Welcome to the Washington Women's Rowing History! Our goal is to continue to add to this collection with more photos, videos, interviews, links and stories over the coming years... if you have any photos or media that would strengthen or augment this history, please email them to webdev (at) huskycrew.org.  Thank you!

A note to our readers: 

From the beginning in 2003, this history project was built for the web - with the flexibility to add new material (this entire women's collection was written and added as a celebration of the 50th Anniversary of Title IX in 2022), and the ability to include audio and video - and continues as one of the only consistently updated, extensively detailed collegiate sports history collections, across all sports, in the world. The downside to publishing on the web is the ease to which material can be used without consent. Please respect the effort and time that our authors, photographers, and contributors have put into this body of work, and if using any material published here, please contact us first.

This men's and women's combined collection - 600+ written pages with over 7,000 photos - uses Microsoft Frontpage, a software that was developed before smartphones. Moving the content now is financially prohibitive; but even if we did have the resources to do it, we would much prefer those resources go to support the current teams! So the best viewing experience of this history is still by laptop or desktop computer (or tablet).

All written and audio content on this page, unless otherwise noted, are copyrighted and written by Eric Cohen. For questions, comments, or history additions, please contact us at: webdev (at) huskycrew.org. Thank you.

A number of factors played into this opportunity. For one, the new campus was surrounded on two sides by water, Lake Union to the west and Lake Washington to the east, and rowing was a natural attraction. But another important factor was the frontier spirit at Washington; to a large degree, Washington was not influenced by east coast "norms" or culture. Their culture was their own, and it was borne out of a closeness to nature, bountiful natural resources, and a location hundreds of miles from the next major urban center. The Washington identity was whatever they made it.

And make it they did.  Importantly, as part of that new identity, 1903 also marked the inaugural "Junior Day"; what through the decades is now continued at Washington as "Class Day". As described in the early history, "Junior Day" was a university-wide program that included rowing and canoeing (aquatic sports), basketball, athletics (track and field), tennis events as well as other University activities such as log rolling. Both men and women competed in the sports events and at times they competed together in mixed events. The activities and sporting events pitted each class against the other for bragging rights. In addition, each year the junior class planted a tree in front of present day Denny Hall with Professor Edmund Meany, and wrote and performed a farce play. The Junior Day events - sometimes lasting several days – usually ended with the Junior Prom. Although there is no record that the women of 1903 competed in rowing in the first ever Junior Day (May 1, 1903), we do know that efforts were being made for oarswomen to be a part of this unique all-campus event.

That paragraph was written by Ellen (Pottmeyer) Ernst '83, a three-time National Champion during the resurgence of women's rowing at the UW in the early 80's, who wrote the complete, detailed history of early women's rowing at Washington in 2005.  These early years are published at this link - Washington Rowing History - Women: 1900's, with the program really hitting its stride after 1910 - Washington Rowing History - Women: 1910's.

There is a lot packed into this article, but it is important to note that "the women petitioned the UW to allow them to take rowing and the board granted them permission. Miss Merrick has since declared that she will not allow the women to take the rigorous exercise that Conibear prescribes for them, so that present plans have been brought to an abrupt halt."

O'Donnell is described in the history:  "In addition to her dedication to rowing, Miss O'Donnell was on the Hockey team (right halfback) and Basketball team (guard), as well as being assistant editor of the Tyee, member of the Women's League, WAA, Spanish Club, Senior Class Secretary, Varsity Ball Committee, involved in drama, and Senior Class historian.  Add to that "coach" of the women's rowing squad in 1911; invaluable to Conibear in these early years, it was her dedication that linked the program from it's inception to the glory years mid-decade."

“Coach Conibear recalled the days when the girls started to row in ’06, when they had to tramp through the snow to the old canoe club and row in a stationary boat under a leaky shed, from which all the water drained onto the rowers. ‘We owe everything we have,’ said Connie, ‘to our friends in the city.  The ASUW pays the salary of the coach, but all our equipment has been given us. In the spring we are going to ask for new shells, for we are in urgent need of new equipment, and we hope that then we will have more men and women out.’”  (The UW Daily, December 7, 1914) 
 

An interest there was. Thirty women signed up and coach Bernie Delke was hired as the intramural coach, the women borrowing the intramural men's equipment (wherry fours and eights) on Tuesdays and Thursdays. In April of 1969, they entered their first race at the Corvallis Invitational at OSU, driving their own cars south with oars strapped to the roofs, and borrowing racing shells (actual shells, not wherries) and for the first time attempting to set the boats on the way to the starting line. It was an adventure, but by June the team was rowing in shells borrowed from the men's team, and subsequently raced at the NWRA Nationals on Greenlake, placing 3rd in both the lightweight 4 and lightweight 8 events.

