The Big Red heavyweight and lightweight rowing squads opened the spring portion of their 2010 season at the Ithaca Duals Regatta held at the Cayuga Inlet.  Despite the choppy waters and bitter cold temperatures, Cornell continued its success from the fall season by beginning the year with a 16-4 dual record, in which three of the losses were to Cornell teammates.

The Ithaca Dual Regatta is one of the more unusual races of the year.  The meet was made up of 39 races between Ithaca College, Bucknell, Hobart, Michigan, Virginia, and Cornell.  The Big Red heavyweights and lightweights both competed at the varsity level, and it is the only official race of the year where both squads were scheduled to compete against each other.  Cornell was the only school to have its lightweight team compete.

The heavyweights dominated the duals, winning all but one heat.  The varsity 8 squad defeated Bucknell and the Cornell lightweights, while the second varsity 8 was victorious over Michigan and the Cornell lightweights. The third varsity 8 also won its races against Michigan and the Cornell lightweights.  All of the varsity boats won their respective races by at least 13 seconds. The freshman 8 heavyweights were also undefeated after easily defeating Michigan and Virginia, while the second novice 8 won one more race by finishing ahead of Virginia.  The only loss for the Cornell heavyweights on the day was a close 3.37-second loss by the second novice 8 to the third varsity 8 of the University of Michigan.

Meanwhile, the lightweight crew team found its own success, winning seven races against heavyweight squads from the other schools.  The team's only blemish on the day was its three losses to the Cornell heavyweights in the varsity 8, third varsity 8, and freshman 8 races.  The varsity 8 defeated the best Virginia squad by over five seconds, while the second varsity 8 dominated Virginia by nearly 20 seconds.  The freshman 8 defeated Hobart and Bucknell by an average of 14 seconds, and the second freshman 8 also handed losses to Michigan and Bucknell.  Finally, the third varsity 8 lightweights defeated the fourth varsity 8 heavyweights from Michigan to end the day.

Up next for the heavyweight squad is a dual meet against Harvard this Saturday in the Cayuga Inlet.  The lightweights do not compete until April 10 when they face off against Penn and Harvard back in Ithaca.