Aberdeen Dad Vail ® Regatta - Parties On The Banks Support Rowing On The River

The Aberdeen Dad Vail Regatta is the linchpin for teams' alumni associations.

Seemingly every regatta in America comes fully equipped with team tents.

The tents line a portion of the river and are filled with folding chairs. Dads work the grills. Moms set up spreads of food. Maybe a couple of alumni stop by. The student-athletes grab a bite to eat and listlessly lie around in the grass. Some cheers arise as shells streak past.

But then there are the tents at the Aberdeen Dad Vail Regatta Presented by Coca-Cola.

On the second weekend of May, year in and year out, the banks of Philadelphia's Schuylkill River are blitzed by stakes supporting tent after tent after tent. Driving down famed Kelly Drive, it looks like a hundred mini-circuses have come to town. (Some might argue that's actually the case.) There are big tents and small tents, open tents and enclosed tents. Everywhere, one after another. Tent. Tent. Tent.

While the racing at the Aberdeen Dad Vail can stack up against any regatta in America, the action on the riverbank is unmatched by any other event. Countless rowing programs use Dad Vail to house their annual reunions. The alumni tents at the Vails dovetail the two objectives of any successful alumni group - financial support and emotional encouragement.

"The alumni choose the best regatta to come to," says University of Delaware coach Chuck Crawford. "That's where you want to have the most support and it's the most rewarding
experience in terms of alumni support."

For Delaware, one of the top club programs in the nation, the Aberdeen Dad Vail Regatta is not only the highlight of the team's calendar, but also the alumni association's calendar. Last year an estimated 80 to 100 alums filled the Blue Hens' tent. There was eating and drinking and merriment. A grand ol' time. But while the good times were evident, there was much more at play under the surface.

"When you're on the team and spending hours and hours with the same people and you're all pushing yourselves to the limits a special bond is formed," said Eric Juergens, a member of the Delaware Men's Crew Alumni Association. "As an alum, you not only want to reconnect with people you rowed with, but you know what these younger rowers are going through so you want to support the team both emotionally and financially."

The success and stability of any athletic program - club or varsity - is the transference of tradition and ide from class to class to class. When crews come to the Aberdeen Dad Vail Regatta, their alumni pour forth in support.

"It's simply the magnitude of the regatta and the fact that it's run like a championship regatta," says Crawford, who led the Blue Hens from 1991 to 1996 and returned in 2002. "It's really the culmination of our season. Dad Vail, for us, is our true championship."

And, needless to say, the Aberdeen Dad Vail alumni tents are in championship form. The fervor is unmatched. Once crews pass underneath the Strawberry Mansion Bridge, distant cheers begin to echo. As the roar grows, the race picks up.

"For the first 1,000 meters, the river is quiet," says Shawn Duff, the president of the Delaware Men's Crew Alumni Association. "Then you hear the crowd. It gets your heart pumping. Everyone is down there, lined up along the river and getting rowdy, more than any other venue. It's very unique."

Unrivaled by any regatta, the excitement on Dad Vail's riverbank translates directly to the boats on the Schuylkill.

"At Dad Vail you're so amped up because it's such a big race," says Juergens, who was a senior on Delaware's 2008 men's Dad Vail points championship team. "You're pushing yourself to go faster and your cox is pushing you, but then suddenly you hear the crowd and realize you can go even faster. You can just feel the energy."

It's that type of energy that usually opens up wallets. College crews, especially of the club variety, are heavily reliant upon alumni donations and funds generated by student-athlete's
parents, whose espousal of the program often lasts long after their child's graduation.

Despite being a club program, Delaware's men's team conducts business as a firstclass varsity program with over 60 student-athletes. The operating cost is in excess of six figures. While the team's alumni association offers vocal support in its Dad Vail alumni tent, the regatta is also used to keep the program afloat.

"As a club program we're very dependent upon donations and anytime you get a large group of supporters together, especially in that type of environment, it can really help to raise a lot of funds," Juergens says. "When you're at an event like Dad Vail you want to donate as much as possible. There will be people who write checks right then and there directly to the team."

