Ottawa Rowing Club

The Ottawa Rowing Club (ORC) is a rowing club based in the City of Ottawa. It is located on the south banks of the Ottawa River at 10 Lady Grey Avenue. It is a registered club with Rowing Canada and Row Ontario.

History

The Ottawa Rowing Club is the oldest rowing club in Canada. It was founded in 1867, the same year as the Canadian Confederation. One of its founders and first patron, Sir John A. Macdonald, was Canada’s first prime minister. With close to 1000 members, the Ottawa Rowing Club is one of the largest clubs in Canada.

Facilities

The Ottawa Rowing Club rows on the Ottawa river. The rowers launch racing shells with bow pointing westward upstream, and effectuate a loop from the Alexandra Bridge to the Rockcliffe Airport, rowing downstream on the Quebec side and upstream on the Ontario side. The full loop is approximately 12 kilometres.

The ORC facilities includes two boat houses. The principal boat house consists of a two-story building with four bays for shell and oar storage on the ground floor. Administrative offices, change rooms, and ergometers and weight room are located on the second floor. The second boat house is the original structure from 1867. It was rebuilt as a millennium project to accommodate members’ privately owned shells on the ground floor. The second floor is an interpretation center that also serves as banquet facilities rented out for weddings and other conventions.

Membership

The Ottawa Rowing Club offers different memberships:

Competitive
Masters
High School
University
Recreational
Adult rowing league
Learn to row
Summer Youth Camps

Regattas

The ORC hosts three regattas during the rowing season: the National Capital High School Regatta taking place each year at the end of May/beginning of June on the Ottawa River; the P.D. Ross Memorial Regatta on the Rideau Canal each year in September, between mixed women and men’s varsity and alumni crews from University of Ottawa and Carleton University; and the Head of the Rideau Regatta at the end of September on the Rideau River.

Members of the club are also invited to participate in these different regattas throughout the year, in function of their membership and abilities.

RADAR - Welland ERA High School Regatta - Montreal Canadian Secondary School High School Regatta - St Catharines Independence Day Regatta - Philadelphia ERA Regatta - Montreal RowOntario - Welland Royal Canadian Henley Regatta - St Catharines Head of the Rideau Head of the Trent - Peterborough Brock Invitational - St. Catharines Head of the Charles - Boston Ontario Universities Rowing Championship - St Catharines Head of the Fish - Saratoga Springs NY Canadian Universities Rowing Championship RADAR - Welland

Noteworthy Rowers