The economic downturn hasn't helped Head of the Charles organizers in their annual challenge to attract and retain sponsors. With Nautica ending its deal after this year, the regatta doesn't have a major company committed for next year's 45th edition.
"Event marketing across the board is going to feel the impact of the down economy," said executive director Fred Schoch. "We'll just have to bootstrap it, as we have for the last several years. We don't have that anchor sponsor. We have to build our pyramid with a lot of little blocks."
It didn't help when the Deval Patrick administration took a chunk out of the state tourism budget last week, costing the Head its six-figure allotment. It seems a shortsighted move, since the regatta generates an estimated $45 million a year in gross spending, according to a McKinsey study, providing $4 million-$5 million in tax revenue.
"We understand there are more urgent matters," said Schoch. "Education, health care, and human services come first."
Head officials have been wooing potential sponsors this weekend.
"We brought a lot of people to the regatta to have a closer look," said Schoch, who is optimistic that Andalucia Tourism may stay on after this year.
Records tumble
Despite a headwind blowing down the Powerhouse Stretch, course records were set in eight of the 28 events yesterday, all but one on the women's side: grand master singles (Margarita Jekabsons-Zezza, 20:55.728), club fours (Riverside BC, 18:35.004), club eights (Yale, 16:47.894), master doubles (Saiya Remmler-Teresa Zarzeczny-Bell, 18:49.721), master fours (Minnesota BC, 18:42.838), championship doubles (Emma Twigg-Juliette Haigh, 17:46.037), and collegiate fours (Western RC, 18:54.730), plus the men's collegiate fours (Michigan, 16:26.721) . . . Andrew Triggs Hodge, who'll stroke his old Thames club Molesey in today's men's championship eights, has had a most memorable summer. After stroking the British four to a third straight Olympic gold medal, he met Queen Elizabeth at Buckingham Palace last week. "She's such an incredibly humble, lovely, polite person," said Hodge, who reports that Her Majesty is a rowing buff who watched the race on TV. So, is he Sir Andrew now? "I'm very unknighted," said Hodge, laughing. The standard appears to be five golds, achieved by Sir Stephen Redgrave.
Champs dethroned
Biggest upset yesterday was produced by Evelyn Hamann and Linda Brunder, who defeated Susan Kinne and Joan Linse by more than three seconds in the women's senior master doubles. Kinne and Linse had won all five previous races and set a course record last year. Continuing their streaks were Dan Gorriaran and Michael Smith in men's master doubles (six straight), Ellen Kennelly in women's senior master singles (five straight), and Cambridge BC in men's master fours (four straight) . . . The new bollard serving as the ceremonial starting marker on the Boston side of the river at BU is dedicated to the memory of Sherry Proctor, the longtime regatta volunteer who created the layout and buoys for the 3-mile Head course. Proctor, who was an architect, rower, and founder of Community Rowing Inc., also helped design the bollard before he died three years ago. "He relished those small moments that spoke to a job well done - the sweep of the buoy line, the peacefulness of the early-morning river while checking the course before the race," said Proctor's daughter Hannah, herself a Head volunteer for two dozen years. "When the day was done, he took satisfaction in knowing that there had been another successful Head of the Charles."
Unlucky 13th
If the stroke of Kent Mitchell RC in yesterday's senior master (i.e. 50-plus) eights looked vaguely familiar and suspiciously young, it's because he was. Kyle Hamilton, who stroked the Canadian eight to its first gold medal in 16 years in Beijing, was recruited to add some youthful oomph in the crew's bid to regain the title it won three years ago. In what one rival from Team Attager called "cosmic compensation" for using such a gilded ringer, Kent Mitchell had an early equipment breakdown and ended up 13th as Attager (stroked by ageless Charlie Hamlin, with Schoch aboard) pulled off a three-peat by five seconds over the 1980 Olympians . . . West Roxbury twins (and Boston Latin grads) Lee and Christine Glandorf, who have five gold medals between them from previous Head appearances with Community Rowing and Yale, go for two more today. Christine will row bow for the Bulldogs in the women's championship eight while Lee will row in the championship four. Kid sister Carolyn, a Virginia freshman who's not competing this time, has earned two golds with CRI.