In the article Campbell explains that the new program, led by Coach Delke, has 42 current athletes, that the team launches from the "Canoe House" (the contemporary term for the original ASUW shell house on the Cut), and that practices begin at 6:30 a.m. "Unlike European women's teams, American women are just beginning a crew program," the article states. "There is much organizing necessary. Development of facilities and acquiring the elaborate equipment for rowing takes time.  But the University of Washington girls are excited about blazing the way."

"When it goes well everyone knows it. It feels good.  That good feeling is both the goal and the reward for the rowing.  It takes work; the yellow shirts worn by the women's crew were a familiar sight in the weight room of the Intramural Building all winter. Working on weights, coupled with running to build endurance and wind, the team awaited spring weather to begin training on the water once again."

In the photos above the original yellow shirts - paid for by the women themselves - can be seen as the women launch from the shell house. The wherry shells were carried out of the double doors in the back of the building and walked over to the east facing docks of the Waterfront Activities Center where the team launched. A young Bernie Dehlke is seen talking with Drinkwater at the shell house, and as the team is filmed near Fox Island at the eastern end of the Cut.

These early teams were not funded by the University, so they were on their own when it came to travel, coaching, operational/daily expenses... even down to the uniforms.  "As a club sport, we did not receive university issued uniforms", said Marilynn. "Someone would go buy shirts and then take them to have the UW Women’s Crew logo printed on them... I remember going with Jan Holman (Jan Harville) and someone else to J. C. Penney where we bought the purple henley shirts for the 1972 racing season."

"Kit Green (UW Assistant Athletic Director) was very supportive but I don’t think the University contributed much since we were a club sport. The fundraiser that I remember is selling crew buttons. We had some buttons made to sell and on Opening Day we would take out canoes from the canoe house (the original ASUW shellhouse on the Cut) so that we could sell them to the people lined up to watch the races. We also had people working the crowds on land."

She continued: "I remember traveling to Corvallis to race... we heavyweight girls ate ice cream at the drive-in but the lightweights couldn’t since they had to weigh in, and I remember the drive home from Corvallis one year at night when it was my turn to drive... and I didn’t really drive much at all usually. I remember Nationals in 1973... first to Philadelphia where we got to go upstairs in the 747 airplane, and stayed at the Benjamin Franklin Motor Inn and rowed on the Schuykill River, and wandered around Philly and saw the Row Houses and Delis that were so different from Seattle.  We stayed after the regatta to sightsee in Washington DC, driving around in Randi Mattson’s red VW van during a huge rainstorm, and sleeping overnight in a National Park on the outskirts of DC."

In the fall of 2020, BJ Connolly - a rower now for decades - wrote a memory for the LWRC newsletter and shared it with us.  The corresponding photo is in that same timeframe (1973 vs 1975), and gives a visual representation of the days when Dick Erickson would take his team through the locks and out into Salmon Bay.  Here is what she wrote:

"Human-powered vessels typically don’t venture through the Ballard Locks. And Husky crews usually don’t head for open water of the saline variety either. But one day in the spring of 1975, two worlds converged.

But first, step back in time to 1972-73. It was my freshman year, and Washington won the NWRA National Championship on the Schuylkill River. With that accomplishment, we realized that the UW was beginning to embrace the ideologies of Title IX. We were in the thick of it, trying to work with the men’s team to continue to be recognized as a varsity sport despite the decades of male dominance and tradition that permeated the aura of Conibear. The saving grace for women’s crew? Head Coach Dick Erickson, who absolutely loved the idea of having women row for Washington! He wholeheartedly supported our efforts, providing launches for our coaches and designating one boat bay for us.

Dick’s encouragement gave senior rower Liz Senear and me the courage to ask him if we could convert one of the men’s pairs to a double. Liz had set her sights on making the U.S. National sculling team for the World Championships in 1975. With a double, we could train every day. The guys thought, “What?” But Dick supported us. And he loved being controversial, always keeping the men guessing. So, he found old sculling riggers at the Pocock workshop. Boom! We were in business!

One day, we learned the men (including my future husband, Mike) were going to row to Shilshole Bay via the Ballard Locks. We asked Dick if we could join the fun. Leading the way to keep some distance from the eights, we entered the locks. Imagine all those shells in such a tiny space! Oars overlapping. Anxious coxies avoiding the walls. Lockmasters barking orders while the water was slowly released to the west and we went down, down, down. Dick positioned our double in the middle of all the eights for protection. What a spectacle for the crowd! It was hysterical to hear some of the rowers perfectly imitate the Scottish accent of one of the lockmasters. Even Dick chuckled, totally enjoying the moment.

