Omaha daily bee., 1905-06-30
BY The LENGTH OF AN OAR
Yale Wins Varsity Race from Harvard in
an Exciting Finish.
BIG SURPRISE FOR SONS OF ELI
Blues Had Expected an Easy Victory
Crimson wins Varsity Four
and the Freshman
Eight.


varsity crew this afternoon wrested victory
from Harvard I'm the annual four-mile race
on the Thames by the length of an oar. |
After rowing for four miles with the shells
tapping and the graceful prows zlg-zagging
between strokes, the Yale boat crossed the
finish line ahead of the crimson Yale won
by two and one-half seconds The blues
times was 20 1874; Harvards was 22;36
Such a race has never before been rowed
In the twenty-seven years of racing be-
tween these old rivals. The Ellis went to
the starting flags confident of an easy VIC
tory, but Coach wray sprung a surprise on
| Yale and tonight his name is on the lips of
| every lover OF rowing the coming rival
OF John Kennedy, the professional coach at
| New Haven.
Harvard's cry tonight is. I'VE will lick
| them next year!" To this Yale replies with
a very serious wagging Of the heads Of her
rowing advisers, who see trouble ahead.
| Race starts Promptly.
| This afternoon the sailing craft practically
| formed an avenue for four long miles. The
race was scheduled to be rowed at 49O
| o'clock and was started less than eleven
minutes later The wind, which threatened
TO kick up the river early in the afternoon.
had calmed down and was. blowing almost
across the course and just quartering on
to row against, but the coaches sized up
the situation they saw there was no chance
| for fast time. The tide was running UP
stream strong, but the crews had the disad-
vantage of the wind. AS the two eights
| rowed to their stake boats the old spirit of
Harvard awoke with the customary long
'rahs, to which the Ellis flung back the
rattling cheer of old Yale.
At 4:4O o'clock Harvard was at its starting
-N.zIT
was in position Within five minutes
Referee Miekleham had given his instruc-
tions to the crews there was a fash of a
pistol and the strong arms and broad
backs swung back in the shells. The race
had begun. Yale got the best Of the start
and in the first half dozen strokes shot the
nose of its shell ahead. Just before the
first half mile was finished Harvard ran
its stroke up and began to cut down Yale's
lead
Yale finished the half in 2:22; Harvard in
2:23.
Yale Leads Length.
The Ellis were now leading by almost a
boats length. Harvard dropped its stroke
down to thrty-two and Yale again got
back the second which Harvard had gained,
and the New Haven boat passed the mile
and a half flag in s:O1 Harvard in s04.
The crews now began to strike the ship
channel just below the navy yard and
Yale got the benefit of the fastest water.
The time for the two miles was Yale.
10:47; Harvard 1888. Then the Harvard
coxswan called for a squirt and his crew
responded gamely At the same moment
Yale came very near meeting with an acct
dent An empty barrel had drifted into
the course of the Blues and 1t was floating
so low in the water that the nose of the
| Vol hall With fauv Of
when Coxswain Barkalow saw 1t and
cleverly steered his boat over into Har-
wards water just far enough that Yale's
outriggers passed over the obstruction.
This loss of headway, combined with Har
wards spurt, cost Yale two of its six sec
onds additional. Yales time at the three
mile flag was 1887; Harvard's 16:4S.
Last Mile n Fight.
The last mile of the race was a fight
never TO be forgotten by those fortunate
enough to witness it. Just beyond the
three-mile flag Meier, Harvard's No. 7, who
had been rowing a terrifice race seemed TO
have pumped himself out He was suffer
ing tortures and 1t looked as though he
could not possibly hold his form the rest
of the distance. The Harvard stroke
dropped to thirty-one, but 1t only stayed
! there for a very brief space of time. Sud
denly Meier seemed to get his second wind
and the crimson stroke went up two points
The Harvard shell began to gain on Yale
On every stroke the Harvard shell crept
up nearer and nearer the Yale boat Sud
denly the shells were once more Tapped
The Yale coxswain called for squirt and
the crew raised their stroke to thrty-four,
the highest that they had been taught to
row Still Harvard game. Up went
the Harvard stroke to thirty-four and over
} the last quarter OF a mile the prov of
Cambridge's shell began to gain inch by
inch on the stern OF the blues boat. -hc
J crews were only hundred yards from the
} finish and still II was either's race The
; crowd became wild with excitement. The
Harvard shell continued to creep up en-
the Yale boat and every man of the two
; crews was pulling out the last ounce of his
power when suddenly the flag at the finish
dipped and Yale was winner by the length
of oar
l Harvards men danced and hugged each
other as though they had won the race
Yale was so dazed by the fright which
r Wray's crew had given 1t that they forgot
! TO cheer for a few minutes. Then the Ellis
( suddenly realized that they had won the
closest race In Yale Harvard boating his
r tory, they let go their cheers until the hills
D reverberated.
AS Harvard passed the finish line Meier,