Argonaut Rowing Club
Varsity Blues rowing trains out of the Joe Lyttle Boathouse through a partnership with the Argonaut Rowing Club (ARC). The U of T rowing program first began out of ARC in 1897. The boathouse underwent a large scale renovation and modernization in 2019, with the addition of a new dock, upgraded locker rooms, offices and meeting spaces, and a redesign of the weight and erg rooms.
henley room
This event space plays host to weddings and various alumni events on weekends throughout the year and acts as a source of revenue for the boathouse. When not in use as an event space, the room functions as a meeting and dining spot for the team from Friday-Sunday.
food service
The Henley Room features a full kitchen with catering. On Fridays and weekends the kitchen provides coffee, pastries and a modest lunch menu, which includes vegan options, allowing student-athletes an easy and convenient way to purchase coffee and a quick meal between rows or after practice before heading back to campus.
weight room
The boathouse weight room is located on the third level and features squat racks, bench pull stations, a full assortment of barbells and dumbbells, along with iso-bands and yoga mats for stretching.
erg room
For inclement weather days, the erg room features 18 Concept 2 static ergs and 20 dynamic ergs, allowing for both fitness and technique-focused land training. The team has a further 21 static ergometers at the Athletic Centre on campus for winter training.
locker space
The boathouse features fully renovated locker rooms and showers. Athletes may use any of the daily lockers during training sessions. For those wishing to leave their items in lockers overnight, the boathouse does offer the ability to purchase a yearly locker.
trophy room
Boat meetings and video review are conducted in the trophy room, utilizing the flatscreen.
boat bays
The boathouse features six boat bays total, three of which house fours and eights, one for pairs and doubles, and two for singles.
equipment
The University of Toronto owns a fleet of 14 shells, including four top-of-the-line Hudson USP’s. Thanks to a close partnership with the Argonaut Rowing Club, Varsity Blues rowing has access to top-tier Argonaut shells in the fall to supplement our own fleet.
dock space
The purchase of a new dock in 2019 allows for up to five eights or multiple small boats to launch and recover simultaneously, enabling a large volume of traffic to get on and off the water quickly.
LAKESHORE WEST CHANNEL
Our main training waterway is a 4.1km boating channel protected by a breakwall extending from Ontario Place at the east to the mouth of the Humber river at the west, creating a corridor of flat water with intermittent access to the lake for calm days. The water near the boathouse is particularly sheltered by a taller section of breakwall, allowing on-water training to take place in most conditions.
humber river
At the west end of the breakwall lies the entrance to the Humber River, which features up to 3km of rowable water as it winds northwest from its mouth at Lake Ontario up to the Bloor Street bridge and Old Mill subway station. The sharp turns offer coxswains the chance to hone their steering skills and the river features two ~500 meter straightaways that allow 3-4 boats to practice sprint work side-by-side.