History

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Working hard to make a dream a reality the Forest Park Crew Team was established in 2000 by head Coach Heather Cox and founding board members.  This co-ed varsity crew team is a self-supporting and legal nonprofit 501C organization.  Forest Park Crew is considered a non-sanctioned High School sport.  Outside of the coaches’ salaries, funded in the spring by the Prince William County School Board, the team relies and operates solely on donations, corporate sponsorships, rowers’ dues, and fundraisers.


Forest Park Crew is a member of the Virginia Scholastic Rowing Association (VASRA).  VASRA organizes and executes regattas on the Occoquan Reservoir, Potomac River, and the Anacostia River for its Virginia Area members.  VASRA works jointly with the coaches’ association and the Crew Council (comprised of athletic directors from high schools participating in rowing programs).  Regattas are run according to the US Rowing Rules of Rowing and governed by the Crew Council.


Forest Park Crew has grown tremendously over the past 22 years.  Initially the team rented equipment from other schools storing equipment in space donated by the local Park Authority.  Much to the chagrin of many who thought it couldn’t be done, FP Crew successfully put 46 rowers on the water its first year and even won a few ribbons!  In the program’s second year, nearly 100 interested rowers attended our informational spring meeting.  Because equipment and storage of equipment was an issue the team had to limit the number of rowers to 52.  Thanks, however, to the persistence of the team’s President, Eddie Barnette, Forest Park became the 5th High School to permanently row out of the Oxford Boat House in Lake Ridge Park.  Over the years, the team has achieved many lofty goals even qualifying and placing in state and national level competitions.  Due to the dedication and hard work of our coaches, parents, and rowers, we now own numerous boats and continue to grow making a name for ourselves!


Our History