The ISU Crew Club finished fifth in their division at the Head of the Des Moines regatta Saturday.

Schools from Iowa, Kansas, Colorado and Minnesota participated in the regatta, along with non-collegiate rowing clubs. The ISU Crew Club competed against 10 other teams in the Men’s Novice 4-man division.

“It was one of our best rows,” said Matt Solnitzky, sophomore in economics and vice president of the ISU Crew Club. “It felt good to pass Iowa [and beat them in] the first major regatta of the season.”

Men and women participate in different classes for collegiate events.

Some clubs have mixed boats, where men and women are on the same team, but there are never races with a group of men against a group of women, coach Chris Kafer said.

Rowing is a sport that takes place year round, Kafer said. In the spring, races take place on a straight course and are 2,000 meters in length. The boats have their own lanes, and they all start the race at the same time.

In the fall, races are 5,000 meters in length, and boats start the race every ten seconds.

The course is marked with buoys, and the results are determined by the amount of time it takes to complete the course.

The fall weather may have hindered the team’s performance in the regatta, because it was very windy and cold. The ideal conditions for a regatta are 75 degrees with no wind and no current, Kafer said.

The Minnesota Men’s A team finished first in the division with a time of 19:51 for 5,000 meters. The University of Chicago’s Crew Wu team finished second with 19:52.

The Minnesota Men’s B team finished third with 20:22. The Manhattan Jr. Crew Allen team finished fourth with a 21:02 finish. ISU Woolley-Franklin finished fifth with a time of 21:05. Iowa teams finished in seventh and eighth place in the division.

Prior to the finish of the race, Kafer said he thought Iowa State would do pretty well in the event. The team has been training since late August and practices six days a week.

“We spend as much time training as any varsity sport,” Kafer said. The team trains on the Des Moines River on Monday, Wednesday, Friday and Saturday, and they train at the Lied Recreation Facility on Tuesday, Thursday and Friday.

Many of the ISU Crew Club members are also members of the Des Moines Rowing Club, said Mike Woolley, junior in construction engineering and club president.

Members of the Des Moines Rowing Club currently pay dues to use that club’s equipment, until they can afford their own, Woolley said.

The ISU team is currently raising money to buy its own set of oars. A set of oars costs around $2,400 and a shell, or boat, can cost $12,000 to $20,000, Kafer said.

The club recently had a fundraiser through Agri-Pro, where they worked for $7 an hour. The team raised $1,500 by pulling beans for eight or nine hours, said Jeff Brown, senior in transportation and logistics.

The ISU Crew Club was formed last year and is always looking for more members.

At the beginning of last year, the club had 70 members, but only 12 remained on the team until the end, said Jason Franklin, sophomore in mechanical engineering and club secretary.

Franklin attributed the large dropout rate to the amount of dedication that is necessary to train and compete.

The club currently has about 40 members, half of which are female, Kafer said.

Next weekend, the team will travel to Minnesota for the Head of the Mississippi regatta, which is hosted by Minnesota.

They will also prepare to compete in the Quad Cities Classic on October 11 and 12.

“We are going to work on our technique and try to [better] our time in every competition we go to,” Brown said.

“Crew is an excellent source of fitness and a great way to represent the school.”