For Crawford, one aspect of Delaware's alumni tent at the Aberdeen Dad Vail can't really be quantitated. Umpteen rowers have come through his program. Young novice rowers come in as wide-eyed freshmen and leave as experienced seniors. In one way or another, Crawford connects with each one. But ultimately, graduation sweeps each away. At the Aberdeen Dad Vail, however, each is swept back for one wonderful weekend.

"The coach-athlete bond is a special bond," Crawford says. "You get to know these guys more than you would in a classroom atmosphere. Those relationships are so amazing because you carry them for life. We have social events like a winter cocktail party and an alumni regatta in the fall, but the most attended event is Dad Vail. It's a special bonding experience. Those guys that have been there before are the trailblazers. At Dad Vail they get to live through the rowers of today and get the special feeling of knowing they helped to build something."

Each Aberdeen Dad Vail tent is emblematic of a crew's unity. Whether it's the Delaware tent or the massive contingent from Purdue or the small gatherings from a few diminutive programs - those tents on that weekend represent each program's bloodline.

"The support certainly encourages the athletes and gives them a feeling that they're coming from a place with tradition," Crawford says. "Athletes responds to that. The fact that the kids know that the alumni are there gives them the drive to do the training early in the year. It's something that kids are all aware of."

Brendan F. Quinn
Editorial Writer
Dad Vail Regatta Organizing Committee
DVROC Office Line: (610) 234-2076
brendan.quinn@dadvail.org.
www.dadvail.org
www.twitter.com/DadVaildotTV

About the Aberdeen Dad Vail Regatta, Presented by Coca-Cola®
The Aberdeen Dad Vail Regatta presented by Coca-Cola is the largest collegiate regatta in North America with over 100 colleges and universities from the United States and Canada. Held annually since 1953 in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania on the Schuylkill River, thousands of student athletes and spectators visit the City of Philadelphia during the weekend of the second Saturday in May.

About Title Sponsor — Aberdeen Asset Management
Aberdeen Asset Management Inc is the wholly-owned U.S. subsidiary of Aberdeen Asset Management PLC, a global investment management group which is headquartered in Aberdeen, Scotland, and manages more than $287 billion of assets for both institutions and private individuals (as of Dec. 31, 2010). Philadelphia is home to the U.S. equity and fixed income investment management teams, as well as U.S. client servicing, consultant relations, business development and other operational staff: more than 180 employees in total. Aberdeen manages and services approximately $53 billion in total assets on behalf of North American and international clients. For more information, visit www.aberdeen-asset.us Here in the U.S., Aberdeen is also proud to be one of the supporters of the British Garden at Hanover Square, New York. This New York City park celebrates historic ties of friendship and unity between the U.S. and the UK. Globally, Aberdeen has a long standing association with university rowing competitions having sponsored the Oxford v Cambridge University Boat Race in the UK from 1999 – 2005. The company also continues to support the Aberdeen Universities Boat Race in Aberdeen, Scotland in their annual event which takes place every February.

About Presenting Sponsor — The Coca-Cola Company
The Coca-Cola Company (NYSE: KO) is the world's largest beverage company, refreshing consumers with more than 500 sparkling and still brands. Together with Coca-Cola, recognized as the world's most valuable brand, the Company's portfolio includes 14 billion dollar brands, including Diet Coke, Fanta, Sprite, Coca-Cola Zero, vitaminwater, Powerade, Minute Maid, Simply and Georgia Coffee. Globally, we are the No. 1 provider of sparkling beverages, juices and juice drinks and ready-to-drink teas and coffees. Through the world's largest beverage distribution system, consumers in more than 200 countries enjoy the Company's beverages at a rate of 1.6 billion servings a day. With an enduring commitment to building sustainable communities, our Company is focused on initiatives that protect the environment, conserve resources and enhance the economic development of the communities where we operate. For more information about our Company, please visit our website at http://www.thecoca-colacompany.com.

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