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The Gay + Lesbian Rowing Federation has formed a promotional and marketing partnership with the Aviron Club Lyon-Caluire, the club behind the 2015 naked rowing calendar, Les Dieux de l'Aviron (The Gods of Rowing). The partnership supports the efforts of GLRF to further the acceptance and inclusion of gay and lesbian rowers, coxies, coaches, and race officials within the broader rowing community.
GLRF serves as the exclusive marketing partner for the calendar in North America. The calendar was on display at the GLRF booth for two of the largest fall head races in North America, the Head of the Schuylkill and the Head of the Hooch, and is available online at http://shop.glrf.info
GLRF hopes its sales efforts in North America will develop a greater awareness for the impressive calendar which features several elite rowers who have competed and won gold and silver at the French National Rowing Championships. Proceeds of the sales help to raise funds for the Aviron Club Lyon-Caluire as well as the Gay + Lesbian Rowing Federation.
In turn, the Aviron Club Lyon-Caluire has pledged their support for the Gay + Lesbian Rowing Federation by affixing the GLRF logo directly on the calendar, along with highlighting the three main goals of the organization:
Provides a worldwide online community to connect gay and lesbian rowers, coxies, coaches, and race and regatta officials
Seeks to achieve the open acceptance [beyond tolerance] of gay and lesbian rowers in the broader rowing community
Promotes rowing in the global lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender population.
On the Dieux de l'Aviron website, they have stated their support for GLRF:
GLRF is literally on the front lines striving for acceptance and inclusion of gay and lesbian rowers at all levels of the sport within the broader rowing community. GLRF hosts vendor booths at the largest straight rowing regattas in North America, creating a visible presence to the chief influencers within the rowing community: parents, coaches, teammates, and race officials.
In 2014, GLRF hosted 8 booths at some of the largest rowing regattas, including the San Diego Crew Classic, the Western Intercollegiate Rowing Association Championships, the Southwest Junior Rowing Championships, the American Collegiate Rowing Association Championships, the USRowing Junior National Championships, the Head of the Charles Regatta, the Head of the Schuylkill Regatta, and the Head of the Hooch Regatta.
The 2015 Eurogames, an event compromising culture, politics, and sport, will feature rowing in their 25-sport programme. The event takes place between 05 - 09 August, with rowing practice to take place on Thursday, 06 August, and the competition to be held on Friday and Saturday, 07 - 08 August. The regatta will be hosted by the Stockholms & Svealands Roddistikt, in partnership with the 2015 Eurogames organizing commitee, at Magelungen Lake. The regatta will consist of a 1,000 m. sprint race format. Regatta registration will be handled with the general Eurogames registration.
After reviewing the 2015 Eurogames Rowing web page, the Gay + Lesbian Rowing Federation contacted the Eurogames sports director to ask for some clarification and additional features. What follows is a report of the correspondence, some of which has yet to be posted on the web page.
The cost to register has two tiers:
For members of the European Gay and Lesbian Sports Federation (EGLSF), the regular registration cost is 65 Euros through 31 December 2014. Starting on 01 January 2015, the late registration cost rises to 85 Euros and closes on 31 May 2015.
For non-members, the regular registration cost is 90 Euros through 31 December 2014. Starting on 01 January 2015, the late registration cost rises to 110 Euros, and closes on 31 May 2015.
For all rowers, the registration cost offers an unlimited number of entries in the regatta. The regatta committee will do its best to develop a draw that will allow every rower the opportunity to compete in multiple events but it cannot guarantee that some entries may not conflict.
The minimum number of participants to host the regatta is approximately 70 participants. The 2015 Eurogames organizing committee is hoping to reach 150 participants.
There will be four boat categories and three divisions:
single (1X) - male and female
double (2X) - male, female, and mixed
quad (4X) - male, female, and mixed
straight four (4-) - male, female, and mixed
Following the success at the 2013 Antwerp Outgames, female rowers will be permitted to race in a male event, up to one less than the entire boat's complement, or in other words, at least one male has to be part of the crew.
Entries will be accepted in ten-year age categories:
18 - 29 years old
30 - 39 years old
40 - 49 years old
50 - 59 years old
60 - 69 years old
70 + years old
if there are too few entries in an age division, the entries will be combined with another age category to save time.
