Spring Break 2024 Recap
Earlier this month, we made our annual trip down to Gainesville, Georgia for our spring break training trip. The team woke up bright and early on March 8th to begin our trek from campus to Lake Lanier Olympic Park. The trip was productive, with every boat making important technical improvements as we got on the water. We were very grateful to the several Illinois Rowing alumni who came out to act as guest coaches, who helped contribute to our development over the break. It was an exciting, yet tiring set of days as we got to work doing double or even triple sessions each day, getting in a lot of mileage and technical work.
Apart from our technical work and mileage sessions, the team had a few opportunities for some racing over break. On Friday, we held a full-team battle paddle in mixed lineups of crews for some fast-paced, friendly competition within the squad.
To close out our training trip, our coaches organized a scrimmage with other various collegiate crews that were training at Lake Lanier. This unique opportunity to race crews that we do not usually get to see in our regular season was an invigorating taste of competition as we prepare for our spring regatta season.
When the team was not training, the Gainesville area provided a lot of experiences for team bonding. Early in the week, some of the team went hiking at Don Carter State Park. As the week went on, the Big Ten men’s basketball tournament moved into high gear. The team, of course, made sure to tune in to every game, which emphasizes that no matter where we go, orange and blue still runs through our veins! ILL! From team dinners at Señor Fiesta and Johnny’s Pizza to trips to Cook Out and Waffle House, the team shared a lot of great meals and memories together. The team would also like to extend a thank you to the Slattery family for their generosity to the team and its athletes during this year’s trip. We are incredibly grateful for the meals and accommodations they provided for the team.
After a week filled with lots of productive water sessions and team bonding, the team is eager to hit the ground running as spring racing season approaches!
