University Crew. He is 20 years old, weighs 160 pounds and his height is 5 feet 10 inches. - No. 7—James Henry Niedecken, 1900, of Milwaukee, Wisconsin. Mr. Nie- decken prepared for College at St. Paul’s School, Concord. where he rowed on one of the crews. He was a member of the 1900 Freshman and the 1898 University Eights. He is 21 years old, weighs 171 pounds and is 6 feet and 34 inches tall. No. 6—Frederick Winthrop Allen, 1900, of Walpole, Mass., Captain. Mr. Allen prepared at Andover and rowed at six on the University Crews of 1897 and 1808. He is 22 years old, weighs 180 pounds and is 6 feet tall. No. 5—Francis. Gordon Brown, Jr., 1901, of Flushing L. I. Mr. Brown prepared at Groton, where he rowed on the School Crew. He captained last year’s Freshman boat and has played guard on the University Eleven for two years. He is 19 years old, weighs 190 pounds and is 6 feet 3 inches tall. No. 4—Robert Philip Flint, ’99 S.. Gr Los Angeles, Cal. Mr. Flint prepared at Lawrenceville and rowed on his Freshman and last year’s University Crews. He is 23 years old, weighs 168 pounds and his height is 6 feet. No. 3—William * Edward Schenck Griswold, ’o9,. of - Erie, Penn. Mr.