The regatta will offer a lightweight division:
For males, under 72.5 kg
For females, under 59 kg
The regatta will consist of heats, semi-finals, and repechages on Friday, 07 August, and finals will be held on Saturday, 08 August. All events with 6 or fewer entries will be direct to final. Events with more than 6 entries will involve heats on Friday. Events with more than 12 entries will involve semi-finals on Friday.
Review the publish rowing programme: EG2015_rowingprogramme.pdf
Boat rental fees are 25 Euros per seat per event, inclusive. That means that if you qualify for the semi-finals and the finals, you don't have in essence, rerent the boat. This policy now mirrors the policy used at FISA World Masters.
The practice day is included in the rowig registration fee but there may be an additional boat rental fee for the practice.
The GLRF Team has added a discussion forum for the regatta. Find it here.
[update on 25 Jan 2015 - rental fee changed; rowing programme added; race dates updated; regatta registration updated.]
[update on 22 Mar 2015 - rental fee revised again; women in men's races rule added]
It was a role reversal for the GLRF booth at the 2014 Head of the Hooch in Chattanooga. The weekend before in Philadelphia, it was sunny and mild. Shift forward one weekend, and it was overcast, windy, and very very very cold. Climate change? Maybe Hollywood having flexing its media muscle by preparing to debut season 10 of It's Always Sunny in Philadelphia? Who knows.
One of the many welcome attractions at the Head of the Hooch is sun and lots of skin. The GLRF camera managed to capture one brave Abercrombie rower on Friday, stylin' his own version of a Southern Comfort look. But by the end of the day, the mild Friday weather turned cold and rainy. On Saturday, it was wind that proved to be the biggest challenge. Because of conditions on the Tennessee River, all events had to be cancelled for the day without any hope of rescheduling. On Sunday, the beautiful sunshine returned but the cold remained with an early morning low of -1 celsius (30 fahrenheit), and reaching a high of maybe 11 celsius (52 fahrenheit).
As much as the bad weather put a huge dent on the weekend, the enthusiastic rowers from the South, and in particular, Florida, mobbed the GLRF booth, snapping up t-shirts, crazy spandex, and the 2015 Naked Rowing Calendars. Likewise, the Head of the Hooch regatta organizers were gracious, and genuinely happy to have us back. Several stopped by to visit and catch up. Even the county mayor waved and said he was glad we were there. Thanks to all of the booth visitors. Your smiles kept the GLRF Team warm!
Finally, to the group of rowers from the St. Louis Rowing Club who stopped in at the GLRF booth to gossip amongst themselves, thanks for coming by and we hope all of you will join GLRF!
For the second year running, GLRF hosted a booth at the Head of the Schuylkill Regatta. This marked the third time GLRF has hosted a booth in Philadelphia, and the first time the weather was actually nice. Both Saturday and Sunday featured clear skies and sunshine, and relatively mild temperatures.
The Head of the Schuylkill has a large number of competitors, 5,000+, but many are spread out, either by day of competition or by location. As a result, the vendor area is not as big a focal point as the Head of the Charles. For the GLRF booth, it provided the perfect opportunity for visibility as all the vendors are located in one large, big top tent. Juniors, University, and Elite rowers all walked past the booth, as did the 'celebs' of the Gold Cup, including Sir Steve Redgrave, Mahe Drysdahle, Ondrej Synck, Kjetil Borch, Yohann Rigogne, Kim Crow, Mirka Knapková, Gevvie Stone, and Chantal Achterberg.
The return of the Gold Cup at the Head of the Schuylkill marks a return to prize winning rowing. The winners of the 750m. race vie for cash prizes of $10,000 for first, $5,000 for second, $2,500 for third, and $1,000 for fourth. The race is intended to draw the top talent in single scull racing from around the world.
Not to be missed at the GLRF booth was the official unveiling of the 2015 Naked Rowing Calendars. GLRF is featuring the Dieux de l'Aviron (Gods of Rowing) from France for the mens calendar, and the University of Warwick Women for the womens calendar.
After a busy three days, the GLRF booth was packed and shipped for Chattanooga and the Head of the Hooch.
While the Head of the Charles celebrated its 50th anniversary, the Gay + Lesbian Rowing Federation proudly hosted our tenth year-in-a row vendor booth at the regatta from Friday, 17 October - Sunday, 19 October 2014. The significance of a ten-year running vendor booth was more than just a presence. It implied an acceptance within the broader rowing community. Many of the vendors stopped by to chat and catch up, ask how we are doing. Companies like JL Racing, Sew Sporty, Calm Waters Rowing, Patagonia. Regatta Sport, Sykes Racing, Hudson Boat Works, Wintech Racing,
The primary goal of the booth is visibility among the various parts of the rowing community. With a location just downstream (100 yards) from the finish line, thousands of people walked past the booth. For some, it was a new and happy discovery. Excited remarks like "I never knew this existed" are not uncommon. For others, it can be a double take and for wont of a better description, a revelation. Yes, the GLRF booth got that reaction from the Dutch National Team.
