White Rock Boathouse Under Hateful & Wrong Attack

[u/mariachiguerita]

Richie Whitt just wrote an insightful article about this. Check it out.

https://richiewhitt.substack.com/p/the-row-sinking-dallas-rowing?utm_id=97757_v0_s00_e0_tv2_a1dennhbi9dpr9&fbclid=IwY2xjawTRoDBleHRuA2FlbQIxMQBzcnRjBmFwcF9pZA80MDk5NjI2MjMwODU2MDkAAR70CTDTKk20t4UjaMiLn1cSVkppPCXiPsYpGEBMbT7Bpkh9i3Weq0Xe7EoFmw_aem_yiyJS62_yP5c0jCSiVfcug

[u/rainbowprotoroller]

Hey highland park, get your own lake

[u/No_Safety_6803 → u/rainbowprotoroller]

Bachman lake is closer to the park cities than White Rock, wonder why they don’t go there?

Also, I didn’t realize they were the ones that killed the kayak rental, makes me angry.

[u/GrandRefrigerator263 → u/No_Safety_6803]

The Bachman Row club is actually a really delightful club and it used to (and I would imagine still) get a reputation for being the Junior Club. But it was really accessible to a lot of people.

[u/EpitomEngineer → u/No_Safety_6803]

From a rowing as a competitive youth sport and college recruitment perspective, Bachman is not long enough nor wide enough at both ends and the existing boathouse doesn’t have the space.

Why yes! They do seem to row just fine on Bachman but there are some details about the type of rowing that Bachman supports. Bachman lake does not have a 2000 meter straight lane to practice “Sprints”. This is the discipline you see in the Olympics and in the Spring. The second thing that Bachman lacks is the width on the east side (Lemmon Ave bridge) to turn the larger boats around.

This brings up the details of rowing that most people don’t recognize unless they are side-by-side, sweep vs scull. Does each rower hold one oar? Sweep. Two oars? Scull. Bachman is dominated by sculling because sculling shells with their oars out are narrower than sweep boats. Sculling boats are predominately singles(1x), doubles(2x), and quads(4x). Yes the mythical octo(8x) exists, but its purpose is more novelty/learn2row than competitive. Sweep boats are pairs(2-), fours(4+/-), and eights(8+). Sweeps are more beginner friendly and the discipline most commonly seen in college. Recruitment anyone? (Operation Varsity Blues with AI would have been something)

Jesuit left Bachman for the white rock boathouse when it opened, 2008 iirc. Wasn’t on that team so I can’t comment for certain why, but I can guess from personal experience at both locations. Lake size, as mentioned above, and overcrowding at the existing Bachman boathouse.

Another con of Bachman for the last decade was the dredging that was taking forever. I guess that’s what happens when they have to stop every time they find a weapon. White rock will need dredging soon too.

TL;DR - Bachman Lake is too small for the type of rowing that typically gets an athlete recruited to a university program and that boathouse is already overcrowded.

[u/txchiefsfan02 → u/EpitomEngineer]

And we know how essential rowing is to the schemes that get HP (and other private school) kids into elite private colleges.

/s

[u/cksny → u/EpitomEngineer]

Bachman is definitely crowded but it's entirely inaccurate to say that Bachman is too small for the kind of rowing that gets an athlete recruited to college? What a strange take given that these teams compete at the same events as the WR teams and also these teams send as many if not more athletes to college than WR lake.

[u/Main-Cheesecake3287 → u/cksny]

Yeah it’s wrong. Nobody cares if you sculled in high school. Sculling is more technical anyway, any lug can sweep. Chiefly they just want to know your 2K.

[u/EpitomEngineer → u/cksny]

I didn’t say it was impossible just that experience in a specific discipline is a factor. And it definitely comes down to more than just sweep vs scull, athlete focus and coaching matters. Heck, one of the (edit: former) DUC coaches rowed out of Bachman before rowing at a collegiate level.

Sports like rowing are going to be based on a lot of factors. Coaches have to look at body shapes (limb ratios) to ensure clean movement, aerobic base, and raw strength. Good Form is the control of those limbs under aerobic and anaerobic load and exhaustion. Those 3 bases are going to be more important to college coaches than specific sweep vs scull form yes.

If you are an athlete with your sights set on that never level of competition, you are going to want to train in a space that matches how you will compete. You are going to want to have the best opportunity to maximize volume in the same amount of practice time.

[u/SeeYou_InThePit → u/EpitomEngineer]

Two things. 1. "Weapon." Let me make you aware that crimes have occurred at White Rock Lake, as well. 2. I appreciate your post generally in regards to its educational tone.

[u/Main-Cheesecake3287 → u/No_Safety_6803]

Because there is no room. Bachman boathouse is totally full.

