Athlete Classifications and Eligibility​

• Youth Novice: Open to all youth rowers who are in their first year of competitive rowing. *Please Note - A rower that raced for the FIRST time in the spring is eligible to race novice. A rower that raced as a novice in the fall of 2024 is NOT eligible. 

• Middle School: Any rower that is in 8th grade and below

  • In the spirit of safety, an experienced rower is allowed to cox a middle school boat​.

• Youth: A competitor who in the current calendar year does not attain the age of 19, or who in the current calendar year does not attain the age of 20 and has been continuously enrolled in secondary school as a full time student seeking a diploma.

• U17: Open to athletes 16 years of age and younger that DO NOT turn 17 in the current calendar year. 

• U16: Open to athletes 15 years of age and younger that DO NOT turn 16 in the current calendar year. 

• ​Masters: A Master is a competitor who has attained, or will attain, the age of 21 during the current calendar year.

  • A competitor's age is determined as of December 31 of the calendar year.

  • The average crew age will be rounded down to the nearest whole number. 

  • A Masters Crew must be comprised of all Masters Rowers.

  • The coxswain of a Masters Crew does NOT need to be a Master.

• Collegiate: Any rower currently enrolled full time in a college/university

• Collegiate Novice: Any collegiate rower in their first year of collegiate rowing

• Open Gender: Open to any gender identity

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​Rules of Racing

• The Head of the Chick follows USRowing Rules of Racing.

• Masters Events WILL be handicapped based on the average age of the crew. The coxswain's age does not get calculated into the average.

• All traffic patterns on and off the water must be followed.

• ​The following Penalties will be access to offending crews/teams:

  • Buoys

    • Crossing over the ORANGE buoy line while warming up or racing - ​30 seconds

    • Missing a YELLOW buoy - 30 seconds

    • Failure to keep the RED TRIANGLE buoy on starboard - Exclusion

  • Failure to Yield or Over Aggressive Passing - 30 seconds

    • Overtaking crews must steer a safe course and allow at least one boat’s width open water when passing.

    • A crew is considered to be overtaking when it is within one boat length of the slower boat.

    • Crews being overtaken must promptly yield to either the outside turn or the direction instructed by the overtaking crew. 

  • Late to the Start - Any crew arriving late to the start will be allowed to row IF the event is still in the process of starting. If the next event has already started we will do our best to allow the crew to race down the course but as exhibition only.

  • Failure to Continue Rowing Past the Finish Line - Crews MUST continue to row past the finish line. Failure to do so could result in a penalty at the discretion of the Chief Referee. 

  • Unsportsmanlike Conduct - time penalties or disqualification at the discretion of the Chief Referee. 

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Safety Plan

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