Mariana’s Rowing Journey: From Sixth Grader to Camp Lucy Coach
When Mariana moved from Virginia to Seattle just before sixth grade, she never imagined a sport she’d never heard of would shape the next seven years of her life. She’d tried dance and swimming when she was younger, but had never really connected with traditional ball sports like soccer or basketball. Then, one fall day at McClure Middle School, something unexpected happened: ERG ED® came to her school.
Rowing wasn’t even on her radar.
“I didn’t know anything about rowing. It was this new thing, and it seemed kind of cool. I was already looking for a new sport anyway, so I thought, why not try it?”
What caught her attention was how different it felt. In sixth grade, most kids had already been doing their sports for years—soccer, basketball, gymnastics—but rowing was a level playing field. Nobody was ahead. It felt fresh, powerful, and unlike anything she’d experienced.
Falling in Love with the Sport
Mariana began rowing on the water that winter at Seattle Rowing Center and stayed through seventh grade, falling more in love with the sport every season. When the boathouse closed, she joined College Club for her eighth-grade year—right as the pandemic hit.
With strict safety rules, College Club allowed one-on-one sessions in singles. For the first time, Mariana rowed alone.
“It was a completely different experience—just me, the boat, and the water. It shifted my mindset. I had to focus on myself and my technique. At first, it was weird, but it ended up making me a better rower.”
Over time, singles sessions turned into a small cohort of single scullers, bringing back some of the camaraderie she loved.
After moving to Mercer Island, Mariana joined Pocock Youth Rowing, racing through high school until her senior year, when she shifted her focus to other commitments and decided not to row competitively in college.
Coming Full Circle with Camp Lucy
After her first year of college, Mariana reached out to her former coach, Helen Tilghman, about jobs at the Pocock Rowing Center. That’s when she learned about an opening for a coach at Camp Lucy—a free summer camp introducing middle school girls to rowing. Mariana immediately thought of Zoe Vais, her very first coach, who had started the program years earlier.
“I loved the idea of coaching at Camp Lucy. It felt like coming full circle—helping girls discover rowing the way I did back in sixth grade.”
Though she had no formal coaching experience, Mariana realized she had something equally valuable: years of rowing and the perspective of a mentor. Still, there was a steep learning curve.
“I didn’t realize how much you have to break everything down for beginners. Even something as simple as getting the boat off the dock wasn’t intuitive to them. I had to explain and then rephrase, because what clicked for one camper didn’t always work for another. It taught me to be patient and to meet them where they were, especially with middle schoolers whose attention spans can vary day to day.”
She loved watching the campers grow. On the first day, they couldn’t even row by pairs. By the end of the week, they were rowing as a full boat—and racing.
“Seeing their excitement was so validating. They started to understand the connection between what they learned on the erg and how it translated to the water. They loved going fast and rowing together—it was incredible to watch.”
The Lasting Impact of Rowing
Though Mariana doesn’t plan to row competitively in college, she hopes to stay involved through coaching and recreational rowing. She loves being part of the boathouse community and simply being on the water.
Looking back, she sees how rowing shaped her—through COVID, through transitions between boathouses, and through the challenge of teaching others.
“It’s been a unique experience. Each part—being on a team, the energy of regattas, the quiet of rowing in singles—made me who I am today. I even miss the adrenaline of yelling from the beach for teammates during a race!”
From a curious sixth grader trying something new to a confident coach guiding the next generation, Mariana’s journey shows how a single introduction through ERG ED® can ripple outward, changing not just one athlete’s path but the lives of many more to come.
