Boat Dedication and Scholarship in Sports Journalism
Boat Dedication Ceremony to be held May 9th
Three new boats added to the fleet this year will be dedicated on May 9 th at the Pete Archer Rowing Center.
The “Ed Graham” has just arrived at the boathouse having spent two weeks on the road in transit from its previous owner, Princeton.
The new four-man shell, to be named in honor of Boatmaster John O’Donnell, is on order.
The new John Boyle is in the boathouse and being rowed by the team.
This will mark the end of a successful series of fundraisers. The LBSU fleet, although still older, is in the best shape in decades and very competitive.
Thank you to all our members and friends for making this happen.
Remember to put May 9th on your Calendar. Details will be provided as we get closer to the event.
Emmet Smith Scholarship in Sports Journalism
People who rowed, or went to LBSU, in the 60’s will remember Daily 49er sports writer Emmet Smith.
Nearing 80, he was likely the oldest journalist to ever write for the Daily 49er. He was noted for his dramatic prose and is credited with the catch phrase “Iron men in wooden boats” to describe the Beach Crew team.
He was a champion of Beach Crew and did an exceptional job in publicizing our team to the community during its formative years.
The BCA Board decided to continue the tradition in his spirit and award an annual scholarship to two rowers to report on the men’s and women’s teams.
This year recipients are Phoebe Evans, men’s team, and Brittany Gonzalez reporting on the women’ team.
Spring update – Women’s Crew
By Brittany Gonzales
The Women’s team is back in action. After coming back from winter break, we started the week off with our first 2,000-meter ergometer race of the spring season.
We had several women on the team beat their personal record including Stephanie Mendoza (Junior), Samantha Sifuentes (Freshman), Victoria Sese (Junior), Samantha Dominguez (Senior), Sarah Beaston (Freshman).
We are pushing forward with training!
Our team has done extremely well in the preparations for the upcoming season. The things that have contributed to the success of our team are hard work, enthusiasm, dedication, and commitment.
We have a strong team of self-driven individuals, and our leaders are amazing. We have started making preparations for the upcoming season.
Firstly, we have set clear goals for the team, which are authentic, and all members believe in them. Our common primary focus is “putting the mind on the boat.”
Our much able and experienced coxswain has the objective of coming up with the best strategy and requires to build the trust with the other crew members.
Additionally, our team focuses on covering our blind spots in every season. The coaches ensure that every team member has a set of skills and unique role to play.
This has helped our team celebrate diversity, and every member feels proud of themselves for the team’s achievements. Moreover, we have good leadership that anticipates issues that may arise and makes the necessary adjustments on time.
Additionally, our team works in unison; this has given every one of us the confidence to make good decisions whenever called upon to do so.
Winning is the team’s culture, and so for the upcoming season, I feel that it will be the best for us. We have already done so much and we are just warming up as we usher in the season.
Over the years, our team has learned all the successful strategic approaches. Therefore, we are confident that next season we shall preserve our reputation and prove to our competitors and our fans why we are the best!
Our next race is March 14th, 2020 at the UCI Invite at UC Irvine Crew Base. The Women's team would love for everyone to come check out our race!
Spring Update – Men’s Crew
by Phoebe Evans
Spring training is in full swing for Men’s Crew. Both Novice and Varsity rowers are seeing improvements after committing to double day workouts in January. They continue devotion to the sport with daily time on the water, Monday through Saturday.
January brought double day work outs and the novices rose to the challenge. Ron Long, Novice Coach, commented “Beach Crew's first year rowers have been committing to the program in many ways - the biggest of which is increased attendance at workouts, including two weeks of double days in January”.
When asked to describe the novices, Long stated that, “they have shown good fitness improvements on the ergometer, and many have had their first experiences with seat racing as we determine the most effective boat movers for the quickly approaching spring racing season”.
The month was also spent recruiting for Men’s Crew on CSULB’s campus. All the athletes participated in recruitment events, such as Week of Welcome.
New rowers have committed to the season. “We are happy to add a half dozen promising new rowers to our novice squad”, comments Ron Long, “three of whom are 6'4" or taller.
These newest Beach Crew members are learning at a fantastic rate and are reaching to achieve massive untapped potential”.
Untapped potential permeates through the Varsity 1V boat as well. Record setting splits have been achieved on the water as Varsity Coach, Mike Long, anticipated. “Beach is Back!
After months of training the varsity team is moving towards the beginning of the competitive spring season. We’ve improved substantially from our Fall performances says Long. Comradery has grown between the Varsity and Novices, “this is a team that is exceeding my expectations in every way.
The team is positive, accountable, trusting and humble. We honestly don’t know how fast we’re going to be, so we are going to find our limits together through racing tough opponents”, Mike Long commented.
The team is thrilled to have both coaches guiding them into the spring. But no improvements would be made without the help of Boatman John O’Donnell. Men’s Crew deeply appreciates those like O’Donnell and the support of the BCA, the alumni, family, and friends through this exciting new chapter.
Come join us at our Spring Races.
The California Challenge Cup in Newport February 29th. The UCLA Classic in Marina Del Rey March 8th. The Newport Regatta in Newport March 22 and the SD Crew Classic April 4-5. WIRA is April 25-26 in Sacramento.
Row Beach!
A new option for donating to Beach Crew
If you are over 70 ½, or 72 after January 1, 2020, you are required to take required minimum distributions ( RMD) from you IRAs, regardless of whether you need the income. When you take the money out of your IRA, you pay taxes on it at the ordinary income tax rate.
Years ago, Congress legislated that individuals subject to the RMD could make up to $100,000 in charitable donations directly from their IRA to non-profits such as Beach Crew Alumni.
With the higher limits for itemized deductions under the current tax law, many taxpayers no longer get a tax deduction for their donations. By donating out of their IRA, they reduce their taxable income, benefit from the standard deduction, and still support their favorite charities. It’s a win-win.
Also, charitable deductions out of IRAs may reduce one’s income enough to impact their income-based Medicare payments and taxability of social security.
Each person’s tax and financial situation is slightly different. Pencil it out before you take the RMDs to see how it works for you. And, please keep Beach Crew in your giving.
Contact Dave Straley, BCA Endowment Fund Chairman, to learn more about this option.
My Favorite Race
In future editions of the B-Newsline we will be adding a feature titled “My favorite race”. Alums are encouraged to reminisce about their most memorable race or team experience.
Keep your story to a couple of paragraphs. Include a picture if you have one. We will feature a story at the end of each B-Newsline.
Contact Ken Glenn with your story.
