A Norwalk photo #189

Mary Ellen Flaherty-Ludwig and Mary Dowd Garney won a gold medal rowing a double at the Head of the Charles regatta recently in Boston.

Flaherty-Ludwig, a Board of Education member, said she’s rowed in the race more than a dozen times, by herself and in boats with up to eight people, and the Oct. 20 medal was her first win. It’s the largest rowing race in the world, she said. The pair won “in our special category in Event 6, Grand Masters Women’s Double 60+.”

“Mary and I have rowed together for years,” she wrote. “Currently she is living in New Bern, N.C. She flew up to Connecticut two days early to practice to get back in sync. Our race was strong and clean. Thrilling really. The Charles River with its six bridges and multiple twists and turns can be problematic for many rowers. Often practice rivers or lakes have fairly straight courses. However, the Norwalk River is a natural preparation for the Charles because of it is full of sharp turns and narrow bridges to navigate.”