Five thousand meters, one boat, and eight rowers with Upper School (US) graduation dates spanning four decades. When JV Rowing and Head Varsity Wrestling Coach Henry Kasdon ’98 graduated from the US, Bill Clinton was president. When Nick Taylor ’08
graduated a decade later, the country was amid the Great Recession. When Henry Ross ’18 graduated ten years later, it was not long before the COVID-19 pandemic. Adrien Tabor ’24 graduated just last June.
For the first time in US history, a Men’s Alumni Eight boat competed in the Head of the Charles Regatta (HOCR). HOCR is the world’s largest regatta and takes place annually over the penultimate weekend of October, just across the street from the US campus. This year, the school’s annual alumni reunion weekend was moved from June to overlap with the event, drawing graduates back to Cambridge. From front to back, the US alumni boat featured alums Coach Kasdon (coxswain), Adrien, Lucas Lesburg, Yonathan Ayalew, Ali Gonzalez (all ‘24), Ian Kaplan and Will Nguyen (both ‘21), Nick, and Henry.
After graduating, Coach Kasdon coxed for Tufts before returning to the US in 2005 and rejoining the team as a coach. Given his familiarity with the course, Coach Kasdon said he felt confident leading up to the race.
“I’m pretty sure I could do it blind,” he said. “I coxed here for my BB&N career, my freshman year at Tufts we rowed out of the Harvard boathouse, and then I coached on this river for the last 20 years. It’s a whole different experience competing in it, but I know this course so well.”
As the coach of every rower in the Alumni Eight boat at some point, Coach Kasdon had faith in his rowers before the race, he said.
“No one is hurting after a couple of days of practice, we did a good taper, and these are smart guys. They’ve put themselves in a position to succeed today— they’ve prepared themselves.”
Returning to the Charles for the first time since graduating 16 years ago, fourth-seat rower Nick Taylor focused his preparation on progressively building up to race shape.
“I started very slow,” he said. “Probably the most frustrating thing about being 34 is that you can’t just hop on and do whatever you want—you’ll immediately injure yourself—so it was like the biggest slow-taper up for several months.”
In the bow seat, former captain of the Tufts Boys’ Crew Team and competitor in the 2021 HOCR Men’s Collegiate Eights Henry Ross prepared for the race differently.
“I actually ran the Chicago marathon last weekend, so I’ve been training for that for a while. Luckily, a lot of the fitness is transferable, but my legs are definitely not as fresh as I’d like them to be.”
In the stroke seat at the front of the boat, co-captain of last year’s US Boys’ Varsity Crew Team (BVC) and two-time HOCR competitor Adrien Tabor saw the race as a chance to relive positive memories from his time at the US, he said.
“For me, it was to bring back those memories. Having this Head of the Charles experience, reconnecting with the community, experiencing this moment again, I’m really enjoying it.”
In addition to an alumni eight, the Boys’ Varsity Crew team also raced a Men’s Youth Four (U19)
boat in this year’s regatta. From stern to bow, the boat included BVC Co-Captains James Foote and Max Crafter (both ’25), Weston Tregay, Lukas Wellesley (both ’26), and Coxswain Captain Haley Hicks ’25.
Having rowed with Adrien last fall to requalify, Max rowed in the three-seat of this year’s Men’s Youth Four boat, his third consecutive HOCR for the school. The group’s attitude set the tone for their training, Max said.
“We’ve been able to create a crew and an environment where there’s no downwards. No matter what happens, the boat is lifted up. Training gets better, our fitness gets better, our technique gets better, and our power gets better. Everything improves.”
The Girls’ Varsity Crew Team also raced two boats. From stern to bow, the Women’s Under 17 Four included Aggie Grant, Julia Wang (both ’26), Sydney Ruiz, Myriam Lai, and Coxswain Ella Harlev (all ’27). For Aggie, the crew’s strongest quality is the environment they’ve created.
“Rowing is a very mental sport and oftentimes, team environments are unhealthy, which leads to issues on the water,” she said. “Our team focuses on enjoying rowing and enjoying each other’s company rather than what each person does wrong.”
The Women’s Youth Four featured Girls’ Varsity Crew Co-Captain Kate Rice, Sophia Chester, Lucy Forman (all ’25), Hailey Jiang ’26, and Co- Captain Lea Freiin Von Hilgers ’25 as coxswain. Sophia agreed with Aggie that their strengths as respective boats are in their attitudes.
“We’re really supportive of each other,” Sophia said. “We will be honest with each other if something doesn’t feel good, but we’ll keep our cool, keep our patience, and try to bring it back together even when things aren’t going well.”
The Men’s Alumni Eight boat finished with a time of 17:54 minutes, and at the end of the weekend the rest of
the crews’ results varied. The Men’s Youth Four placed 49th out of 90, the Women’s Under 17 Four finished 18th out of 32, and the Women’s Youth Four came in 21st out of 90.
Other members of the US community also raced on the Charles: BVC Head Coach and seven-time HOCR champion Adam Holland competed in the Men’s Senior Master Eights [50+], GVC Head Coach John Codder and GVC Coxswain Anshika Chadda ’26 competed in the Men’s Grand Master Fours [60+], and Eliza Cohen ’27 and Emma Kirk ’26 competed in the Women’s Youth Singles (U19). Coach Holland’s boat finished second, Coach Codder’s Four finished eighth, Eliza placed seventh, and Emma won her event by a 22-second margin.
Students and families weren’t the only ones cheering on US rowers. Faculty and alumni also crowded the BB&N Boathouse’s rocky riverbank to catch a glimpse of the school’s boats. Head of School Jennifer Price and US Director Jessica Keimowitz also attended this year’s race—both annual spectators since joining the US seven and three years ago, respectively.
HOCR is a unique opportunity for community members to support each other, Dr. Price explained.
“We’re sitting here, and we’ve got students cheering for their coaches. I mean, how cool is that? Where else do you see students cheering for their coaches?”
For Ms. Keimowitz, the regatta provided a moment of unity for the school and beyond, she said.
“It’s a great opportunity to support our athletes and to support athletes from around the world.”
Former BVC Captain Matthew Brown ’88, coxswain of the 1984 US Men’s Youth Four boat, appreciated the inclusion of a Men’s Alumni Eight in this year’s regatta. He noted how the event has changed over the last 40 years.
“I think the alumni boat is a cool idea.
It’s great to get people back, particularly on a day like today. It’s a great event. When I did it, it was a single-day event, and now it’s grown to three days.”
Director of Athletics Jaye Locke was excited by the school’s alumni presence over the weekend.
“So much of our community is not just about the current students but about all of the people who have been here,” she said. “I just spoke with Susan Dole ’55, and alums really feel like they’re a part of it on a special weekend like this, so having the men’s alumni boat is really special and awesome.”
To Coach Locke, graduating doesn’t mean saying goodbye: “Once a Knight, always a Knight.”
