Issue date: 4/22/09 Section: Sports

The men's rowing team practicies fanatically, dedicating 20 hours a week to the sport and typically starting practice during the wee hours of the early morning. The team considers it a test of its abilities. [Click to enlarge]

Getting up at 6 a.m. everyday to workout might seem a little crazy, but the men's rowing team at Sacramento State see it as an opportunity to test themselves.

"You get to find out what you're worth every morning," said Jonathan Stoumen, senior economics major. "It's a gratifying feeling to wake up that early and kick your ass." Stoumen serves as captain of the team.

The team's work ethic is just as challenging, if not more so, than the actual rowing competitions the team excels at. "There's very few, if any, sports that have more practice-to-race time ratio," Stoumen said.

While athletes must practice routinely, the members of the rowing team take it to extreme limits. Practicing for more than 20 hours a week is common.

Playing football, basketball, being a swimmer and racing motorcycles pales in comparison for Stoumen. "It's very, very strenuous practice, by far the hardest sport I've ever done," Stoumen said.

Not being a mainstream sport, the team is made up of athletes who often find the sport by chance and enjoy a new challenge. "I just happened to be in a class where another rower was," said Michael Brandt, fifth year international relations and Spanish major. "He actively recruited me to come out and try the sport and that's how I became involved in rowing."

Before college, Brandt's athletic career involved cross-country and tennis. "When I came to Sac State I knew I wouldn't be competitive enough to play those sports," Brandt said.

Stoumen got his taste of rowing before coming to Sac State and decided to keep it going. "I transferred from Sonoma State and I started rowing there pretty much by accident," Stoumen said.

Rowing is a sport that relies on every single member to be at his very best. No player can bail out another's fatigue.

"Nothing that one individual person can do will directly affect the boat in a way that a star player on a team might," Brandt said. "The better we work together, the more effective we'll be in racing."

While it is hard enough to manage practice, class and work into a schedule, the team also has to deal with raising funds. The NCAA considers rowing a sport for women but not for men, so the club has to raise money like other rec sports clubs.

"I mean, one of our boats brand new is about $36,000 and that's hard to come up with on your own," Stoumen said.

If men's rowing ever became a NCAA sport, it could add another winning piece to an athletics program that is trying to increase the prestige of Sac State. "I believe that our rowing team, if properly funded, could easily be one of the best in the nation," Brandt said. Serving as club president, Brandt also has to oversee the team finances.

Brandt would like to see the team compete in NCAA events against UC Berkeley, Yale and Harvard. "I don't see why we wouldn't be able to do that," Brandt said.

Both Stoumen and Brandt have considered coaching rowing for their careers but admit it would be difficult. Stoumen realizes there just isn't enough money to be made in a career as a rowing coach.

Brandt has his focus on getting his two degrees. "Right now I'm concentrated on graduating," Brandt said. "You have to be so dedicated to the sport in order to be competitive."

When they're not rowing, the team can often be found together on and off campus. "I kind of like to describe the rowing team as a fraternity," Brandt said. "Only we're a lot more fit."

Members of the team help each other out with classes and push each other during workouts. As captain, Stoumen leads the team with the way he carries himself. "Just set a example for the team and try to keep morale up when it's down," Stoumen said.

Even after graduation the team still keeps in contact to have a sense of belonging. "We have a very strong alumni program and it's very much like a fraternity-like atmosphere," Brandt said.

The hard work has paid off as the team is doing well with multiple championship events starting in May.

"We've done really well this year, we're the fastest team that Sac State's had in probably the last nine years," Stoumen said. "I think we're in the top six or seven in the nation right now in our division."

Three of the four championships the rowing team could compete in are being held at Lake Natoma. The Conference Championships start on May 2. The Pacific Coast Rowing Championships will be held on May 16.

Finishing the year's competition on Lake Natoma is the Pacific-10 Championships on May 17. If Sac State advances to the National Championships they will travel to Oak Ridge, Tenn., to compete on May 23.


Mitchell Wilson can be reached at mwilson@statehornet.com

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