Regatta
Advice for Parents
Before the Regatta
- Make sure that you volunteer
to help
- ALWAYS check www.loyolaacademycrew.com
and www.regattacentral.com before you leave.
Suggested Items
to Bring to a Regatta
- Lots of spirit and enthusiasm!!
The Loyola Academy Crew program has been around since 1985. We have a wonderful
successful history. We have a lot to be proud of and the crew members throughout
the years have worked very hard to achieve and maintain this history
- Clothing….The
races start early and the mornings can be damp and cold. Layer your clothes.
It could end up being a beautiful sunny and hot day or it could rain. Wear
shoes that can handle the rain/mud. Bring hats for sun and/or warmth. Wear
LARA apparel, if possible, to show your school spirit and to help identify
you to other LARA parents
- Map site and directions.
Race schedule printed from Regatta Central
- Charged cell phone
- Folding canvas chairs
- Still and video camera
- Binoculars, it is a
very long course and you want to see how the kids are doing!
- Umbrella(s). Plastic
tarps to put on the ground if it is wet. Plastic bags for chair and camera
equipment.
- Blanket(s), an old towel
- Cards, books, newspapers,
needlepoint etc. during down time between races
- Sunscreen lotion
- Sun glasses
- Lip balm
- Water
- Money. The main thing
to buy is the regatta t-shirts. Other clothing items like sweatshirts and
crew jewelry also may be sold. Food is sometimes available for purchase.
- FYI: The restroom accommodations
are usually port-o-potties
At the Regatta
- Be sure to allow plenty
of time to get to the site. Often there is a great distance between the parking
lot and the viewing area
- The Food Chair and helpers
are the first at the tent site. They make sure the crew members have food
and beverages when they get to the site
- When you arrive, you
will see that the event area is divided into three sections: boat staging
area, team tent section, and headquarter/food section. Look for your crew
member at/near the maroon and gold LA tent
- The boat section is
off limits to parents. The coaches are working with crew members before and
after the races and they need the crew’s total attention
- Regattas can be all
day events starting early morning and ending around dinner
- The Novice races are
usually the first events of the day. Therefore, the Novices, the coxswains
and the first of the Varsity rowers go out to the race site first
- Parents set up their
chairs in front of our two tents. When we have a boat in a race, we walk down
to waters’ edge and watch the race
- The Novice uniforms
are easy to spot on the racecourse. They are a maroon T-shirt with a big gold
strip across them on an angle
- The Varsity uniforms
are not as easy to spot in the distance. Therefore, it is the oars that help
you spot your boat. The Loyola oars are maroon with one chevron of gold. Several
other Jesuit schools row as well so the maroon and gold uniform you see out
on the water might not be our team. Look for the oars!!!
- There is a lot of down
time while the races are action-packed exciting minutes. At times we have
boats in consecutive heats and other times there is nothing to do but wait
and help out
- An Award Ceremony may
be held at the end of the races. 1st, 2nd and 3rd place medals are handed
out on a platform. Great photo opportunities
- At the end of the regatta
all pitch in to take down the tent and load up the food trailer
- The crew members dismantle
and load up the boats.
Day after the Regatta
- The day after the race
the entire team meets back at the boathouse to unload the boat trailer. The
coaches will inform the crew when they need to be back at the boathouse.