The Raritan Valley Rowing Camp is a 5-day program designed to give 12 to 18 year old beginners and experienced rowers expert coaching of rowing technique and basics of training and racing.

Session 1: June 28-July 2, 2009 - BOYS and GIRLS
Session 2: July 7-11, 2009 - BOYS and GIRLS

Cost:
Resident: $690.00
Commuter: $490.00 - 8:00 AM till 5:00 PM (includes lunch)
Extended Day: $540.00 -  8:00 AM till 7:30 PM (includes lunch and dinner)

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Dear Campers and Parents,

The Raritan Valley Rowing Camp has enjoyed enormous success over the past several years. Founded in 1991, the camp has evolved into the most popular and respected program of its kind in the country. The outstanding coaching staff from the premier high school and college programs, the top rate equipment, and the variety of additional activities have made the Raritan Valley Rowing Camp a truly special place.

Our philosophy has always been to maintain the highest level of instruction while creating a challenging and, most of all, fun environment. Limiting the number of campers each session has allowed our staff to get to know each camper individually, and give each one the attention, help, and motivation to succeed in our sport. The small groups also allow each camper the opportunity to row in small boats and scull, very important skills to improve overall technique and performance.

Teaching rowers of all levels and watching many of them go on to success as members of high school teams, Junior National Teams, and college teams has been extremely rewarding for us and our staff. We strive to create an enjoyable and positive experience for an increasing number of high school athletes. The high rate of returning campers each year, and the kind words about our program from various high school coaches who have had their athletes attend, are good signs that we are achieving our goals.

Sincerely,

The Directors of the Raritan Valley Rowing Camp

DIRECTORS

Steve Wagner

Steve is the head coach of the Rutgers University Crew and has over 25 years of experience coaching both sweep rowing and sculling. Under Steve's direction, the Rutgers Crew has been ranked in the top 10 nationally 4 out of the past 6 years, and has produced 9 National Team members, four 1992 Olympians, six 1996 Olympians, four members of the 2000 Olympic team, and two 2004 Olympians. Steve’ 2003 Men’s Heavyweight Varsity 8 advanced all the way to the final of the Henley Royal Regatta in England.

Steve is a former captain of the Rutgers Lightweight Crew and holds a B.S. Degree in Chemical Engineering and a M.S. Degree in Environmental Science from Rutgers. For over 25 years, Steve has been director of the Craftsbury Sculling Camp, and currently directs Black Bear Sculling, the most prestigious sculling camp in North America.

Max Borghard

Max has been the Head Women's Crew Coach at Rutgers University since 1995. In 1997, Rutgers completed its best season ever, and was one of only 8 schools full-team to attend the first ever NCAA Women's Rowing Championship in California, finishing 6th. Max led the Rutgers Women’s Crew back to the NCAA Championships in ‘98 and ‘01. Before coming to Rutgers, Max coached at Dartmouth College for 6 years on the freshmen level, with his 1991 freshmen lightweight crew winning the Eastern Sprints Championships. In 1992 and 1994, Max served as an assistant coach for the Men's Junior National Team that won a gold and a bronze medal at the World Championships.

Max is a former captain of the Rutgers Lightweight Crew and was twice a member of the U.S. National Lightweight Team. He holds a B.S. Degree in Mechanical Engineering from Rutgers. During the summers, Max has been a regular on the staff of the Raritan Valley Rowing Camp and Craftsbury Sculling Center, along with coaching the junior men's double to a gold medal at the 1991 Olympic Sports Festival.

THE PROGRAM
Each camper will develop an appreciation for technical aspects of the sport of rowing, as well as the teamwork involved in making a boat go. The program is designed to give each camper individual instruction to learn and improve rowing skills in a relaxed atmosphere. Camper/Staff ratio will not exceed 8-1 and rowing and recreation activities will be closely supervised. Eight-man boats, fours, quads, doubles and singles will be used in the teaching process. More experienced campers will learn about training, rigging and racing through lectures as well as the constant interaction with our helpful, expert coaching staff. Each camper will be videotaped during the week to help him/her in the learning process.

Individual "one on one" sessions in the rowing tank and on the rowing machines will be conducted to help each student understand and perform the basics of rowing or refine already developed skills. The program will end with a day of races to allow each camper to test their skills against each other.

MEALS
Three hearty meals a day are served in the dining hall adjacent to the dormitory. The meals are "all-you-can-eat" and will satisfy even the most finicky eaters.

ENROLLMENT
All boys and girls 12 years of age and older interested in rowing are encouraged to attend. The only requirement is that each camper have reasonable swimming skills.

HOUSING
The campers and staff will be housed on the Douglass/Cook Campus of Rutgers University in New Brunswick, New Jersey. The dormitory is double occupancy and very convenient to the Rutgers boathouse. The Cook College Farm adds to the overall beauty natural with all the animals and fields.

FACILITIES
The camp will row on the Raritan River at the "Rutgers Class of '14 Boathouse" next to the Cook College Campus. The Raritan River provides many miles of flat water on which to improve skills. All sweep rowing will be done in Vespoli racing shells with the latest blade design. The Rutgers Rowing Tank, an indoor facility where the Rutgers Varsity Crews train during the winter months, will be valuable, especially for beginners.

OTHER ACTIVITIES
Our daily schedule provides free time for other activities. The beautiful Cook College Recreation Center will be available twice daily for swimming, basketball, racquetball, and weightlifting. Other camp activities include ultimate Frisbee, capture the flag and a volleyball tournament. Nighttime movie round out our daily schedule.

Typical Daily Schedule

7:00     AM      Wake up / Breakfast
8:00     AM      Depart Dorm / Row
10:30   AM      Depart Boathouse
11:00   AM      Rec Center
12:00   PM      Lunch
1:00     PM      Lecture
2:00     PM      Depart Dorm / Row
4:30     PM      Depart Boathouse
5:00     PM      Commuters Picked Up / Dinner
6:30     PM      Field Activity
8:00     PM      Movie
10:00   PM      Lights Out