Radcliffe Crews Smoke B.U. in Season Opener

Battling choppy and windy conditions on the Charles, the usual jitters surrounding a season's first race, and the B.U. heavyweight crew, the Radcliffe heavies earned high marks on all counts Saturday morning as they destroyed the Terriers by 24 seconds--in crew jargon, curvature of the earth.

The rustiness from a winter spent in Weld Boathouse showed at the start, when B.U. jumped out to a slight lead, but after that it was all Radcliffe. The women in black put open water between themselves and the Terriers in the first third of the race, then simply built and built on the lead over the 1500-meter course and finished five-and-a half lengths in front.

B.U., not known for its powerhouse heavyweight crews, scared the Radcliffe oarswomen off the line, jumping a seat or two in front after only a few strokes.

But that's when the Weld residents asserted themselves, moving four seats up on a "ten-high" just following the start, before settling at 34 strokes per minutes for the first part of the race.

After just ten strokes at 34, the oars-women had moved a length up, and they owned a comfortable open water margin by the 500-meter mark.

The oarswomen lost a little of their rowing edge at that point, but they settled at a 32 cadence and stroke Cynthia Strong kept the boat steady and smooth through the middle part of the course. A power-ten just before the halfway mark picked the boat up, as B.U. continued to fall farther and farther back in Radcliffe's wake.

No sprint was even needed at the end of the one-sided competition, as the oars-women simply cruised across the finish line and relaxed in their seats. Seconds later, coxswain Liz Friese threw both arms skyward in a motion reminiscent of Leon Spinks, to signal the start of another outstanding season for the Radcliffe heavyweight crew.

B.U. was left totally vanquished when the 'Cliffe J.V. boat, an outfit seemingly incapable of losing in recent years, handled their Terriers counterparts with ease.

The heavies go to the line against Powerhouse Princeton and Cornell next Saturday morning on the Charles, but if this weekend's race is any indication, it should be bon voyage for the Tigers and the Big Red.