Kansas gearing up for 2018 season in Tampa

LAWRENCE, Kan. – A new year means a new season for Kansas rowing and the Jayhawks are getting a jump start on preparation for 2018 with their annual winter training trip Jan. 4-13 in Tampa, Florida.
 
As ice begins to cover the Kansas River, the Jayhawks are headed south to find warmer waters. KU will spend the next nine days training and bonding as a team in Florida. The Jayhawks’ winter break from classes ends early each year as the rowing program spends over a week focused on preparation for the upcoming season before the spring semester begins.
 
While training on the water will be key, interim head coach Carrie Cook-Callen and the Jayhawks will also be working on their culture of CHAMPIONS, which Cook-Callen began implementing in August. Kansas rowing strives to be champions in all aspects in life and the culture of CHAMPIONS is an acronym for its core values, which are: confidence, heart, accountability, maturity, perseverance, intensity, optimism, no excuses and selfless. With these beliefs, the Jayhawks will continue to build a culture of champions on and off the water. 

The Jayhawks derigged the boats like any other road trip and Kansas rigger Michael Amick began the long journey to Tampa ahead of the team to make sure that all the shells arrived on time and safely in Tampa. Before hitting the road, the Jayhawks had their first team meeting of the 2018 season and got in some time on the ergs.
 
Kansas opened its 2017 fall season at the fifth annual Jayhawk Jamboree on Oct. 22. Kansas competed against nine other programs and over 130 boats from around the region. Kansas boats recorded four top-10 finishes, while senior Aminah Reid-Brydon and junior Madison Wedderspoon brought home silver in the open pair, doubles and single races at the first regatta of the year.
 
The Jayhawks capped off their fall slate with nine top-five finishes, including a top mark in the Novice Four race, at the Tulsa Fall Invitational.
 
Once winter training wraps up, Kansas will begin the spring season with two scrimmages, continuing to get ready for tough competition that lies ahead. KU will face Tulsa for the second time in 2017-18, March 9-10, and race at Indiana March 23-24.     
 
Kansas opens a busy month of April with the Big 12 Double Dual on April 7. The Double Dual will feature Tennessee and Alabama on Wyandotte County Lake. Following the Double Dual, KU travels to Windsor, New Jersey, for the Knecht Cup April 14-15. The Jayhawks continue their season at Occoquan Reservoir, Virginia at the George Mason Invite on April 22. The Jayhawks close out the month with the annual Dillons Sunflower Showdown against Kansas State in Kansas City, Kansas, on April 28.
 
Kansas will look to finish strong at the Big 12 Championship, which has been held in Oak Ridge, Tennessee, for four-consecutive years, May 12-13.
 
Up Next
Kansas kicks off the spring season with a scrimmage against Tulsa on March 9-10 on the Verdigris River in Catoosa, Oklahoma.
 

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