Starting now, you can contribute your own photos to ExeterCrew.com and have them appear instantly on the site. Using an implementation of phpFlickr by Dan Coulter, each gallery now grabs photos photos according to tags from the Exeter Crew Flickr pool. This allows you to more easily add your own pictures in addition to all the regular features of Flickr. These includes automatic scaling, license management, comments, prints, EXIF support, and more. Below is an example of photos with the tag “ernestinebayer” referring to the Ernestine Bayer Memorial Flotilla the Academy hosted in the fall of 2006.

Adding your own photos to the above galleries is very easy, just follow these simple steps.

1. Create an account at Flickr. If you already have an account, log in.
2. Join the Exeter Crew photo pool via the “Join this pool” link at the top.
3. Upload your photos, either online or using the Flickr Uploadr, a desktop application that makes uploaded large batches of photos easier.
4. In the Flickr Organizr, drag your photos into a batch and click “Add Tags.” In the dialog box, add the tag that corresponds to the proper race or event. These tags are in each news posting and listed on the photos page.
5. In the organizr, click “Send to group,” and choose “Exeter Crew” in the dialog box. This will add these tagged photos to the group. They should now appear in the corresponding gallery on ExeterCrew.com!

I am in the process of uploading all past photos to Flickr–this will be finished in the coming weeks.

If you have any questions about using these new features, feel free to send me an email.  Enjoy!

As you have probably noticed, the site has recently undergone a few changes.

• Upgraded the site’s Wordpress backend. This has a bunch of new features and should make the site more secure.
• Activated a new theme. This is a port of Andreas07, originally by Andreas Viklund, done by David Peralty. I’ve modified most of the code and CSS into the current design.
• As with any migration, there’s a few links and styles that are broken–I’ll be fixing these as I come across them.
• The CSS and HTML used are now fully W3C validated. In non-nerd speak, this tune-up to the code will decrease the chance of improper page rendering. However, to to ensure proper viewing, you must use a browser that is fully CSS 2.1 compliant, such as Mozilla Firefox 3, Google Chrome 2, Safari 4 or Internet Explorer 8.

I will be implementing a new photo gallery engine later this week. This will allow users to upload photos to Flickr and have them automatically appear in the photo galleries below posts. Check back soon to see it in action.

The Exeter girls first boat finished second this weekend at the USRowing Youth National Championship regatta at Harsha Lake outside of Cincinatti, Ohio. This impressive silver-medal finish at the country’s most competitive youth regatta culminates a tremendous season for the girls first boat.

The 2000 meter regatta is organized as a double-elimination semifinal wherein a given boat has two chances to get a spot in the semifinal races. The exact setup depends on the number of entries in the event. For the girls eight event, all twenty-three entries initially rowed in one of four heats on Friday. Exeter finished second to Marin Rowing Association in 6:59.95. All twelve crews that finished in the top three qualified directly for a slot in one of the three Saturday afternoon semifinals; the remaining eleven went on to race in one of the two Saturday morning repechage heats. In these intermediate races, the top three boats also earn slots in the afternoon semifinals. In the semifinals, Exeter finished second to Maritime Rowing Club in 6:53.10. The top two crews from each semifinal go to Sunday’s grand final, the middle two crews go to the petite final and the bottom two crews go to the C-final. In the grand final, Exeter finished second to Marin in 6:45.05.

This silver-medal finish represents the highest attainment at the national level for an Exeter girls boat in thirty-six years since the start of the program in 1973. It also ties the record for the highest attainment at the national level for any NEIRA girls crew ever. Even more remarkably, such success comes after twelve of eighteen members of the varsity squad graduated in 2008.

A big congratulations to all rowers, coxswains and coaches for their tremendous finish to the season.