By Justin Feil, Assistant Sports Editor
Jamie Hamp is going to England to cap his senior year at Princeton University.
It won’t be for sightseeing, however, as Hamp will travel with his Tigers rowing teammates to compete in the Henley Royal Regatta.
“This is something I’ve wanted to do ever since I got to college and even before,” said Hamp, the PU captain. “This is one of my dreams — rowing for Princeton at Henley. I’m excited.
“I know there are guys who have experienced this race and will know a little more than me about it and I can learn a little from them. I might know some stuff about the crews or racing in general that they can ask me. That’s why we’re a team — everyone can learn from everybody and bring everyone up. We’ll do our best.”
It’s been a breakout year for Princeton crew. They are sending three boats to Henley based on their strong showings at the end of the season. The top three boats combined to help Princeton win its first Rowe Cup since 2005 at the Eastern Sprints. The 2V and 3V boats both won, while Hamp’s top varsity boat rallied to take bronze, and the cumulative finishes earned them the Rowe Cup.
At the IRA Nationals, the varsity boat won bronze again behind two West Coast boats, the 2V boat was second and the 3V boat was fifth. The crews will have the chance to compete one more time together at Henley, which begins July 1, because the Tigers’ alumni in the Princeton Rowing Association will support the trip abroad.
“It needs to be a strong boat,” said PU head coach Greg Hughes. “The 1V, 2V and 3V were all moving well. It’s the first time that I’ve been here that they’ve offered that out to three.”
The top boat has only three seniors in it — Hamp, Tim Masters and coxswain Jameson Pesce. There are two parts to the trip to Henley for the Princeton program.
“For me, my fellow seniors, generally everybody, it’s just a really great way to end our rowing careers at Princeton,” Hamp said. “It’s something our team hasn’t done since 2006, so having seen the transformation of the team and the culture and the hard work that everyone has put in over the last four years, I think it’s a really great way to finish off our careers. It’s a reward. We’ve worked hard for this, and so has everyone else. It’s going to be a lot of fun. It has been a lot of fun so far. It’s kind of nice to just extend our college careers a little bit, eat out, if you will.
“And for the rest of the team, it’s a big building block. They’re rowing an extra five weeks together into the summer. Usually we’re a team that starts super late because of our academic schedule. Getting this extra time should pay dividends down the road for them.”
Hamp will continue rowing beyond graduation. He is hoping he can make the national team, and he has an eye on the 2016 and 2020 Olympics. Outside of rowing, the history major is interested in teaching, and he will continue to follow the Tigers.
“Hopefully we’ve done something right,” Hamp said. “I’m excited to see where the program goes in the coming years.”
With so many back from the top boat and the success of the 2V boat — it hasn’t lost a race to an East Coast team in more than a year — there is a bright future ahead for the Tigers. The heavyweights have seen steady improvement over their four years. Four years ago, none of the top three boats made an IRA final, but they climbed a bit each year and the seniors were able to finish with a medal.
“It’s definitely building towards it,” Hamp said. “Every year, the varsity has done better at IRAs. Every year, the 2V has done better. Every year since it started, the 3V has done better. Part of it is just the way we’ve been building the program. Every freshman class, every incoming class is so talented now. The recruiting classes we’re getting now are unthinkable compared to four or five years ago. They blow you away how good and how talented some of the guys are that are coming in.
“Part of it is that, and part of it is the way the culture on the team has changed. The training has changed. Guys are more willing to work. Obviously I don’t think we’re there yet, but it’s been a step in the right direction. We’d come down and practice six times a week my freshman year. Now we do eight or nine, and guys are down there on their own taking their own time because they want to be better. I definitely think it’s been that building progression.”
This year, Princeton continued to raise its standards. It took a big step to be able to medal at the nationals.
“Other years we weren’t as fast, we weren’t ready, we weren’t mature enough,” Hamp said. “Last year we got fourth but we were pretty far off the pace. I think there is a leap. The difference between top three and bottom three is a big deal. Every year we went up, from sixth to fourth and from fourth to third. Getting into the medals, that’s the first step to winning. It’s difficult to come to an event where you haven’t medaled in a while, you haven’t tasted success, and then just win it outright. I think that’s difficult. I think it’s a big step. It’s (medaling) something that hadn’t been done since 2006, so it’s a landmark for the program. Hopefully it attracts the recruits and we can keep the cycle going.”
Hughes has credited the seniors with helping the program to grow during their time. There’s a greater sense of excitement with each year with the development of the team.
“Once you have a culture in place, it’s important to keep that going,” Hamp said. “A lot of the credit does go to the seniors last year and the year before to get that started. I do believe they deserve a lot of credit. As captain and a senior, I think it’s important to lead by example. There weren’t a lot of us this year, there were seven rowers and a coxswain, but I think the senior class did a good job of leading by example. I really think that’s what being captain is all about in the end.
“There are small administrative things you have to deal with, but in the end it’s getting a pulse of the team and keeping the team up and leading by example. Even when things are tough or a really hard workout, going out and having the right attitude and doing the best you can are important. I did the best I could and other seniors did their best too.”
The chance to compete at the Henley is the culmination of all that the Tigers put into their training this year. It wasn’t an easy season. Lake Carnegie was frozen deeper into the year and it gave them a late start in getting out.
“That’s where we have to show the determination and perseverance that can really set you up for a great season,” Hamp said. “I think that’s where it all started too.”
The Tigers had a short break around graduation, but have returned to training together to prepare for Henley.
“It’s not much different than our regular season,” Hughes said. “I think the guys, most of the training has already happened. They’re excited after the IRA to go and race again and maybe go race against crews they haven’t seen before and don’t get a chance to race against. And now that they’re not in classes, they can just focus on rowing. There’s a lot more time around training. The team spends more time together, and that’s special.”
The 3V boat will race in the Temple Cup while the top two boats will compete in the Ladies Challenge Cup.
“There will be some good college crews in there, and then also the top British crews, likely a German crew and Australian,” Hughes said. “You don’t know who you’re going to get. You could get someone down the street, you could get someone halfway around the world. The unknown is a big reason why it’s special and fun.”
It’s also a different format from the Easterns and nationals. It’s back to dual races with boats going one-on-one in heats. It’s even possible the 1V and 2V boats could have to face each other.
“It’s definitely different,” Hamp said. “The distance is different. It’s not a regular course. The rules are a little different. Winner goes on, the loser is done. Your season could be over in one race. At the most basic level, though, we’re racing one on one and that’s what we do most of the spring. It’s going to take a little focus to get back to that after racing Sprints and IRAs, but I think we’ll be able to manage.”
The Thames River hosts the legendary regatta, and the crews row upstream, often into a headwind on a course that is longer than the usual 2,000 meters.
“Like any course on a river, there’s one side quicker than another, or the current isn’t as strong,” Hamp said. “Like our coach says, it’s a rowing event, not a race. You deal with what you have the best you can.”
Hamp is looking forward to enjoying the rewards of the hard work this season, and looking to see just how well Princeton can do at Henley.
“The focus was the regular season and the championship races,” he said. “Now the focus is on Henley. It’s a reward. It’s a gift. You can’t take that lightly.”
