The Arlington-Belmont crew team is doing everything within its power to compete in the state regatta this weekend after a major setback involving the loss of 11 boats.
The AB crew had just finished a competition Saturday when a man allegedly stole a pickup truck and trailer carrying the crew boats. The pickup crashed during a chaotic getaway, destroying the boats.
“I was shocked at what happened. And it’s just such an unbelievable series of events that you never would have expected would occur,” said Elizabeth Pyle, whose daughter rows on the team.
Criminal charges have been filed in Cambridge District Court against the suspect, who is undergoing a mental health evaluation.
Pyle, who also sits on the board of the nonprofit organization, said she is grateful no one was seriously injured, but the team is now trying to overcome the loss. Each boat can cost upwards of $40,000, even when they are bought used.
The AB team is an independent rowing club, not a school crew team. According to Pyle, it’s comprised of 80 teen athletes who live in Arlington and Belmont, and cites as its mission the lessons of teamwork and sportsmanship.
“We’re just like a scrappy, shoestring organization that is just parent and community funded. This is going to take a lot of work to get us back on our feet — although we’re committed to doing so, so that our athletes can continue doing the sport that they love,” Pyle said.
Despite the setback, the team is working hard to ensure the athletes can compete in this Sunday’s Massachusetts Public Rowing Association State Regatta in Fall River, the capstone of their season.
The incident has garnered sympathy from the community and an outpouring of support from other rowers.
“I’m hopeful that they’re going to come out of it the other side,” said Kane Larin, operations director at Community Rowing, Inc. of Brighton, located along the Charles River.
Larin’s organization, in addition to others, stepped in and offered to loan the AB team boats to participate in the state regatta.
The carbon fiber boats weigh about 200 pounds and are high-tech, Larin said. Each boat is about 60 feet long and carries eight people and a driver.
Pyle said many of the crew members are devastated because they feel personally connected to the boats they’ve been racing in all season.
The kids have been fundraising to replace the boats. But Pyle said the team’s coach, Kelsey Anderson, reminded the rowers that it’s the people, not the equipment, that make the team.
“So we will recover from this,” Pyle said.
