’ This is the Mercyhurst EnduROWthon. On March 7-8, 10 student-athletes from the mens rowing team rowed 451,879 meters to break a record for the greatest distance rowed by a lightweight mens small team on an indoor Concept II rowing machine in a 24-hour period. The previous record of 405,000 was set in December 2008 by a Hungarian club rowing team. Student organizers dubbed the event the Mercyless EnduROWthon. It transformed the MAC into a 24-hour madhouse of whirring ergs, cheering students and a tsunami of energy. In addition to setting a Guinness record, the mens team also set a record adjudicated through Concept II. ’ “ ” ’
” “It was nuts. It was unbelievable, said junior computer systems major and team captain Xavier Alexander. “I m so glad I m a part of this team, and I m so proud of my guys. To clinch the distance record, the mens team rotated on the erg for 30-second, full-intensity shifts. The machine s fywheel had to remain spinning for the record to be legitimate, so man-to-man transitions had to be fawless. After 4 minutes and 30 seconds to ’ ’ ’ ” ’ ’
“ That was probably one of the most painful experiences I ve been in for a while, Schuppe said. “But as soon as it was over, there was just a rush of emotions. The cheering from the crowd, all of my teammates slapping me on the back, hugging me, congratulating me – it was euphoric. ’ ” ” recuperate, each rower was back on the erg. The overnight shift allowed one rower at a time to take a 40-minute nap break, challenging the remaining nine to up their intensity. But they powered through for 24 hours to make history.
’ And as if one world record weren t enough, the EnduROWthon broke two. Across the stage from the mens varsity team was another rowing machine, on which 600 people took shifts to shatter the world record for most people to row 500 meters on a single erg in 24 hours. ’ Mercyhurst students, faculty, administrators and staf – even Louie the Laker – hopped on to take a turn, as did people from the Erie community.
’ For Jef Murt, a senior intelligence studies major and rower, the most powerful moment of the EnduROWthon wasn t with his varsity team. In the quiet depth of the overnight shift, a young boy with cerebral palsy got to do his part. The boy came with his mother at 4 a.m., took a seat on the erg and rowed his way into the record books.
” ’ “His mother was in tears – it was a very powerful thing to see, Murt said. “Honestly, even though the mens varsity team broke the record, giving that little boy a chance to be a part of something so huge, that made this whole thing worth it. ” The EnduROWthon marked the frst time a Guinness World Record had ever been set in Erie, Pa. To achieve certifcation, the team kept a meticulous record of all the statistics and even few in a Guinness judge from England to oversee the event.
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