"At the outset, only limited funding was provided by the University," Kit said in a 1999 interview when she received the Nike Lifetime Achievement Award for Women in Sports. "We started with no scholarships, no lockers, part-time local coaches, no trainers, one set of uniforms, private cars or school buses for transportation... just the bare bones."  She added in 2007, "I do remember the beginnings, and they were tumultuous."

But through her commitment, by 1980 women's varsity sports were fully established on an equal footing at the UW. It was through her leadership that every facet of the rowing program at Washington met the same standards as the men, overseeing the steady growth of the sport and ultimately a run of National Championships that remains unprecedented today. "I am proud of the fact that I was able to persevere and survive under often difficult circumstances, including a sometimes hostile environment, and was instrumental in creating a viable program of intercollegiate athletics for women at Washington," she said in 1999.

With the re-emergence of varsity women's rowing in 1975, these three women helped define the future of the sport at Washington. Left to right: BJ Connelly (1975 co-captain), Kathy Bulger (1976, 1977 captain), and Linda Cox (1978 captain). In an article written for Sweep Magazine in 2017, they discussed the early days of women's rowing and what Washington Rowing has meant to them:

BJ Connolly

Captain in 1975, BJ began rowing when the sport was still an intramural sport for women at Washington, and they rowed out of the old Navy Hangar on the Montlake Cut.  “The old shellhouse was dark and cold but we did not care.  Competition was strictly local against crews like Greenlake and LWRC.  Who would have thought that by the end of my freshman year we would be winning the NWRA National Championship in the lightweight eight… to have been a part of those boats was an unbelievable experience.  Because of our success that year, our coaches (Paula Mitchell and Coleen Lynch) approached Kit Green and Joe Kearney (the UW athletic director) and asked to make us an official varsity sport.  They didn’t, but the next year (1972) we did row out of Conibear Shellhouse, which was a much better facility, but with it brought the challenge of being the first women’s team to share the shellhouse with the men.

By my senior year additional universities had also started their programs; UCLA, Cal, Oregon State; and we were all creating history for our schools: racing at the Western Sprints (prelude to the Pac 12 Championships), watching the National NWRA Championships grow and the best race of all: being the first Husky Women's Crew to compete in Opening Day.

Coming from a broken home, the girls were like my second family.  I did not see my father from the time I was 12 until my senior year at Washington. One afternoon at the shellhouse I was astounded to discover his name (Fred Mitchell ‘48) on the big W board, which caused me to contact him and share that I too, was now a Husky rower. Who would have thought? That connection changed our relationship. Whenever I see his Washington oar on my wall with its leather collar and brass fittings along with his photo as he sat in bow (his nickname was "The Rail" because he was 6'4 and thin).....you can see the total joy on his face. I like to think that was one of his happier times. 

Now being in my early 60's I am still rowing and have been for the past 28 years. I never dreamed back then, that this would become a lifetime sport.  Husky rowing taught me that life is all about connecting. People love to hear what rowing is all about and those that know the sport know that the tradition of excellence, giving of yourself 110% for a team effort and being able to handle the work load of training with studying are all challenges we overcome.   And after you graduate, because of that you can handle any experience with fortitude and grace. The skills you learn as a rower will serve you for years to come! “

Linda Cox Fornaciari

Captain in 1978, Linda is the only coxswain added to the Captain’s Wall in this group. “I like to say that my four years as a coxswain was where I learned how to tell taller people what to do, and haven’t stopped since.  But the truth is that Washington Rowing taught me the power of a group working together, and how each individual adds their particular strength to the whole to do what seems impossible. Quite frankly, once you have worked this hard and this many hours in the dark and rain, you have an innate confidence any place you go.

I became a corporate attorney and could always look anyone in the eye and think they never could have done the crazy early practices, the 100 sets of stadium stairs and work as hard as we did.  You simply cannot be intimidated and you know you can work harder than anyone else in whatever you do. In the late ’70’s there was active opposition to women rowing by the men’s team… except for the few who were our friends. Title Nine brought us more equal benefits, but as the first group of women inducted into the Varsity Boat Club, we faced hostility. The strong bonds we developed, knowing we could count on each person in our boat in a crunch, always pulled us through, in a race or any time we needed each other.  We laughed and cried and figured out how to deal with the stress of being moved in and out of boats, clashes among teammates, and losing weight - - lightweight crew and coxswains were always hungry!

