Double Header this Weekend

The Fighting Illini will kick off their Fall season with the Double Header Weekend. The rowers from the University of Illinois will kick off their season with the Quad Cities Classic in Moline, IL on Saturday October 12th, followed by the Head of the Rock in Rockford, IL on Sunday October 13th.Last year, the Illini took gold in the Novice Men's 8+ for the second year in a row, this time winning by a wide margin. The Varsity Men's 8+ and Novice Women's 8+ both claimed silver, the Varsity Men a mere 3 seconds down on rival Wash U. The Varsity Women's 4+ and Novice Women's 4+ finished just off the podium in 4th place. Illinois, now fielding a full five 8+'s (Varsity Women, Novice Women, Varsity Men, Novice Men, 2nd Novice Men) will look to sweep the big boat races, as well as gain the podium with the 2nd Varsity Men's 4+ and 2nd Varsity Women's 4+.After Quad Cities, the team will travel to Rockford for a well earned night of sleep before racing at the Head of the Rock on Sunday. While the Head of the Rock was cancelled due to high winds after the morning races last year, the Illini will look to gain the podium again after being absent in the last two. This race will bring together the best Club Varsity and D1 Varsity teams in the Midwest. The Novice Men's 8+ from 2011 - stroked by current Men's Varsity 8+ stroke - gained the podium by winning silver. We will see if the Fighting Illini can take down a field of some of the best crews in the country to do it again.