UNIVERSITY OF WISCONSIN-MADISON ARCHIVES
ORAL HISTORY PROJECT
Interview #1311
CLARK, CHRIS
CLARK, CHRIS (1959- )
Head Coach, Men’s Crew
At UW: 1994-Present
Interviewed:
Interviewer:
Index by:
Length:
2013 (3 sessions)
Troy Reeves
Troy Reeves
2 hour, 44 minutes
Abstract: In his three March 2013 interviews with Troy Reeves, Chris Clark talked about
aspects of his early years as a competitive rowing and his thoughts on coaching crew at
UW-Madison. Clark spoke of the time period between 1970s and 2010s and on the
following topics: UW-Madison Athletics (Men’s Crew). This interview was conducted for
inclusion into the UW-Madison Oral History Program.
Key Words: UW-Madison Athletics (Men’s Crew); recruiting; SOAR (Student Advising,
Orientation, and Registration); Derek Rasmussen; Orange Coast Community College;
Stanford University; University of California-Berkeley; Olympic Games; Pan American
Games; 1985 World Championships (rowing); Dan Lyons; Oxford University; OxfordCambridge “Boat Race”; Randy Jablonic; Mary Lockyer Browning; Barry Alvarez;
training; Camp Randall Rowing Club; US Rowing; Porter Boathouse.
First Interview Session (March 7, 2013): Digital File
Time
Keywords
00:00:00 Start of Interview/Interviewer’s Introduction.
00:00:47 Question: How did Chris Clark (CC) become interested in rowing? Answer: Chris
Clark (CC) watched rowing on TV during the 1976 Olympics. He went into his senior
year in high school wanting to try rowing. CC then went to a community college in
California (in Newport Beach) that included a rowing team; he met the coach that
summer before. He offered a brief overview of that coach. He talked about the training
involved in 1970s rowing, particularly the differences.
00:05:22 Question: Can CC discuss his first time in the boat? Answer: During the fall CC
earned the right to get on “1st boat.” The pressure and stress led CC to quit one
weekend; he reconsidered and asked back on the team. The coach let him back on; he
let CC back on with the understanding that the next time he quit would be the last.
Chris Clark (#1311)
00:08:01 Question: Freshman dropouts? Answer: CC talked about how common it was for
freshmen expressing interest in joining the rowing team to quit. He explained why: the
attrition will happen all at once, basically during that freshman year.
00:11:41 [No question.] CC talked about the difficulty in someone interested in rowing making
it into the first or second eight, equivalent to first or second string. To get to the top in
rowing, it will take exceptional skill, attitude, and aptitude, even though rowing has
been noted as “the people’s sport,” because anyone can do it.
00:13:42 [No question.] Recently, recruiting for competitive college rowing has changed. Other
colleges/universities have recruited international students. When asked if CC has
competed for international rowers, CC said, “They will not come.” Since men’s crew
will not offer scholarships, seasoned rowers will choose a campus that will offer them
money. CC then explained why he would not recruit non-U.S. athletes.
00:17:02 Question: How does CC find out about possible UW-Madison rowers? Answer: CC
detailed the “three-legged stool” that does comprise the men’s team recruiting. He
offered a detail explanation of the first leg: finding high-school rowers. Here he
discussed the following: the importance of Title IX, savvy high school coaches and
athletes’ parents, and his current Freshman coach’s work finding high school rowers.
00:22:40 [No question.] In a brief aside, CC noted how a mailed letter has returned to a place of
prominence; CC offered several anecdotes about how a recruit (or his parents) told CC
or his staff that they received his letter. CC continued to discuss recruiting, specifically
how a recruit’s success can depend on whether their parents pushed them into rowing
or the student pushed himself.
00:26:18 Question: Can CC talk about another leg of recruiting? Answer: The UW-Madison’s
SOAR program changed the on campus recruiting paradigm. He noted SOAR has
changed several times, sometime year by year. But CC furnished his thoughts about
another leg of recruiting, other high-school athletes. He described, in detail, how it
took a couple of iterations to get a good process. They also started offering camps both
in the spring and summer, which, over time, have taken off.
00:34:13 Question: The 3rd leg? Answer: CC returned to finding the right type (height) of
students during the summer before their freshman year. He returned to working with
the campus SOAR program. He described, in detail, how men’s crew interacted with
students at SOAR.