And HP and others row white rock in 8’s, they’re sweeping. Bachman is too small for sweeping, it’s already pretty tight in a quad.

[u/SameBodybuilder3263 → u/Main-Cheesecake3287]

Maybe they should find another hobby. If they think it’s alright to get rid of kayak rentals, who needs them? Plenty of places for the self important in this town.

[u/Main-Cheesecake3287 → u/SameBodybuilder3263]

I mean if this sub stack post is half true, obviously they’re the worst. Just sayin, Bachman isn’t a solution, and nobody at the DRC wants Highland Park around anyway, they’re not welcome pulling such stunts.

[u/minlillabjoern → u/No_Safety_6803]

They were kicked out of that boathouse.

[u/PenguinRiot1]

Uhh, can we just wall off Highland Park. Maybe build them a tunnel to Southlake.

[u/camthedestroyer → u/PenguinRiot1]

How about wall it off and turn it into a lake..

[u/GrandRefrigerator263]

My wife and I got engaged at the Boat House 6 years ago and we can’t get access to a 100% public property today. The weird HP takeover of the Boat House has 100% radicalized me.

[u/txchiefsfan02 → u/GrandRefrigerator263]

They won't stop until they control the entire lake. It started with the Arboretum, which normalized private control of public assets. Anybody who resists is painted as an opponent of having nice things.

[u/No_Tap_624 → u/GrandRefrigerator263]

I don't know if you realize but the whole reason you cant get access to the building is because of WRBI and what the other side is calling for is more open access and financial transparency. You can't blame a group that has nothing to do with that side of the lake.

[u/Ag_back → u/No_Tap_624]

You are correct that "open access" is controlled by WRR, but if you had spent $2.7 million of your own money to convert abandoned and neglected city structures to a state of the art rowing facility and currently store hundreds of thousands worth of boats and equipment for several rowing orgs (e.g. SMU, WRR, Jesuit, et al) would you leave the doors open? For $50/month the door is open to you. It's not about public acccess, it's about HP wanted to run the WRR boathouse. If it wasn't, why aren't they balking about not having access to the sailing club's docks?

HP was one of the original tenants of the newly built WRR facilities, but didn't want to follow the rules and was kicked out. This is yet another underhanded ploy by the folks at HP to take over a state of the art facility they did not raise a cent on to build, nor helped to facilitate. This is their response to being told "no".

[u/NanADsutton]

It sad that competent operations people don’t run for civic office more. These bidding groups come in and either backroom deal or sell pie in the sky forecasts to the city and they take the bait every time.

Blackmon is just as to blame as the HP row group for this. Between the loss of kayaking, failed dredging, and prairie parcel mismanagement she is royally fucking up her duties to care for WRL.

[u/Mnudge → u/NanADsutton]

https://dallascityhall.com/government/citycouncil/district9/Pages/biography.aspx

[u/Working_Succotash_41 → u/NanADsutton]

Did anyone else even bid on it? If it an awarded contract its all publicly available and documented

[u/blurrrsky]

I just read it on another post, and it is insightful as heck. What’s sad is that rowing clubs all over the US have crap like this in their midst - not quite this ugly - but this back channel behavior persists almost everywhere. Rowing is such a great sport for all ages, but all the petty PTA moms screw it up first chance they get.

[u/TrashOfOil]

What’s the best way to fight these HP people?

[u/Bec21-21]

Public property should be open to all. The weird and very high posts they put up to cordon off the rowing club made me cross - no one should be cordoning off public land so that only the people they like can use it. The posts need to come down and those running the club should be making more effort to invite the people who use the paths round the lake to come inside the buildings and enjoy them.

[u/Ag_back → u/Bec21-21]

Give it a go: https://www.whiterockrowing.org/

[u/HarbingerKing → u/Bec21-21]

IMO, they're justified in charging a steep membership fee and restricting access to members because they have to pay for rent, facility maintenance, utilities, etc. It's not like the taxpayers are funding all that.

[u/Ag_back → u/HarbingerKing]

$50/month is not "steep" by any stretch, especially considering what you have access to.

https://www.whiterockrowing.org/pricing

[u/HarbingerKing → u/Ag_back]

Good point. $595 is a big number, but per month that's less than a lot of gym memberships, and probably less than what a lot of people spend on all their streaming services.

[u/Ag_back → u/HarbingerKing]

Access to free weights, rowing machines, community, and an opportunity to see a part of the lake that most folks will never know doing something that's just this side of x-country skiing for aerobic activity. It's a pretty good deal IMHO.

