1995 Fall: Head of the Charles
“We took two eights—the varsity eight (V8) and lightweight eight (L8)—to the Head of the Charles that fall. None of us had been there before, and it was an eye-opening experience to see how large the rowing world was beyond the West Coast.
At the time, all of the races were held on Sunday, so we practiced on Friday and Saturday. Alumni member Tom Halley had purchased the Marc A. Sawyer for the team, and we were able to unwrap it and row it. Tom had made shirts for all of us to commemorate the occasion, and we went out for our practice row in the Marc A. Sawyer, wearing the shirts over our JL long-sleeve shirts.
Scott Miller
“Tom took amazing care of us. He provided all of our meals and housed all 18 rowers, along with Coaches Kevin Sherwood and Chad Fleschner, in his small apartment. Other than the fact that Sunday was a beautiful, blue-sky day, I don’t remember much about the racing. That night, Tom took us all out for an amazing dinner to close out an unforgettable experience.”
— Jeff Weaver
V8 from stern L-R ( Rich Thomas (C), Alex Baudouin (8), Mike O’Farrell (7), Scott Miller (6), Chris Benoit (5), John Jansen (4), Dan Bowermaster (3), Josh Wellikson (2), Jeff Weaver (B)
Varsity Lightweight 8 from stern (Lori Cohen (C), Mike Pyeatt (8), Norm Yee (7), Casey Dillon (6), Kyle Pierce (5), Brian Orelli (4), Mark Nieman (3), Sal Sandoval (2), Chris Lester (B)
Head of the Charles – Varsity 8 with Tom Halley and donated Vespoli 8 “Marc A. Sawyer”
Tom Halley
“We stayed at founding crew member Tom Halley’s house, and we were packed like sardines, all lined up on the living room floor in our sleeping bags. It was a fun rowing experience.”
— Alex Baudouin
California Aggie — October 30, 1995
“We returned most of the previous year’s V8, with the exception of coxswain Jeff Gaber, who had graduated, and Eric Jackson. Rich Thomas, John Jansen, and Chris Allen ably joined the boat from the previous year’s novice crew, and Dan Bowermaster joined from the previous year’s JV8.”
— Jeff Weaver
“In the fall of 1995, there was a core group of guys who had been rowing at UC Davis for four years and could make a really good lightweight team. We needed a dedicated coach to realize our potential.
“One day, we spotted a guy using the ergs in the Rec Hall. Norm Yee approached him, and this was Jay West. He was a rower from the University of Massachusetts who knew a lot about rowing. He had attended national-team camps. We convinced him to be our coach, and he came up with a plan to get the best out of us.”
— Chris Lester
California Aggie — November 1, 1995
California Aggie — March 5, 1996
San Diego Crew Classic
Varsity 8 San Diego Crew Classic
California Aggie — April 6, 1996
California Aggie — April 18, 1996
“We still had more than eight rowers from John Heron’s novice class among the lightweight and heavyweight crews, which was a testament to John’s coaching. I do remember rowing against Cal in Berkeley. Getting to see their boathouse was quite an experience.”
— Alex Baudouin
1996 UC Davis Men’s Crew Newport Regatta
1996 LW 8 Newport Regatta
1996 Novice 8 Newport Regatta
2nd Novice 8
Pacific Coast Rowing Championships
Lightweight Varsity Eight
“One of the lesser-known facts about this group is that four-year rower Chris Lester moved from the seven seat in 1995 to the coxswain seat. Chris was committed. Many times, he ran back to campus wearing sweats from the boathouse across the causeway in order to lose weight before a race.”
— Carlo Facchino
“The crew jelled, made the finals at the San Diego Crew Classic, and finished second to Harvard. At that point, the coxswain, Chris, weighed 152 pounds.
“Jay also let us enjoy each victory or defeat until midnight after each race, under one stipulation: the entire crew had to be present. By the Pacific Coast Championships, Chris had gotten down to 127 pounds. The race began, and UC Davis took the lead, but we did not have full control until the final 500 meters. We became Pacific Coast champions.”
— Chris Lester
Sacramento Bee — May 13, 1996
1996 Lightweight Varsity 8 PCRC
1996 Lightweight Varsity 8 — Pacific Coast Champions
1996 Varsity 8
“Compared with the previous year’s disappointment of the Varsity 8 at finishing second at the PCRCs, our second-place finish behind Orange Coast felt like a success, despite the internal struggles within the team during the spring. Jay West came to UC Davis as a graduate student and joined the team as the lightweight coach. The Lightweight Varsity 8 immediately began to see success, culminating in a victory at the PCRCs.”
— Jeff Weaver
Varsity 8 1996 PCRC
California Aggie — May 15, 1996
4 year oars (L-R): Kyle Pierce, Norman Yee, Dan Bowermaster, Chris Lester, Alex Baudouin, Scott Miller, Mike O’Farrell, and Sal Sandoval
Four-Year Rowers
“We had a large group of four-year rowers that season. They had achieved success throughout their rowing careers, winning many medals and tankards. They provided leadership and set an example for everyone else on the team.”
— Jeff Weaver
Notable Events from 1996 Season – Content scraped from UC Davis crew archived website 1998
Summer 1996
Carlo Facchino, Brian Orelli, Jeff Weaver and Norm Yee
“A group of us—Carlo Facchino, Brian Orelli, Norm Yee, and I—went to Seattle in the summer of 1996 to row for Lake Washington Rowing Club. The group included rowers from across the country. We spent a lot of time in small boats, with double—or sometimes triple—practice sessions every day.
“It was an amazing way to live. I didn’t have a job up there, so my days consisted mostly of rowing, eating, and sleeping. The club provided housing in exchange for work. Jeff and Carlo stayed in a house that was being remodeled, and their quarters were fairly spartan: exposed studs, a bare floor, no drywall, and no bathroom walls.
“None of us had any money, so when we weren’t rowing, eating, or sleeping, we spent a lot of time hanging out and talking. Carlo and Norm went on to row at the USRowing Nationals and the Canadian Henley later that summer.
“It was a great experience, and I would recommend summer rowing away from the Port to anyone.”
— Jeff Weaver
1996 Boat Rosters
V8
1. Mike O’Farrell
2. Chris Allen
3. Jeff Weaver
4. John Jansen
5. Chris Benoit
6. Scott Miller
7. Dan Bowermaster
8. Alex Baudouin
C. Rich Thomas
VLW8
1.Sal Sandoval
2.Norman Yee
3.Brian Orelli
4.Zach Johnson
5.Mark Niemann
6.Kyle Pierce
7.Mike Pyeatt
8.Carlo Facchino
C.Chris Lester
V1x
1. Chad Fleschner
JV8
1.K.P. Atehortu
2.Joshua Wellikson
3. Kyle Hukari
4.Roman Plachy
5.Shane O’Nesky
6.Ryan Moore
7.Mike Muse
8.Chris Zachrisson
C.Carlos Chavez
N8A
1. K.P. Atehortu
2. Francisco ‘Kiko’ Ochoa
3. Kyle Hukari
4. Roman Plachy
5. Shane O’Nesky
6. Ryan Moore
7. Mike Muse
8. Chris Zachrisson
C. Carlos Chavez
N8B
1.Nalin Ranasinghe
2.Scott Sterling
3.Rich Israels
4.Alex Farr
5.Phillip Patmon
6.Josh Smith
7.Tim Walker
8.Erik Roberson
C.Nate Perizzo
ALT
Jason Roth
Scott Levin
Coaches: Kevin Sherwood Head Coach, Jay West Assistant Coach, Chad Fleschner Novice Coach