00:37:56 [No question.] A conclusion from SOAR: sometime the best crew member will not be
the right height and an Olympian comes every 10k freshman. He talked more about
crunching the numbers and about staying on campus all summer to attend SOAR every
day. As he has aged, he has realized that his current freshman coach can work the
crowd better than he can. He felt that SOAR has worked even better since campus
rebuilt Union South.
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00:41:41 Question: More on recruiting students (also with SOAR and at Union South)? Answer:
CC noted that now SOAR has found a permanent home at Union South he has worked
with the Union South folks to stay in their good graces. He described his interaction
with the previous SOAR leadership, including how he felt they treated the crew team.
He continued his thoughts on recruiting at SOAR, including training his staff, dealing
with the undecided students, and asking them to come to the information sessions held
during SOAR. When asked CC called SOAR the “most stressful” of the three legs.
They always avoided to be “super aggressive” with the students.
00:46:50 Question: Rowing 101, why does height matter? Answer: Leverage, although rowers
less than ideal height can succeed. CC called the perfect body will consist of long arms
and long legs, which will help in generating power. On the flip side, bigger men do not
succeed in rowing, primarily because of their athleticism (or lack of it).
00:50:08 [No question.] CC recalled one of his best “big” rower, Derek Rasmussen who stood
6’6”. He spoke more about Rasmussen. He then listed the skill-sets of two current
rowers, both over 6’6”. He continued discussion on tall, male athletes, including
international ones and two other UW-Madison Crew members, the Kaufman brothers.
00:54:17 Question: Besides body-type, what else makes a good rower? Answer: CC listed three
items: biometrics, psychological, and physiological. This led CC to describe his best
rower in 2013, Ben Ruble. His height will make it harder for him to compete
internationally (Olympics). Ruble started as a novice (a SOAR recruit) and has
progressed each year. CC then talked about who they look for: a B-plus recruit,
because “A” recruits will go elsewhere. He then spoke of his current freshman class,
including the possibility of their greatness.
00:58:54 [No question.] CC talked about “drafting” athletes as a very inexact science, so they
need a large number of possible recruits to find those small few that will succeed in
the program. He returned to his current Freshman coach and his strategy to get more
possible high school athletes to consider rowing at UW-Madison. In closing CC
commented on the idea that all of his teams have ended being how CC thought they
would finish at the beginning of the year.
01:02:35 End of First Interview Session
Second Interview Session (March 14, 2013): Digital File
Time
Keywords
00:00:00 Start of Interview/Interviewer’s Introduction.
00:00:15 Question: Did rowing come naturally? Answer: Chris Clark (CC) said that between his
physical size and focus he became a good rower quickly. He also told the story of the
freshman rowers, including him, beat the sophomores, which also led him to see his
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(and his freshman teammates) aptitude.
00:04:00 Question: Academics at Orange Coast Community College (OCCC)? Answer: CC
came there to row, but upon reflection he thought some of his best teachers came from
OCCC. CC advocated for the importance of community college as a way to help
students prepare for university; he noted he voted for the referendum to increase
funding to MATC.
00:05:45 Question: Summer between freshman and sophomore? Answer: He took sailing
classes and rowed single scull. Then, he became rowing captain his sophomore year.
00:08:03 [No question.] After his two years in community college, he wanted to continue to
row. He thought about two Northeast schools (Penn & Cornell) but eventually chose
Stanford. As far as his year in Stanford, CC decided not to row, because Stanford’s
team did not offer much. He also did not find much to appreciate about Stanford’s
academics either.
00:12:31 [No question.] So CC transferred to Cal-Berkeley, where he almost ended up at the
year before. The summer (1980) before moving to Berkeley, he rowed 3 or 4
times/week, which seemed like a lot at the time. When asked by the interviewer CC
talked about rowing (including his years of eligibility) and academic at Cal. While he
only competed one year, he trained with the team all year, which met his needs almost
as well as training and competing. He finished classes in 1982 but official graduated in
1983, because he never submitted paperwork.
00:18:08 Question: 1982 Pacific Coast Championship? Answer: CC talked briefly about
winning that championship but more on the national championship held in Cincinnati.
The team peaked too soon and competed poorly in Cincinnati. They also went to
England to compete that summer and did not do well there either.
