Sequim’s Elise Beuke qualifies for U.S. Rowing Youth National Championships after regional title

Published 12:01 am Sunday, May 17, 2015

VANCOUVER, Wash. — Elise Beuke keeps winning.

The Olympic Peninsula Rowing Association rower won the U.S. Rowing Northwest Regional Youth Championship by a whopping 17 seconds at Vancouver Lake on Saturday.

Beuke, a senior a Sequim High School who has signed to row at the University of Washington, finished the 2,000-meter women’s varsity single in 8 minutes, 31.4 seconds.

Beuke zeroed in on the third 500 meters at Saturday’s regatta, wanting to fight the tendency for rowers to fatigue during that stretch.

“I really tried to focus and gain some distance in my third 500,” she said, adding that she was “pretty much ahead the whole race.”

Olympic Peninsula Rowing Association coach Rodrigo Rodrigues was confident Beuke could win the regional championship.

“That was exciting,” Rodrigues said. “We were working hard for this and we did it.

“It was our first goal for this year.”

By finishing in the top three, Beuke earns a spot at the national championships, which is June 12-14 in Bradenton, Fla.

She also has been invited to the Junior U.S. national team selection camp in New Milford, Conn., the week after nationals. There she will be one of 30 girls vying for eight spots at the Junior World Championships in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, in early August.

“That’s going to be exciting,” Rodrigues said. “She’s going to need to work a lot.”

Rodrigues, a native of Brazil, has already been selected as one of the coaches for the Junior U.S. team.

From the times he has seen at the other regional regattas, Rodrigues said Beuke pulled the best time.

“She is going to nationals with the best qualification time,” Rodrigues said, “which is kind of pretty great, but it doesn’t tell us a lot of information.

“They’re going to look at her and say, ‘Wow, that girl is the fastest.’”

Neither Rodrigues nor Beuke was satisfied with Saturday’s time.

“I have pulled way faster times at practice, and I was hoping to P.R. at this race,” Beuke said, “which i didn’t, so it’s kind of bittersweet.

“But I’m not complaining.”

Beuke said her personal record is 8:02. She was hoping to pull a 7:50 Saturday.

“I was expecting a little more,” Rodrigues said, but then admitted, “As a coach, I don’t think she’s going to make me happy, ever.”

And Beuke, whose first regatta was at the Northwest Youth Regional Championships last year, credits Rodrigues’ coaching for her quick success.

“It’s honestly . . . I attest it to hard work and coaching,” Beuke said. “He’s such an amazing coach.

“He’s a really focused person, and he puts a lot of weight in the idea of baby steps: if you do your workout right every single day, then you’ll get your goal.”

The Olympic Peninsula Rowing Association will have two more rowers in the regional finals today.

Eric Prosser, also a senior at Sequim High School, will compete at 7:58 a.m. He qualified for the men’s novice finals with a time of 8:35.50 in his preliminary heat Saturday.

Port Angeles sophomore Hannah Officer will be in the women’s novice single final at 9:12 a.m.