Six of us have gotten together once or twice a year for the 40 years since graduation, and we love seeing other teammates at UW events.  My son and daughter tease me when I take pride in our Pac-8 Championships, given that it is the Pac-12 now.  But I know that the amazing women rowing today for the UW are forging this confidence and strong connection with their teammates now.  I hope they will treasure it and carry it with them forever. “ 

Kathy Bulger (Kate Camber)

Kate was elected captain in both 1976 and 1977 by her teammates, and for good reason:  she was a leader both on and off the water throughout her career at Washington.  “All of us loved rowing – to me it was the best part of my day… as a sport it is individual and it’s a team, I loved that part of it.  It was where I could challenge myself but also so enjoy being a good rower; but what kept us going was we were doing something together at a level very few athletes get to.  When you can rely on other people… and feel the swing together in the boat… those relationships stood above and beyond anything else in my life at the time.”

As captain in 1977, Kate was instrumental in bringing women into the Varsity Boat Club for the first time. “The men – most of them – did not like us being there.  It was hard,” she said.  In the spring of 1977 however, she prevailed in opening the VBC to women, and said at the time: “I am looking forward with a lot of hope” to being a VBC member.  Sixteen women were inducted into the VBC for the first time that year.

Training changed season to season, but in the first years she said, “We never rowed on the ergs.  In the fall we rowed in Old Nero and ran stairs, but I was one of the only rowers with previous experience (Kate rowed at Greenlake in high school under Kathy Whitman), so we did a lot of skill and drill because there were so many first-time rowers. In the spring we would race each other on the Evergreen Point floating bridge… we worked really hard.”

The highlight for Kate was not in the multiple NWRA Championships she won as a Husky, but the intrasquad racing on the Cut:  “We didn’t have a lot of ham’n’egger’s, but they were an opportunity to be strong individually and meet the challenge of a completely random line-up.   And my freshmen year…  I just rowed for the enjoyment.  It never occurred to me we would lose, and we didn’t.  I felt powerful and had a sense of myself, people believed in me and I believed in them and we never said anything about it.  There’s an ineffable quality about it.”

“I always remembered my rowing career as a really special time, it was my refuge, everything fell away, I didn’t have any problems.  You have to be in the moment every moment when you are rowing.  When I got into the rowing shell my life was perfect.  And I was aware of that.

It was so beautiful.  The sounds of the bubbles, on the cedar shells, Mt. Rainier, the sunrise over the Cascades – it was like music.  When you have the run, and the drip, drip, drip off the oars… it was almost perfection.”

We all learned about the ’36 crew from the start and I think just knowing the traditions and successes of UW rowing over the years makes all the difference. The women’s teams had had a few successes leading up to the ’81 championship, but not like the men. It was still too early to look to the women of the mid 70s - even though we knew Jan did well. Those stories were more about a few who were on the National Team or in the very successful lightweight boats. I guess I like to think that even though it wasn’t the Olympics against the Germans - that first open-weight National Championship boat is pretty special in the history of the women’s program at UW. I was just in the right place at the right time. So, maybe the young women now look at us and think the same thing I thought about the ’36 guys - 'wow, they’re old!'  But particularly for the young women, I think those of us from the late 70s and early 80s are a good reminder of how far the program has come... and also how far women’s athletics have come. Title IX wasn’t even a decade old when I started at UW in ’78; the fact that the current rowers see the alums regularly at events is just a far-reaching influence. And the fact that names are attached to scholarships, to shells, to rooms and such - they see what it takes to keep UW Rowing strong."

She also remembers her first win over Cal: "We had glorious weather on Opening Day of 1981 and it was back in the days when this meant the Cal Dual race (every other year). 1981 was the first season with the women for Bob and we’d surprised everyone at the Crew Classic with a win, and Opening Day was our chance to show that we weren’t a fluke... but we only had about 3 minutes to do it since we were still racing 1,000 meters rather than 1,500 or 2,000. That meant our halfway was at the opening of the Cut... and all I remember was the noise as we started to move on Cal. We could barely hear Lisa Horn (our coxswain) but we knew we were moving and by the time we hit the bridge we were ahead by a few seats. Once we crossed the finish line I could hardly hear OR see — everything was pounding, we were all gasping for air, but we’d won the Cal Dual for the first time. Every time we have a nice sunny day on Opening Day I think about that race as a junior and the confidence it gave us to go on to win the National Championship that year.

"The 1981 JV8 was special because a lot of us started out in the last boat," recalled Cindy (Spranger) McCormick. "We worked extremely hard with the help of our coach, John Squadroni.  Part of that work was bonding through laughter... I remember looking forward to practice because we had so much fun together, even though we were working our butts off. We did the work and made it into the JV boat and showed what we were made of... the National Championship was so satisfying because our boat was so strong, and we had worked so hard to get that win.

