Georgetown University Graduation Weekend

May 2021, and it's time for Georgetown University's graduation!

We celebrate Taylor in her accomplishment of graduating with a Bachelor of Arts in Government and a minor in Psychology.

We are also celebrating her success on the crew team for the first two years of her college experience.  Unfortunately, Covid hit and brought that journey to an abrupt end!

Turning back to graduation weekend, Taylor was able to celebrate with her friends on Friday, May 21, before the official commencement program to share memories and walk the grounds of the Georgetown University campus!

I hope Taylor and her friends share these pictures with their friends and family.  Go HERE for the link to the pics of the special Georgetown Campus Photo Shoot.

Taylor's east coast family hosted a dinner party for Taylor and her family and friends, on Sunday, May 23, to celebrate her college journey.  For pictures of the dinner celebration go HERE.

The official commencement ceremonies were moved to Monday, May 24, at Nationals Park, the home to the Washington Nationals baseball team, to adhere to the current DC rules on social distancing at the time of graduation.

And now it's time to join the workforce and Taylor has accepted a position at Drew Elementary School, in the District of Columbia, and will start in this fall.

Congratulations Taylor, way to go!

Oh $hit, Covid Hit!

2020 changed everybody's lives, including the crew team at Georgetown University.  It basically brought the program to an immediate halt.

Here's the bad news and the good news of 2020!

Taylor was on a roll and we were looking forward to her Junior and Senior year on the crew team to celebrate her journey with her teammates.

We had so much fun watching her and her teammates grow in the 2018 and 2019 seasons.  For those races, results and pictures, see the posts below or the links in the side bar.  Unfortunately due to Covid, there was no 2020 or 2021 season!

Having said that, Taylor was able to focus on her studies and she excelled.  She is projected to graduate with a degree in government and a minor in psychology.

We look forward to her graduation in 2021.

Way to go Taylor!

2019 IRA National Championship Regatta

On Friday, May 31 through Sunday, June 2 the Georgetown Women’s LW Rowing team participated in the IRA National Championship Regatta, in Lake Natoma, Golden Lake, CA.

For more information on the 2019 IRA National Championship Regatta go HERE.

Taylor and her teammates were in the MVL4 boat for the Nationals. They raced twice, one heat and the final.  They came in 5th place in both races out of 8 boats.  Their MVL4 H1 time was 7:30.831 and their MVL4 GF time was 7:36.553.

The final results were Stanford, Boston, Wisconsin, Radcliffe, Georgetown, Princeton and MIT.  For the official results of the Regatta go HERE.

What a great way for Taylor to end her second season of her college rowing career and participate in this annual national championship.

Way to go Taylor and congrats to your teammates!

While I was not able to attend this Regatta, my niece Madison was able to make the trip and took pictures in my place.  Go HERE for the pictures she took of the Regatta.

Next year’s championship will be held May 29-31, 2020 at Mercer Lake, Princeton, NJ.

Enjoy the summer and see you next year!

Georgetown vs Harvard Duel

Saturday, March 30, 2019 was the day that the Georgetown (LW) crew was matched against Harvard on the Potomac River.

It was the opening of the Spring races for the crew team, and the day was great, warm, not a lot of sun during the races, but we’ll take what we can get in DC, in late March.

It was a match with only two teams (Georgetown vs Harvard).  As I try to learn what this sport is all about, this was the first time I experienced a duel.  Usually there are multiple teams running around and competing.

The good news, I could follow the races and track Taylor and her teammates with ease.

This was the first time Bronwyn and I watched her perform in a 4-boat format.

And Taylor Villante and her boat mates (coxwain Caroline Sterman, rowers Isabel Rose, Ellis Anderson and Mia Tsudis) did a great job on the Potomac!  They won by a margin of 4.8 seconds.

For a copy of the course map go HERE.

It's a 2,000-meter course that begins near Sprout Run (Three Sisters), runs under the Francis Scott Key Bridge and finishes at the Washington Harbour in Georgetown.

All I can say is that the Georgetown Crew rocked it!

For a link to the official recap and results of the duel between Georgetown and Harvard-Radcliffe go HERE.

Ok, I have a rant, because I don't understand something! Georgetown wins three out of four races (they win two 4's, Varsity and JV, and the 2 boat race but lose the one 8 Varsity boat) and lose the Class of 2004 Cup. Where I went to school, you win three out of four, you win it all and get to brag for a year.  It's called see you next year baby!

It was also nice to see her family in attendance (although Caitlin and TJ couldn’t make it), we were able to visit with Taylor's dad Tom and sister Catherine.  We hope to see more of them in the future.  For a great pic of Tom, Taylor and Catherine just after the Varsity 4 boat win go HERE.

The Villante family planned on touring our great city and the weather cooperated, turning sunny and 75 degrees, Saturday afternoon, after the race.  The Cherry Blossoms, at the Tidal Basin, were two days away from peak!  I hope they had a great time and got some great pics!

Bronwyn and I had lunch in Georgetown at Chaia and had to visit her favorite store Tuckernuck.  For that pic go HERE.  The Wojo girls know all about Tuckernuck and I suspect Caitlin and Taylor do too!

