River race: Student makes pitch for new crew team at JDS

Freshman+Raya+Schwartz+practices+her+technique+on+the+rowing+machine.+Schwartz+is+attempting+to+start+a+crew+team+at+CESJDS+after+participating+on+a+team+outside+of+school.+

photo courtesy of Raya Schwartz

Freshman Raya Schwartz practices her technique on the rowing machine. Schwartz is attempting to start a crew team at CESJDS after participating on a team outside of school.

Naomi Gould, Reporter

Freshman Raya Schwartz describes the rhythm of synchronized oars, the sound of water lapping against her boat and the smack of the wind in her face so vividly that one can almost feel that they are there with her. And someday, other CESJDS students might be able to, if Schwartz achieves her dream of bringing a crew team to JDS.

Approximately four months ago, Schwartz and her mother went to Director of Athletics Becky Silberman with a proposal to begin a novice crew team. Since then, further discussions have occurred, but still remain hypothetical.

Since the beginning of the school year, Schwartz has competed on a crew team outside of school called the Washington Rowing School (WRS). She practices from 5:30 to 7:30 almost every morning because swimming on both a recreational and the school swim team occupies her evenings. Both the sport itself and the cohesive teamwork required have led Schwartz to fall in love with crew.

“When you really get into that groove and start following each other, it’s amazing to see and feel how fast you go … It’s just a great feeling,” Schwartz said.

In crew, alternatively referred to as rowing, different teams will compete both in time trials and side-by-side races. In the former, teams do not race simultaneously and their race times are compared, while the latter has teams go head-to-head to cross the finish line first.

Crew also exists at the college level, opening up the opportunity for scholarships to be offered to students, which both Silberman and Schwartz said is a potentially appealing aspect to many students.

Rowing in the Montgomery County Public School system is considered a “club sport,” meaning the teams receive no financial assistance from the county. Currently, only five public schools (Bethesda-Chevy Chase, Walt Whitman, Walter Johnson, Montgomery Blair and Winston Churchill), in addition to multiple private schools, including Gonzaga and Holton-Arms, participate in the local league, the Washington Metropolitan Interscholastic Rowing Association (WMIRA).

The potential JDS team would also be a club sport and would practice with WRS’ boats, water access on the Potomac River and indoor facilities. The goal would be to also compete in WMIRA, but under JDS’ name. However, if there are not enough interested students, JDS will be teaming up with Roosevelt High School to form a composite team and race under WRS’ name.

Similar to how the former ice hockey team ran in the past, the team would not be funded by the athletic department. Silberman says that JDS will make the bus arrangements and hire the coach, but each athlete would have to pay an additional fee. Schwartz anticipates that this cost would be around $600 per student per year.

Recently, Dean of Students Roz Landy sent out an interest survey to which only 22 students responded, however, Schwartz said that more interested peers have approached her in the hallways. Silberman thinks that this may be problematic, as kids on the basketball team have expressed interest. This introduces the possibility that other sports teams may lose members since there are few athletically-inclined students who are not already on a team.

“Part of the problem is a lot of the students who expressed interest I think don’t recognize how real and how big the commitment is,” Silberman said.

Crew would take place both in the fall and spring, with indoor workouts in the winter. Each week, one practice would be spent doing strength training at a gym or at school, and the rest would be on the water. In addition to a Sunday practice, Schwartz plans to have the team meet three to four times a week either before or after school, the former possibly requiring a special “crew minyan.”

This would allow students to avoid waking up early to make it to school by Zman Kodesh. Rather, with the school’s permission, Schwartz would like to have the team be able to arrive at 8:30, after morning practices. Schwartz says that, just as multiple Drisha minyans have students express themselves through art, rowers can express themselves through sports and have meaningful discussions on the bus.

In Schwartz’s experience, working out brings the team closer together, an aspect she hopes to bring to JDS.

“We practice working together, and we practice getting stronger, and that builds a very strong community,” Schwartz said.

Freshman Dalia Siegel, who is interested in rowing, said that her cousin participates on a crew team and highly recommended it. Being a part of a community seemed to be a common thread among the interested students since Siegel is also excited about the idea of expanding and strengthening her circle of peers.

“It would be cool to get to know people that I wouldn’t necessarily get to know otherwise,” Siegel said.

Schwartz started a “Learn to Row” week on March 3 to allow students to get a better understanding of what the sport is and what the schedule would be like before making the commitment. Schwartz was the only JDS student present, however, seven students from Roosevelt High School attended. However, Schwartz hopes that more JDS students will come during the week, stressing that the more students who are interested, the more opportunities there will be in the fall.

Though it remains in the early stages of proposals, Silberman seemed interested in making this team a possibility because she wants JDS to have as many sports as possible in order to provide everyone with an opportunity.

“If people want to participate, I want there to be an option for them,” Silberman said. “I want JDS to be an appealing option, and if someone doesn’t want to be at JDS because they don’t have a sport that’s available, I want to try and make it possible.”

This story was featured in the Volume 36, Issue 5 print edition of The Lion’s Tale, published on March 15, 2019.