Chicken Dippers continue their 54-year tradition
Senior Moments
By Charles P. Eberson
It started in the early ’70s on the first Sunday in August. If the wind was just right and you lived in Ventnor, especially in Ventnor Heights, you would have awoken in the morning to the aroma of a charcoal barbecue.
Who was barbecuing this early on a Sunday you may ask? It was Viking Rowing Club’s annual fundraiser, the Chicken Dipper Barbecue and the preparation to cook hundreds, maybe thousands of pounds of chicken started early.
The old Viking Rowing Club was located at the end of Harvard Avenue, and the asphalt lot became the site of rows of barbecue pits and picnic tables. The Chicken Dippers got their name from the practice of dipping the chicken into buckets of the “secret sauce” prior to cooking. For a modest donation, you were presented with a half of a barbecued chicken, a baked potato, coleslaw and a beverage.
The Chicken Dipper program was an opportunity for seventh- and eighth-grade students to learn how to row racing shells. Many of the students eventually went on to row in college, many on scholarships. Some from Holy Spirit and Atlantic City High went on to compete in the prestigious Henley Royal Regatta in England.
The fundraiser was an event not to be missed and was sort of a reunion for local rowers. There was a real sense of camaraderie as everyone came together for this one day a year to support the local rowing community.
Young Chicken Dippers would be racing in front of the “boathouse” with Doc Holland, the undisputed father of South Jersey rowing, narrating for hours from the roof of the boathouse.
The program was started by “Big Larr” and Mike Kelso. In 1993 it was taken over by Ray D’Amico, coach of St. Augustine Prep crew. Volunteers over the years are too numerous to mention, but people like Wardy, Stan, Subes, Frank and Trip are a few that come to mind.
There were also lifeboat rides for the children given by area lifeguards. Toward the end of the evening at one such barbecue, my neighbor, Bill, who was captain of the Beach Patrol, asked me to go for a row in one of the lifeguard boats. I told him that with all my years of rowing I had never rowed a lifeguard boat, to which he responded, “just do what I do.” I hopped in and after a few awkward minutes, I managed to fall in sync and the boat was moving well.
As we approached the boathouse and the crowd, Bill said “sit tall Chuckie, Bergey (chief of the beach patrol) is watching. I focused more intently on my power and technique. On my way back to the car, Bergey said to me, “you looked good out there, Coach” and my chest puffed out with pride.
When I got home and into the shower, I wondered where the blood-curdling scream was coming from. Apparently I succumbed to a malady common among lifeguard boat rowers and rubbed all the skin off my butt at the coccyx bone. Of all the memories of the Chicken Dipper barbecue, that is one that has stuck with me.
When the new Dr. John Holland Boathouse was erected by the ballfield in Ventnor, the emphasis changed with more attention placed on the recreational, safety and social aspects of the program. Frequently, more than 100 Chicken Dippers could be boated in a single session, with the help of a dedicated and knowledgeable group of volunteers.
This summer’s program will run from June 24 through July 27 for 10-14-year-olds. Visit the website for signups and more information at https://vikingrowingclub.org/chicken-dippers/
Special thanks go out to Larry Connell (Big Larr) whose book “Fifty Years of Chicken Dippers and Some Coaching Suggestions” provided me with some of the information used in this column, and to Ray D’Amico and Stan “Bergey” Bergman for their contributions to the book.
Charles Eberson has been in the newspaper business for over 25 years. He has worked as a writer, advertising executive, circulation manager and photographer. His photography can be viewed at charles-eberson.fineartamerica.com
