Dan's Papers - July 4, 2008 - Row With the Hamptons Current

Water is the world when it comes to the Hamptons. When you are out on the water, whether on a sailboat, paddle board, surfboard or kayak, you feel a connection to nature unlike any other. In the Hamptons, water activities are part of the daily summer life of most residents. We go to the beach and dip our toes in the ocean or we jump right in and body surf for the day. Feeling the salt water of the ocean around you is magical, and most experts agree that salt water offers healing powers not just for the body, but for the mind as well.

What is probably most amazing about this area is its passion for caring about and protecting our waterways. We have a lot of fun playing in the water, and we want to keep it natural and clean so that our children and our children's children continue to enjoy the life out here that all of us have been lucky enough to experience. Almost every single water sport in the Hamptons has caught on. Even the super new ones like stand up paddle boarding have made a big impact on the Hamptons. But, there is one very traditional water sport that dates back to the time of sailing that has simply never made its way to the Hamptons. That is, at least, until now.

Rowing is finally east of the Shinnecock canal. A rowing club in Sag Harbor has opened its doors to sculling classes, pair rowing, four man and eight man boats. The Sag Harbor Community Rowing Club has long been an idea in the making, and, thanks to Lee Oldak, just about anybody with a desire to learn about rowing can join up and begin gliding on the water.

The only other rowing club that has been even remotely close to the Hamptons is the East End Rowing Club, which is located in Riverhead. The East End Rowing Club offers training to high school students and hosts 20 schools at the invitational Snowflake Regatta - arguably the only serious rowing race for the East End. The Sag Harbor Community Rowing Club is in the early stages of offering the same kind of training for students and athletes alike.

Just because they are in the beginning stage, however, doesn't mean that you can't learn the thrill of what it is like to power a boat in sync with others, flying across the top of the water on a flat day in Sag Harbor. The Sag Harbor Community Rowing Club offers rowing to its members any time of day. Of course, in the collegiate rowing tradition, the Sag Harbor Community Rowing Club has no problem getting up before 7 a.m. to row. Lee Oldak is sticking to his, "If you build it, they will come," motto.

When you are out in Sag Harbor on a skull or crew boat, developing that connection to the water that so many of us seek happens nearly instantaneously. Rowing is a graceful sport and, like anything, if you want to get good at it, you really have to work at it. The first time you step out onto a skull, you are going to find it a bit awkward. Like kayaks, crew boats can tip over easily. Unlike kayaks, however, it's the importance of centering the boat that allows it to gain any type of power or speed. Because balance is so incredibly difficult to attain, but also so crucial, rowing can feel very much like surfing because there is a moment where you completely break through all of its difficulties and can simply dance with the water.

Sag Harbor Community Rowing was able to start up because people out on the East End of Long Island understand the importance of contributing some of their hard earned money for valuable causes. Because of Bettina Stelle, the rowing club now has a brand-new quad that is named after her father Thomas Keller, the president of FISA, which is the governing board for international rowing. Nancy Newman and Ray Pride donated a single rowing shell, East End rowing has donated an eight and a quad, and the International Recreation and Open Water Rowing Association has donated two pairs.

I highly recommend you give rowing in Sag Harbor a try. I rowed in college, and it changed my life when it comes to my abilities in physical fitness. You can join the club for just $250 a year. If you have kids interested in rowing, you can enroll them in their rowing camp, which starts on July 7. Get out there and row! Visit www.rowsagharbor.org for more information.