The sport of rowing has been enjoyed by the residents of Niagara Falls and the surrounding area for over 25 years. Young rowers trained and rowed through their respective Niagara Falls high schools such as Saint Paul, Saint Michael, AN Myer and Westlane. Since no local rowing facility existed, the high school programs all trained at out of town rowing facilities leading to monetary issues, challenges in transportation and summer job scheduling conflicts. For these and other reasons, keeping young rowers in the sport has always been a challenge.
2012
In 2012 the long talked about idea of having a summer rowing program in Niagara Falls finally came to life. A dock was built on Lyons Creek. After adding a coaching boat and motor and the procurement of two singles and a trainer boat, the Club was a reality. It was a humble beginning, but a beginning none the less. This pilot project involved 10 Saint Paul High School rowers and a lot of determination. It was a huge success.
2013
Building on the success of 2012, the goal for 2013 was to expand and serve up to 24 athletes. To do this an expansion of the club was needed. The dock was expanded to more than double its original size and a double rowing shell was purchased. In addition, a private single and double were generously made available for club use. The membership offer was extended to include current Saint Paul rowers as well as past alumni. The available capacity of 24 was sold out almost immediately. The idea that Niagara Falls could carry a rowing club of its own was now obvious. By the end of the year rowers from Saint Michael High School were invited out to row and their enthusiasm for the club was immediate. The club organizers now knew they were on to something big. The challenge now was to keep ahead of the rapidly growing interest.
2014
A plan was needed to accommodate the overwhelming interest, so early in 2014 the Niagara Falls Rowing Club was officially incorporated. Three additional four-person rowing shells have been purchased, almost quadrupling our ability to serve the interest from the community. Membership explodes to over 60 people rowing through Niagara Falls Rowing Club. The dock was expanded again to make launching and docking easier and faster. Ongoing conversations with the City of Niagara Falls are leading to a larger and more permanent location including a new boathouse.
2015
By the end of summer 2015 plans are in place to move the club from its start-up location on Lyons Creek to a permanent location in George Bukator Park on the shores of the Chippawa Creek. Without the support and co-operation of the City of Niagara Falls none of this would have been possible. This year saw the addition of three 8-person rowing shell from our friends at Silver Lake Rowing Club and through the generosity of Ontario Trillium Foundation a brand new double and quad. Membership continues to grow at a pace faster than we could ever have hoped for. The summer session alone is hosting over 80 local rowers. In the fall season Niagara Falls Rowing Club participated in its first competitive regattas.
2016
2016 saw the completion of our new boathouse and docks in George Bukator Park. Membership in all categories from youth, recreational, competitive and adult continue to grow exponentially. Our fleet of equipment as well as equipment owned and shared by our members is impressive. 2016 also saw the first entries into major regattas such as The Royal Canadian Henley Regatta and the Head of the Charles. NFRC had athletes place on all spots of the podium in Welland, London, and St. Catharines regattas. In the fall season, the club had an impressive turnout for our masters rowing program, being able to row all boat types including our impressive octet. The fall junior program travelled over to Head of the Genesee Regatta in Rochester NY and placed 1st in both the Junior Women’s single and double. Our Stag and Row fundraising event was a huge success and the contributions went towards buying new sets of sculls at the end of the year.
2017
2017 kicked off with another one of NFRC’s New Years Day row’s, proving that you can row 12 months a year in Ontario! A big thank you to JT Crane & Rigging who helped remove the dock from the water this winter. Our dock went under some necessary maintenance and then was placed back in the Welland River when completed. Membership in all categories from youth, recreational, competitive and adult continue to grow. With the help of an Ontario grant NFRC was able to purchase a brand new quad from Fluidesign. In 2017 we welcomed the community to get involved with NFRC Try-It Day and our Open House. A.N. Myer Secondary School had an increased turnout this year and in turn these athletes claimed their spots on the podium at Fanshawe Lake in London, ON. This year the fall junior program had incredible success; 5 races entered at the CORA Championships and 5 medals won, from bronze to gold. One of our most decorated athletes Katerina Verbraeken, daughter of coach Wernher Verbraeken, signed her 4 year scholarship with Nova Southeatern University in Fort Lauderdale, FL. NFRC was very proud to see one of our athletes pursue her passion for rowing in her next chapter.
