Badgers Battle for Cup Titles Out East
May 04, 2007 | Men's Rowing
Following a one-week hiatus from competition, the No. 8 Wisconsin men's rowing team heads to the East Coast for two days of competition in Boston. On Saturday the crew battles for the Cochrane Cup against Dartmouth and M.I.T., while Sunday's face-off against No. 14 Boston University is for the Jablonic Cup.
Contention for the Cochrane Cup began back in 1961, when the three teams, UW, Dartmouth and M.I.T., challenged one another. The first year Wisconsin took third. The battle has now taken place for 46 years, with the Badgers claiming the cup 28 times, including last season. This year, both Dartmouth and M.I.T. enter the contest receiving votes in the most recent USRowing Poll.
The cup is named after Admiral Edward L. Cochrane, former president of M.I.T., and director of the Navy's Bureau of Ships. When it all began, the first race distanced one mile, the second totaled 1.75 miles and the third was two miles. Since then the cup has been raced on a 2000-meter course.
'This has always been a tough race for us as Dartmouth in particular has always been right there for the 10 years I have been head coach,' Chris Clark, UW men 's rowing coach, said. 'This season, both Dartmouth and M.I.T. have new head coaches so there is not doubt they would love to begin their tenures with wins against Wisconsin.'
While the location of the race changes every year, for example in 2006 the teams raced on Lake Wingra in Madison, Wis., the goal to win the cup never changes. This year both the Cochrane Cup and the Jablonic Cup will be raced on the Charles River.
The Jablonic Cup was named after former Wisconsin men's head coach Randy 'Jabo' Jablonic. Racing began in 1989, with the cup going to the winner of a Wisconsin versus Boston University contest. Since its initiation, the competition has taken place annually, with the exclusion of the years 1991 and 1993, when no race was held. After 16 years of racing, the Badgers have claimed 14 of the titles, including last season.
'Our race with BU is also always difficult,' Clark said. 'We have had some good success over the years if not just plain luck when we have beat them. In `Cup' races, the east coast crews are more seasoned and used to the format and rhythm of a season based on these match-ups. At Wisconsin, we race on both coasts and the Midwest, so we are not grooved in as well to this particular format.'
In their last time out, the Badgers dominated at the Midwest Rowing Championships, which they hosted on Lake Wingra April 21. UW swept the competition, including the highly anticipated men's varsity eight race against then-No. 14 Michigan.
Notably, the second varsity eight boat remains undefeated, while the novice eight, open four and open pair also claimed victories on Saturday.
Clark commented on the team's progression thus far, being three weeks into the spring season, with two competitions under their belt.
'We have had some variable weather since our California trip, which has made it difficult to truly gauge our progress and speed,' Clark added. 'The Cochrane and Jablonic Cups are just what we need at just the right time to give us a measure of where we stand.'
Racing in Boston will begin at 8:15 a.m. ET. For more information, stop by UWBADGERS.com to read this weeks press release.
