The University of Oregon Rowing Team is located in Eugene, Oregon, and practices at Dexter Reservoir nearby. The team was founded in 1967 and has operated continuously under the guidance of the University. At Oregon, men's and women's teams practice together and compete against other teams regionally and nationally in a number of regattas each year. Even before the passage of Title IX in 1972, the team received national attention for Coach Don Costello's controversial use of female coxswain Victoria Brown in crew, in a previously all-male sport.
Since 2011, the team has raced annually at the end of May in the American Collegiate Rowing Association (ACRA) National Championship.
The University of Oregon Boathouse is located next to the Oregon Association of Rowers (O.A.R.) at Dexter Reservoir. Each year, O.A.R. hosts the Covered Bridge Regatta which is the home regatta for both programs. In 2013, Dexter Lake was named one of the top racing venues in the United States by Row2k.
History
1967–1972: The Founding Crew, Don McCarty, and Victoria Brown
Efforts to build a rowing program at Oregon reappeared in 1967 under the direction of university administrators Don McCarty and Ken Abbey and a founding crew of twenty-two oarsmen.
Oregon State Head Coach Karl Drlica loaned two rowing shells, and McCarty rented a number of shells from Stanford coach Conn Findlay, at cost of $1500 per year.
By 1969 the Oregon Rowers regularly competed in varsity races. The Register-Guard reported, "the University of Oregon had officially elevated crew to varsity status on a one-year provisional basis making it the 10th intercollegiate sport at the school."
Initially an all men's group, because of Oregon's mixed status it was exempt from the new regulations of Title IX in 1972. Despite this, the Oregon Women's Crew was founded in 1973 and the team received significant national attention surrounding coxswain Victoria Brown, one of the first female coxswains to compete in men's collegiate rowing. Traditionally, men's crews relied on male coxswains, and Brown's presence on the Oregon team stirred controversy.
1973–1980: Oregon's First Women's Crew
1973 marked an important year for the Ducks because it was then University-sponsored women's rowing. Ralph Neils and Marti Abts had taken over for the men's and women's programs with Mike Napier and Bill Lioio as assistant coaches.
According to the Register-Guard, "The $350 spent on Oregon's first women's crew this year was apparently well spent. The U of O lightweights finished second to Washington in the recent Northwest championships in Seattle. And so did a heavyweight pair, Zanne Pratt and Debbie [Sprecher]."
In the next season, Reed Adler took over as men's coach for the Ducks, and he was followed by Chuck Knoll in 1976. Coach Brian Cole entered the 1968 Long Beach Rowing Trials, finishing two spots shy of an Olympic berth and earning a bronze medal.
Between 1976 and 1980, the Oregon Women's Crew grew. Paul Schultz (Ithaca College '77) coached for two years, amazed at the strength, size and talent that showed up for rowing in the fall of '77. An over-six-foot Olympic-level skier whose career-ending injury on the slopes landed her at five and a woman reflecting her drive at six, there was a boat that won on Green Lake (tho- disqualified for a lane violation) and won in Corvallis. They were all novices, rowing against varsities and JVs, including were Carolyn McCloskey (rowed in high school) and Robin Riordan (rowed in the Pan-Am Games a few years later).
The Oregon Daily Emerald noted, "The University of Oregon varsity crew came up with two surges to hand Oregon State University a defeat... on Dexter Lake Saturday. With Lance Baughman at stroke and Russ Ward at coxswain, the Ducks held the Beaver eight, composed entirely of heavyweights (160 pounds and up) at bay over the remainder of the estimated 2,200-meter course, crossing the finish line in 7 minutes flat to 7:05 for OSU."
1980 to 1988: Our first owned shells, the emergence of the lightweight dominance and a National Championship
In 1980, the men and women's crew was coached by Lance Baughman and competed in many of the traditional west coast races. The men competed at the Pac 10 championship at Redwood Shores in a Freshman 8, Lightweight 8 and an Open 4. Most notable, the men's Freshman 8 broke a rigger disabling the shell at about the exact same time MT. ST. Helens erupted.