Row360's Head of the Charles coverage brought to you by SparksIt’s not often that scrolling through social media uncovers a forgotten piece of your family history, but that’s exactly what happened to Alex Orsi ahead of this year’s Head of the Charles. Orsi was watching a 1983 Head of the Charles news report, recently reposted on WCVB's social media, when he spotted his father.
“I was watching it to the end, and then all of a sudden I'm like, 'No way, that's my dad!' Holy cow!" he told WCVB, "And then my brother's on his shoulders. I wasn't even born yet. And then, boom, it cuts to my mom, and she's there rowing and chatting. And when you look in the background, you see my grandparents as well, so it's a special video."
His mother, Laurie Dickerson, appears in large glasses and a green T-shirt, carrying a boat with her Boston University alumni teammates. It is the only video Alex has ever seen of his grandparents. Orsi was also impressed by the moustache his father, Richard, was sporting.
"And the voices! It definitely stirred up a lot of emotions," he said. "I sent that video to everyone I know."
The clip also captured the sport that had brought his parents together: they met on the dock at the BU boathouse.
"Well, we both row; we met rowing," Richard told the reporter in 1983.
Dickerson's interview captured her enjoyment of the racing, collisions and all:
"We had several collisions at the bridges and had a great race."
Speaking over Zoom from upstate New York, where she now lives with her husband, Dickerson remembered the race but not the camera:
"I just couldn't believe it! I don't have any memory of being interviewed. I remembered the race. The race was so fabulous. And it's just incredible that somebody interviewed me about it."
Closets and Title IX
Dickerson began rowing in 1973, the year BU's women's programme was founded. "We were the first gals in the boathouse," she said. She recalled the men having locker rooms while the women changed in closets. Title IX eventually brought university funding, she said, though not as much as the men's team received.
"It was a time that bonded us incredibly, and we were very successful. We won five national championships while I was there in various boats, and eventually, we were able to get university funding because of Title IX."
“We were on the water at 6 every morning together and seeing the sunrise over the eastern part of Boston,” she said.
"And working harder than any of us had ever thought we could work to this crazy goal that, I mean, most of us had never even gone for a run, never mind rowing to a championship. It just built tremendous connection between all of us, which we all treasure."
Teammate Jane Musky, a production designer and 1976 BU graduate, made NINE, a documentary about the women who petitioned for varsity status in the 1970s. Dickerson appears in the film.
Family lore
For more than 20 years Dickerson and her growing family returned to the Head of the Charles. She rowed with her BU teammates while family and friends watched from the bank. "I always just loved going to the Head of the Charles as a kid," Alex said. "I can remember going around and getting all the free stuff."
Looking back on her BU years, Dickerson said:
"Now we know we were really at the beginning of a historic period for women in athletics, and we are so proud of that. And so proud that we've managed to stay buddies all these years."
The clip has resurfaced in time for the 2026 regatta, which runs from 16 to 18 October. Dickerson has advice for anyone watching from the bank:
"Just listen to the coxswain. That's what's entertaining. It's a coxswain's race ... because the steering is so important."
On technique, she added:
"The key is, are all the oars going in the water at the same time? The better the synchronicity, the better the boat's going to move. And are the bodies moving as one? When a boat can achieve total synchronicity, that boat's going to go fast."
And beyond the racing:
"Enjoy the walk down the river. It's a quintessential Boston day. It's a beauty, even when it's cold and rainy."
And one last suggestion: "Yell, 'Go BU women's rowing!'"