2018
A cold blast of winter hit Niagara Falls in 2018 which unfortunately delayed rowing on the water until March but that did not stop our athletes from continuing to participate. In addition to our indoor training and outdoor cardio, NFRC hosted our half marathon competition. Athletes from A.N. Myer, Saint Michael, Saint Paul, and Greater Fort Erie high school’s participated this year. A great effort put in by A.N. Myer scored the team a 1st place finish with a time of 1 hour and 14 minutes. Once able to return to the water, our athletes knew they had to push themselves to stay competitive in this years races. The NFRC trailer full of boats travelled to St. Catharines, London, Buffalo and even all the way to Philadelphia for the Stotesbury Cup Regatta. Bronze medals were won by both doubles at Stotesbury. This year proved to be a big year for all athletes at NFRC from youth to masters – for every race our athletes participated in, almost everyone walked away with a podium placing medal. A huge congratulations to our Mixed Masters Quad who won a Royal Canadian Henley Gold medal. Great job to Emma Stephenson, Kevin Anstruther, Jane Hyman and Jim Hyman. To end the year off our co-founder, Tony Arcuri, received the prestigious Doug Austin Sportsperson of the Year award. We are so proud and so thankful for all you have done for Niagara Falls rowing.
2019
Due to the freezing temperatures NFRC found an alternate location for our winter training; an indoor rented facility in Niagara Falls. This gave Niagara Falls athletes from youth to masters another opportunity to continue rowing and staying healthy. Our masters program continued to grow this year including participants from Niagara Falls and neighbouring communities. Youth Rowing Camps were added to our program offerings, giving an opportunity for youth to stay active when school is out during the summer. Coaches implemented time trials on a weekly basis to challenge our athletes of all ages to race against one another and compare their times to standard winning times. In 2019, NFRC athletes also took the opportunity to share information and their experience of rowing with the community. You could find our athletes on the 2nd weekend of May at local stores promoting the sport of rowing and offering information about Niagara Falls Rowing Club. Summer athletes took the chance again to participate in those regattas in St. Catharines, London, and Buffalo. Athletes were able to enjoy our sunrise and sunset row’s and maybe a light breakfast or two cooked by our coaches as a little treat. We love our NFRC family!
2020
2020 started off strong with our athletes competing in the Canadian Indoor Rowing Championships, Ontario Erg Championships, the CRASH B’s and our very own Annual Half Marathon which Saint Michael high school won this year with a time of 1 hour and 15 minutes. Unfortunately due to COVID, much of our club activities were put on pause while we adjusted to the new restrictions put in place. Coaches kept an eye on the boathouse while anticipating any changes in restrictions. Come summer time, restrictions were lifted in Ontario to a point where athletes could row once again. Our coaches and board of directors came up with ways to keep our athletes as safe as possible when returning to rowing. Following in similar footsteps to the school system, athletes were kept in small groups and groups were not crossing paths between practices. We would like to thank everyone for their patience and hard work to keep the club safe. Luckily NFRC has a great inventory of single boats which athletes learned how to row over these months. Once necessary, indoor training space was rented again from a facility in Niagara Falls for the winter months. However, restrictions were tightened in Ontario once again during the second wave, shutting down group sport activities. This time around our coaches were prepared and even offered equipment to our athletes. Coaches would conduct training and technique sessions via Zoom which in turn proved to be very helpful for some athletes.
2021
Indoor and outdoor training continued with precautions as COVID continued to take a toll in Ontario and across the country. NFRC had gathered 2 new groups of athletes in the spring of 2021; Introduction to Rowing – a student program for those in grades 5-12, and our High Performance group of athletes – those who were dedicated to intense training almost every day of the week. Summer 2021 we welcomed youth athletes to the summer camp sessions and we wished our high school graduates well after many years at NFRC as some went on to pursue education and careers outside of the region. Our annual fundraiser with Big Red Markets was a great success selling over 600 boxes and raising enough money for the club to put a down-payment on an eight. With some great weather in Fall 2021, our masters and recreational members got to experience some beautiful sunrise/sunset rows on the Welland River (check out our Instagram for those awesome photos). Winter 2021 we were still uncovering new ways to adapt to the pandemic and its restrictions. NFRC continued to take a hybrid approach between in-person practices and Zoom sessions for training led by Coach Katerina. This year our co-founder and head coach, Wernher, was awarded the prestigious Doug Austin Sportsperson of the Year Award. We could not be more proud and thankful for all the things he has done for the club!
2022
Summary coming soon! We can’t wait to see what 2023 brings!