Your guide to the 2023 Head of the Charles Regatta: schedule, where to watch, top stories, and more

Events

Each year, the Head of the Charles draws top-line rowers from around the world along with local hopefuls to compete in one of the largest regattas in the world.

By Lauren Thomas, The Boston Globe

October 19, 2023 | 12:17 PM

The 58th Head of the Charles Regatta will be held this weekend in Boston, beginning on Friday and running through Sunday.

Here’s everything you need to know:

The basics

Schedule: More than 50 races will take place over the three days: Friday from 7:45 to 10:26 a.m.; Saturday from 7:45 a.m. to 4:02 p.m.; and Sunday from 7:45 a.m. to 4:22 p.m.

The course: The start line is at Boston University’s DeWolfe Boathouse, and rowers finish the 3-mile upstream course at Herter Park along Soldiers Field Road.

Awards: Ceremonies will take place at Attager Row (“regatta” spelled backward) before the finish line at Herter Park.

Weather forecast

Don’t forget the rain gear. There is a chance of rain Friday and almost certainly will be rain Saturday. Temperatures will hover between 56 and 65 degrees throughout the weekend.

Where to watch

• The singles and doubles launch from Magazine Beach, which offers a quieter experience.
• The BU Bridge gives spectators a look at the start line, and the River Street Bridge is the second bridge on the course and is a prime spot to watch the Powerhouse Stretch.
• The third bridge, the Western Avenue Bridge, will show the end of the Powerhouse Stretch, which is a straight section that ends just before the Weeks Footbridge.
• Many spectators set up shop alongside the Weeks Footbridge, an iconic spot of the regatta known for its challenging 90-degree turn that can shift races. The Anderson Bridge and the Eliot Bridge are the final two bridges on the course and give viewers a clear look at the finish line.

Other places to watch — and eat and drink from vendors — include the Weld Exhibition at Riverbend Park, Hospitality Row, the Reunion Village, and Attager Row.

• Hospitality Row sits upstream from the Eliot Bridge, and is a short walk from Attager Row and the finish line. Tickets can be purchased at hocr.org
• Reunion Village is located at the halfway point in the race and offers refreshments to spectators for $10 a day from 8 a.m.-6 p.m., with free admission for children under 12. The site features a beer garden and a commentator booth so you won’t miss any of the action.
• Attager Row features the FALS Bar, which offers an easily accessible spot for viewers to enjoy the boats and brews, as well as several food trucks and merchandise tents.

Transportation

• Organizers strongly encourage spectators to use ride-sharing apps (Uber, Lyft) to and from the event instead of driving.
• Public transportation is available via the MBTA, with three stations within walking distance: Central and Harvard on the Red Line and BU Central on the B branch of the Green Line. There also are MBTA bus routes (1, 47, 64, 66, 71, 72, 73, 74, 75, 86) in the area.
• Parking: While parking is limited, there are three spots available.
• Road closures: Memorial Drive from Cambridge Boat Club to Western Avenue will be closed Saturday and Sunday from 8 a.m. to 7 p.m.

Storylines to watch

Each year, the Head of the Charles draws top-line rowers from around the world along with local hopefuls to compete in one of the largest regattas in the world. Within all of the commotion, stories of changes, new features, and great shows of community compassion exist.

• The men’s and women’s championship singles races are offering prize money to the first three finishers for the first time. The regatta will award $10,000 for first place, $5,000 for second place, and $2,500 for third place, all sponsored by Don Smith.
• For the second year, the Ukrainian national team will row, with sponsorships from several donors in Boston helping to pay their way to represent the war-afflicted country. After the regatta sponsored a men’s championship eight boat last year, the team will bring a men’s eight, women’s four, youth four, and women’s single to the 2023 regatta.
• The University of Washington will host a “Boys in the Boat” exhibition that tells the story of the Washington crew that won gold in the 1936 Berlin Olympics after overcoming extreme hardship. The exhibit can be viewed at the University of Washington hospitality tent Sunday from 12-5 p.m.
• The last race on the last day of will feature a mixed-eight boat rowed by friends of the late Alexandra “Alex” Manfull, who coxed during her years at Phillips Exeter Academy and Princeton. The boat is sponsored by the Alex Manfull Fund, which Alex’s parents Bill and Susan founded to raise awareness as well as funds for research into pediatric autoimmune neuropsychiatric disorders associated with streptococcal infections, the illness that took Alex’s life at age 26.
• The Boston-based Para Rowing Foundation is supporting four international para rowers with its international travel grant. The recipients of this year’s grant are Kathryn Ross of Australia, Sophie Brown of Great Britain, Dieter Rosslee of South Africa, and Corné de Koning of Netherlands. All will compete in the para mixed inclusion doubles event Saturday.
• Rowing Cares and the Survivor Rowing Network support patients in cancer recovery who use rowing for rehabilitation. Twelve survivors, along with their two MIT coxswains, will compete in the women’s grand master eights and fours.
• Rowing in Color, a podcast hosted by Denise Aquino and Patricia Destine — both women of color and former rowers turned coxswain — talks about what it’s like to navigate the topic of race within the white-dominated sport of rowing. The initiative is racing three boats: an all-Black men’s eight, an all-Latina women’s eight, and an all-BIPOC mixed quad in the Director’s Challenge.
• The author of the bestselling book “Lessons in Chemistry,” Bonnie Garmus, will be at the regatta to sign autographs Saturday near the Weld Boathouse. The novel was adapted to an Apple TV miniseries that debuted Oct. 13.

Material from previous Globe reports was used in this story.