Summary

By January 1935, Ulbrickson still had not made his final decision about which crew to name as first boat, so he arranged to have all the crews in JV and varsity race against each other in a mini competition. Sullen rivalries in the boathouse suddenly exploded into all out battles: “Eyes that had been coolly averted from one another before now locked in icy stares. Accidental bumping of shoulders turned into open pushing matches. Locker doors were slammed. Curses were exchanged. Grudges were nursed” (Page 150). All the boys, regardless of their crew, seemed to realized that whichever was named first boat would be the boat challenging for US representation in the upcoming Olympics. Stakes had never been higher. Ulbrickson had hoped that the sophomore crew would easily prove that they were the best in the boathouse, but he was...