2012 Details
On June 23rd, the Virginia Boat Club hosts the 9th annual Rocketts Landing Sprints. The event consists of 1000 meter sprints along the historic James River waterfront in downtown Richmond, ending at Rocketts Landing. The regatta is open to Masters and Masters Novices. All events are refereed by USRA officials and the race course is controlled by the U.S. Coast Guard Auxiliary. For more entry information, visit www.regattacentral.com.
Our regatta site, Rocketts Landing, has been in use since 1730, when Robert Rockett operated a ferry here across the James River. In 1816, Rocketts Landing hosted the first steamboat to reach Richmond. During the Civil War, Rocketts landing was an integral part of the Confederate Navy Yard. In April, 1865, after the fall of the City, President Lincoln landed at Rocketts Landing and walked to downtown Richmond. The Virginia Boat Club has rowed from Rocketts Landing since 1987, although, our presence on the river has a much longer history.
The Virginia Boat Club descends from one of the earliest rowing clubs in the United States. In 1876, seven young men from the Olympic baseball team and a six-oared shell founded the Olympic Rowing Club at Second Street by the Kanawha Canal. As Richmond grew commercially and socially prominent, Richmond rowing flourished. In 1888, the Olympic Rowing Club and the nearby Kanawha Rowing Club merged to form the Virginia Boat Club. With their larger numbers and resources, they moved to Mayo's Island by the current 14th Street Bridge where they built the first of several boathouses. The modern Club was reorganized in 1986. Today, rowing on the James continues with The Virginia Boat Club and Virginia Commonwealth University Crew Club. The VBC is a private, not-for-profit 501(c)(3) organization dedicated to amateur rowing. Our current boathouse was once the power generating plant for Richmond's trolley system. The boathouse is a large, white brick building distinguishable by the tall, red brick smokestack on the west side.
Spectators can watch the crews battle upstream over the 1000 meter course by standing by the Intermediate Terminal dock or on the banks of the Virginia Boat Club and Rocketts Landing site at 4708 Old East Main Street.
