Women's Crew Diary - Jen Prunoske
3/2/2004 7:00:00 AM | Women's Rowing
March 1, 2004
It has been a long two weeks haul. First traveling off to Boston Saturday afternoon and the 6.5 hours it took to get there then race for 8 minutes and drive back the 6.5 hours to be back at Bucknell late Sunday night. I began preparing a week before.....lots and lots of erging. I went 7-7 during the week that is seven practices and seven ergings. It was strange to be working out at the higher ratings and speeds; I use to love those, now I have become comfortable at lower ratings and pulling slow hard strokes. The team was great; all week people were cheering me on whenever they saw me on the ergs in the fitness center. I got two posters and two cards with tons of words of support and advice. It made me feel good about going. The team was behind me.
We got there Saturday night and were able to just relax and hang out. Then the races would be Sunday. My heat was scheduled to go off at 2:45. As time for my race approached I got nervous. I usually get nervous before a race just because I want to do well. But this was more. I was representing Bucknell. I wanted to get that 6:59 for me, the team, and my family. The set up was different than what I was used to from the Armageddon. The ergs were set up around the inner area of an indoor track facing outwards. The TV screens with the little boats were behind the rowers and the cameras and crowd were right in front. The ergs were cool, huge displays with tons of neat functions....Vi (my coxswain) and I were tempted to sneak one home (jk). The race time almost upon me and I come to find out the broadcasting of the Crash Bs is not replays or highlights later that night, no, it is live. Everyone watching is seeing what is going on at the time it is occurring....scary thought.
I sat down for my race and when we were sent off I went. The beginning of my race plan was easy to follow. Then came the dreaded third 500 meter mark. It is the hardest part of the race. It is when the strong pull out from the pack, when all the training that you have done up until this point comes to matter. It seemed so hard. The erg seemed heavier than I remembered. I could hear my coxswain and Marika yelling in the background. But I had to finish.
Finally the race came to an end. No PR for Jen. Still at the same old 7:14 but out of 80 people in the first heat of openweight women I came in 12th and 32nd overall out of 351 rowers in the openweight women's event. When I returned home I had messages all over the place of teammates telling me they had watched online and were loud and cheering even though they knew I couldn't physically hear them. The room was decorated and a "Crew Luv" balloon was there and it is still here a week later.
This past weekend, it was time for home court advantage Bucknell's Annual Erg Armageddon. I have always enjoyed and aimed for the Armageddon as being my time. Having all the crew cheering each other on was great. PRs were broken all over the place. Some by huge chunks and others by small amounts that are no less amazing. My team is great. The support they give each other. The Bucknell rowers had crowds behind them cheering, in front of them cheering and off to the side. It was a day for Bucknell to shine out. Many medals were given out to Bison rowers yesterday, and that is so impressive. It inspires me to try even harder for the team. I believe that in a majority of the events there was at least one Bucknell rower representing the school, the program, and themselves proudly. When I come upon those hard days later in the season, I will look back at these days and say to myself, "That is why I do this because of the people on this team who give it their all to everyday of the week, even on Sunday."