The Mills College Crew Team’s annual erg-a-thon took place on Adams Plaza Thursday afternoon. With erg machines, also known as indoor rowers, out on the plaza and rowing 320,000 meters — translating to 198.8 miles or the distance from the Mills campus to the Nevada border — members of the crew team finished erging faster than the team has in the past few years.
“We have a strong team; they’re working hard and working really well together,” Head Coach Sara Nevin said. “You’ve seen them just hopping on and off and calling for help and somebody hops on.”
Every year, the Crew Team holds an erg-a-thon with erg machines on the Plaza to raise money for extra items, according to Nevin. The team sold “Smarter than Barbie, Stronger than Ken” shirts for $15 a piece while the team rowed on the machines.
Jessica Parlin, senior rower, said that it is good to raise awareness of the team’s presence on campus, especially with the erg-a-thon happening in the middle of Adams Plaza.
“We’ve had professors come by and say, ‘I didn’t know you were on the team!'” Nevin said. “It’s really great to let people see how hard we work, so I think that’s fun.”
Parlin said that the erg-a-thon went well and made a note of the time it was taking to row. The event was scheduled from 11 a.m. to 6 p.m., but the team finished erging well ahead of schedule at around 5:15 p.m.
“We are probably faster than we’ve been in a while, and it’s really exciting,” Parlin said.
Nevin said that because the crew team has done the majority of the work off-campus and not in the daylight, the community might not know about the team’s efforts.
“I know that we’ve attracted a lot of attention, which is the whole point, but it’s really good,” Parlin said. “I know a lot of people have stopped, and I know that they’ve at least talked to us. If at least half of those are donations, that’s awesome.”
First-year rower Gisele Guzman said that many people stayed longer than they were expected to and that the team got a lot of meters in.
“I think it’s helped [the team] fundraise just [for] everyone to see the dedication we have, and I think it’s helped the team itself just to see how much strength we have,” Guzman said.
Nevin agreed with the sentiment about the team’s strength.
“It’s beginners and experienced rowers all taking turns, so it’s [a] really fun team dynamic,” Nevin said.
