
Lucy Sandahl (left) rocks the Crocs when not in the water. (Photos courtesy Jeannie Sandahl)
Lucy Sandahl was right at the heart of the action Sunday morning.
The Coupeville High School grad, now a senior at Seattle Pacific University, participated with her crew in Head of the Lake, the “largest fall rowing regatta on the West Coast.”
Sandahl was the coxswain for an SPU team which finished 5th in the women’s championship 8+ collegiate race, covering the course in 18 minutes, 25.43 seconds.
Head of the Lake, which starts on Lake Union and finishes at the University of Washington Shellhouse, has become an annual tradition since it debuted back in 1979.
What started as a small group of athletes from the Lake Washington Rowing Club getting together has blossomed into a major event which draws collegiate crews from seven states and Canada.
Master rowers often pop in from far-flung locales as well, with past participants hailing from places like Alaska, Colorado, and Maryland.

Fall colors and fast boats, with Lucy Sandahl (far left) barkin’ orders to her crew.
Sandahl, a 2020 CHS grad, played volleyball and competed in track and field during her time in Cow Town.
She and older sister Sophie were both part of the successful Seattle Pacific rowing program, until Sophie graduated from SPU after last season.
Lucy is a senior majoring in Physiology.
With Head of the Lake bringing an end to the fall crew competitions, she and her SPU teammates now head into winter training.
They will reemerge in the spring, ready for regatta season.
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