UW-Cal 'need each other'

Two photos hang in the locker of Washington rowing director Bob Ernst. There's an image of his two children. And there's an image of the 1975 California varsity eight.

"My job is to beat those guys," Ernst says of the Cal rowing program. "And if I don't do it often enough, I'd better be worried about my job."

He makes the declaration in the most matter-of-fact manner possible. It's accepted, period. The Washington-Cal crew rivalry is just that important.

"We're two storied programs, embedded in tradition, and we're here to battle and bring out the best in each other," Cal men's coach Mike Teti says.

They've been doing it for 108 years now. The competition doesn't age. It just gets more sophisticated.

Saturday marked the 100th Washington-Cal dual race. They've missed a few years since that first meeting June 3, 1903, but time has made the rivalry stronger. When the two programs get together for this exclusive, legendary race, the dual is a duel of epic significance.

Most years, the race is a preview of the men's national championship. Some years, the same is true on the women's side. Every year, you can expect Olympic-caliber performances and a level of intensity that reflects how much these athletes want to honor their rowing ancestors.

"They make us push harder, and we make them push harder," says Washington junior Conlin McCabe, who is the No. 4 man on the men's varsity eight. "There's something deep inside of you that says you don't ever want to lose to them. Every Husky alum has his own way of telling us, 'This is the reason you don't let them beat you.' We take those stories pretty seriously."

Thousands of fans lined the Montlake Cut on a rare sun-blessed April morning as Washington, the nation's top-ranked men's team, retained the Schoch Cup for a fifth straight year by pulling away from No. 2 Cal halfway through the 2,000-meter race and winning the varsity eight by almost three seconds. The Huskies are now 70-29-1 in varsity eight races in the Cal dual. Overall, the Huskies took three of four men's races on their home course Saturday, losing only the freshman eight.

On the other hand, No. 4 Cal took all four of the women's races against the No. 7 Huskies. The Golden Bears kept the Simpson Cup for the eighth straight year with a solid six-second margin of victory in the varsity eight.

Of course, this event is just a warmup for the rivals. They'll see each other again at the Pac-10 championships, and they're all national-title contenders. It's easy to compare the rivalry to Duke-North Carolina basketball or Michigan-Ohio State football, but, really, how often do those programs meet in the championship game? In crew, Washington and Cal expect to finish 1-2 regularly.

It's accepted, period. They've been together at the top for so long. It's fitting because they're connected in so many ways.

As the former national team coach, Teti once trained Washington men's coach Michael Callahan and freshman coach Luke McGee. The Huskies and Golden Bears recruit many of the same rowers. The Simpson Cup was donated in 2003 by longtime Washington supporters Dottie and Hunter Simpson, but their daughter, Anne, rowed at Cal.

Carroll "Ky" Ebright, the late legendary Cal crew coach whose name is on the Golden Bears' boathouse, graduated from Washington in 1917. He was a Husky coxswain, but in 1924, the Huskies encouraged him to take over a struggling Cal program. Why? Because it was good for the sport. Because, honestly, the two programs belong together at the top.

After 100 dual races, that feeling of competitive kinship remains.

"When you think about it on a higher level, we need each other," Callahan says.

They need each other like Magic needs Bird.

"It's almost like racing your brother," Teti says. "You love your brother, but you don't want to lose to your brother."

This event is so competitive that the coaches serve as the race officials. But when it's over, the rowers respect each other so much that the winners don't celebrate. They're too exhausted, anyway, but they know it's foolish to give the rival extra motivation. Because they'll meet again. They always meet again. And the stakes only get higher.

"We're always pushing each other," says Ernst, who is also the Washington women's coach. "I'm not sure that one program can reach its potential without the other. This sport isn't about entitlement. You have to earn everything. No matter how accomplished our program is, we have a measuring stick right here on the West Coast."

It's been that way for 100 dual races now. This rivalry is the fastest centenarian ever.

Jerry Brewer: 206-464-2277 or jbrewer@seattletimes.com, Twitter: @Jerry_Brewer