00:22:58 Question: 1983 Pan American Games? Answer: CC talked about the training &
competition that led to the games, most of which occurred in Madison. He eventually
won a spot on a two-man scull. The 1983 games occurred in Venezuela; once CC
finished his competition he stayed in Venezuela for a few days, enjoying the social
aspects of not competing.
00:26:02 [No question.] CC talked about the national coach in 1984, who still has
communication with CC, and about why he has avoided speaking, when asked, at
national rowing events. He will talk at regional events, particularly when focused on
youth rowing. He offered his mantra about coaching, “It’s about the athlete” and
explained what that meant to him.
00:31:11 Question: 1984 Olympics? Answer: The training to try to be an Olympian showed CC
that to be the best he needed to train with people as good as him (preferably better).
His partner, while a good person and rower, and CC could not compete against the
best two-man teams. When asked, CC discussed PEDs in 1980s, noting that he never
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saw it in rowing, but they knew that Eastern Europeans athletes doped. They briefly
talked about the present PED issues; CC has never seen any or suspected any of his
athletes of using PEDs.
00:36:06 Question: 1985 World Championships? Answer: CC talked about the path that led him
to find Dan Lyons as a partner. CC actually went to the WCs as an alternate; Lyons’
partner fell ill. CC took his place, and the two of them rowed to a 7th place finish. The
WCs were held in Belgium; after competing CC and other rowers rented a VW van
and drove to Southern France. At that point in his life he did play hard but only after
the competition ended.
00:40:25 Question: Oxford, 1986? Answer: CC said that through rowing competition he began
to meet English rowers, and he ended up at Oxford because of those connections. He
needed to matriculate to row, so he did. It did not take long for CC to realize that the
Oxford crew lacked something. And it showed when Cambridge “crushed” them at the
annual Boat Race. He discussed the interesting coaching culture at Oxford and the way
it started him thinking about coaching. It planted a seed that he wanted to try, eventually, coaching because he could offer something that most rowing coaches lacked.
00:46:05 Question: Oxford (1987)? Answer: CC preferred limiting his talk about his second
year in Oxford (1987), because of its complexity. He noted that some of articles and
books written about it exaggerated the story, while one book—written by a woman
named Gill (he thought)—got it fairly right. And he talked about a couple of issues
about this year, including how some British rowers rebelled that year and how CC did
earn a spot on the boat (but on the wrong side).
00:49:03 Question: After Oxford? Answer: CC moved to New York City, where he toiled at
many different jobs, which led to many “great adventures.” He went back to England
several times to visit the friends he made. Eventually, one of his fellow rowers
(Henley) asked CC to join him at U.S. Navy, where Henley coached, as an unpaid
assistant. CC agreed.
00:51:11 End of Second Interview Session
Third Interview Session (March 19, 2013): Digital File
Time
Keywords
00:00:00 Start of Interview/Interviewer’s Introduction.
00:00:16 Question: Volunteering coaching at Naval Academy? Answer: Chris Clark (CC) called
it a good situation, particularly, in hindsight, because the freshmen that year were
great. He has remained tight with those freshmen and their coach. His second year
brought more challenges, but it let him know that he wanted to coach. While the Naval
Academy might bring few great memories for the students, CC thought it was great; he
stayed in an apartment on campus and enjoyed the whole experience.
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00:02:50 [No question.] CC rowed with Dan Lyons at a meet in Henley in the summer of 1994,
where he reconnected and interviewed with then men’s coach, Randy Jablonic (Jabo).
CC came to interview in June 1994, during a heat wave. Jabo offered CC the job; CC
called it a watershed moment, because he wanted the job. But he knew no one in
Madison. He took the job and started in July 1994 as the freshman coach. He returned
to discussion about SOAR, because Jabo told CC about its importance. He noted the
initial assistance from Mary Lockyer who helped with rowing and recruiting.
00:06:09
[No question.] CC discussed his early “crack staff.” It consisted of former rowers and
volunteers. He appreciated this early support; all of these people (CC listed a few of
them) still hold a place in his heart. CC then talked about the 1st practice and few
weeks of fall. He talked about how he inherited a team in decline for a couple of
reasons, including the rise of foreign rowers at other colleges/universities.
