After returning from Scandinavia on the weekend, I hopped in the car Monday morning for another long drive. This time instead of vacationing, it was to drive to Eberbach, Germany to pick up my new single and tour the Empacher factory. My Dutch rowing partner was extremely friendly and volunteered to drive me there with the rowing club’s trailer. The trip there took over 5 hours with heavy rain, traffic jams, and frequent construction delays. The country side was green and rather consistent until we reached Heidelburg with its larger mountains and its relatively narrow river valseys.

Upon reaching Empacher we saw the numerous trailers full of Empacher boats that had just returned from the Rowing World Cup in Munich the day before. We walked into a very large lobby, with no one around, and hypothesized that everyone was taking a vacation after the World Cup.

We walked upstairs and looked in all the offices until we found a person, who lucky for us was the person who had all the paperwork for my boat. After signing some forms and reviewing the packing list it was time to load the boat.

We then had to wait a little while for our tour guide to return from lunch. While we waited in the large, barren lobby, a person walked in off the street. Immediately I recognized the person as AC Dupont from Long Beach Rowing. He and I have met in very strange locations in the past to load or unload boats, but this was over the top. Our tour guide arrived, Mr. Empacher himself, and all three of us were personally guided through the factory. It was a very impressive tour that really highlights the craftsmanship of the workers. I was also amazed at how many of the smaller parts they actually make including the seats and fins.

The return trip was in much better weather but it still took over 4.5 hours. The next day Paula and I (mainly me) rushed to the boat house to rig the boat and christen it. It is named the Zonsopgang II which is Dutch for Sunrise. The II was included since this replaces my other boat, Sunrise, that was crushed by an oar rack during a freak storm back in Arizona last year. The Zonsopgang II feels good on the water and I am looking forward to rowing it more.