“One of our biggest challenges is rowing as well through every section of the course—not just the beginning,” Bielawski said. “Even trying to make up time at the end is very important for us.”

The head-style racing and narrow course required active strategy from every member of the team. The top Radcliffe boat gained confidence as it closed the gap on its competitors.  

“The crews that us rowers can see, we could tell that they fell away,” Bielawski said. “Their coxswains didn’t take really good courses, so we could tell we were gaining on them, and that definitely helped us get through the rest of the piece.”

While the heavyweight and lightweight boats both combated weather conditions, a narrow course, and a head-style race, Radcliffe crew has bigger goals for its year-long season.

“We’re all really excited that we did so well in this regatta,” Beilawski said. “We can see that our team has a lot of depth because all of our boats did really well. We really want to carry that through in the spring and win a national championship again. That’s our goal.”

“It’s great to do well at Head of the Charles,” Fitzhenry added. “This is just a stepping stone and an opportunity to learn about ourselves and how we can get faster.”