"I'm trying to enjoy the day while it lasts," she said as she headed toward Weld Boathouse, Radcliffe Crew's headquarters. "I didn't expect to have the good weather."

Sunday's balmy weather was warmly welcomed after the cold, wet morning the racers practiced with on Saturday.

The crowd on both days enjoyed free giveaways from such companies as Ford, Dunkin' Donuts and Propecia, which produces a hair-growth pill.

Michelle M. Echeverria '01 watched the regatta from a marketing point-of-view.

She was working at the Pets.com booth, one of the hottest booths on the banks, offering free frisbees and ultra-coveted large tennis balls to anxious spectators.

"We give out a box of [tennis balls] every 20 minutes," she said, watching the crowd in front of her stretch 20 deep. "They're supposed to be for their pets, but it's really for them."

Echeverria, who worked at the regatta last year, was contacted by a marketing firm to help this year. About a dozen worked at the booth, including students from Northeastern, Boston College and Boston University, among other Boston-area schools.

When the free samples from Dunkin' Donuts and Ben & Jerry's weren't enough to satisfy, crew fans were treated to a variety of foods, from Italian sausages to fried dough to clam chowder.