Title: Spring Has Sprung (Finally!) and… Things are Really Heating up in the Gorge
By Kevin Cooley
Mayor, Town of Lake Lure
We locals know that spring is just around the corner in Lake Lure when the collegiate rowers
show up at Rumbling Bald Resort and begin training on our lake. So it was a welcomed sight again this year to see collegiate teams showing up in the last week of February and training during week-long stays through the end of March. The 11 teams that came here this year have all gone “back to school” at their respective colleges and universities. You might think the rowing season on our lake is over. Well think again…
The newly-formed Lake Lure Rowing Club is taking shape and its founders (and plan-to-be residents of Lake Lure), Wade Oppliger and Leslie Rowland, are already training on our lake year-round. They’ve joined a few “early rising” locals who row for exercise on the lake around sunrise before the lake gets busy. Wade and Leslie are world-class rowers… competing regularly in national and international Master’s rowing competitions. In fact, Leslie is a “world champion”. They are actively recruiting others to join their new club and compete with them as representatives of Lake Lure.