Update Two, from 46.9298° N, 8.3403° E
Hello from across the pond! Today’s update is from recent graduate Andrew Anderson, who is currently in two seat of the four, until it goes back to being bucketed and he’ll move back to three.
Our week at the Swiss National Team training center has concluded and we are now headed to Zurich. The surroundings were a welcome distraction while rowing; it made adjusting from the jet lag much more bearable. Quality of rowing is as expected from so much travel and change, but we are preparing for our regatta this weekend in Greifensee and are excited to see our first competition since ACRAs. In the straight four we “miss our coxswain” and are “coping” with the responsibilities making calls and steering entail [editor’s note: both their steering and call making has been gradually improving more than they think]. There have been great strides in our rowing ability while training in peace and quiet, aside from the occasional steering calls.
Yesterday afternoon, we took a well-deserved break from rowing to the top of Stanserhorn, a local scenic overlook. After taking the cable car up to the top of the mountain, we did some easy hiking to soak in the scenery. With so much time and effort going into training it was a welcome change to simply be with friends, eat food, and take a few hours off rowing to simulate a vacation. Sarnen, Switzerland will be difficult to leave, if not for anything but the views. Each night and some mornings I watch the sun rise and set because it is impossible to spend too much time in nature around here.
We are excited to race and start the Henley leg of the journey in the upcoming days.
If you’d like to see more of our adventure, you can also follow our travels on twitter (@VirginiaRowing) and instagram (@vmensrowing).