Status: 26/09/2023, 07:02 a.m.
By: Christian Heinrich
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Lake Starnberg was a bit wavy on Saturday, especially at the level of the Rose Island. Otherwise, the conditions at the 37th Rose Island Eight were good for the 74 teams. © Andrea Jaksch
ROWING: 20-year-old record at the Rose Island Eight again not broken
Starnberg – When Arthur Hofer was presented with his crew's time, he couldn't hide a certain disappointment. This spring, the former president of the Munich Rowing and Sailing Club hired a new team especially for the Rose Island Achter. Although the team trained purposefully under the aegis of Thomas Thallmair, he was denied the hoped-for success.
On Saturday, the boat wanted to stay under an hour on the twelve kilometers from Starnberg to Roseninsel and back again, but in the end it missed the targeted time by two minutes. "We still need to improve our technology," says Hofer, who sees some catching up to do by September 2024. Despite their own shortcomings, the eight rowers and their helmswoman Sabine Deicke were happy with their performance. "It's fun with this troupe," says Hofer. This fulfills the most important concern.
The other 73 teams, which had come to Lake Starnberg mainly from Upper Bavaria, but also from Saxony, Hesse, the Rhineland and Italy, were also interested in having fun. Since there are no championship honours to be won, the only goal left for the ambitious teams is to break the record time (39:07) of the Sorö rowing club from Denmark, which has existed for 20 years. This year, too, the athletes cut their teeth on this requirement. The Renngemeinschaft Kölner RV, WSV Düsseldorf and RTHC Bayer Leverkusen won the Bavarian Lion as the fastest team in the regatta, but remained a good three minutes above the record. "This record will stand forever," Hofer was certain.
The external conditions for a hussar ride were almost optimal this year. The water was easy to row over almost the entire route, and it was only at Rose Island that the individual starting groups were confronted with light waves. Since the Bavarian Lake Navigation also showed great consideration for the athletes, all boats crossed the finish line safely. Some of them, however, were very late, which was not so much due to the rowing skills of the individual crews, but rather to their obvious ignorance of the locations. "You've crossed almost the entire lake," said Michael Schemel, somewhat taken aback. The member of the organizing committee was relieved that the frequent riders at the height of Seeshaupt finally noticed that they had shot far past the turning point.
This did not detract from the good mood on and off the water. The MRSV celebrated its Oktoberfest light with a lot of people, to which some celebrities also appeared. With Moritz Petri, even the chairman of the German Rowing Association showed up on the lake promenade and devoted himself in detail to both the athletes and the organizer. "He gave us good tips," said Schemel, pleased with the ideal support from the DRV leadership.
In the future, the Roseninselachter will be made even more attractive for sponsors, but also for VIPs. The organizers also want to increase their presence on the Internet through an independent homepage or through their presence in social media. It remains to be seen whether these simulation games will raise the sporting level in the future. The Roseninselachter is above all a regatta for the latitude. "People do this as a hobby," said Schemel. Top athletes and peak times will probably remain the exception in the future.
This is comforting for Arthur Hofer and his crew. In the coming year, his team will receive even greater attention in their attempt to achieve their modest goal of staying under an hour.
All results under https://www.mrsv-bayern.de/rudern-roseninselachter/