The results of the races were anti-climatic: both Soviet teams fully dominated their collegiate counterparts, both teams winning by open water. But the event was a game-changer for the Seattle rowing community and was a huge success in the thawing relationship between the two cold-war countries. "It is one of the greatest moments of my life", said Sarah Watson, 5-seat of the varsity and quoted in the Seattle Times that day. "I'll never forget it."

In the "Collegiate Rowing in America" featured article inside, five schools are represented: the UCSB women's team; Stanford's women's team; the Purdue men's club team; the Brown men's varsity team; and the Washington women. The Washington section, written by athletes Karen Boone and Julie Gardiner entitled "Commitment, Pride, Tradition", is a well-written contribution that expands on the effort ("no one is cut from the team; hard work and regular attendance are the only requirements") and expectations at Washington. "At Washington, we receive generous support from our athletic department, the community, and the Seattle media", the writers note.

And a snapshot into the rower's life in 1987: "At Washington, there is a certain level of excellence and dedication that is expected of all rowers, from the varsity eight through the novice class;  selections are based on the survival of the fittest.  Intrasquad competition begins with pair trials in the fall, a race against the clock over a 3,500 meter course that determines the boats that will compete in the autumn regattas.  The competition continues throughout the winter with erg tests, timed runs, weight-lifting contests, and "Ham and Eggers" (randomly drawn lineups that race 2,000 meters for the "prized" t-shirts)."

"Turn outs are held in the afternoons during fall and winter quarters and at 6:00 a.m. during the spring term. Bob often lightens up the mood at the half way point of particularly arduous practices by letting a rower tell a joke or making each boat perform a "boat trick".  Some of the more spectacular boat tricks are pushups on the gunwales or balancing the oar with one foot while standing up.  Bob is also a believer in alternative rowing workouts which may be anything from swim meets to snow soccer..."

The article finishes with the following passage that so well sums up the timeless values (hard work, team over self, camaraderie, row to win) of the program built over time:

"In writing about the Husky Team, it would be unfair to leave out the contributions made by the coaching staff, mainly Bob Ernst. Bob is the foundation of Washington Crew; he built it and maintains it. He is an innovator and a motivator who thrives on competition and winning and instills those traits in all of his teams. Bob is a master technician and is able to detect the most subtle flaws in someone's stroke. He assumes an uncompromising level of excellence and anything less 'just isn't good enough'."

1987 Women: “On a Mission” to the National Championship
Originally published in SWEEP Magazine, Spring 2005, Eric Cohen

The 1987 women's squad was coming off a rare and disappointing loss at the National Championships in 1986; Washington had swept the varsity event for five straight years – a streak that still stands as the longest in the history of women’s rowing.  Every program in the nation had been gunning for Washington for years, and when Wisconsin prevailed in the final that June day in 1986, the question on everyone’s mind was – “is the dynasty dead?” 

Not quite.  To say the team re-committed itself early that year is an understatement.  “We were on a mission,” said Kris Sanford, ’87 varsity stroke (and former women’s head rowing coach at Syracuse).  “The year before we were a very young team.  We had T-shirts that said ‘Remember We’re Young’.  Coach Ernst said he never wanted to see those again.” 

The ’87 varsity was tested in their first race at San Diego, but powered through the defending champion Badgers to win by a half-length, boosting team confidence.  Two weeks later, after sweeping the Redwood Shores event over Harvard and Princeton, the team was poised for greatness.  “We were so incredibly up for that race,” said Sanford, “it felt like the weight of the world was lifted off our shoulders.  That was a pivotal point in our season.” 

Meanwhile, not so subtly, the 2V8 was cruising.  By the middle of May, the crew had won every race entered by open water, and became Pac-10 champs by stroking to an eighteen-second victory over the closest competition.  “We did pretty well against the varsity in training, and felt we were talented”, said Stephanie Doyle, coxswain of the 2V.  “From the first day of October, everyone on the team knew we were not there to have fun: we were there to avenge.  The one goal we had together as a team was to be first across the line at Nationals.” 

On the last day of May, that goal would become reality.  The Varsity four began with a one-length victory over runner-up Princeton.  The 2V8 followed with a gut wrenching four-seat win over Yale.  “We were untested in the sprint,” said Doyle “and we ended up rowing neck and neck down the course.  I remember ending that race and feeling like I hadn’t taken a breath the whole way.” 

That left the Varsity.  In their heat the day before, they were forced to row through Harvard in the sprint, after being down by a length early.  In the final it was déjà vu, only this time both Yale and Harvard charged ahead.  But in the end, the fit and intensely determined Huskies powered through the east coast schools to win by a half-length. “I think that is what distinguished that team,” said Sanford.  “There was never any fear whether or not we could come back in a race.  We just knew we would.  They had that quality.” 