But after ten years, many rowers have come to know GLRF. As the USRowing Women's Great Eight patiently waited for a long line of boats to move along, we chatted with several of the rowers as they stood in front of the GLRF booth. Likewise, the USRowing Mens National Team members stopped by the GLRF booth to get some wild spandex tights for an upcoming party. They seemed as much at ease as when they waited for the start of their race at the World Championships in Amsterdam in August.
The 2014 GLRF booth served as the launch for the new GLRF Brew Pride Neon tank tops. We named them Brew Pride after finding an urban slang dictionary listing for the word 'Brew.' As much as we wanted to raise our hands in defiant protest of definition four, we liked definition five better. Based on the sales for the weekend, we seem to have a real winner with the design and neon colors.
Many GLRF members stopped by or waived to say hello, including @dsm1412, @omac, @gina_sage, @ebb11, @philly_cox, @vpereziii, @rowrgrl, @chrislovedc, @neochen, @suedisney, @wmoudry, @arower, @pauloevanston, and the DC stud, @arabus.
As usual, the hosting of the booth could not have succeeded without the dedicated support from GLRF members @Howie55 and @seagull, who are amazing and wonderful. On Sunday, @Bob715 joined us for most of the day, encouraging men and women to take advantage of the GLRF clothing optional booth policy. Quite a few shoppers were delighted with the results!!!
But enough of the Charles. Now it's time to get ready for the 2014 Head of the Schuykill!
At first, it was civil war. Then a tentative diplomatic cease fire was reached, although skirmishes have continued outside the official channels among more radical elements of each organization's members. Finally, an athlete spring uprising, if you will, has begun to emerge, calling for a One World Event.
What are we talking about? The Gay Games and the World Outgames, two international multisport events that take place every four years, at intervals that border by one year the other event. So, the 2013 World Outgames took place in Antwerp and the 2014 Gay Games took place in Cleveland. In 2017, the World Outgames will be held in Miami, and in 2018, the Gay Games will take place in Paris.
GLRF supports the athlete uprising.
Take the survey.
If you're new to this saga, you're probably doing a huh, an eye-rolling whatever, or a total face twisting whattttt? It can all be traced to money. These events are expensive to host and their success depends on sponsorship, athlete attendance, and often times, support from the regional or local municipality. The Gay Games began in 1982. The first sign of money problems arose when a Winter Gay Games was attempted in 1986 but was canceled due to a lack of sufficient funding and logistical problems. In 1998, in Amsterdam, the event almost got canceled at the last minute (we are talking athletes arriving at the airport close ...) due to a funding shortfall . A similar problem arose in 2002 when the organizers of the Sydney Gay Games declared bankruptcy before the start of the event. In 2006, the licensee of the Gay Games, known as the Federation of Gay Games, could not reach an agreement with the then hosting organizing host, Montreal, because of disagreements on the size, scope, and budget for the event. Negotiations failed and the license was revoked and awarded to Chicago. Montreal responded by creating an independent event called the Outgames. To be fair, the Outgames have also encountered similar funding issues. The 2006 World Outgames filed for bankruptcy several months after the event, and the 2013 World Outgames had to be repeatedly downsized in scope due to costs.
Why is this drama showing up within the Gay + Lesbian Rowing Federation blog? Rowing is a sport that has been a part of all of the World Outgames and a part of some of the Gay Games As an organizational member of the Federation of Gay Games from 2002 - 2006, GLRF was one of only two organizations that voted against the withdrawal of the license agreement with Montreal. GLRF members can read the recap of that pivotal meeting here. Our concern has been for the rowers and the athletes. With the costs to attend the event continuing to escalate, rowers cannot afford to fly hither and thither, two years in a row. The result are regattas that are not well subscribed and a waste of volunteer and race officials time, and a regatta that is less than competitive.
After several failed attempts over the last three years to bring the two licensees of these two events together and create a One World Event, a new survey has been created to gauge the opinion of the most important players involved, the participants.
GLRF supports the athlete uprising.
