Bad weather is forecast for the Head of the Charles.  Team Vespoli Pro Shop is prepared to help! We will have plenty of gear to help you keep warm and dry:  fleece hats, waterproof gloves and socks, tights, sweatshirts and more !  Look for us in the Expo Tent & stop by for a free sticker.

A remarkable re-birth of rowing has taken place at the Karachi Boat Club in Pakistan. Rowing, originally introduced in the country by the British over a century ago, had all but disappeared at the Karachi Boat Club by the late 1970′s. Fortunately, one of the club rowers from that time, Arif Ikram, decided to re-establish the rowing program. He began is his efforts several years ago and has grown the program to over 400 boys and girls today. He has been assisted by US Coach & ex-MIT rower, Ahsan Iqbal. Together they developed a successful program of very competitive junior boys and girls. In addition, some of their rowers have had the opportunity to travel to the UK and to the US to train and race. This experience of mixing rowers from different countries and cultures has been more than athletic. Perhaps our politicians should learn to row and do what the youth of the Karachi Boat club have done to develop international understanding and cooperation?

Ahsan Iqbal, Arif Ikram & Mike Vespoli

Team Vespoli will be at the  ’09 Head of the Charles in full force. Check out the great deals on Vespoli merchandise in our booth in the Expo tent (FREE STICKERS!). If you need parts or service visit our tent in the trailer area.

Barbarian Brand Rugby Shirts

How about if you (alone) could de-rig an 8 in under 5 minutes. You can with our new Quick Disconnect Riggers for sweep and scull, singles to eights.

SS Quick Disconnect Pins

Color Coded Thumb Screws

Vespoli is proud to launch the newly re-designed, on-line High School Recruiting Service. It’s FREE to all junior and senior high school rowers, coxswains and coaches. Register today!

Check out the cool, new features below or see a sample profile.

Rowers & Coxwains:

• Post your personal, academic, and athletic info and stats
• Your profile is only visible to approved college coaches
• Log in at any time to update your information
• Post YouTube videos or coxswain tapes
• Upload photos
• See a screenshot of how a coach will see your profile
• It’s FREE to join!

Coaches:

• Advanced searching with sorting and filtering by sex, ERG scores, GPA, region, position, signup date, and more!
• Contact athletes directly via e-mail
• See video of a rower’s technique
• Listen to coxswain tapes
• See a screenshot of a sample profile
• It’s FREE to join!

Get your trailer running & looking like new in time for fall.
2009 Summer Trailer “Refurb” Special

36′ with ½ bed $5,700
36′ with full bed $5,900
39′ (full bed standard) $7,500
41′ (full bed standard) $8,600

“Refurb” Program includes:

• Sand Blast
• Prime
• Paint
• New fenders
• New pressure-treated ¾” plywood deck
• New rubber padding w/ stainless steel screws
• 4 New tires
• New brake assemblies
• Re-pack wheel bearings
• Wiring & Light Check

Upgrade from plywood to composite deck material: $1,000
36′/39′ Tire upgrade to 16″ with Brake drums & Hubs $1,030

Prices are FOB Goshen, Indiana. Transportation quoted upon request. Terms: 50% down payment with order and balance due before pick up. Financing available.

Contact your regional rep for more details.

VESPOLI has set up the “real” and “official” FACEBOOK page with the invaluable help of LIz Bernal from the Rowing News Magazine.  Please link to our page and become a FAN.

There are a couple of other Facebook accounts that claim to be Vespoli but they are not connected to us in anyway.

Editor’s note:  The letter below was sent to all parents and coaches that have registered for the Vespoli High School Rower Recruiting Service.  If you haven’t, please register today.

Dear Coaches and Parents of High School Rowers,

Vespoli, builders of world class rowing shells, offers a free, high school recruiting service on our website www.vespoli.com.   This service is the oldest and most effective site for high school rowers.  Since we began offering this service to the rowing community nearly 10 years ago, tens of thousands of high school juniors and seniors have registered, thousands of coaches have viewed the profiles and hundreds have been successfully recruited.

The college admission process is difficult and paying for college is even more daunting. Getting your rower’s profile in front of hundreds of rowing coaches isn’t.  The Vespoli Recruiting Service can do it for you. The service we provide helps showcase your rower and has helped dozens of high school seniors gain admission to college. Plus, there are over 1500 rowing scholarships given for rowing by more than 120 colleges and universities across the USA.  

Coaches:  encourage all of your junior’s and senior’s to sign up now.  Parents:  remind your rower to update her/his profile regularly.

Why not maximize your child’s chance of finding the right college and maybe even a scholarship? Encourage your rower and teammates to register today.  It’s effective and it’s free.

Kind regards,

Mike Vespoli

PS:  We are going to do a major upgrade to our recruiting site in the next 3-4 months which will include many new features (all FREE!) such as posting a rowing and/or erg-ing video.

We are rolling back our new boat prices to 2007 prices for a limited time!  This price roll back is a great opporunity to get the Vespoli boat you need and save big!  For nearly 30 years the Vespoli USA commitment has not changed: build the best racing shells using the most advanced design and materials, one at a time, in America.  During these challenging economic times, you can be confidant that we have the resolve and the resources to be around to honor your warranty and service your boat.  Contact your Regional Rep NOW to take advantage of this outstanding offer.

NEW, IMPROVED BOAT SLINGS FOR 2009

All new 2009 Slings.  New shipment has arrived. Improved features.Reduced from $119 to $95. Part no. M45