Twenty years at the Head of the Charles

The Gay + Lesbian Rowing Federation marked 20 years of hosting a booth at the Head of the Charles Regatta and Festival on 18 – 20 Oct 2024.  Situated along non-profit row, the booth is 100 meters before the finish line and affords some great viewing as crews battle to the finish. 

The booth is located along a footpath fronting the Charles River.  The booth location creates a bottleneck among the foot traffic flow that creates incredible visibility for approaching crews, coaches, visitors, and parents.  Flowing from the finish line towards the main expo of the festival, everyone has to pass in front of the booth before they can peel off in one of several directions.   

There were displays for the Rower’s Pledge, the GLRF global initiative to promote inclusion and acceptance in the broader rowing community, and for the 2025 Sin City Erg, in January 2025 in Las Vegas.  Booth visitors enjoyed inspecting the various GLRF t-shirts, hoodies, and headwear. 

In all the years of hosting a booth, this weekend seemed to be the best with only a touch of wind on Friday and sunny skies every day.  Yes, it was jacket chilly in the morning but by Noon, all of us began shedding layers.  At the booth we had GLRF members @DPH2002, @Bob715, and @Howie55.

Throughout the weekend, GLRF members stopped by to say hello. It was great catching up with @omac, @DESIGNINGJIM35, @rowrgrl, @OneChocolateRower, @chgorower, @jalfano, @philly_cox, @rasta,and several coaches and coxies whose userids we can’t recall.  It was great catching up with allies John and Charlotte from Calm Waters Rowing, Chris from Rowing News, and Bobbie from the Crew Classic.   

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