Bob Ernst, who coached the 1987 women’s team, reflected on that season.  “1987 was the perfect storm.  The team was committed to getting better.  Lake Natoma felt like our home course.  We had a lot of good athletes.  And they really wanted to win.” 

From the first day of October.

From Transition to Triumph – The Story of the ’88 Women
Originally published in SWEEP Magazine, Summer 2017, Eric Cohen

The alarm clock went off at 3:30 a.m. Eastern time (12:30 a.m. Seattle time).  Monday morning, June 6th, 1988.  Time to race for a National Championship.

For the women of Washington, it was just another adjustment. They had spent most of the year getting up in the dark and practicing at dawn, why not race in it?

The 87/88 season was a year of adjustment for Washington as Bob Ernst – the coach behind the historical run of women’s National Championships – would turn his focus to the men’s squad.  Jan Harville, the ‘80 and ’84 Olympian and women’s novice coach since 1981, was elevated into the women’s head coaching role.  “It’s not just a job, it’s a lifestyle” she said to the Seattle P-I in 1988, “It’s what I want to do.  I’m lucky”.

In her first year as head varsity coach, she joined a veteran team coming off of a historical National Championship sweep in 1987.  Stephanie Doyle was the senior varsity coxswain in 1988, and working under the new coach was an easy transition: “Once we all got over the shock of it“, said Doyle, “it united us even more because we had someone joining us who we knew.  We had pursued success together before.  Jan and I met every day, as we were all trying to preserve and protect the tradition and culture that was built into that program.”

“I knew Jan was a great coach and had the experience… I wasn’t worried at all,” said Trudy (Ockenden) Taylor, bow seat of the V8. “You knew where you stood.  There was no drama.”

Jan echoed that sentiment right back to the athletes. “I had coached the freshmen for seven years and felt like I was walking into a situation with great athletes,” she said.  “Bob (Ernst) was a great mentor and talked me through a number of challenges along the way.  We were all working within the system that he created.”

“There was pressure on everyone. They (the V8) were favored everywhere they went, so it was different from 1987.  They had a target on their back and they knew it, but the personality of this team was one of strength and confidence.  The experience and trust they had within that team helped them maintain their focus.”

The mid to late 80’s saw many of the east coast universities re-building their women’s programs.  Wisconsin, in 1986, had knocked Washington off of the top spot on the podium for the first time since 1981.  The team was forced to re-group, and the result was an expectation of performance that was visible each day. “When it is that clear, when it is something people share, everyone is on board…” said Doyle, “those women were not going to let one stroke go by that they did not pull their hardest and row their best.  It was a standard of excellence I had never seen before.”

The varsity eight would proceed through the spring season undefeated, but the competition was fierce.  At the Redwood Shores match-racing regatta in April, the team would face down Radcliffe (Harvard), Yale and Brown in three separate races, and in each case were tested the full 2k. Taylor remembered the trust and confidence she had in her team: “We were behind to Brown by a length at the 1500 meter mark. None of us cared where we were because we knew we would win.  My biggest take away from that year was the confidence our team had – we were so amped up in the last 500 we could beat anyone.”

By the time Nationals rolled around the team had perfected both their race strategy and their physical conditioning, and knew they were on the cusp of meeting the expectation they had set at the beginning of the year.  But the stormy weather at Hammond Lake, in the upper reaches of Pennsylvania, had a different agenda that June weekend.  On a windy Sunday, when the Varsity finals were set to go, there had been enough swampings and near sinkings in the earlier races that regatta officials cancelled the marquee V8 event.  It was agreed that the race would be postponed to Monday, but due to flight schedules and concerns for more bad weather it was going to need to be early.  And early it was.

“We got up at 3:30 a.m.  It was dark when we were stretching,” said Taylor. “and it was dark when we went to  launch.”  Doyle remembers the same, but with a twist:  “It was very peaceful.  Contemplative and serene.  And then suddenly Radcliffe showed up and started blaring music from their van.  I just remember thinking ‘Bring it on.’”

Bring it on is what Washington delivered. Out of the blocks in a flash, the Huskies held the lead through the first 1500. “We were in Jane’s Friendship (the 1984 US Olympic Empacher named for the late Jane McDougal ‘82 and donated by longtime UW Rowing Steward Hunter Simpson). We were ahead and I remember feeling in control, and in the last 500 we poured it on.  Yaz was in that race…  I remember her voice so distinctly,” said Taylor.

Yaz remembers that day too. As the senior coxswain for the Wisconsin Varsity 8, she was at the starting line that morning as well.   “We knew Washington was the team to beat,” she said.  “They were big, fit, and looked confident.”  Even so, as the only team to beat Washington at the National Championships since 1981, Wisconsin figured they had a shot. “We held with them through the first 1500 meters… but coming into the last 500 the UW just started walking.  Nothing appeared to distract them.  As a coach now I can tell you that team was a product of high performance coaching. They had been trained all season for that moment and nothing was going to stop them.”

