Ruston’s finals journey at the nationals started with victory in the men’s under-22 single sculls. He covered the two kilometres in six minutes 55.40 seconds, over seven seconds ahead of runner-up and Waikatō clubmate Finn Hamill.
Ruston then stroked the men’s u22 double sculls, teaming up with Joshua Vodanovich to take gold in 6:28.05, over six seconds ahead of clubmates Hamill and Evan Williams.
In the men’s premier coxless quad sculls — his Red Coat event — Ruston joined Hamill (stroke), Williams and Vodanovich to win the final in 6:13.53, just under four seconds ahead of the runners-up from Canterbury. The Waikato crew have rowed for New Zealand in the under-23 programme.
Ruston has been in Rowing New Zealand’s under-21 programme for two years and before that developed his rowing skills and stamina with the Gisborne Rowing Club and Gisborne Boys’ High School crews.
At the 2021 Maadi regatta, Ruston won the boys’ u18 single sculls and he and Sacha Dewancker were second in the double sculls and fourth in the pair.
In an interview last year with freelance writer and rowing coach Andy Hay, cox of the world champion New Zealand eight of 1982 and ’83, Ruston described the training regimen that led to that success for the Boys’ High pair.
Ruston’s coach of the previous three years, Luke McKenzie, had work commitments that meant he could spend only a day a week with his charge.
“He was such a good guy and role model,” Ruston told Hay.
“He taught me everything I really needed to know until my last season where he kind of let me and my doubles partner (Dewancker) do our thing.
“One day we’d do the single, one day the double, one day the pair, and just rotate that over and over again. We’d be training twice a day, every day, just wanting to get better and better. It was probably the hardest, but funnest, ride I’ve ever done . . . just me and my mate grinding it out.”
Hay observed that this experience and lessons in self-reliance were preparing Ruston perfectly for life in the under-21 squad.
Ruston is now coached by three-time world rowing coach of the year Dick Tonks, and it sounds like the master coach keeps it simple.
When asked about the Tonks approach, Ruston told Hay:“I feel like it mainly focuses on how the boat’s moving rather than how we are moving”.
McKenzie, head coach of Gisborne Rowing Club, said Ruston’s performances among the top New Zealand rowers inspired the club’s novice rowers.
“This year we’ve had a strong novice intake and we now have 43 athletes attending regattas throughout the season with promising results.”
Club president Belinda Mackay said the 43 secondary school rowers was a record and augured well for the club’s continued recovery from the effects of Cyclone Gabrielle.
“We’re thankful for all the help we haves received over the past year but we have a long way to go,” she said.
Among promising performances at the North Island club championships at Lake Karapiro, the men’s novice coxed eight (Bay Bramwell, Karlon Johnson, Sam Wallingford, Kazuki Bowcock, River Somerton, Curtis Wylie, Finn Robertson, Tadhg Cooper and cox Tulson Sparrow) were sixth in the A final; the novice girls’ quad (stroke Alex Mackay, Bonnie Mason, Ruby Jefferson and cox Mya Carrington) were third in the B final after a blade broke; and the men’s coxed eight (Louis Wylie, Jackson Horne, Noah Mason, Ned Clarke, Theo Mackay, Carlos Bramwell, Alex Dinkel, Arian “Lucky” Goel and cox Tulson Sparrow) were fourth in the B final.
“The fact that we have numbers to be competitive in crews of eight shows the strength of the club,” Belinda Mackay said.
The club and its rowers owed much to the coaching of head coach McKenzie, and Esthie De Wet, Josh Kelly and Peter Simmons, she said.
The Learn to Row programme run by Simmons was key to bringing new coaches into the fold.
Looking ahead, club members were preparing for the Aon Regatta and the North Island Secondary Schools Champs, and working towards the Maadi regatta in Twizel.
“We have our 150th anniversary on May 24,” Mackay said.
“A function will be held at Midway Surf Club. We’re in the process of securing a speaker.”
It would coincide with the New Zealand Rowing annual general meeting in Gisborne on May 25, and fun activities at Anzac Park on May 26.
People could register for the event by contacting jeff@growstrongbelong.com.
“As part of the celebrations we will be launching our Gisborne Rowers Club Supporters Crew where former rowers can make an annual donation to the club as a way of ensuring that the club remains financially viable into the future,” Mackay said.
“It’s expensive to run a rowing club, particularly since Cyclone Gabrielle. Our club needs to replace so much of our gear, and find a way to pay around $11,000 in insurance premiums.
“Any help we get from our past and present rowing community would be such a huge help.”