Take the survey.
If you are keen to read the latest diplomatic treatise that both organizations have carefully worded to meet each organization's need to keep the high ground, here it is:
OneWE-Status-Report-05AUG14v4.pdf
It was a rather mild day for rowing on Sunday 10 August 2014 in Cleveland for the 2014 Gay Games Rowing Regatta. With partly cloudy skies, a slight breeze out of the southeast, and temperatures only peaking near 80 degrees Fahrenheit ( 27 Celsius) and the humidity at a relative low of 58%, rowers could focus on their races instead of heat exhaustion.
The 2014 Gay Games rowing event, originally planned as a 3200m. head race, was shortened to a side-by-side (Henley style) 1272m. sprint river race. The race start was up river and headed down river, through two major turns to finish in front of the Cleveland Rowing Foundation boathouse. Sixteen clubs or squads submitted 68 entries for 16 planned events. Two events did not have entries so the net events were narrowed to 14. For the results, click here.
Although there were 172 participants, the low number of entries created an event schedule that was slated to run from 08:20h - 12:20h, including three, 30 minute breaks. Unfortunately, the hosts of the regatta, the Cleveland Rowing Foundation, were unable to secure a full river closure (they get that right once a year for the Head of Cuyahoga in September). So the race schedule was suspended twice as commercial barge traffic motored through the course.
The regatta's first event was a Board race, with two eights representing the boards of the two organizations that supported the organization and execution of the regatta, the Western Reserve Rowing Association and the Cleveland Rowing Foundation. As Kirk Lange, head coach of WRRA and the executive director of the Cleveland Rowing Foundation explained, "the boards wanted to demonstrate their support for the regatta and did so in a manner truly befitting the rowing community." Western Reserve won the race in a time of 4:50.5
The local commitment to the regatta was evident from the number of local entries (over half of the event):
Western Reserve Rowing Association (25 entries)
Greater Columbus Rowing Association (11 entries)
Since the race was not sanctioned by USRowing, the entire event was run by 100 volunteers, including officiating. The City of Cleveland's focus on the safety of the participants was phenomenal. Unbeknownst to rowers, police on horseback patrolled the entire length of the race course.
It was medals galore for participants as some races were sorted into two sections, handicapped by age and time, and both sections receiving medals for first, second, and third place. Even events with only one entry raced and medaled (the Gay Games guidance to the regatta committee was very clear: "if they enter, they race and they medal.").
The ten most popular events were:
men's open 1x (10 entries)
women's 4+ (9 entries)
mixed 8+ (9 entries)
men's 4+ (7 entries)
men's 2x (5 entries)
mixed 2x (5 entries)
mixed 4+ (5 entries)
women's open 1x (4 entries)
women's 8+ (4 entries)
men's 8+ (4 entries)
Although gay and lesbian rowers were definitely in the minority for the event, there were family members in many of the races, and of course, there was no doubt about the entries for the San Francisco Bay Blades, the DC Strokes Rowing Club, the Chicago Rowing Union, and two squads of women rowers from Northampton, MA who competed under the name of Pioneer Valley Pride.
GLRF hosted a booth at the 2014 USRowing Youth National Championships Regatta 13 - 15 June 2014 on Lake Natoma outside of Sacramento, California, United States. Approximately 1500 participants from 132 clubs competed in 357 entries. The racing venue is the site of junior regional championships, collegiate regional championships, and masters regattas.
The lake, as it is called, is actually a dam downstream from the more infamous location and dam, Folsom Lake. Folsom is known around California for its notoriety as a large prison facility. Less well known is that Folsom Lake plays a crucial role in California's water supply, capturing a huge source of runoff from the Sierra Nevada mountains.
The 2014 regatta marked the first time that the USRowing Youth National Championships were held on the west coast and this marked the first return of GLRF to the regatta as a vendor. GLRF had previously hosted a vendor's booth at the 2007 Youth National Championsip in Cincinnati, Ohio. The GLRF booth at that regatta was not without controversy. The regatta organizing committee, made up of parents of from a group of local catholic schools, had deemed the GLRF presence inappropriate and it was not until USRowing intervened that the booth was approved. Even so, after the GLRF booth was opened, the regatta committee stalked in and blatantly declared what was and was not appropriate for display and sale. (Example: Mark Tewksbury's book, Inside Out - Straight Talk From A Gay Jock, was immediately banned.)