“We finished and there were no fans,” Doyle said. “No one was there.  Our parents had all left on Sunday. We got off the water and hugged each other.  Jan had a smile from ear to ear.”

“I give full credit to that crew,“ said Harville. “It felt like racing in the middle of the night. It was pitch dark when we got to the course… it was not right.  But you train for the unexpected… to be ready for anything.  And we got it.  And they just went out there and took care of business in the biggest race of the year. We won the team championship that year as well, so all around it was an exceptional group of women.”

Thirty years later those same women still highly value their experience at Washington. “It was one of the most profound experiences of my life,” says Taylor.  “I had never been on a team before that was that dependent on your teammates.  I learned so much about discipline, dedication and hard work.”

For Doyle, when asked what Washington Rowing has meant to her, she said, “Excellence, and what it means to truly want it.  I continue to attempt to live by that idea on a daily basis.  It instilled that as part of my being to this day.”

Jan accomplished a number of first's while at Washington:  she was the first Women's US National Team member to come out of the UW program (while it was still a club sport) and a two-time Olympian; the first female head rowing coach at Washington (1987); the first coach to win an NCAA championship at Washington (all sports) and the first female rowing coach (nationally) to win a Team National Championship (1997) and the first to win a Women's major Henley event (2000).  She left the UW with 3 Team NCAA titles, 11 National Championship crews and 41 Conference champions.

"I've been fortunate to be associated with rowing at the University of Washington," said Harville. "We celebrated the centennial of rowing at Washington this year (2003) and I really appreciate the tradition and history of the program. Coaches at Washington feel that we're kind of caretakers for the program for a period of time. That's a lot of responsibility."

Angie Mentink, UW All-America softball player in 1994, FSN sportscaster and master of ceremonies for the event said, "I don't have any stories of sleeping on floors or anything like that. Because of them, I don't," she said. "We were stinking spoiled, so I have no stories like that at all."  Mary Schutten, one of the event organizers and a tennis player at the UW in the mid-70's added, "I want to honor and understand the history. We stand on all those women's shoulders and it wasn't easy. These were my athletic emancipators. At the very least, they deserve this night and our thanks."

In July of 2007, Bob Ernst stepped down as the Washington men's head coach, only to step up to once again lead the Varsity Women's program at Washington, a position he held from 1980 through 1987. He replaced long-time women's coach Eleanor McElvaine, a committed athlete and coach at Washington for over twenty years.  In her coaching career, Eleanor's teams won multiple conference and national championships as assistant to Jan Harville, before moving into the head coaching role in 2003.

A Washington Hall of Fame member, Eleanor was a mainstay in the six-seat of the varsity eight from '83-'85, winning three straight National Championships. "I have the utmost respect for Eleanor, who has put an indelible stamp on the Husky program both as a student-athlete and coach" said Athletic Director Todd Turner.

With this change, Ernst became the first D1 rowing coach in history to move from the men (1974-1980) to women (1980-1987) to men (1987-2007) and back to women (2007-2015), coaching multiple National Championship teams along the way, including NC sweeps with the women (1987) and the men (1997), and an Olympic Championship in 1984 with the USA Women's 8+.

Bob Ernst:  "The kids rose to the occasion - every single player did her best.  Everybody had a great weekend...everybody - everybody - on this team rose up to their potential this weekend...these kids just deserve a mountain of credit."  audio-video\ernstncaa6-1-08.mp3

Ashley Jones, Senior Captain: "Washington Rowing is like nothing I have ever experienced before... I wouldn't give up any of it for anything and I feel very honored to be a part of such an amazing tradition..."  audio-video\ajncaa6-1-08.mp3

Isabelle Woodward, Sophomore V8 coxswain: "Yea, Well, being part of this team, we don't quit.  None of our boats quit.  You saw all of us walk back today. That is what Husky Rowing is about. We never quit, we never give up..."  audio-video\isabellencaa6-1-08.mp3

Charlene Franklin, Senior 2 Seat of the V4+:  "We really were focused on relaxing and racing our own race.  When we got passed by Virginia around the 1000 we didn't let it get to us, we knew we would get it back, and we had an awesome sprint..."  audio-video\charlenencaa6-1-08.mp3

"Waikato University, led by world champion Zoe Stevenson in stroke, made the early running along the east bank in the women’s race, as Washington remained close, with Melbourne dropping back. Washington’s attack forced Waikato to veer into the current as the teams moved to the west bank, where the Americans clipped a tree along the riverbank to drop back by two lengths.

