Norwich bulletin., 1921-06-25


 yard crew on the Thames river at New London Friday afternoon by a scant three-quarters length in a gruell- | ing four-mile race in which open Wa ter never once showed between the shells. But 1-5 seconds separated vic tor and vanquished at the end of what was one of the closest and most spectac- ular aquatic duels ever staged by the two ancient and famous collegiate rivals. The official times were:
 Yale, 20 minutes, 41 seconds.
 Harvard, 20 minutes A 1-5 seconds.
 Tonight Yale adherents are celebrat- ing the victory with exceptional fervor for the blue once again leads in the record of wins. Today's triumph placed the Els ahead of Harvard by margin of one victory. The score standing Yale 27 varsity conquests to Harvard's 26. Additional joy is registered for the blue oarsmen emerged triumphant after sea- son of reversals which included the sen sational dismissal of Coach Guy Nick alls just three weeks before the regatta of today and the installation of P. J. Corderry, who was Nickalls' assistant in the place of the famous English coach. The exceptional showing of both the freshmen and varsity eights today and the thrilling and courageous manner in which Yale oarsmen answered every challenge of the Harvard sweepswingers | lifted Yale enthusiasm to fever pitch. Friday night New London was witness | ing revival of the famous scenes of eel | ebration which in recent years have been conspicuous by their absence. | Conditions were almost ideal for fast race when the eghts appeared at the starting line shortly after ?. m. both wind and current were down stream. Blue Jumps Into Lead.
 The water under the west bank of the | Thames was as smooth as mirror when the Yale eight rowing fl strokes to the minute leaped into a lead after a few seconds of flying drivers. Harvard opened one stroke lower and once strengthened out Yale dropped to 32 beat while the crimson kept the stroke two notches higher. Nevertheless Yale led by a second at the half mile flags but lost the advantage for short per iod in the latter half of the initial mile
 At the mile and a half the officia timers caught the two shells absolutely even each being clocked in 7.5o.
 Yale slowly forged ahead until at tho two-mile flags the Ellis were about ar eighth of shell length in the van and rowing powerfully but in rather ragged fashion. With a 31 stroke to Harvard: | with every heave and at the two and z half mile mark was third of a lengtf in front.
 Harxard's Great Squirt. This advantage was increased to al most length at the end of three mile and Yale cohorts on trains. shore ant river craft were cheering wildly. but the! : counted without the fighting spirit of tn Harvard crew for it was here that tn Cambridge combination cut loose with spurt which for moment appeared like 7 ly to turn defeat into victory.
 Without materially increasing tn stroke, which was averaging about 3 , the crimson oarsmen put an addtiona , heave and lift into every beat Tn Harvard shell began to creep up. tn l knife-like prow passing first the strok , and the number seven, six and five in tn Yale boat
 stans off Crimson Drive. l It was the crucial moment of thu race but the Yale crew rallied and witr in a few seconds was under full headwa again. Exhausted and spent as the were every challenge and spurt of Hal 2 yard was answered by a similar das
 and smash from the Ellis. The Can bridge drive resulted in a net gain C . about a half length but the effort too I much of the reserve power from tn
 crimson oarsmen and soon Yale va f leading by three-quarters of lengt h again.
 Q This distance separated the two eight . at the three and one-half mile flags an
 this was approximately the margin
 victory when the two shells slid undt
 the railroad bridge at the finish line. S Crews Waver Near Finish. a The closeness of the race and tr a efforts to hold or regain the lead tol V heavily upon the individual members r the crews. Both were rowing in ragge
 form during almost all of the last mi Il and the shells at times apeared to To: 7, headway only to come forward agai o with another desperate spurt. The strol
 near the finish was maintained at 34 1
 Harvard and one beat less by Yale bl
 much of the force was gone and Il
 stroke and recovery more or less m
 chanical.
 , Captain Hord, at No. 4, in the "a shell, was the first to show the stra Il of the struggle and wavering and swim Il ing on his slide completed the final ha mile in a semi-conscious condition to co lt lapse completely at the finish. Strol le Haldeman and Carmen at No. all Is showed the effects of the long battle b T all were soon erect on their slides aga It. after moments rest.
 e. Tn the Harvard sheT1 the strain to
 equally and 1t was wobbly eight tn
 dropped their sweeps at the boom of u
 finish gun but like Yale, they were sot ,r ready to step Into the coaches 1aun M for the return trip to training qua ~, ters
 I The final two miles of the river co1r - was brilliant with bright Tagged yach H. in which the blue of Yale and the cril son. pennants of Harvard formed [ IL chief decoration. More than forty 0 - servation cars crowded to capacity f sn lowed the crews. while thousands of a ID tomobile parties and spectators afc
 gathered near the finish and at oth " points os vantage along the shores. IT. While the great majority of the SD, an tators did not arrive until afternoon, a d missed entirely the forenoon races, 'o- which Yale won the freshman race a es Harvard the two mile junior varsity e ne test, the late influx was perhaps in ( .. cess of recent regattas.
 ry There was very little wagering on { le- result, and what few bets were ma ad were between friends and at even mon
 The official times of the two crews Ire the four mile varsity race at every h
 mile point follows:
 Yale. Harva
 1-2 mile .... ...... 2.23 PA