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Double Gold for Vernon Junior Rowers in B.C. Summer Games (Burnaby, British Columbia – July 21, 2024) Aida Mills and Sierra Munroe were awarded a B.C. Summer Games rowing event gold medal for their race in U19 Women’s Pair, and then joined a U19 Mixed Scull crew, and were the first to finish again. Last weekend, over 60 rowers from across the province competed at Burnaby Lake, the rowing venue for the B.C. Summer Games in Maple Ridge. The crews raced over a straight 1000-meter course, with notable success from Zone 2 (Okanagan / Thompson) athletes. Rising stars in junior rowing, Aida Mills (Salmon Arm) and Sierra Munroe (Vernon) excelled in the challenging Pair event. In this boat, each crew member has only one blade, requiring perfect synchronization just to keep the shell moving straight. Despite having slightly over a month to train together, they embraced the challenge and mastered the skill. Their 4:10 finish on Saturday earned them gold, ahead of Cora Van Vliet and Amy Milne (both from Vernon) at 4:18, and Sam Kronis and Rowan Denis (both from Nanaimo) at 4:22. On Sunday, Mills and Munroe joined Jonas Masys (Vernon) and Oleksii Lupan (Kelowna) in a Mixed Quad and won another gold medal with a time of 3:14, outpacing the next competitor by nearly 10 seconds. This was the first time this crew had rowed together. The U17 Mixed Quad crew, consisting of Leo Middelkamp, Peter Masys, Autumn Prediger, and Louisa Van Vliet (all from Vernon), earned a bronze with a time of 3:34. Peter Masys also joined the ranks of double-medalists with a silver in the U17 Men’s Single. These junior athletes are already attracting attention from university rowing team recruiters, once again highlighting Vernon on the provincial rowing map. 
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(Shawnigan Lake, British Columbia – May 12, 2024) The Masys brothers made a splash at the Shawnigan Lake School regatta this past weekend, competing amidst 560 high school rowing crews. The regatta returned to its high-school only format in 2024, welcoming some Vernon graduates, now racing for Canadian universities, back as coaches. The Vernon Rowing and Dragon Boat Club was represented by Peter Masys (14), who raced in the U17 Men's Single Scull, and Jonas Masys (17), who competed in both the U19 Men's Single Scull Lightweight and Open Weight events. Peter placed fourth in the time trials, securing a spot in the A Final where he finished sixth with a personal best time of 8:34.27. Jonas finished fourth in the Open Weight Men's Single with a time of 8:09.35, just three seconds off the podium. He went on to secure a bronze medal in the highly competitive Lightweight Men Single A Final, finishing at 7:39.15 alongside four other rowers who clocked sub-8-minute times. Jonas will join the Brock University Men's Rowing team next year, becoming the fifth Vernon rower to pursue a university rowing career in the past five years. The Vernon Rowing and Dragon Boat Club, founded in 1997, serves as a vital hub for Swan Lake rowers and paddlers. It continues its mission to provide accessible opportunities for the local community to engage in physical activity and enhance their physical and mental wellbeing.     We're thrilled to announce that our site opening on April 27th was an absolute success, with a record time of just 21 minutes! This remarkable achievement wouldn't have been possible without the incredible efforts of our dedicated volunteers and enthusiastic juniors who worked to make it a speedy morning. A special shoutout also goes to our green-thumbed volunteers who spent their morning sprucing up our gardens. As we reflect on the start of the season, we're reminded of the power of collaboration and community spirit. It's moments like these that highlight the strength of our club and the incredible things we can achieve when we come together with a shared goal. We look forward to building on this success and continuing to work together to create memorable experiences for our members. Thank you once again to everyone who contributed to making our site opening a resounding success!  |