Fast forward to 2014 and a different venue and the reception is 180 degrees different. GLRF is warmly greeted by the Sacramento State Aquatic Center staff. The volunteers and employees not only waive but some self-identify and express their happiness at the GLRF presence. Athletes and parents hoot and holler over the wild and crazy spandex and there is a fair amount of exhaling as everyone discovers the joys of 12 months of naked Warwick Rower Calendars, displayed for sale.
The regatta is the culmination of a nationwide series of regional championships and serves as a guide for the USRowing Junior National coaches seeking candidates for the 2014 US Junior National Team as well as collegiate coaches on the lookout.
The caliber of the rowing was amazing to watch and the strength of character, the warmth, the support of the rowing community was palatable.
The DC Strokes Rowing Club hosted the 21st annual Stonewall Regatta on Sunday, 01 June 2014, on the Anacostia River in Washington DC. The regatta has been held continuously since its founding in 1994 in Pelham Bay, in New York City. Over the years, the regatta has moved twice, first to the Potomac River and then again to the Anacostia River where the DC Strokes practice.
The regatta brings with it a tradition of water movement. In 1994, at Stonewall Regatta I, the tidal flows in Pelham Bay caused the regatta starting line to be moved several times as the bay became shallower. On the Potomac River, crews raced downstream, with moving currents and eddys. On the Anacostia River, the course has been laid out both downstream and upstream.
Up until 2014, every regatta used a floating start that sometimes created havoc because of the fast currents and/or winds. This year brought a new level of sophistication to the regatta with the introduction of fixed starts using stake boats. For most of the morning, the stake boats served the regatta committee with devotion and obedience. However, around 1 pm, the tide began to flood and no amount of resetting the anchors could subdue the rebellious and changing stake boat positions. In a blink of an eye, the practiced regatta committee shifted to their accustomed burden, floating starts, and the races continued like clockwork.
The 21st annual Stonewall Regatta reached a new milestone with 195 entries, beating by one entry the 2007 Stonewall Regatta. Overall, 411 participants, including a number of GLRF members, competed from 26 clubs, 7 states, and 4 countries. The regatta had 35 planned events but with a lack of entries, the net number of events was 28. The most popular events were the Mens Master 4+ (5 races), Womens Master 4+ (5 races), Mens Master 1x (4 races), the Womens Master 1x (3 races), the Mens Master 8+ (3 races), the Womens Master 8+ (3 races), the Womens Master 2x (3 races), and the Mens Open 1x (3 races). Results Stonewall Regatta21.pdf
The weather was perfect with water that rivaled the huge lean wall mirrors at Crate and Barrel until 2 pm when it was obvious somebody put everything on sale .... Warm sunshine and awesome music spun by a truly talented DJ (was he gay?) lent a distinct air that the DC Strokes are here, they're queer, and they're very glad to welcome the straight rowing community.
GLRF hosted a booth at the American Collegiate Rowing Association (ACRA) Championships 24 - 25 May 2014 on Lake Lanier in Gaivesville, Georgia, United States. The racing venue is the site of the 1996 Olympic rowing competition.
ACRA was was formed in 2008 to provide a means for American university club (non-varsity) programmes to compete at the end of the school year. Membership is open to all collegiate, junior college, and community college teams that are not eligible to compete for the NCAA or IRA Championship.
The event brought competitors from all over the United States, including the Mid-Atlantic, the Northeast, the Midwest, the South, and the West Coast.
The event's popularity has grown every year. In 2013, 57 schools competed, bringing 844 men and 442 women to compete in 1x, 2x, 2-, 4+, and 8+ boat divisions. Attendance at the 2014 event saw attendance rise by almost 10% with 64 schools competing.
The GLRF booth was enthusiastically embraced by the athletes, many of whom were unaware of the organization. The crazy spandex shorts and tights were once again the hot item for sale, much to the consternation of a few uptight coaches (homophobic or just worried about his/her resume stature?). A new product featured at the booth got a lot of attention: The Coxies Cure. The product is championed by actors, musicians, and voice over speakers who rave at its almost instantaneous ability to restore a hoarse voice.
The GLRF booth also served as the official soft launch for the newest feature of the GLRF website: Categories of the Rowing Community. The new Categories application offers all aspects of the worldwide rowing community a means to connect and network and create groups for their specific area of interest. Currently the Categories application offers separate community platforms for Adaptive, Coaches, Coxies, Juniors, Masters, OpenElite, Race Officials, University, and Women.
