E ric Schubert grew up cheering for the Pittsburgh Steelers, a football franchise with a record six Super Bowl titles in what many consider the ultimate team sport. ¶ But Schubert, a recent graduate of Southwest Christian High School in Chaska, changed his view of teamwork in sports when he first saw rowing. An admirer of the sport from afar, Schubert earned a new appreciation when he joined Twin Cities Youth Rowing (TCYR). ¶ "I didn't really realize how intense it was until I started," he said. "To me, this is the ultimate team sport because if one person is half a second off, the rest of the boat feels it."
Started in 2008, TCYR is the metro area's lone youth-only club. About 100 rowers from 30 metro area high schools, junior highs and middle schools train at various times throughout the year and compete in local and regional regattas.
Coach Tina Cho, a former University of Minnesota rower, started the club with a reasonable timetable for success. Now she believes "we're ahead of schedule. I thought this would take five years to really be competitive. But with the support we've received and the caliber of athletes we're getting, we've got a legitimate shot next spring."
TCYR competed against Midwest teams in the recent Chicago Sprints Regatta and placed second in men's junior 4+, men's junior 8+ and men's novice 8+. The women's junior 8+ placed third and the women's junior 4+ finished fifth.
TCYR is the host of the Twin Cities Junior Sweeps Regatta on Aug. 1 at Bryant Lake Regional Park in Eden Prairie, the club's home location. Cho said a summer regatta just for junior racers is unique and hopes it helps put TCYR on the map.
Cho took other measures to increase her club's visibility, offering a winter and spring season for the first time this year. Rowers worked on ergometer (rowing) machines inside the club's Edina boathouse during the winter and competed in May's Midwest Junior Championships in Cincinnati.
Though more rowers are enjoying increased opportunities, TCYR relies on personal endorsements to grow interest. Word of mouth led Korleki Akiti, an incoming senior at Blake, to discover rowing. She joined the Minnesota Boat Club the summer before eighth grade and later moved to the Minneapolis Rowing Club before following Cho to TCYR.
"When I was younger, rowing was something fun to do on the side," Akiti said. "Now I'm actually thinking of rowing in college because through the years, it's been the one constant that I've always been excited about."