I rarely take the time to leave reviews, let alone ones of this nature, but after the appalling treatment I endured at Oakland Strokes, I feel not only compelled--but morally obligated--to share my experience with prospective participants and their families. On the day in question, I was wrongfully implicated in an incident involving name-calling aboard the boat. I was seated in the stern, far removed from the individuals at the bow who were reportedly instigating the behavior. At the time, I (along with several others) believed the banter was mutual and lighthearted, as even the person later identified as the target appeared to be laughing. When the truth became evident, I took the mature initiative to apologize directly to the individual--on behalf of myself and those who lacked the courage or accountability to do so. Rather than treating the situation with nuance or seeking to understand context, the coaching staff proceeded with a blanket punishment that was both excessive and insensitive. I was forced to row on land extensively and then ordered to complete six laps in the heat. Despite clearly informing the coaches that I have asthma--a legitimate medical condition--my health concerns were completely dismissed, demonstrating a shocking lack of concern for participant wellbeing. What followed was not merely poor coaching--it was emotional degradation. After being publicly humiliated by the staff, I retreated to a bathroom stall in distress. To my horror, several campers--at the direction of the coaches--crawled under the stall and unlocked the door, completely violating my privacy in what can only be described as an invasive and traumatic act. Moments later, coaches began yelling at me through a megaphone inside the bathroom. This is not just unprofessional. It is psychologically damaging, and, in my opinion, borders on harassment and emotional abuse. Oakland Strokes utterly failed in its duty of care. What I experienced was punitive, degrading, and potentially traumatizing. I have since informed my parents of the full situation and am actively considering reporting this to the authorities. The actions taken by staff members crossed a line that no young athlete should ever have to face. Needless to say, I will not be returning to this program--ever. I made it very clear to the head coach how offensive, humiliating, and devastating this experience was. Unfortunately, my concerns were met with little empathy and no accountability. To any parent considering enrolling their child at Oakland Strokes: please think twice. No organization should be allowed to operate with such a blatant disregard for youth safety, dignity, and mental health. This is not the kind of discipline that builds resilience. It is the kind that causes lasting harm. I hope this review prevents others from enduring the same treatment I did. read more

My daughter started rowing with Oakland Strokes in Middle School. She started out more as a book worm but has learned to love being on the water and competing as a team. The coaching is amazing and they pay attention to the details. As a parent I appreciate that safety is a priority and every kid is given a chance to excel in the sport. It takes a lot of hard work and dedication and I'm so thankful for the life skills my daughter is learning and how strong she has become. Go Strokes! read more

Oakland Strokes - Race at Tidewater - Boating Near Me - Oakland, California

My daughter joining Oakland Strokes has been the single best decision of her high school years. While it was 100% her decision to start rowing at this club, from a parent point of view it has turned out to be a blessing. She has learned how to be on a team and support teammates, how to push herself, how to be patient, how to work bit by bit towards huge goals, how to take it in stride when she does not reach those goals immediately, how to handle injury with self-compassion, and how to make a serious commitment and see the results through time. Not to mention the deep friendships with her fellow rowers and the mentoring she and her cohort get to do with the novices. And the best part of this is that the guidance comes from the amazing coaches. Coach Allison (who is a parent herself and a very accomplished rower and coach) is the absolute best partner a parent could wish for -- she teaches life lessons and she has the total respect of her high school girls (which as we know is no easy feat!). She has the magic of being able to push her rowers while not forsaking genuine kindness and compassion. She really cares about these girls as developing humans first and foremost. Coach Allison also assembles assistant coaches who are also really, really great and devoted. As an added bonus, the parent community around the team is a bunch of cool people. As a parent you get to know a number of them well because the team relies on the parents to staff key yearlong volunteer positions that help keep the club functioning and also parents volunteer to photograph, provide food or do race timing etc at the local regattas. Often parents will travel to regattas that are a plane flight away so you might end up having dinner with Strokes parents and they might be chaperoning your kid at an event so you come to trust and appreciate them as well. As I look at sending my daughter off to college in a short time, I am comforted that she will handle the transition well from the lessons she has learned at Oakland Strokes. read more

