Helm of their class

Topeka Capital-Journal, The, Sep 21, 2008 by Julie K Buzbee

By Julie K. Buzbee

SPECIAL TO THE CAPITAL-JOURNAL

As speed boats buzzed in the background at Lake Shawnee, a different style of boating enthusiasts gathered Saturday under shade trees at the Topeka Rowing Association for the group's first induction of a Hall of Fame class.

Although rowing is one of the world's oldest sports and has been in the Olympics since 1900, its introduction in Kansas came about much later through the efforts of Don Rose in 1963 at Kansas State University.

Rose, the first inductee, remains a K-State coach with 45 years of coaching the sport under his belt.

After comments by emcee Merle Blair, a longtime Topeka disc jockey, Rose accepted the honor by introducing himself as "Donald Rowing Seed," a reference to Johnny Appleseed.

"Rose kept me out of a lot of trouble," joked fellow inductee Don Craig, coach of Washburn University's first rowing team.

"We wouldn't be getting together to celebrate this if he didn't bring rowing to Kansas," Craig said.

Rose said when he started rowing in Wisconsin, he did it because of what he could get out of the sport -- T-shirts and medals.

"As you get into it a little further, you start thinking about what you can do for your sport," he said.

Other things fall into place naturally after that, he said, such as thinking about what you can do for your family and your community.

Shawnee County Commissioner Ted Ensley, another inductee, has been an example of what Rose was talking about. Ensley has served as county director of parks and recreation, general manager of the Kansas Expocentre, and vice chairman of the Kansas Department of Wildlife and Parks.

The Topeka Rowing Association credits Ensley with having a pontoon boat ready when the late Thomi Keller, president of International Rowing, came to town from Switzerland and proclaimed Lake Shawnee as "the finest rowing water in North America."

Ensley also helped another boathouse to be built at Lake Shawnee.

Although not a rower, Ensley has high praise for the sport.

"Rowing adds many dimensions to one's life," he said. "Rowing is very special. This park is very special."

Washburn graduate Hank Miller credited inductees Don and Fern Hogue, who operated the Pepsi distribution center in Topeka, with donations that got the Washburn program going.

"Pepsi really was the organization that jump-started the program at Washburn," Miller said.

Pat O'Donnell, general manager of Pepsi in Topeka, accepted the honor posthumously for the Hogues.

The last two inductees were Marvin Renyer and Craig.

Renyer, who is associated with the Lake Shawnee Boat and Ski Club, partnered with Topeka Rowing to help organize and develop a referee driver staff for regattas. He has helped with those for more than 30 years.

"Working with Don Craig has been a great pleasure," Renyer said.

Craig, a former K-State coxswain, captain and freshman coach, has coached in Topeka since the original 1969 rowing crew. He also has served U.S. Rowing as a trainer of officials, and he officiated rowing at the 1984 and 1996 Olympics.

"I've coached a lot of super athletes in my time," Craig said.

Julie K. Buzbee is a freelance writer in Topeka. She can be reachedat jbuzbee59@yahoo.com.