Following a second straight W Cup title, expectations are high for the No. 5 Wisconsin men's rowing team Saturday at the 32nd Annual Midwest Rowing Championships on Lake Wingra, here in Madison. Even Head Coach Chris Clark has trouble containing his enthusiasm for the biggest race of the year up to this point.
\I was watching our team row in that race against the University of Washington that we had on Saturday ... it's like the first time that I saw my wife, I had that look like 'wow, am I seeing what I think I'm seeing,' and I had that exact same look on my face, like I can't believe this,"" Clark said Monday. ""That was my reaction; I was very surprised, and it was also gratifying. You always have high expectations very secretly, and only seldom do they come true, and in this case they did.""
Not that Clark underestimates his team of rowers, but his crew unfamiliar and inexperienced in high-pressured situations. After winning the W Cup last year on Lake Mendota, the Badgers were expected to return the title to the host Huskies last week in Seattle. But in a season of overachieving, the Badgers bounced back after a slow start, winning by almost a boat length and retaining the trophy. Heading into Saturday's race, this team once again has the chance to surprise.
In last year's Midwest Rowing Championships, Wisconsin's varsity eight and varsity four both rewrote the record books, with the eight breaking Wisconsin's 1996 record and the four setting a new course record, untouched since 1986.
The importance of Saturday's race is almost rivaled by the tradition ingrained in the Midwest Rowing Championships. Started in 1973, it is one of the longest and biggest running regattas in the nation. Add that to the fact that this is the second and final home race of the year for the Badgers, and these races may make or break the season. Clark feels this team is still hungry for more, even with recent success.
""Sometimes not having a high opinion of how good you are, but happy for the opportunity makes you a better team,"" Clark said. ""I think that our top guys are that way, and I asked a couple of them right after that race, 'do you really feel that you're legit, and that you're varsity oarsmen now?' They looked at me and said, 'No, I still feel like I'm four or five J.V.' That's not a bad thing because they feel like they have something to prove the whole time.""
Universities from across the nation will represented on Saturday by over 165 boats. Racing begins at 6:30 a.m. with the first heat of the mens novice four and continues all day, ending with the finals of the men's eight.
