University Oarsmen Engage in Light Workout on Thames River

New London, Conn., June 14. The Crimson oarsmen spent another comparatively quiet day yesterday with the crucial race of the season now less than a week off. With the most strenuous part of the training season behind them the University rowers will devote the next few days largely to polishing off their form and to bringing themselves to the pink of condition physically for their battle with the Blue next Friday.

Coach Brown took the University boat out in the morning and had them go through a short workout at a low stroke. While the first string oarsmen were taking things comparatively easily the other crews worked out over a longer course. Observers were impressed with the strength the University sweepswingers displayed rowing at a low beat. James Lawrence '29 seems to be ironing out the few little errors which have been somewhat of an impairment to his form and gives promise of giving a fine exhibition next week as pace setter for the Crimson eight.

Although the Yale crew has displayed consistently better form and display-pressive times in their trials during the past week the Harvard stroke has steadily improved throughout the week's practice. The long steady beat of the Crimson crew will be at its best in the four mile grind where the length and extent of the competition tends to favor the slower, more powerful stroke that has been set by the Crimson sweepswingers. The stroke employed by Brown, while at a great disadvantage in the shorter races against Tech, Cornell and Pennsylvania earlier in the season, will unquestionably show its greatest strength in the four mile struggle against the Blue eight.

The Yale stroke, set at a much higher beat, makes little use of the long lay-back favored by the Harvard oarsmen, with the result that the Blue tipped oars, while at a higher clip, do not pull the length of water handled by the Crimson sweeps.

With the stroke situation steadily improving, the former weakness of the Harvard crew in failing to raise the stroke at the finish of the race may be overcome; and should the stroke be raised even to a beat at 35 or 36 at the end of the race, the long rythmic stroke of the Crimson eight may serve to avoid such a procession as featured the 1928 race.

The selection of Lawrence has raised high hopes among many of the Crimson followers since his previous record as stroke of the Junior Varsity crew indicates that at least he will be able to display the endurance necessary to handle the raise of heat at the end of the race. While not pulling as strong an oar as other oarsmen who have been previously tried out this season in the stroke seat, the favor of a narrow oar, such as was employed by John Watts '28 last year, may remedy the situation and allow him the reserve necessary for the final effort.

Meanwhile the Crimson oarsmen have been royally entertained in their leisure moments upon the "Corsair" the palatial yacht of J. P. Morgan, who has for many years taken a few weeks at New London to provide rest and entertainment for the oarsmen. The crew squad will take an extended trip on the "Corsair" tomorrow.

Motion picture men and reporters from Metropolitan papers from all over the country have pervaded the training camp during the last few days in anticipation of the coming classic, and the wires have been kept busy by enterprising operators filling the dusky columns of the daily sport sheets.