RegattaCentral

2019 Mercer Lake Sprints

April 19-20, 2019

WEATHER UPDATE: 

1:30PM Update

Due to continued wind making the start area unrowable, the remaining races will be all run as 1000 meter sprints.

As of 4/20/2019 9:35 AM

Due to the gusting south winds, racing for this morning will be 1000 meter sprints.  This will be reassessed during the day. 

As of 4/20/2019 7:55 AM

New schedule is found here.

As of 4/20/19 6:45 AM

DUE TO THUNDERSTORMS IN THE AREA, RACES ARE DELAYED UNTIL 10 AM. Please check back for an updated race schedule.

As of 4/19 7 PM

We are closely monitoring the weather (wind & storms). At this time, all Novice 4Xs will be 1000 meter with a floating start keeping the same race times. All other races are scheduled as is. If the cross wind in the first 500-700 meters becomes too rough, we will shorten to 1000 meters floating start AND KEEP ALL RACE TIMES THE SAME. We will not be condensing the schedule. We will make decisions as conditions warrant to row a full course or shortened course. 

As of 4/19 10:30 AM

We will be running 1000 meter races starting at noon on Friday. The revised schedule can be found on the Head Sheet/Draw tab. Saturday schedule has not been changed. Please continue to monitor this site for updates.

As of 4/18/19 5 pm

We will be making a change to the Novice 8 events tomorrow (Friday). They will race after the heats and before the finals of all the small boats. This is a final decision. We will be making a decision on whether to shorten races to 1000 meters for all Friday events by 10:30 on Friday at the coach/coxn meeting. We will post these two race schedules later tonight. Check the Heat Sheet/Draw tab. 

We are closely monitoring the weather for this weekend and want to pass on some discussions on contingency plans. First, we are committed to running the races and will only cancel if there is no feasible way to safely race. 

The wind looks to be the biggest problem but the good news is that it's predicted to be from the south which isn't the worst wind for Mercer. The problem is that at the forecasted 18+ mph, the first 700 meters of the course as well as the warmup area will be unrowable. If that is the case, we will plan to shorten the races to 1000 meters with floating starts and NO WARMUP. If we go this route, we will launch crews together in race order (meaning, the only crews on the water will be those racing or on deck to race). 

The other change to the schedule that we are looking at is to shorten the centers and move racing to a noon to 3 pm time block on Friday. The wind is predicted to get worse throughout the day, so we'd like to get races in earlier in the day rather than later. This will mostly impact the novice 8s that are currently scheduled to race between 5:10 and 6:10. 

We would still like to run heats and finals but if we go to floating starts, the progression will NOT include the next fastest time. It will be top 2 or 3 from each heat (depending on number of heats) for a 6 boat final. And finally, if it really doesn't look good, we may go to a time trial for all events with finish order determining final place if we are unable to run finals. 

Saturday looks a little better but not much. 

We will post any changes to the PNRA website and Regatta Central and will give an update by tomorrow (Thursday) at 6 pm. A final decision will be made at 10:30 Friday at the coach/coxswain meeting. 

The 2019 Mercer Lake Sprints will be held on Friday afternoon and Saturday, April 19-20 to account for Easter falling on Sunday, April 21.

UPDATE: There will be a brief practice window on Friday, April 19 from 10:30 to 11:30 a.m. All practicing crews must be OFF the water by 11:30. Singles may launch once all crews are off the water.

Volunteers Needed. Please check available shifts here. Email Hilary ([email protected]) with any quesitons. 

Details for 2019:

• Registration opens at 7 a.m. on Saturday, March 2.
• Novice races are 1900 meters with a floating start. Novice 8+ will be Friday afternoon, novice 4X on Saturday morning.
• There will be a 1900m Time Trial for both Men’s and Women’s 1X’s on Friday. Top 7 advance to Final A.
• All other races are 2000 meters
• Due to the condensed schedule, the following changes have been made for 2019:
  • the straight four (4-) event has been eliminated for 2019. It will return in 2020!
  • there will be no Final B for any event
  • the progression for Final A will be top 2 (or 3) in each heat plus the next fastest time in the event to give a 7 boat final.
  • there are no practice sessions available on Friday or Saturday.
• Medals will be awarded to top 3 in each Flight as well as each Final (not heats)
• Winning crews will also receive a t-shirt (one for each rower/coxswain)

Tentative Race schedule can be found here. 

MERCER COUNTY PARK HAS ADOPTED A NO DRONE OR RADIO CONTROLED AIRCRAFT POLICY.  NO DRONES OR RADIO CONTROLED AIRCRAFT WILL BE ALLOWED AT ANY REGATTA HELD ON MERCER LAKE.

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