00:10:18 [No question.] CC recalled the 1st orientation, specifically the first student he met,
Nelson Williams, who ended up a good rower for him. CC then offered an overview of
his two years as freshmen coach, including the success of his rowers. He has wondered
(what if?) if he would have stayed if Athletics have not asked Jabo to step down.
00:12:39 Question: How did CC become head coach? Answer: CC talked about how he learned
about how Athletics worked before Pat Richter and Barry Alvarez took charge. Jabo
came from the pre-Richter era. During the 1996-97 season, Joel Maturri from Athletics
told CC that they had asked Jabo to step down at the end of the rowing year, but JM let
CC know that he could let Jabo go before the end of the year. CC saw no plus side in
letting Jabo go, so that year Jabo still ran the varsity team.
00:16:10 Question: The 1997/98 season? Answer: That year served as CC’s first year in charge
of all men’s rowing. He talked about the changes: increased training, rowing in other
parts of the lake, adding equipment, and making Spring Break a rowing event. He
noted that the new Athletics regime made a lot of this, particularly buying new
equipment, possible.
00:20:05 Question: Marriage/family/balance? Answer: The positive of his work has stemmed
from it not being 9-5, giving him flexibility. A negative has been the busy, busy times,
such as basically all of April, May, and June. These thoughts led CC to talk about
other changes when he took over, including the rise of the Camp Randall Rowing
Club, which has led to increased rowing in the summer. He finished his thoughts here
with the idea that for about 36/37 weeks of the year he will work 6/7 days a week.
00:23:33 Question: The seasons of rowing? Answer: Starting with fall, he said practice doesn’t
start until the 2nd week of school, giving his athletes the first week (and the first few
weekends) to themselves. They row in the water as much as possible, usually until
around Thanksgiving and do not compete in many tournaments in the fall, and if they
do, they will occur as late as possible. The fall season usually ends early December.
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00:25:40 [No question.] CC then discussed winter and spring rowing schedules. They have
started recently with an event in Austin, TX, on 12/28. Then, the rowers have no
official work until January. Early in winter the rowers practice no more than 8 hour
each week. In late March or early April, they have invited the University of Michigan
to compete here. (Note: the 2013 event might not happen because of winter’s
continued presence on campus.) Each year they get back onto the water as soon as
possible after the ice breaks on the lake. CC then discussed how the national
championship has occurred in June, recently in early June. Then, the staff and some
students will move right into working at SOAR. One year the championship and
SOAR coincided, so former rowers helped with SOAR until the coaches returned.
00:29:09 Question: Camp Randall Rowing Club? Answer: CC described the Camp Randall
Rowing Club, including the fact that his coaches will lead it. They always have wanted
to make summer activities more fun for the athletes, so CC will try to stay away from
the club’s activities. He also talked about how former rowers, CC, and his staff have
implemented high school camps during the summer, including discussing the logistics
and the fact they now will run concurrent with the girls’ summer rowing camps.
00:31:05 Question: Renovation of Porter Boathouse? Answer: CC talked about the renovation,
which led to them moving into the equivalent of a new building in January 2005. He
discussed a temporary site at Willows Beach and a big circus tent purchased to serve
as a temporary structure. He furnished his opinions about the building’s pros and cons,
confessing that if he made attentions to more of the details during construction, the
cons would have lessened greatly.
00:36:18 Question: 2008 national championship team? Answer: He offered a brief overview of
the 2007-2008 team, which won the varsity 8 or national championship. He compared
them to his 2002-2003 team, which had similar talent but just lost the varsity 8 that
year. He noted that his team has won the team competition several times, but the team
that wins the varsity 8 race will be crowned champs.
00:43:13 Question: Coaching nationally, Under-23 teams? Answer: CC said he enjoyed that
work, but he stopped doing it after he and his wife had children. He noted he could
have coached the U.S. in the 2000 Olympics but decided against it. He has chosen not
to be bothered by not coaching in the Olympics, because it would mean a big time
commitment away from his team and his family.
00:45:38 [No question.] CC concluded this interview (and the oral history) with his comments
on the following topics: more on coaching the Olympics; the effect of foreign rowers
on collegiate teams, including how it adversely affected U.S. rowing; the location
(stern 4) of the best rowers in a 8-person boat; and a recent example of a collegiate
team (Syracuse) that has used foreign rowers, where a U.S. rower still led the team.
00:50:14
End of Third Interview Session
End of Oral History #1311
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