LAWRENCE — Nearly 300 oarsmen and women of all ages took part in the sixth annual Lawrence Celebration Regatta on the Merrimack River Saturday.
The weather wasn't perfect, but the rowing conditions were, as the participants competed on the 1,000 meter (1,100 yard) course run in a straight line.
"We've had people from Vermont, Connecticut and Maine. There are people who do this three seasons a year," said John Griffin, executive director of the Greater Lawrence Community Boating Program, which sponsored the event.
He said the sport attracts people of all ages.
"High school is the starting point, up to senior citizens," he said. "It's a great sport for people to stay in shape."
The shells vary in size from single occupant, to doubles, up to four- to eight-man boats. The eight-man shells can run 60 feet in length, he said. They are handmade of carbon fiber, which is very light, very fast, Griffin said.
They also are expensive. The eight-man shells can cost as much as $60,000, while the smaller boats can run $5,000 to $6,000, Griffin said.
He said 70 boats showed up for Sunday's regatta, which is one of hundreds of such events across New England each year.
David DiStefano, 15, of Andover, a member of the Greater Lawrence Rowing Club based at the boathouse in South Lawrence, began rowing this spring.
"I was amazed at how much teamwork there is," he said.
The shells look as though they could capsize any minute, but DiStefano said that is not the case.
"It does take a lot of force to turn one over. They are pretty stable," he said.
Zach Goodman, 18, also of Andover, the coxswain on the Lawrence boys team, said he began rowing about 18 months ago.
"I wasn't doing a sport and a friend recommended I do it. It was a great time," he said.
Girls rowing team member Alex Zigmond, 14, began rowing last fall, she said.
"I haven't had to swim yet," she said.
Like Goodman, she was not participating in a sport at Andover High School, and a couple of her friends were rowing.
"It's a really good workout," she said.
"I didn't know anything about it. I didn't think I'd like it so much. It's really fun and the team is just great," she said.
Travis Gardner, 27, of Andover is a coach for the Essex Rowing Club based in Methuen, which started in 2006, and now has more than 100 rowers, some of whom took part in the Lawrence event Saturday.
In two years, the club has already been sending its youth to row for such schools as Harvard and Stanford universities, Gardner said.
A former Florida resident, Gardner moved up here because of the rowing community. He worked for the Greater Lawrence club as a coach, then moved over to Essex Rowing when it started in 2006.
He said he enjoys team rowing because "it's not 100 percent team or 100 percent individual. You have to improve yourself in the context of the crew."
The team has traveled to Canada and to Philadelphia for competitions, he said. "It's good to see boats that are faster than us, that's what makes us better."
The Merrimack is one of the better rivers around for the sport, he said.
"It's a great river, the shoreline is steep which protects from the wind and that is what you want when you're boating."
Marianne Merritt, 44, of Andover is a kindergarten teacher at High Plain Elementary School and an Essex Rowing Club member for two years.
She is a former college track standout and was looking to get involved in a sport when she saw an article on rowing in The Eagle-Tribune.
"I always wanted to do this, it's great exercise," Merritt said.
She recommends the sport to those who are thinking about trying it.
"Definitely try it. It's a great community full of people who are really friendly and open," she said.
