John was a member of the first varsity heavyweight crew from 1988-89. The crews from 1987 to 1989 certainly rank among the best Harvard has ever seen and they proved that by enjoying considerable success in many major competitions at home and overseas. They were the dominant crews of those years despite some very strong competition form both traditional intercollegiate rivals and outstanding international crews. Also notable are their convincing victories over Yale in the annual Harvard-Yale four mile race. The 1987 crew enjoyed a particularly long and successful season. The crew started with a resounding victory over west coast power Washington, then continued through a dramatic victory over a powerful Brown crew in the National Championships in Cincinnati. The season finished with outstanding races at the Victoria Boatrace in Victoria, BC, the Henley Regatta in England, and the World University Games in Zagreb, Yugoslavia. The 1988 crew was equally successful and ended their season with victories at Worcester in the EARC Sprint Championships, over Yale in New London and in the National Championships at Cincinnati. In 1989, the crew repeated as both EARC Sprint and National Champions and went on to row an historic race in the finals of the Ladies Plate competition at the Henley Royal Regatta. In addition to their collective success in both intercollegiate and international competition, several members of the crews went on to significant international success as members of various U.S. Olympic and World Championship crews. They continue to maintain strong connections to Harvard and U.S. national rowing programs.