Losing parts of key funding, Crew Club struggles to remain a club sport at the University of Portland
By Roya Ghorbani-Elizeh
The failing economy has not been kind to the sport of rowing. An eight-person crew boat can cost upwards of $23,000 and a single oar costs roughly $200.
With these costly figures, the UP Crew Club is having difficulty staying afloat.
"We will be a club at least for this year," Miranda Gray, Crew Club president, said. "Next year we might have a problem if we do not have the same support."
ASUP allocated the Crew Club $6,400 for this current semester.
Members of the team have found it hard to cover basic expenses for the team such as coaches and equipment with this money.
"The Crew Club spends 100 percent of the money we ask for," junior Crew Club treasurer, Brittany Powers said. "We're not asking for money to get T-shirts, we need this money to still be around."
With the ASUP budget process starting on Nov. 6, members of the UP Crew Club are worried about the future of their team.
"ASUP gave us half of the budget that they had given us a year ago," Powers said. "We need to be allocated more money than we are currently getting to exist as a club."
Senate members in ASUP have heard from the Crew Club about the money issues and are looking for ways to help keep the club a part of campus.
"If they're not allocated enough money and that causes the demise of their club, I would feel terrible," Senator Colin Dorwart, junior, said. "I would definitely work to find another funding source for them."
According to Dorwart, ASUP does have an emergency fund that could be used to help the Crew Club, but this could be passed only with a 3/4-majority vote from Senate.
"This fund is only used for emergency cases and this would sound like an emergency to me," said Dorwart.
The money previously allotted to the Crew Club includes paying their two coaches $4,000 a semester and paying rent for their boathouse space next to OMSI.
According to Powers, the boathouse rent for this semester is going up by 20 percent, adding to the relatively large club expenditures.
Before the rent increased, the Crew Club paid $5,190 a semester to use the boathouse on the Willamette River.
"I believe that we are one of the only clubs that rent our own space," said Gray.
The quality of equipment has also been an issue for the Crew Club.
According to Powers, the boats and rowing equipment that the club has are becoming old and outdated.
The waning funds that the Crew Club has been receiving have made it hard for the team to make the repairs and to buy new boats and oars.
"One of our four-person boats is called Grandma because it's so old," Power said. "We de-rigged that boat and used the parts for another one."
With costs of UP Crew Club on the rise, the members of the club have been fundraising and have had to pay out of pocket for such expenditures as race fees and gas for team trips.
The Crew Club has continued to do fundraisers such as an "ergathon," where the team practices on rowing machines for an allotted period of time. Currently, the team is cleaning up Merlo Field after home games for money.
Last year, the club rented out The Circuit, a bouldering gym in Portland, and invited the student community to climb with the team for $10.
"I like fundraising with the club because it's fun getting the community involved with rowing," said Gray.
The club also sends out a newsletter to parents of the rowers, and is also looking to include crew alumni in aiding with fundraising efforts.
After exhausting all the fundraising money and the money allocated from ASUP, the 17-student club pays for most of the costs out-of-pocket.
Joining the club requires a due fee of $150, which only helps to cover the boathouse rent, insurance for the team and the coaches' fee.
Students, in addition to the due fee, have to pay for such things as the team jersey, leggings and long-sleeved tops that will run upwards of $100.
Crew Club has been at the University since the early 2000s, and has been a growing sport with incoming freshman learning how to row with the help of veteran members.
"Rowing is the perfect sport for colleges to offer," senior Leslie Eddy said. "You can start from scratch your freshman year and still do really well."
The current team is remaining optimistic despite the possibility of the club disbanding due to a lack of necessary funding for crew to feasibly continue.
"I have been very impressed with this team," Powers said. "They are the most committed group we've had in awhile."
According to Gray, the administration has been supportive of the crew team's efforts to remain a club at UP.
"The administration is the only reason we still have a Crew Club," said Gray.
The Crew Club hopes to one day be located on the actual campus.
This move would aide the budget for the club because it would eliminate the cost of paying rent for boathouse space.
"Once the boats can be kept near the water on campus, club costs are going to plummet and membership is likely to really shoot up," Eddy said.
The River Campus proposal drawing includes a proposed boathouse on the Willamette River.
Although development is years away, Powers hopes that "the club can survive until that can happen."
Meantime, the Crew Club is anticipating the budgeting decisions made by ASUP about the next semester.
The final figures will help determine if the Crew Club can continue at UP.
"In crew, you become really close to your team," Powers said.
"It would be very disappointing for students in the future years not to get the opportunity to experience that."
