THE AGE OF ENLIGHTENMENT stimulation of the collegiate scene and for his wide-ranging contributions to our sport. He is a master of the game. “Harvard? Yeah, they were reliable competition. It was good to have them around to keep us loose. “Ted Nash lived as if he would not see 50, and here he is today [2006] well into his 70s, looking great and still producing champion crews. He has been a huge influence on so many, many lives. “Has he pissed off a few folks? Well, run with the dogs or stay on the porch, laddie. Or, alternatively, if one has a better idea and keeps mum, then shame on thee! “Not Ted!! “What’s not to like about Ted Allison Nash? He’s a protean force, and I am grateful to know him.”5946 Nat Reece: “Ted used to sign his letters: ‘Best in sports, Ted.’ “We always suspected he was well aware of the possible double-meaning.”5947 College Boat Club During the 1970s, as Ted Nash continued coaching the Penn undergraduate heavyweight crews, an increasing amount of his energy started going to graduate crews preparing for international competitions. These crews competed under the auspices of College Boat Club, carrying on a rich Penn tradition that included graduate crews in 1936 under Coach Rusty Callow and in 1964 under Coach Joe Burk. At the end of the 1968 Mexico City Games, one member of the undergraduate Penn Olympic Coxed-Four5948 vowed to qualify for the next Olympic Team in 1972. That person, Luther Jones, was one of 5946 Stevenson, op. cit. 5947 Reece, personal correspondence, 2007 5948 See Chapter 95. many Penn rowers who carried on for Ted after they graduated. 1972: Staines and Jones Luther Jones: “After rowing in the Olympics in 1968 and in the Threevee for Joe in 1969,5949 the 1970 season was very hard on me. We were flying at the Adams Cup and beat Harvard by open water, but then the boat just got slower and slower. I was tired, both physically and mentally. “Many people have said that the intensity of Ted Nash can eventually burn a person out. The next year I rowed mostly for Vesper next door. Ted asked me to come back for a week to row in the Eastern Sprints, which I was happy to do, but my biggest priority that year was graduating from Penn.”5950 “As I look back at the spring of 1972, I only recall a couple of things. I rowed pretty hard at Vesper in fours and pairs, with an occasional eight-oared day. It was clear that my options were limited. I was not in any No. 1 Vesper crew, and I was not feeling good about my Olympic prospects. “The ‘72 U.S. Eight and Four-With- Coxswain were coming from a selection camp under Harry Parker,5951 and I had not been invited to participate. The single and pair-without would be decided in trials on July 22 and the double, four-without and pair-with on August 5. “In May, as the likelihood of making the team was getting less and less, I tried teaming with some Vesper rowers who were also not in their primary straight-four, but nothing was really clicking. I was clearly not making progress. “I returned to rowing under Ted Nash and College Boat Club at the end of June. I 5949 Ibid. 5950 Jones, personal conversation, 2007 5951 See Chapter 103. 1671
