Officers
As an RSO at UW, the club is run by students who manage scheduling, finances, and membership.
Launch Drivers
Members also take turns leading practices and driving the safety launch. All drivers are CPR/First Aid certified and have a WA Boater’s License.
Head Coach: Mitch Sundt
Mitch has been a member of UBRC since ’88 and has introduced dozens of people to the sport through our IMA Rowing Skills class.
“I learned to row in my freshman and sophomore years at Brown in ’79 and ’80 — back when Brown crew was known for rowing the body of a 2k in the mid 20’s and “sprinting” in the final 500m somewhere in the low 30’s. We used wide stubby blades, with very heavy resistance, back when everyone else rowed with the classic Macon blades. The widespread adoption of hatchet blades in the ’90s was a bit of deja vu for me.
I stumbled upon UBRC when I came out west for grad school, and I became a member in ’88. I very quickly assumed the role of club treasurer and worked to hire coaches for the club. During this time, it became clear that it was not financially viable for the club to have paid coaches. In late ’89, I decided to take on teaching the club’s novice class and then jointly coached the club’s practices and became the head coach around ’92. I’ve been encouraging other club members to take on the challenges of coaching ever sense. I handed the head coach reins over to Gwen Wessels for a little over a year in the late 90’s before she wooed me back into that role as she moved on to other coaching opportunities. Since the late 80’s, over a dozen club members have stepped up and experienced the rewarding growth and personal experiences of coaching.
If I have a coaching philosophy, it is that everyone should have the opportunity to be stroke seat, experience bow, and be challenged to think about teaching and improving others’ rowing when serving as a coxswain or coach for our club practices and as a coxswain for the IMA Rowing Skills classes, which serve as our novice classes. I want the club practices to be rewarding in and of themselves — if members choose to compete in local regattas, I will work to prepare them, but I am not driven to rack up wins; I just want everyone to row well, and row well together. My general focus is on aerobic conditioning and endurance. Unsurprisingly, my favorite regatta is the Otter Island Traveling Regatta.