Oakland Strokes is by far the most impressive, inspiring and well-run youth organization I have come across. Our daughter has been on the Oakland Strokes rowing team for over three years, and it has been a wonderful and life changing experience for her. It has taught her discipline, teamwork, and goal setting, and helped her appreciate that the hard work of the journey is as important as the outcome. The coaches and executive director are wonderful people who deeply care about each athlete in their program. They are dedicated to teaching the sport of rowing and developing character. I will be forever grateful to Oakland Strokes and I highly recommend the program! read more

Had an amazing time! The staff was so supportive with an overall positive attitude which made the experience even better! BTW, my experience was pre-Covid so, I'm not sure how things are currently. read more

"...our larger goal is to build character". This review is written in the context of OS's stated goal and what I believe is the psychological harm this program and its directors had on my son. I have waited 2 years to write this to see if time would reshape my perspective - "Never react in anger." As I revisit the aftermath of our experience of Oakland Strokes, it comes rushing back, including my deep anger at the adults who run this program. Around the apex the #MeToo movement, my son and two others were expelled from OS after a protracted period of non-communication leading to a condemnation from even the volunteer "parent liaisons" of the program, who did not seem to understand their titles/roles. Make no mistake, my son committed a serious wrong - he made a course sexual innuendo (in the form of two rhyming jokes) on a social media platform at the expense of a young woman. It was absolutely wrong, and we expected the organization to come down hard on him, as we did at home. We also expected the moment to be used as fodder for courageous conversations about the #MeToo moment of which the families of these three young men were profound proponents (one family consisting of two moms). But Oakland Strokes didn't work toward "developing character" but chose to be one-sided, accusatory and punitive. One female parent liaison, who is still with OS per their website, accused our under-aged son, IN HIS PRESENCE, of "condoning sexual assault of a minor". What?! At the time, our son was in a loving 6+-month relationship with a young woman with whom he was intensely respectful and affectionate. This adult did not KNOW my son and was making no effort to do so. She built him up to be an ogre. The "assault of a minor" part of her remark struck a chord given BOTH rowers were minors; it captures the attacker vs victim culture we found ourselves in - no nuance, little to no communication (expect for a tribunal of parents/administrators who had clearly made up their mind before we entered the room), no one curious to hear a different perspective - in fact, it became clear a one-sided, full scale investigation had taken place while we were being kept in the dark. No specialists to handle this big moment (perhaps a volunteer from the community?) - just a group of inept, cowardly and reactionary people, who wanted to put distance between the organization, their larger problem (see below) and this cultural moment. And consider the exasperating backdrop for this event related to my son - the verbal abuses he experienced from some coaches at Oakland Strokes were way out of bounds. The culture among men (rowers and coaches) was hyper-masculine and course. How was his developing brain and character supposed to know the boundaries when coaches were modeling horrific behaviors, like calling one rower a "failed abortion", letting homophobic remarks between rowers slide? (Note: my son has two dads.) At the time, my son had just finished his novice year and quickly found himself in the Varsity-A boat among older boys. He was new, young and trying to fit in when he made those jokes. He did so in a totally inappropriate way and I believe he was scapegoated to show the community a " take no prisoners" stance in this cultural moment. I attended my first varsity parent meeting at the beginning of year at which heated misgivings were being obtusely aired about the culture of the organization and some long-standing divide between the young men and women. I couldn't understand what everyone was talking about and wanted to dismiss it as hyper-intense sport parents. I wish I'd dug deeper. I had no idea my family was on a collision course and within months our son would be expelled in an effort to turn the tide on an issue that predated him. Several of the young women celebrated their expulsion on social media platforms - were they admonished for humiliating these young men publicly? The result was my son's confidence and his standing in this rowing community (that meant everything to him socially since he was attending a non-traditional school) was slaughtered. Still feeling the effects of it today, I lay the blame at the feet of the spineless Dana Hooper, the values of a wealthy and clearly influential board member and the parent liaisons who abandoned their roles. I'd like to say how wonderful our novice year was under Dave Adams who is an exceptional human being. I'm sorry he is no longer coaching. If any part of you believes "it takes a village" to raise a child, seriously reconsider partnering with this organization to help "build character" in your child. They are not prepared, qualified or WILLING to step up when the chips are down. We tried every which way to be a part of a courageous conversation and were banished. I yearn for the day my experience is validated by one of the people named above - that would be healing - instead of just the many people who whispered or emailed their support for months after this hideous event. read more

