Crew team competes in alien costumes

Captain Emily Eastwood (12) placed third out of 11 boats in the varsity double race, and novice Anastacia Devlin (9) fifth out of 11 in the junior eight and second out of 11 in novice eight race to pace Space Coast Crew in the annual Halloween Regatta in Tampa.

While the girls’ varsity-eight team finished last, Eastwood remained optimistic.

“It was OK,” she said. “We were a varsity eight racing with two novices.” 

To celebrate the season, the girls all dressed in costume.

“We were all aliens because we are Space Coast Crew,” Eastwood said. “It was cute, but we put glitter on our cheeks with cosmetic glue, and I was ripping it off by the end of the day.”

In addition, the girls carried on the tradition of doing “knucks” before every race for good luck and to mentally prepare themselves to compete.

“We tap the water first and then the gunnel and then we fist bump the person behind us down the boat,” Devlin said.

Eastwood pointed to other sources of levity on race day.

“We like to mess with other people in the boats around us so it’s really fun,” she said.

Space Coast Crew’s next regatta is The Head of the South in Augusta, Ga.,  on Nov. 9-10.

By Amanda Lally