The young ladies from Georgetown did a great job bringing home multiple wins for the crew team even if they didn't bring home the Cup!

For pictures from the day go HERE.

34th Annual Head of the Occoquan

Saturday, November 3, 2018 was a beautiful day in the Washington, DC area to watch the 34th Annual Head of the Occoquan (HOTO) regatta in Fairfax Station, VA.

Believe it or not, this place is just 30 minutes from DC and this is the second time I’ve had the privilege to attend and see our California friend Taylor Villante row for Georgetown with her crew.

The HOTO is the sixth largest rowing regatta in the United States. The fall foliage was on display and spectacular to see.

I took the liberty of taking a view “artistic” pics to give you a sense of the surrounding area and the beautiful day for the races.  Days like today really make you appreciate living in the Washington DC area.

For a schedule of actual races by category go HERE.

I’m always amazed at the amount of folks this sport attracts from all ages.  This regatta not only had the collegiate level athletes it also caters to all enthusiasts of the sport and even had a 75+ group race today.

For an entire list of participants, which included 24 colleges and universities, local clubs, and two high schools, go HERE.  It should be noted that eight states and the District of Columbia were represented at this regatta.

Now let’s go racing!

Taylor and Ellie, yes, I got to see Ellie today too (although she was in a different boat)!  Taylor was in boat 121 and this time I was able to locate her on the water during the race and only took shots of her boat. Taylor is second from the front of the boat.

Taylor raced in the Collegiate Junior Varsity Women's 8+ category and finished in second place with a time of 18:12.85 out of five teams.

First place went to the other Georgetown team with a time of 17:43.84.  La Salle University, Robert Morris and George Mason University came in third, fourth and fifth.

For a complete list of results of the days activities go HERE.

For the official Georgetown report on the days racing go HERE.

For a slideshow of pics of the day, go HERE.

30th Annual George Washington Invitational

On Saturday, April 7, 2018, Taylor and Ellie rowed in the Georgetown LW 8+ boat at the 30th Annual George Washington Invitational.

This annual event is run on the Potomac River, featuring men’s and women’s rowing teams from 12 different colleges and universities over a two day period.  Their race was on Saturday morning, April 7th.

The following women’s teams (alpha order) competed:

  • Dayton
  • Drexel
  • George Mason
  • Georgetown
  • George Washington (Host)
  • MIT
  • Rhode Island
  • Saint Joseph’s

The 2,000-meter course begins near the Sprout Run area of the Potomac River with the finish line at Washington Harbor in Georgetown.  For a copy of the course map go HERE.

Now let’s go racing!

Yes, it was cold, damp and gloomy but the Georgetown Women’s LW 8+ won their race in a time of 6:27.90 beating out Dayton and George Mason in the three-way competition.

If you look closely at the final results, which can be found HERE, it appears the LW’s had a better time than the Georgetown Women’s OW 8+ (6:32.80), just saying!  Look at race #19 on Saturday's results list for the LW team times and race #18 for the OW team times.

While I don’t know everything about rowing (give me time people - it took me years to figure out that thing Mav use to yell at volleyball games - side out!), but they tell me the OW teams should outperform the LW teams every time.

All I can say to that is way to go Taylor, Ellie and your boat mates for a great race today!

And as a side bar, while driving home, snow flurries were in the air.  Having said that, there was a large contingent of spectators, including myself, that were bundled up and had a great time watching the races from the Georgetown Waterfront area.

For pictures of the morning race and prep, as well as, some candid’s of Taylor, Ellie and friends go HERE.

2018 Spring Occoquan Sprints

It’s Sunday, March 25, 2018, and it’s the time for the 2018 Spring Occoquan Sprints with 39 scheduled races, in this Sunday morning event, in Northern Virginia.

For more on information on Sandy Run Regional Park go HERE.  For a complete list of scheduled races go HERE.

It was so good to see Taylor Villante and her roommate Ellie Anderson.  They were in the JV 8+ boat today with three other teams competing for first place.

And wouldn’t you know it the Georgetown LW team came in first with Taylor and Ellie rowing hard and leading the team to victory in the 2,000 km race.  The Georgetown OW team came in second with George Mason and Franklin & Marshall filling out the field.  For a complete listing of official results go HERE.

By the way, for those who are asking, it was 34 degrees when the team went in the water and 37 degrees when they came out of the water.  Ouch is all I can say!

We got to visit with Taylor and Ellie before and after the race and Taylor told us about their Winter training session, in Sarasota, FL last month, and look at this nice REMINDER from all her hard work.

It’s always great to see Taylor and Ellie and we wish it were a little warmer for the Sprints today, but when in the DC area, March can have a few cold days.  Did I mention that the Federal Government shut down the previous Wednesday (five days prior to the races) due to a snowstorm,YES, a March snowstorm!  Not uncommon for the DC area over the years.

For pictures of the morning activities go HERE.

We look forward to Georgetown’s next event and seeing Taylor and Ellie on the water again soon.

Until next time!