yelp has this explanation next to its 5 star rating: "Woohoo! As good as it gets!" And yes the Oakland Strokes is as good as it gets! What makes this club great is the coaches! They are national champions from UCLA, Cal, Great Britain and Serbia. They care passionately for the athletes and the sport of rowing. They are exceptional role models to the young athletes and they work enthusiastically for the club. Each year many of the Strokes graduating seniors matriculate to prestigious colleges with strong rowing teams. Strokes alumni are currently attending Harvard, Brown, Yale, Princeton, Dartmouth, Cornell, Stanford, USC, UCLA, U.C. Berkeley, and Penn. Boat races are personal, they demand perfect pitch. They can soar or falter on a gesture. The Oakland Strokes has perfect pitch! read more

See all

Oakland Strokes changed my life. I was a fairly tall kid who could run about a 10 minute mile. I was no speed demon. I started rowing after my dad suggested it because it involved 'no running.' After a few weeks, I was sold. The Oakland Strokes was a great experience for me. It taught me discipline, fitness, teamwork and responsibility. If you were late for practice, your whole boat would be stuck on land (a good reason to never be late). I also made friends with kids from high schools all over the East Bay. Where else can you hang out with kids from De la Salle and Oakland Tech together on the same team? Nowhere. It also put me on a radars of colleges and universities around the country. Navy, Harvard, Brown, Cornell, Cal, UW (Wisconsin and Washington), you name it. It opened a ton of doors for me and got me into the college I wanted to go to. I can't recommend this program enough for your kids. And if you're on the fence, they have a great summer camp every year. read more

I've spent a lot of time at the boathouse recently. It's a wonderful organizational that is striving for excellent experiences and high level of competition. It's always hard to balance the average athlete experience vs. the absolute team performance, but the strokes seem to do a really great job of it. Also, FYI: The group has an outreach program that doesn't get enough publicity. Service and community impact matters to this boathouse. If you have a child that would benefit from a real team experience, give the Strokes a try. You won't regret it. read more

Oakland Strokes is an amazing opportunity. In high school I rowed at the Oakland Strokes. I developed life long friends from the team and got offers from top colleges. My college rowing career at Washington then led to two Olympic appearances on the National Team and a Bronze medal at the London Games. Since I rowed at Oakland Strokes the organization has built a beautiful boathouse on the Estuary and expanded to the San Pablo Reservoir. Their teams are have a lot of success on the water, and their coaches are highly respected in the entire community, which helps getting into top colleges. Rowing has shaped my life in countless ways, and I couldn't be more thankful of Oakland Strokes for giving me the opportunity. read more

A great organization, one of the finest high school rowing clubs in the country. The strokes teaches my son hard work pays off, he is developing unbelievable work ethic, teamwork, time management, confidence, friendships, and life lessons. It is what you make of it and my son is making the most out of it. As for the not so positive reviews, in life you will face personality clashes, what do you do with it? Secondly, people possess different levels of ability. If you are not a competitive rower, no, you won't sit in the best boat. If you are a driven rower, yes you can get to those good boats, that's up to you. You compete for seats every time you come to practice. This is a great club, the coaches are experts, but first ask yourself why you are there. If you really love rowing, no one can make you quit. That's just an excuse. If you are looking for someone to favor you, don't waste your time and money. read more

My son has had a great experience in the Oakland Strokes summer program. He was looking for something new to challenge him and found it. The coaching is outstanding. The equipment and facilities are top notch. I read some of the negative Yelp reviews about the Club and wonder if their kids have ever played other competitive sports. All coaches have to push kids to reach their potential. Some will rise to the top and have more opportunities, and some will not. I think it is great that the Strokes doesn't have cuts and is willing to train kids at all levels. Not every team is willing to even bother with the lower 80%. There is something for everyone in this club. read more

