PARTING SHOT: Finding the Story Beyond the Story

Somewhere in a half-asleep doze from Boston to Providence, I realized I was being driven by someone who’d had a very real role in the music industry.

Long before she became an unsung hero of Weld Boathouse, my friend worked for a guitar company. And when a talented music artist, considered by Rolling Stone magazine to be one of the “greatest songwriters ever,” had an injury that could have derailed her career, she was on the crew that helped design a lightweight electric guitar both easy to hold and capable of a range of sounds that can’t be accomplished with acoustic.

Senior Rowers Lead the Years

The Harvard University Boat Club’s senior class has been making it look easy for a while, but no one who knows the sport is falling for it. Rowing is considered to be a sport of attrition. By a class’s senior year, the story goes, the team of walk-ons will have just as many walk-offs. Apparently the Crimson heavyweights didn’t get that memo. The vast majority of the team’s original freshman class has stuck around for all four years, and as a fellow senior rower I can’t help but appreciate the determination of each and every member of that class, from the 1V standouts to the team’s 2F alumni.

But while it’s impressive, Harvard’s high return rate shouldn’t be considered especially surprising because it was clear pretty early on that this group was going to be something special.

Former Blockmate Unselfish in Promotion of Jeremy Lin

In my sophomore year, two blockmates transformed the sports culture at Harvard. Now, one is doing the same in the NBA, and the other is making sure no one forgets about it. While much attention has deservedly been paid to hoops sensation Jeremy Lin ’10 and the role he played in changing the culture of Crimson basketball, no one in school at the time could forget the role that his blockmate Cheng Ho ’10 played.

In many ways, Lin and Ho seem to be the perfect complements to each other. Lin was quiet and humble in interviews. He’d never project his own performances, so, to an extent, Ho had to. Even now after his jaw-dropping performances, Lin is quick to credit his teammates, including the one he has up in the sky. It’s extremely impressive.

Athletes: Can’t Tweet This

The unfortunate case of football recruit Yuri Wright, who was expelled from Don Bosco Prep for racially and sexually insensitive tweets, may be an extreme example of the misuse of social media, but it should serve as a reminder to all of us to take caution with what we write.

Harvard Crew Ends Year to Remember

Harvard sophomore Andrew Campbell can now add oration to his many skills.

Back in his home state of Connecticut, the star lightweight rower delivered two speeches at the USRowing Annual Convention, which took place on Saturday, Dec. 3 in Hartford.