The morning news. [volume] (Savannah, Ga.) 1887-1900, 1899-06-26
P0UGHKEEPSIES RACE COURSE
WILL BE THE SCENE OF AN EXCIT-
ING CONTEST TUESDAY.

Attempt to Lower the FOur-AiIe
RecOrd-COIumbia,C Cornell, Penn
syIvania and Wisconsin VIII Meet
on the Famous COurse-Crews All
in Good COnditiOn-StrOkes of the
Different Crews.
Poughkeepsis, N. Y. June 25.-All indi-
cations point 10 a lowering of the inter-
collegiate worlds record for four miles,
for eight-oared shell. when the crews of
Columbia. Cornell. Pennsylvania and Wis
consin meet on this river Tuesday next,
for never in the history of this now ia
nous course have the. crews seemed to be
so evenly matched as are those here at
present.
1t Is fitting, if the record is to be broken.
that it should be here. for here under
the shadow of the great Poughkeepsie
bridge, Cornell, in 1896. established a new
worlds record of 10 minutes and % sec
onds. The last few practices of the crews
have shown much similarity in the crews
and the stroke, and the respective speeds
than has been noticeable before and the
boats travel so well in practice that they
will undoubtedly be very close together
curing most OF Ine TOUR InileS.
on Monday, June 26. at o'clock in the
afternoon, a race between four-oared
crews of Pennsylvania and Cornell will
open the two days racing This is prac-
tically a match race. although the COM
mittee of the Poughkeepsie Highland Re
gatta Association are hoping that next
year it will lead to entries in singles,
1oubias and othar fot1rs n make
the sport general This race of four-oared
crews will but whet the appetite for the
race of the freshmen Fights of Columbia,
Cornell and Pennsylvania, which occurs
at on the same afternoon.
On Tuesday, June q, at 4 O'Clock in the
afternoon. or as soon thereafter as the
weather will permit, the race of the var
sity Fights of Columbia, Cornell. Penn
sylvania and Wisconsin will be rowed.
This is the race that well-informed experts
say is to be one of the closest and fastest
ever rowed by college crews.
Condition of the Crews.
The crews are in the pink of condition
and have devoted every minute of their
time to the work in hand. There are no
suggestions of staleness, or of not enough
nerve, and each coacher to-day claims that
his men are all in the best of condition.
Columbia University, which averages
about 1853 pounds, coupled with an average
hight of feet liz inches as in COMPARE
son with the crew of Wisconsin, which for
its average hight of feet and inch has
but an average weight of 1852 pounds.
The men have been under the personal
direction of their coaches for many weeks,
and their frankness in claiming exemptions
from such training diseases as have here
tofore formed excuses for losing crews, Is
refreshing.
Charles Courtney, who for years has
trained Cornell for their great series of
victories. is in charge of the Cornell crew
this year. DR.. Peet, an old rowing and
athletic enthusiast, is in charge of Column
bia, and has had to change the mems
methods, so much that he has had a very
hard task Ellis Ward is the Pennsylva-
mia coach He has in the past three
years brought his men up to wonderful
standard. In two races in which Penn
syIvania has seemed to have a good
chance for winning she has swamped on
this course with no apparently good rea-
son for it except ~splashing of the oars.
The coach of Wisconsin is mere boy,
c. c. McConville. who only few years
ago strolIed a varsity crew which beat
Yale He was a pupil of Andrew O'Dea.
The freshman crews of Pennsylvania,
Cornell and Columbia are in splendid con-
dition and the two-mile race win be done
in fast time. This is always an exciting
race because its brevity gives a chance for
a display of dash and spurt-rowing not
nossible in the long four-mile race of the
senior eights. The pair-oared race will be
roWed over the two-mile course also.
The Poughkeepsie varsity course OF four
miles runs along the west side of the riV-
er in the shadow of the high hills and be-
gins at point three mics above Pough-
keepsie bridge, finishing a mile below. 1t
4,.&t 10Th 1T+nNN ire
could be and the current of the river af-
fects it but little, if the race is not rowed
al a time when the up-tide makes a
swirl in the shallow water. The miles
are marked with big round white disks
and the entire race is visible from an OBJ
servation train which runs on the west
side of the river. The two-mile course for
the four-oared and freshman eight is row.
ed from the two-mile point of the course
to the finish.
The course holds the worlds record four
miles. it having been established by
Cornell in 1896, when the Ithacans Travelled
the four miles in 10 minutes % seconds.
The Famous Strokes.
The Cornell. or what is more commonly
known as the Courtney stroke" has dis
tnctive features of its own. 1t is gener-
ally conceded that Cornell shells drag less
between strokes than those of any of the
other colleges. Even the freshman crew,
which Coach Courtney has trained this
year. keeps the boat moving smoothly on
the recovery and there is little loss Of
power The varsity shell has been
checking more than usual this year, but
Cornelrs coach does not consider that this
fault will seriously handicap his eight
when il enters the big race next Tuesday,
as he intends to work it off before that
date.
From the beginning of the stroke, or the
catch, the Cornell oarsmen keep their
backs perfectly Straight. The arms are
not bent until the body has had its full
swing Then the hands are brought quick
ly in toward the body. the elbows being
kept low and close TO the sides. On the
feathering of the oar the wrists are drop
ped in a sweeping, graceful curve and
the arms are again Strengthened to their
| full extent. At the catch the wrists are
turned slightly downward, and the oar,
instead of entering the water at right an
giles. as the Quaker stroke, dips at an
angle of near.y 45 degrees and is turned
after it is in the water.
! The Columbia new stroke. as taught by
/ Or. Walter b. Peet. requires the man on
/ the reach to reach out 10 the fuu extend
]