Why I Row: Marc Kemp

Marc's story is the first in a three-part series on current and past members' experience with joining the club. 

Upon graduating high school, I enlisted in the U.S. Navy. I performed my training in Great Lakes, Illinois as well as Virginia Beach, Virginia. Currently, I am a Master-at-Arms Petty Officer First Class serving in the Naval Security Forces unit at the Naval Air Station New Orleans. There I am tasked with anti-terrorism, force protection, law enforcement, and physical security. I am decorated a veteran of Operation Enduring Freedom and Operation Vigilant Mariner, both of which I completed from May 2009 until February 2010. I am also part of LSU Rowing.

I enrolled at LSU a few months after completing training for the U.S. Navy. During those arduous six months, I had grown accustomed to being surrounded by a large group of people who were extremely tight knit and passionate about a common goal. When I got to LSU, I lost that feeling of esprit de corps and I missed it greatly. I enjoyed my going to parties and hanging out with friends, but there was something missing. I yearned to be more involved at the school that I treasured so deeply. I missed being part of something bigger than myself.

 My first encounter with LSU Rowing was in my Louisiana French class when I saw a girl wearing a black jacket with “LSU Rowing” emblazoned on the back in purple and gold letters. I was unduly impressed.  There was just something mystifying about that jacket. Maybe it was because I had no idea that LSU had a crew team or maybe it was the visions of Olympic races complete with gold medals and our nation’s flag flying triumphantly in the wind. Either way, I decided that I wanted to learn more about this uncommon sport. After a few quick trips to Wikipedia and the UREC’s club sports website and I was ready to start rowing.  

I went to the LSU Organization Fair and searched out the rowing table. Once I found it, I was surrounded by enthusiastic members telling me about the sport that they truly enjoyed. I put my name down for attending the “Learn to Row” days and got excited. At the end of that week, I showed up at the LSU dock and was quickly thrust into a shell. Once I got over the unsteady rhythm of a boat full of aspiring rowers I was hooked. I loved gliding on glass-like water just inches below me. I enjoyed feeling the connection between my entire body and the thrill of fast through the water. After that short introductory session, I knew I’d found the sport in which I belonged.

I started showing up to practice at 6:00AM. It was early February and cold and dark out on the lake. The water stung when it splashed into the boat and my lungs ached as I took in the frigid air. But the people I was with made all of that disappear. Everyone moved in sync with each other in extreme coordination towards a common goal: to move the boat fast, very fast. The boat is like a clock. There are many moving pieces and if one is out of sync, the entire thing gets thrown out of balance. To this day I still love the sensation of gliding perfectly balanced after a few strokes with oars out of the water.

After weeks of practices we were finally ready to go to our first real race. We travelled together on a bus to Lake Lanier in Georgia. We set up camp in the parking lot, hoisted the American flag atop an old oar standing in as a flag pole and began to reassemble our boats. I mostly remember how nervous I was that day as we waited for race time. When it was finally time for our flight to launch everyone was ready. This was to be a great race. We started off strong and quickly sprinted past our competition, ensuring a first place win. The next day we repeated this success and won our second race. On the trip home everything seemed to have a glimmering gold sheen to it.

During my first season, amidst wins and losses,  I quickly learned that the members of this team made it special. With early morning practices, grueling erg workouts, road trips to races, the thrill of victory, and the despair of defeat it became clear to me that these folks were family. Everyone had my back, just as I had theirs. We push each other to be the best we can and don’t leave anyone behind who is having trouble. I realized that I found the exact thing that I was looking for. With LSU Rowing, I became part of something bigger than myself:  a winning institution that had the potential for exponential greatness. 

Marc Kemp

23-year-old Criminology Senior

Master-at-Arms Petty Officer 1st Class

Veteran of Operation Enduring Freedom and Operation Vigilant Mariner