Geer to Defend Head of the Charles Title

by Amy Kolb Noyes

Morristown's Judy Geer will head down to Boston later this month to
defend her title as Head of the Charles. She will be among 7,000
athletes, from 27 countries, rowing in the 40th annual Head Of The
Charles Regatta, Saturday and Sunday, October 23 and 24.
Founded in 1965, the Head Of The Charles is the largest rowing event in
North America. More than 1,500 racing shells compete in 48 different
events during the two-day regatta. Head races, which are a class of
regattas, are among the most challenging in all of rowing. Judy called
the HOCR "the granddaddy of head racing."
When performed with skill rowing looks graceful, elegant, and even
effortless - but looks can be deceiving. The sport is incredibly
demanding, both physically and mentally, as athletes compete against
clock and the river in a grueling battle. To train for the HOCR, Judy
rows on the water every day, all summer long. Once school starts, Judy
turns to her rowing machine, and runs with the cross country team at
Peoples Academy.
Starting at Boston University's DeWolfe Boathouse, the three-mile HOCR
racecourse zigs and zags upstream, underneath a total of seven bridges,
which are a particular worry for scullers who face sternwards and must
turn their heads to avoid them. The course also includes two long,
reverse "S" turns before finishing at Artesani Park in Brighton, MA. The
races include all age divisions (youth, collegiate, elite, and masters)
and boat categories (singles, doubles, fours, and eights.) Rowers with
the fastest finishing times in each race are awarded the title "Head Of
The Charles."
That is the title Judy will be defending this month. At age 51, Judy
will compete in the "Grand Master Single" category, for single rowers
age 50-59. Last year, she won her race and set a new course record with
a time of 21:46.
Entry into the Head Of The Charles is highly competitive. Only those
finishing in the top five percent are guaranteed entry the following
year. A lottery system determines the acceptance of the remainder of
race participants. Generally, fewer than half of those who apply are
accepted. In fact, demand is so high that the race committee has
instituted a two-year waiting list for new clubs to be eligible to
receive racing numbers.
Another point of difference for the HOCR is that the true spirit of
amateur athletics prevails, as club and collegiate rowers compete side
by side with Olympians, such as Judy.
Also competing in Boston are Judy's husband and brother-in-law, and
fellow Concept 2 principals Dick and Pete Dreissigacker. Dick, Pete and
Robert Brody, of Stowe, are on a "Senior Master Eight" team. Robert
serves as the eight-member team's coxswain, who sits in back and steers
the boat and calls the race. Judy said the "Motley Rowing Club," as they
are called, is a "loose association of National Rowing Team members and
friends." Judy noted her sister, Carlie Geer, will also be racing in the
HOCR on an eight-member team.
Rowing is truly a family affair for Geer. She said they race in two
events each year, the HOCR and the Green Mountain Head, held in Putney.
Both are fall head races, with five kilometer courses. The similarities
basically end there. Putney hosts a "stake race," where the first half
of the race is rowing upstream, then competitors turn around a set of
buoys and head back downstream to the start.
Judy called the Green Mountain Head a nice race for beginners and kids.
About 350 competitors race singles and doubles or, in Judy's words
"little boats." This year's Putney race was held on Sunday, October 3.
Both Judy and her daughter Emily had first place finishes last weekend.
The HOCR is among Boston's most prized, signature events, attracting
nearly 300,000 spectators and college alumni who line the riverbanks
throughout the weekend. More than 900 volunteers support the HOCR, as do
corporate sponsors Nautica, Polaroid, and Dunkin' Donuts.
Known as America's Fall Rowing Festival®, the Head Of The Charles offers
additional weekend activities including the Head Of The Charles Fitness
Expo, The Reunion Village, and Row-a-Palooza, a two-day, multiband music
festival that is new to the regatta this year. Races run from noon to
5:00 p.m. Saturday and from 7:45 a.m. to 4:00 p.m. on Sunday. For more
information call 617-868-6200 or visit www.hocr.org.