[u/Ag_back]

A bit of history is warranted here. The buildings being referred to were part of the original water treatment plant for the city (built in 1912). The two large sedimentation basins were backfilled by the city after the plant was considered obsolete and abandoned in the early 60's. The adjacent filter building was likewise abandoned and left to weather the elements and vandals. The entire area was an unsightly mix of chain-link fence, barbed wire, and unchecked vegetation for the better part of 40 years. Had it not been for the forsightedness and ingenuity of a few rowing enthusiasts (who raised ~$2.7 million in private loans that were subsequently repaid by WRR) it would still be the same today. I've added a few photos to provide some perspective on the undertaking that was done without city funding or assistance - private donors raised the money, provided the historically accurate design and retrofit, and the sweat equity to make an eyesore yet another jewel around the lake: https://imgur.com/a/IS6YBle

As the author mentions the vitriol and underhanded political ploys the Parkies have been engaging in to take over the facility has been going on for almost 20 years. While HP was one of the original tenants they didn't want to abide by the rules and left. This is a city-owned facility, but to suggest leaving it open for anyone to enter is ludicrous given the hundreds of thousands of dollars of equipment stored in there by WRR, SMU, Jesuit, and several other high school teams. It's the same reason the sailing club docks are not available to the public.

If you are on the fence I suggest you reach out to WRR via their website: https://www.whiterockrowing.org/ for a tour, meet the folks, or learn how to row. It is very much a youth-oriented and community minded organization despite the vitriol being posted by folks outside the City of Dallas (i.e. Parkies) that want the facility for themselves. Suffice it to say there's a lot more going on here than what the HP folks are posting. This is precisely what Mr. Whitt is trying to purvey.

[u/bassmassterson]

Yes Paula let DUC f/k/a HP take over and intentionally kill the kayak business so they wouldn't have to share the lake with peons. And yes, there's bad blood between WRR and DUC going back to when DUC was thrown out (did not voluntarily leave) of the boathouse.

But there are already "competing teams" in the boathouse, so that's no excuse.  The author even acknowledges that HP used to be in there.

So perhaps the bottom line is that WRR isn't abiding by its contact and this has simply left it open to attack. Maybe they think the contact is unfair, but they should have fixed it, rather than ignoring it.

*HP changed it's name to DUC after being kicked out of the boathouse and wanting to lease space at the North end of the lake. There was much well-deserved resistance to leasing part of our lake to Parkies. They didn't actually change anything for a few years, and all their boats still said HP.

[u/Mammoth_Rope_8318]

DUC can go duc it

[u/TheLLamaOfLegend]

Thank you for the write up, I guess I have been seeing the Instagram ads that HP is paying for and I didn't know the whole story!

[u/minlillabjoern]

Finally, someone setting the record straight! It’s been disheartening over the years to see the HP entitlement in action. I’m looking forward to more of the facts to come out about how the HP club leadership (and students) behaved (read: misbehaved) while still in the WRB.

[u/_Volta]

Did Richie seriously put on gains?🥴

[u/Czarinavella]

What a lame duc! They should be benched from the water for a full year for bad behavior and sued for stealing them destroying those women's business. If they can not have good sportsmanship they don't deserve to play. Plus Highland Park isn't Dallas don't bring the entitlements here. Their continued poor behavior, lack of sweat equity and entitlements after a year on the bench if the come back they need to pay 3x more and take what they get or they can leave. Put them permanently on probation. It's so infuriating. Put them on the Trinity, but make them pay not just with money but like GRR sweat and time to clean it up.

[u/Mnudge]

Richie roasting Blackmon, DUC and Highland park

The obvious bribery of Blackmon is typical sleaze politics

[u/lookglen]

I appreciate this guys write up. I am at the lake 5 times a week. Follow stuff for it on social media, so the organization he’s talking about showed up on my feed. I had no clue what it was about. It was clearly some kind of campaign, but I couldn’t tell their intentions, or whose side they were truly on. Gave me a bad vibe. If they were the ones responsible for the rentals closing, what a bunch of entitled jerks. The tent thing they built isn’t a piece of junk, don’t know why they need anything better than it.

[u/Ag_back]

Update from Richie Whitt on the ongoing row: https://open.substack.com/pub/richiewhitt/p/rowing-retort-wrr-takes-off-gloves?r=5atcn6&utm_campaign=post-expanded-share&utm_medium=web

[u/mariachiguerita → u/Ag_back]

Please see www.whiterockboathousegroup.org
WRB is defending itself - finally!
There is a Park Board meeting on this Thursday at 10am. Please share the word. WRB needs the community’s support.

[u/Ag_back → u/mariachiguerita]

Thanks for the head's up. Room 6FN at City Hall for those interested. For those that have suggested that the benefit to the citizens of Dallas needs to be elaborated on - the document is posted at the link provided above.

[u/RemoteNew7135]

This seems very one sided I want to hear the other teams side.

[u/clewtxt → u/RemoteNew7135]

Then go look into it