Mentor Team Season Info & Pricing

The focus of the Mentor Team is to provide opportunities for rowers to work on the skills needed to move to JVA and be a member of the Juniors team.

Mentor Team Practices

• Rowers have the same practice opportunities as the Juniors team, however, they may be put in Beginner/Rec boats during the days when the Beginner/Rec team practices on the water.

• Mentor Team Rowers must attend at least 2 of the 3 days per week (within reason) that the Beginner/Rec team practices in order to be considered for promotion to JVA and/or the Juniors Team (they need to be available to mentor beginner and rec team rowers).

• At any practice, Mentor Team Rowers may be in boats with Juniors Team Rowers, other Mentor Team Rowers, or Beginner/Rec Rowers.

• Meeting the same attendance requirements as the Juniors team is recommended, and required to be invited to attend the Regionals Regatta in May.

  • Mentor Rowers will only be considered for promotion to JVA and the Juniors Team once they have met the attendance requirements for the Juniors team for 3 consecutive seasons.

Mentor Team Racing

• Mentor Rowers have the opportunity to go to the same regattas as the Juniors team rowers provided that there is a boat available for them. Once attendance is marked for a regatta, we will make every effort to determine as quickly as possible if there are opportunities for Mentor Team Rowers to race.

• As with Juniors team rowers, every effort will be made to get Mentor Rowers race experience, however, it may not always be possible.

• Mentor rowers will row with Beginner/Rec Team rowers at the regatta that the Beginner/Rec Team attends and are expected to be mentors for those rowers.

• Mentor Team pricing will be a base price, then additional charges for each regatta that the rower attends.

Mentor Team Racing at the Regionals Regatta (Midwest Junior Rowing Championship)

• Fall Season

  • Coaches will begin making prelimiary plans for the Midwest Junior Rowing Championship Regatta in the spring. Some time during Fall Season, coaches will invite Mentor Rowers that they feel are A) ready to row at Midwest Junior Rowing Championship; and B) they feel there is likely to be a boat(s) that would benefit both the Mentor Rower and the Juniors Team.  Race experience is extremely important for Mentor Rowers and going to this particular regatta is a privledge that is extended only to rowers that coaches feel are ready and would benefit from the experience.

  • Mentor Rowers will only be invited to race at the Midwest Junior Rowing Championship Regatta if they are meeting (or very close to meeting) the Juniors attendance requirements (workout, in person, regatta, and boat loading/unloading) for the season to-date.

  • Once the invitation is extended, Mentor Rowers are then asked to confirm their availability to attend both days of the regatta, and also that they intend to continue to meet the Juniors Team Requirements for workouts, in person attendance, regatta attendance, and boat loading/unloading.

• Late March/Early April

  • When the Midwest Junior Rowing Championship Regatta schedule is released (usually in mid to late March), coaches will review the regatta schedule and the Mentor and Junior Team attendance and determine if there are boats/events available for the Mentor Rowers that have expressed a desire to race at the Midwest Junior Rowing Championship Regatta AND have met all requirements (to date). Coaches will then have a conversation with rowers and parents, to let them know if they are "officially" invited to attend.

  • Mentor Rowers are asked to make the decision whether they would like to commit to attending the Regionals Regatta withing a reasonable amount of time after they are invited (the timeline will be agreed on by the rowers, parents and coach, but typically about a week).

  • Mentor Rowers that commit to attend the Midwest Junior Rowing Championship Regatta also agree to meet all Juniors attendance and regatta requirements for the Spring rowing season.

Mentor Team Pricing for 2025/2026

Because there may not be boats available for every Mentor Team Rower at every regatta, the mentor team will have a base price that will include fees for everything except spedific regattas, then a price per regatta that they attend.

We will let Mentor Team Members know as soon as possible what regattas they will be able to attend. We need the team to mark their attedance first, then coaches will sit down and look at the attendance and event list and determine if there are race opportunties for each rower. The fees for each regatta include regatta fees, transport of equipment, coaching fees and team tent food at the regatta. They do not include team accomodations (unless specified) or team transportation.

Base Price

• Mentor Team Base Price: $1500

Can be paid in full or in installements as follows:

• A minimum of $500 paid by October 31

• A minimum of $500 paid by February 1

• The remaining balance is due by April 30

Fall Regattas

• Tough Cup Regatta: $85

• Wisco Chase Regatta: (INCLUDED)

• Head of the Rock Regatta: $85

• Haxton/Speakmon Regattas (Tentative): $180

Additional Winter Strength Training Program

For 2025/26, Mentor rowers have the option to participate in our Rowing Specific Strength Training Program that will run from the week after Thanksgiving through the end of January. This training program includes both strength and rowing components designed to improve overall strength, but also as applied to rowing. The strength training is modifiable for rowers all age rowers that are on the Mentor Team. The Strength Training Program is structured to meet three times a week in December and January and will scale to twice a week over Winter Break (during Winter Break, we will try to find times that work for as many people as possible but recognize that some rowers may miss workouts). For those that participate, attendance is not mandatory and the way that this program is set up, missing workouts is not detrimental to the overall program, but you probably don't want to miss more than two in a row. If rowers decide that the strength training program is not sustainable for any reason by the time Winter Break starts, the additional fee is fully refundable. Past that point, there will be no refunds. If you would like additional information on this training program prior to making a decision, please contact Coach Sue.

• Strength Training Program (8 weeks): $350

Winter Regattas

• Southside Smackdown (Early February) (INCLUDED)

• Chicagoland Shiver (Early March) (INCLUDED)

TENTATIVE Spring Regattas

• Illinois Junior Rowing Invitational or other Unspecified Regatta: $110

• Unspecified Regatta: $120 (this is an estimate based on regattas that we may attend. A specific amount would be calculated once we determine if/which regatta we are going to)

• Indianapolis Junior Sprints: (INCLUDED)

• **Midwest Junior Rowing Championship: $180