My son is a serious rower and in the summer camp 2018. He comes home depressed and unhappy (almost angry) having a random boat assignment with novices after rowing JV at school for two years. Sometimes he does not get to row because they have too many kids. The website states "Learn to Row Summer Camps are split into three different levels of Beginning, Intermediate, and Introduction to Competitive Rowing" but how can they offer to split different levels in skill with a random assignments to boats? I left a voice mail asking for a call back, no response. I e-mail director Dana Hooper with a request to meet and no response whatsoever. Perhaps the Club has grown too fast and can not scale. In addition, they have to cancel many kids registered for the Club Nationals trip. Oakland Strokes can not deliver on their promises but sure cash your check quickly. read more

Our daughter is in her 3rd year at "Strokes". It is a fantastic group. The kids learn terrific sportmanship skills while also creating life long friends. A wonderful community to be involved with. read more

Very disappointed on how this organization treated several student athletes. Average to lower performing athletes receive less attention, less time on the water and less instruction but of course they are happy to take your money. The 80/20 rule applies here as 80% of the families pay to support the program that caters to the top 20 athletes. Don't get fooled into the initial - welcome to our family BS that they dish out. Communication with parents is horrible and communications from coaches to athletes can be very unprofessional. If you are a junior high or high school student I would highly recommend that you stay in the programs that the schools offer. If you are commuting from the East Bay, South Bay or North Bay to attend this program it is not worth it. Don't waste your time driving , life is too short and I would not waste a minute on this organization In Summary 1. Unprofessional 2. Extremely expensive - total overall cost is very high 3. Abusive to average / below average athletes 4. Poor communication with athletes and families 5. Not trustworthy read more

The Oakland Strokes is an outstanding organization. The coaching staff is extraordinary, well trained and excels in teaching the values that this unique sport embodies (ultimate team work, dedication, discipline, and the benefits of very hard work). The parent organization is super and keeps the organization moving in ever increasing directions. Their commitment to the kids of Oakland and available scholarships make it unique in the high school club sport arena. Our children both went through the Strokes and they carry the lessons they learned and the friendships they gained while at the Strokes into their young adult lives. The kids learn what it means to be "about the boat". read more

What so great about an organization that have a coach that retaliates to student that speaks up. Most of the girls in strokes takes the abuse by Allison and Anita, because they put their favorites to boats even if their scores are mediocre. Allison humiliates athletes and make excuses because her focus is strictly in her light weight boat. You call this a great organization. read more

My son recently was signed up to do the "learn to row" summer camp. Where the ad said, "No previous rowing experience necessary! This camp will focus on learning the basic rowing stroke in a fun and no pressure environment." This was not the case. The young person leading the group was easily frustrated when my son didnt get it quickly. And then once they made it into the boat, called him out and said, " Everyone were going to spend ten minutes to teach _____ how to properly row." And this point they were already out on the water. When this was brought up to the higher ups, the head coach, to his credit, came down to speak to him, but didn't offer him a "It was completely wrong for them to have addressed you in that way, " But a "He only wants you to get better." speech. Which, at this point fell on deaf ears. Because, guess what? Its supossed to be no pressure. Its supossed to be fun. And telling him it was his fault and he should forgive the leader was wrong. He is the customer. And by the way, when a parent sends an email that says, " my son wont be returning for the remainder of the camp," the proper MINIMAL response is to find out why. By phone or email. I have no interest in biting anyones head off or telling you your program is awful. I have constructive notes, and believe in your program. Just believe that you had an opportunity to teach my kid, and instead left him with someone who thought belittling him in front of his peers was reasonable. read more

I agree with Gary M. The organization does a great job with above-average athletes. If you are the parent of a below or even average athlete, don't bother. Your money will be spent to subsidize the better athletes. Also, the fees per season are just the beginning. Expect to spend many thousands more for the competition trips each year -- and if you don't, your child will be treated like garbage. read more

