Lightweight Crew Outraces Columbia

The Crimson lightweights, overcoming a shaky start that left them three-quarters of a length behind, fought back to outdistance Columbia and Rutgers last Saturday on New York's Harlem River.

The victory, which stretched Harvard's unbeaten streak to 19 consecutive races dating back to 1969, was close for the first 1000 meters, as the Crimson tried desparately to overcome the early lead that Columbia had gained at the start.

Despite such inauspicious beginnings, the Crimson moved into a one-length lead at the 100-meter mark which they maintained for the rest of the race. The final margin of victory of eight and one-half seconds was a little over a boat length.

While the race was never really in doubt, the lightweight varsity's performance did not satisfy either the oarsmen or coaches. "It was a real disappointment," captain Howie Burnett said yesterday. "We had hoped to row a lot better than we actually did."

Harlem Hazards

The natural hazards of racing on the Harlem precipitated the poor Crimson start. Harvard, racing close to the breakwater that lines one bank of the river, hit a wave coming off the wall and was bogged down by the rough water at the start. The waves result from river traffic that goes on during the race. However, what concerned coach Steve Gladstone more than the weak start was the varsity's poor showing during the race.

"We were not getting enough distance per stroke," Gladstone said yesterday. "We simply weren't going fast enough."

In general, Gladstone was not pleased with the varsity boat's performance, but he made it clear yesterday that the problems do not lie in individual performances.

Wrong Combination

"I'm not faulting anyone," he said. "This is an eager group and they tried hard--perhaps too hard. I just feel that I have the wrong combination." Gladstone indicated that he planned "to shift people around, within the boat" this week in practice to get a better combination.

The other two-thirds of Harvard's lightweight fleet, the JV and freshman boats, fared better than the top eight. The JVs overwhelmed Columbia and Rutgers, coming in a full 15 seconds ahead of the nearest competitor. The freshmen, rowing in their first competitive race, won by a 10-second margin.

Gladstone was liberal in his praise of their performance. "I was really happy with the way they rowed," he said. "They showed a lost of poise and rowed very well together."