New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1916-06-11
AT
POUGHKEEPSIE
YET UNCERTAIN
Relative Merits Of Crews
Unknown, but Syracuse
Is Favored.

tnOUVn less iIibi WIN l'ioiHo R'ANA u
the intercollegiate regatta TO be rowed
on the historic Highland course on Sat
urday. it is impossible 20 get any accur-
ate idea of the relative merits Of the
Columbia. Cornell. Pennsylvania and
Syracust varsity Fights which are to
clash in the four-mile struggle from
Crum Elbow to Yellow Point.
OF the four, Syracuse IS the only
crew which has come through the pre-
liminary season indicated, and for
this reason the eight from the Onon-
dago is looked upon with greater favor
than any one oil the three others, de
spite the fact that both Columbia and
Cornell have made rapid strides in the
last few days and are fast approaching
the top Of their form. Pennsylvania *
still as erratic AS its early season rec
ord would tend 20 indicate, but tn"
Quakers are not out Of IT by any means
yet. because they have a crew that is
likely TO surprise every one u 1t ma
conditions TO it's liking.
This year will be the first since 1897
that no Western crews have been IN
the regatta. and ii is the first since 1899
that only four crews are scheduled 20
take part. II was found as the time
drew near for the regatta that neither
Washington nor Stanford would be
able 10 come East. and az the eleventh
hour both announced their intention OF
not participating this year
Syracuse Experienced.
Without question Syracuse has the
i most experienced set of oarsmen on the
b river because the majority of the men
+ in the varsity boat are veterans OF the
/ Duluth Boat Club crews. In addition,
they put in a year in the Syracuse
/ freshman shell last spring and are
/ mighty powerful and husky lot White
| side. the stroke oar. takes rank with
/ the best that have rowed on the Hud-
/ son and the crew as a whole measures
W TO the standard maintained with
fair consistency by Jim Ten Eyck
/ Syracuse men have the most pro-
/ found confidence in this crew and are
counting on the fact that it is a Presi-
Dental year to pull them through.
Syracuse swept the varsity race IN
1904 and again in 1908, both Presiden-
. tia years. Something happened IN
1912. but the Orange came through IN
B 1913 with its third victory. Now Svra-
cusc feels that 1916 is to see another
: Orange triumph.
DESPITE the fact that he has a power
ful crew Ten Eyck has not varied the
+ stroke which ne has taught from the
beginning. The body swing Is short,
+ shorter than that OF any other crew on
the river. To compensate for this lack
Of length in the stroke the beat is
maintained at a high mark at all times,
and the she'll never gets chance 20
/ lose pace because the oars are hardly
/ out Of the water before they are
brought forward and iammed home for
the next stroke. II is poyertul crew
and one which the other coaches right
fulIv fear. II averages in weight 1854
pounds. in age twenty-five years and IN
height 6 feet 4, inch.
Fight for Courtney.
Cornell has more to fight for TINS
wear than ever. Every man IN the
Cornell eight feels that it is lncum-
bent upon him to win this last victory
for the Old Man. Charles f. Courtney.
Who has been the heart and soul OF
Cornell rowing for 50 long. 1t IS their
utmost desire to bring the Old Mans
active career TO an end with brill
liant victory.
In personnel the Cornell 'garsity
boat is. with two exceptions, the crew
that suffered disastrous defeat at the
hands Of Harvard three weeks ago.
According TO the venerable Courtney,
however. the crew when il faced the
Crimson was not ready. With the three
weeks Of hard work that have elapsed
since then the Ithacans have ironed
out many of their faults and are row.
ing in wellnigh perfect FORM
John Collyer, stroke. Is veteran OF
two years experience one IN the
varsity shell and one in the freshman.
He is the lightest man in his crew
weighing only 100 pounds. The eight
from Ithaca rows the same easy stroke
that has always marked the rowing OF
Cornell crews. The greatest effort
comes when the oar is at right angles
70 the she'll and both the catch and
finish are comparatively easy. On the
/ other hand however, it would not be
fair 70 say they were neglected.
Cornell has the heaviest Of the four
crews, with an average weight Of 1908
mounds. IL is likewise the oldest crew.
averaging 22s years, while IN height
il stands feet ia inches.
+ Columbia Improving.
Columbia has shown greater improve
ment in its short stay at Poughkeepsle
than any Of the other crews. and is
gradually working into excellent condi-
ton. Leys the new stroke oar. Is prov
ing himself q more capable and cooler
headed stroke oar than Captain Brat
ton in every trial, and Rice is enthu
siastic over him.
The Columbia men have the longest
body swing OF any of the crews, and
their oar does the greatest amount of
work eacn time il is in the water. The
men reach out for clean hard catch,
pull through with a mighty heave and
finish with kick and lift that send
the shell spinning along, without a
check. until the next stroke is begun.
Where Columbia is at "A disadvantage,
however. is in the matter of physical
equipment The crew averages only
1914 pounds, and is the lightest of the
/ four. Where Cornell has only one man,
Ccllyer, weighing less than l65 pounds.
/ Columbia has three who tip the scales
under 100. In age Columbia is two
! years younger than Cornell. although
/ in height it stands the tallest on the
/ river, with an average of 6 feet y inch.
Penn Crew Uncertain.
Pennsylvania has not determined
definitely yet which of its crews will
be the varsity combination. The
junior varsity has been defeating the
! varsity so consistently that there is
/ little doubt that this is the crew that
will be assigned the task Of rowing in
the four-mile race. Good stroke that
he is, Harry Ross, in the present var
sity shell. does not seem able TO inspire
7 his me- to great heights. Drayton, the