Oakland Strokes cares only about it's "A" boats. It thrives on the hopes of the lower boats desires to get into a "Top University" Well our daughter gave up much of her high school years to Oakland Strokes with the thought that she would only get into a good school as long as she was a rower. However, she got into a D1 university as an extremely happy, well adjusted student. She was relieved of the stress that crew brought on. Have you ever inquired about how much Universities actually give in rowing scholarships? Ask before you have your child make such a huge commitment and give up those wonderful high school events due to the rigorous rowing commitment demanded by Oakland Strokes. read more

My daughter started rowing as a Junior in high school, and fell in love with the sport and this team. The novice program gave her a real appreciation for the hard work necessary to succeed, and helped prepare her for varsity. She went from being athletic but soft to hard and fit over 12 months, realizing her dream of being recruited for college, too. She never made the varsity 8, as she was too small, but she earned her slot in college as a lightweight and is happily rowing at Georgetown now. Her younger sister started as an out-of-shape but skinny 8th grader, and has now blossomed into a strong, muscular confident young woman. She has put on 20 pounds of muscle in four years, and wants to row in college. This team, and this sport, has provided her with opportunities for college recruiting she never would have seen if she had continued playing basketball. As her parents, we couldn't be happier with the team and the new coaching staff. I can't recommend it high enough as a life-changing experience for teens where they learn to push themselves and develop the grit to succeed in life. read more

I quit rowing for Oakland Strokes because of one of the women's varsity coaches, Allison Ray. She was unbelievably rude, disrespectful, and borderline emotionally abusive, especially if you weren't in the V8 boat. I absolutely loved rowing and she completely ruined it for me. The novice women coaches are absolutely amazing and so kind (Beth, Taryn and Hannah.) but once you get past novice, get ready to feel shitty every day if you're not one of her favorite V8 athletes. I know many other individuals feel this way about her, and while she may be "good" coach, Allison acts and coaches like OSVW is an Olympic team and the constant bringing down of others isn't worth the good coaching. (which you will only receive on the water if you're in the V8.) You are not allowed to miss practice at all without a serious repercussions (No time on the water and only land practices by yourself or with anyone else who missed, as well as getting yelled at) even if you had personal reasons as well as reasons such as tutoring and volunteering that was essential for your future. I hope the team figures this out and shuts it down. Oakland Strokes is a very successful and competitive team, but that's definitely not worth feeling like crap every day, especially with all the money you pay and the hidden fees in regattas, travel, gear and "donations" they force on you to raise. read more

Overall Oakland Strokes is a good organization, especially if you are one of their star athletes. There definitely is favoritism toward above average athletes, and less attention, coaching and time spent on the water to more average or less then average athletes who could probably improve with more motivation, instruction and exposure from the coaches. read more

This is a great organization. A professional coaching staff, but it is run as a non-profit by parents who really care about giving kids an alternative to "ball" sports. Rowing is demanding physically and mentally, but the athletes really seem to enjoy it. Rowers learn commitment and discipline, as they row as a team. Boat can't leave the dock without eight rowers and a coxswain, and they can't win a race unless everyone is pulling their weight! Crew is a great sport for high school kids, and Strokes is the best club in the Bay Area. Colleges love it too, both boys and girls. read more

One of the best competitive rowing programs in the country. They attract outstanding coaches and they do an amazing job of working with the students. They not only learn to row, but they also develop a sense of teamwork and commitment. The program offers opportunities for middle school children at both San Pablo Reservoir and in Oakland at the estuary. The team travels and competes not only in California but in the northwest and back east at the Head of the Charles. My daughter rowed with Strokes for 5 years and loved every minute. The program helped her develop a strong sense of self and she made lifelong friends. read more

Oakland Strokes rocks. Both my kids are rowers now and I have been impressed with how this club and the coaches manage to inspire and motivate the kids. The team spirit is enormous and what is so refreshing is that the kids meet new kids from all over the East Bay. While the club asks for tremendous commitment and discipline, it also focuses them and teaches them to prioritize, plan, eat healthy and build character. I am grateful this club with its wonderful boathouse is part of our community and I cannot recommend this place enough. Go Strokes! read more

Best thing that our daughter ever tried. Changed her life! We owe it all to the coaches for running a top notch team. National champions representing our greater east bay. This is the team to join. Try OÀKLAND STROKES. Check out website. Teams form now in September. read more