If you speak with any of our Row New York coaches about rowing, the love and respect they have for this sport is immediately apparent. Many have rowed since high school, as well as in college. But when Flavia de Luccas, Brooklyn’s middle school coach, says she loves rowing, she has the callouses to prove it: she is still rowing and competing with her Masters Team. Many rowers stop after college — because it is hard. And sometimes cold. And rainy. And did we mention the blisters? None of that bothers Flavia. Her love for rowing began while attending Belleville High School in New Jersey. She continued rowing at Passaic River Rowing Association after graduating, and today she rows with Nereid Rowing Club.
Flavia’s reverence for the sport has as much to do with the physical aspect of rowing and the strength it builds as it does the sense of belonging she feels when she’s with her teammates.
“I have always felt like rowing gives you a place to “be” and not in just a physical sense; rowing has always felt like home, regardless of which boathouse I am rowing out of. It gives me stability. What I have learned, and hope that my kids feel, is that even when things are going badly in other aspects of your life, this is the one place it doesn’t matter. We are here, working together.”
Coach Flavia
Flavia has always coached those student-athletes new to rowing. Which means, she underscores, that they generally know nothing about this sport. It is equal parts fun and a bit stressful. But ultimately she loves the challenge– she feels her job is to teach those brand new to rowing a new way to communicate, a new language.
When asked about her goals for her student-athletes… “I want them to be able to go to any boathouse and row anywhere. I strive to give them the ability and skill to assimilate into any program by reinforcing rowing basics until they get the fundamentals right. My job is to make sure everyone knows the correct terminology and understand the calls. That way, they are prepared for whatever comes their way.”
