THE SPORT OF ROWING Thomas E. Weil Collection 1960 IRA Varsity Race Onondaga Lake 1 California 15:57, 2 Navy 16:02.2, 3 Washington 16:02.6, 4 Brown, 5 tie between Cornell and Penn, 7 tie between Dartmouth and Rutgers, 9 Syracuse, 10 Princeton, 11 Wisconsin, 12 Columbia previous coach with the newness and enthusiasm of the successor. The New York Times: “Starting slowly, as if it wanted to see what the opposition offered, California settled down to business and scored a stirring triumph in the Intercollegiate Rowing Association Regatta today. “The victory was the first by a Bear Varsity since a powerful California eight won from Washington at Poughkeepsie in 1949, when the famed Carroll (Ky) Ebright was the coach. “Ebright, however, retired last July after thirty-five years, and one of his protégés, Jim Lemmon, replaced him. As a result, those close to the rowing scene were not sure what to expect from California this season. “This afternoon, Lemmon’s charges showed he had done his job well. Boasting six victories in seven previous outings, the Bears posted their most important triumph in winning by a length and a quarter. “Navy finished second, and Washington was third, only four-tenths of a second behind the Middies. The rest of the twelve- boat field was strung out on Onondaga Lake.”4054 The 1960 Olympic Trials With Washington’s IRA loss, for the second Olympic cycle in a row there was no undefeated eight left by the time of the Olympic Trials.4055 No true favorite would emerge, not before the heats, and not after the heats were run. The New York Times, July 7, 1960: “Stirring finishes in all three eight-oared heats provided the excitement today as the weeding-out process started to determine the American rowers who will go to the Olympic Games in Rome next month. “California, the Intercollegiate Rowing Association Champion, topped Cornell’s Varsity by a deck length, the Navy Varsity 4054 Michael Strauss, Navy Eight Next, The New York Times, June 19, 1960 4055 See Chapter 68. 1122
