Craftsbury is where Charles first got onto the water, and then, just as quickly, flipped into the water. Undaunted, he learned to love the sport – the training, the racing, and yes, the winning. He went on to row for his public high school team and was selected for the U.S. Junior National Team in 2014 and 2015. Recruited by Princeton University, he competed for the Tigers through college, earning a seat in the 1st Varsity. Interning at Craftsbury during summer sessions whetted his interest in coaching, so when he moved to Seattle in 2023, he was excited to join PRC. He finds coaching at Pocock inspirational because rowers are so motivated to improve. “I coach the Ancient Mariners,” he said, “and they like winning.” His approach is to challenge the rowers with leading questions instead of giving direct instructions when it comes to technique, emphasizing that he will always, always explain why it’s vital to make a change. With a more experienced crew, he says, once the “why” has been answered, the “how” comes much more easily. More importantly, he believes that the best results come from addressing rowers’ mental attitudes, not just focusing on physical technique. His hard-won recommendations: When racing, it’s not how good your good stroke is, it’s about how quickly you can recover from a bad stroke. Don’t fixate on the mistake or try to overcompensate, just take the next stroke and make it smooth. Also, remember that you can’t control the other boats, you can only control how efficiently and beautifully you are rowing. Finally, rowing fast in a team boat is always a compromise. The easiest way to go fast is to accept that you are adapting your technique to mesh with everyone else. His current rowing mantra is, “Even when pulling hard, let there be grace.” When he’s not coaching or rowing at PRC, Charles works as a biostatistician, helping researchers design experiments and interpret data. In addition to math and statistics, he loves the beautiful mountains and nature of the Pacific Northwest.