When the action returned to the eastern side of the river, the Washington crew attacked again, gaining the overlap to force Waikato back into the current in the middle of the river. It proved the pivotal move as the Americans pushed on over the final 200m to claim an historic victory.

“It was perfect execution out there today,” says Auckland’s Kirstyn Goodger, who rows for Washington. “The river was pretty challenging but I thought our coxswain handled it beautifully. The river was going a bit faster and we hit a couple of trees we hadn’t hit before so that was fun. Everything we planned we executed.”

Their long-time coach Bob Ernst heaped praise on their coxswain Marlow Mizer. “Most of our races are in swimming pools 1.25 miles long and everybody goes in a straight line. Our coxswain is very young but was a ski racer and so she understands the lines and she was perfect navigating on this river and in the currents today.”

The race culminated a week-long activity including indoor rowing, schools visits, corporate, university and schools eights rowing on the Waikato River."

The 2V8 would make the podium with a bronze as well, the V8 unable to make the Grand but overall the team would finish 5th. "I'm really proud of the team as a whole," said Coach Bullis. "It sounds cliché, but top to bottom, the 6V in our boathouse puts pressure on our 5V, to the 5V winning our home races. The 4V and the 3V winning the Pac-12 Championship for the third year in a row. The 2V having an amazing race and the 1V finishing with the best race of the year. That is all you can ask for. I am really proud of them."

A National Champion at Wisconsin in 1986 (the team that broke the Washington NC streak at five in a row in the 80's), a mainstay in the USA eight from 1989-1996, a two-time Olympian ('92, '96), three-time World's silver and a World Champion in 1995, Yaz would bring extensive competitive experience, a commitment to hard work, and a coaching style emphasizing team over self and an appreciation for the uniqueness of the sport at Washington. "We have year-round water, a boathouse on campus, training table meals for all the UW student-athletes right here in our boathouse — plus academic resources, training, strength and conditioning, sports medicine, all within a 2-minute walk," she said. "It’s a dream job to coach at a university and in a community that celebrates and supports rowing at such incredible levels."

That fall a young team would meet her at the boathouse for the first time, Farooq noting, "They told me they weren’t afraid to work hard and do what I asked them to do. And they desperately wanted to win. They were hungry."

The 2018 NCAA's were marked by typical Florida spring weather, a storm forecast for Sunday pushing the semis and finals onto Saturday and adding a major challenge to every team there.  Washington faced an improving Cal V8 - these two exceptional teams somehow landing in the same semi together - Cal nosing out the Huskies in the morning and setting the stage for another UW/Cal burner for the final. Then as the weather deteriorated, the officials moved the V8 to the first final of the afternoon, Cal prevailing but only after an all-out effort once again by the Huskies.

The Quad was knocked out on Friday against a combined Australia/Scotland team, while both the double and the eight advanced through to Saturday's semis (the eight defeating a USA Training Center Crew, the win seen in this photo). Both Husky squads faced international level teams on Saturday: the double against a U-23 composite, and the eight against the senior British National Team.  Both UW crews made heroic efforts but fell short, the double outmatched but holding strong throughout, and the eight leading through Fawley, but not able to hold it against the experienced British. In the Stonor Final on Sunday, Husky Anna Thornton did pick up a Henley gold medal racing with her British U-23 doubles partner.

Second: The V8 race.  An all-timer, Stanford, Cal and Washington locked together down the full 2k, all three trading leads, Cal edging it over Stanford in the sprint, the UW in 3rd by tenths of a second and all finishing within a second of each other.  But that third place dug a major hole for the team in the team points hunt: only a sweep of the remaining races would put Washington over the top.

"The hardest thing about that was that it was a great race, but third place gets you a lot fewer points," said Coach Farooq. "So to have the 2V and the four then deliver such strong performances, all I kept thinking was 'the strength of the pack is the dog and the strength of the dog is the pack' over and over."

As the 3V lined up in the slashing rain and headwind in the last race of the day, the team was behind by half a point:

"When it came down to the 3V, I was just excited," she concluded. "I felt so great about what I knew they could do. They just crushed it. I'm so proud of the team, top to bottom, for every performance. Every performance took guts and heart, and it was out there. The depth of this team is its strength and that's what we saw today." Thank you Jeff Bechthold at GoHuskies

"We were not an undefeated eight coming into the regatta and we were not an undefeated eight in this regatta," said team captain Marlee Blue. "We got third at the Pac-12's and we lost in our heat to Texas, and through all of that, we never lost faith in each other and the process. It was always just about building to this today." UW Rowing photo; Thank you Jeff Bechthold at GoHuskies