Los Angeles, CA - November 16, 2023 - Second year UCLA law student Matthew de Koeyer, aka "DK", credits his UCLA boathouse education for the path to success he is on right now. He walked onto the team as a freshman, rowed four years, and underwent a transformation that simultaneously matched the sea change in UCLA Men's Rowing. "Without UCLA Men's Rowing, undoubtedly, I would not be where I am today. Rowing taught me the value of putting in a hard day's work every day, and showed me that doing so pays off, big time. It also lit a competitive spark in me, something necessary to succeed in the high stakes, high stress game of law school and in the legal profession."

So grateful for the experience, this starving student living on ramen and caffeine is willing to sacrifice one coffee a week so others can row for the Blue and Gold.

When DK and the Class of 2022 learned of The Engine Room, they decided to start a new tradition - to join the Engine Room, en masse, upon graduation. The Engine Room, in rowing parlance, are the middle four positions in the eight where the most powerful oarsmen are seated. The FOUR Engine Room are friends of the program that have pledged a recurring gift, of any amount, to UCLA Men's Rowing. "Giving back even just $25 a month is the least I could do for such a valuable and life-changing program. As a graduate student, $25 is probably what I spend on a few days of groceries right now. However, when I get that email from UCLA each month saying that my donation went through as part of my Engine Room commitment, I feel proud knowing that I am continuing to help the boats go fast, even if I am no longer sitting in the Engine Room of an eight! I look forward to being able to give more each month once I graduate and pass the bar exam."

Their new rite of passage for the Seniors has gained traction as the Class of 2023 all pledged to The Engine Room. The current class of seniors will follow suit as well.

UCLA Men's Rowing started competing in 1933 with boats and oars leftover from the 1932 Los Angeles Olympic Games. The Friends of UCLA Rowing (FOUR) was established in the early 1980s to support and elevate UCLA Men's Rowing. One of their first events was arranging a home race with rowing giant Harvard to celebrate the 50th Anniversary of the team. In subsequent years, the FOUR UCLA Rowing Classic attracted top college programs from around the world. Princeton, Cornell, Oxford, and Keio University of Japan were among the crews that raced on Ballona Creek.

After the first year of existence, and throughout UCLA Rowing history, there were calls to drop the program. The end for the team's varsity status began in 1985 when funding was significantly reduced by the UCLA Athletic Department. FOUR shifted its focus to help direct the program and fund the difference. The first move FOUR made was to hire legendary coach Zenon Babraj, who transformed UCLA into a national powerhouse. UCLA won 3 consecutive Pac-10 Championships and challenged the best crews in the country. After the 1991 season, which saw the UCLA Men's Varsity 8 compete for a National Championship, the program was relegated to club status, unable to meet the funding criteria. Zenon Babraj moved on to make USC women's rowing a national contender.

UCLA Rowing held on for one more year, finishing 2nd to Washington in the 1992 Pac-10 Rowing Championships. The Huskies were so impressed with the grit in the gutty Bruin club crew, they traded jerseys rather than just accepting the payoff for the traditional rowing wager.

Since then, FOUR, the volunteer FOUR Board of Directors, and Executive Leadership continue to help direct the team and coaches, appeal for donations, and elevate the program. The recent success of the team and the 2023 National Club Championship in the Men's Varsity Eight can be attributed to the vision and support from the Friends of UCLA Rowing. To continue and sustain the excellence that our program is currently achieving, all alums are encouraged to show their support with an annual donation at whatever level they can sustain during this year-end drive for current expenditure funding.