RUTH NARODE Finding the Perfect Fit
When talent, hard work, and passion come together, things can happen fast. For Ruth Narode, it happened in two years: She was catapulted to the international top rank of a sport and landed at Stanford University. Ruth had never rowed crew before spring of her sophomore
year. A friend invited her to come out and row, so she did. She liked it so she signed up for a summer rowing camp, and then hey, she thought, why not keep it up through the fall? By the time winter came around, she was well on her way to stardom. Two years later she is the top-ranked junior female in the nation and one of the top in the world. “I guess it’s the perfect sport for what my body can do,” she
said. “But it’s not just that I found something I’m good at. I found something I’m really passionate about also. I chose it and I have stuck with it and learned, and I’m really trying to master it.” It’s not as if Ruth started at zero. She had played varsity volleyball, basketball, and lacrosse, and she really likes to work her body hard. Rowing allowed her to use her whole body, utilizing all the major muscles. Plus, she likes to win. “I’ve been competitive with all my sports,” she said.
“To be competitive you have to put in hard work. You have to really want to win because training is hard work. Rowing is similar to swimming in that you have to practice for so many hours compared to the time spent racing. You really have to be committed to the end goal.” Ruth likes the mutual dependence and camaraderie that develops among the rowers. In the boat, there are just eight rowers and a coxswain. Nobody can be subbed in or out if they don’t feel like pulling that day. “You’re pulling your hardest, but to get the result you want, everyone has to be pulling their hardest,” she said. “You all have to be engaged and committed to the endeavor. It really creates a bond.”
“ Even if you’re good at something, if you don’t like it you’re not going to succeed because all the effort is pretty painful. It’s hard work.”
Ruth was on the junior national team last summer and was the number one recruit for college rowing. No doubt that was a factor in getting early acceptance to Stanford with a full ride scholarship. “I still had to have good SAT scores and good grades because it’s Stanford, but rowing defi nitely opened a lot of doors for me,” she said.
Ruth studied Spanish at OES, and one of her most memorable experiences was a Winterim when she went on a service trip to Guatemala, where her group went into the mountains and became immersed in the indigenous culture.
Summer 2013 19
Photo Ed Hewitt,
row2k.com
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