Men’s rowing, oar crew if you prefer, first made a splash at the UW in 1874 as a club sport. By 1892, campus had a varsity team that earned its first non-intramural victory, courtesy of the Chicago Navy. (Not the U.S. Navy, mind you, but a crew of Chicago’s best oarsmen selected from the city’s various boat clubs.) Despite having hand-me-down boats and shorter rowing seasons (frozen lakes don’t make great practice conditions), Wisconsin’s crew built a reputation as an impressive up-and-comer against more seasoned schools like Cornell, Harvard, and Yale throughout the 1890s and 1900s. In 1951, men’s crew won its first national championship under coach Norm Sonju. He started a trend of successful and long-serving head coaches for men’s rowing. After Sonju’s 22-year stint, Randy Jablonic ’60 followed with a 28-season tenure, and his successor Chris Clark stayed on for 27 years. Current head coach Beau Hoopman ’03 will have to retire in 2052 if he wants to break the record. As the longest-running athletic program at the UW, it only makes sense that men’s rowing boasts the most national championships with its nine titles. This weekend, alumni rowers and supporters are celebrating the program’s 150-year-history with a big bash and the premiere of the Badger-produced documentary, Wisconsin Where They Row.