Hopefully we will get some boats on the water this summer...

Many thanks to those that have offered ideas, suggestions and encouragement in the humble beginnings of The Meaford Rowing Club. In no particular order...

My friend and former coach - the famous Mark Wilson -St. Catharines Rowing Club, Dave Richardson, Robin Dunn, our friends from the Georgian Bay Sailing School - Rhoda Ironside, Chris Collins & Greg Ardiel, Bert Chalmers, Ian Hawkins - Collingwood Rowing Club, Mayor Reif, Angelena Kwan and John Slade, Mike Hunter, Toronto Argonaut Rowing Club, Ken Wilson, Ian and Kim Shaw, Catherine Barney - Rowing Ontario, Dan Coholan, George Thompson, Chamber of Commerce, Mike Hunter, Mike Molloy, Ken Lane, Gough Lewis, Fishermans Wharf,
the community of Meaford and many more...

Meaford Rowing Club Logo
designed by the Community of Meafords own George Thompson

Many thanks to George Thompson for his creative work in the design of our rowing club logo.

www.rossiterboats.com

The Laser Sport Shell is a very practical, seaworthy training shell.

This 18-foot (5.5m) rowing shell was built for years by Laser. Hundreds of these boats were made in the 1980s. We bought the moulds and refined them and are building these boats again.

The Laser Sport Shell is built with fibreglass and has a full deck for improved safety. The boat has a light and strong sliding seat system, and NEW fully adjustable foot stretchers. Outriggers are stainless steel and can be quickly removed to help make transporting and storage very easy. There is a new convenient watertight hatch in the cockpit that has a removable storage sock.

The Laser Sport Shell has a full deck and a beam of 2'-4" (71.1cm) which helps to make this a stable and seaworthy training shell.

It is an elegant design. The novice rower will appreciate the stability of this design, and the fully closed deck which makes it practical to row in less-protected bays and rivers. It cannot be swamped.

Boats destined for Meaford Rowing Club arrive In Collingwood ...

Recently chatted with Ian Hawkins of the Collingwood Rowing Club who informed me, our boats have arrived safely in Collingwood, for winter storage. Many thanks to Ian, the Collingwood Rowing Club and our friends from the famous "Argonaut Rowing Club" for all their support. Our three boats (an eight and 2 (4's), no pun intended, will be delivered in the spring.

The Meaford Rowing Club

Announcement...

Mr. Ken Wilson will be the the first "Captain of the Boats"
for the new Meaford Rowing Club.

Received this email from Dan Coholan just before Christmas. Dan had viewed the link to the Meaford Rowing Club at www.meaford.com.

Hi John,

Does this still have legs?

I am a seasonal resident in Thornbury. I would be happy to discuss how I might be able to provide some help?

Dan


More Good News ...

Not only is Dan a former rower from the St. Catharines Rowing Club, a two time Royal Henley Gold Medalist, a former rowing teacher at Harvard, past President of the Halifax Rowing Club, need I say more. Dan has offered his expertise to our new club.

We're drawing a lot of talent and we've just begun...

Autographed caps by Anik Sorenson, Nick Price and Arnold Palmer

Great News for the Meaford Rowing Club ...

What a generous Christmas gift our new rowing club received from Angelina Kwan and John Slade who are presently in China. We are now in the possession of an autographed hat from Arnold Palmer and Bobby Hull, and another signed by Anika Sorenson and Nick Price. Wow, these are our first donations to our first fundraiser/auction for the Meaford Rowing Club which will take place in 2007...

Thank You so much Angelina and John!

On Christmas day I had the honour of attending Mollys birthday party on Christmas day in beautiful Meaford. What a great time I had, to say the least. I mentioned with excitement of the donation I had just recently picked up and would you believe Darryll, who was also a guest at the party offered the Meaford Rowing Club an autographed Sydney Crosby sweater and hockey stick. You could well imagine how thrilled I was...
It gets better ... a few moments later Darryll tells me, he is going to up the donation, to an autographed Bobby Orr sweater. Wow!

Thank You so much Darryll!

I will post the pictures on the website in the new year
www.meafordrowingclub.blogspot.com

The Meaford Rowing Club
is not exactly the rowing capital of the world yet...

But through the efforts of Collingwood Rowing Club President - Ian Hawkens, Catherine Barney of ROWONTARIO and our good friends in the rowing community, we will be receiving a four and an eight from the Argonaut Rowing Club and the famous four named "Woody" from Collingwood RC. Many thanks to our friends at the Collingwood Rowing Club...

Good News from Collingwood Rowing Club President - Ian Hawkens

Good morning John,

The Argo boat details are below and I am planning to see them this weekend in Toronto. I’ll take pictures of them and if you are interested in them I can show them to you .

Here is a brief description of the boats. All of them are wood, mid-hwt, rowable, come with seats and riggers, suitable for learn to row or novice, but raceable to some extent: ( as in, if it floats you can race in it)

We're only interested in “stern coxed 4’s” but thought if your club wanted any of them, we could have them all delivered over the next month or so. Does the Meaford club have any boats and are you rowing in 2007.

Looking forward to speaking with you I’ll be in touch next week.

Thanks,

Ian Hawkins
Sales Representative
Royal LePage All Real Estate Services Ltd
330 First Street, Collingwood
1-877-445-5520 ext 224
www.RealEstateatBlueMountain.com

More Exciting News for the Meaford Rowing Club...

Hi John,

I mentioned to the Collingwood RC that you were thinking about getting something started in Meaford. I'm not sure how far you are in the process, but I just received a lead on some equipment.

Argos offered CRC some boats, but CRC doesn't need all of them. According to the CRC president, "The Argonauts Rowing Club has 5 boats to a good home, we may take 2 but thought Meaford may be able to use some if they get up and running this year."

If you're interested, let me know. Please also let me know if there is anything I can do to help you get started.

Regards,
Catherine Barney
VP Membership and Club Development
ROWONTARIO

Local Champions Needed

• Knowledgeable in rowing.
• Residents with a long-term stake in the community and a commitment to starting a rowing club.
• A range of skills and experience, including: administration, not-for-profit governance & financial and human resource management; accounting; fundraising; publicity; wood/metalwork; automotive/technical

Call John Malloy at 519 379-3171 or Email: meafordrowingclub@gmail.com

Why Rowing?

If you think skimming aerodynamically over water under your own muscle power would be a blast, then rowing is for you. It’s all about balance, timing and teamwork. Slipping into a boat and pulling water solo or with friends develops muscle power, endurance and great friendships. Rowing is a fun way to get to know yourself and others!

Boats are propelled through the water by pulling on one oar (sweeping) or by pulling on two oars (sculling). All major muscle groups are used and the constant effort produces an excellent cardiovascular workout. In addition to the physical benefits of the sport, you can still hang out with friends, since rowers must learn to 'pull together' in crews of two, four or eight (when they are not in a single shell).

www.rowontario.ca