At the northern tip of Manhattan, a dock sits in Spuyten Duyvil Creek. I stood there on a recent Saturday morning, watching boats coming and going: a rowing shell from Columbia University, outrigger canoes from Hoboken, kayaks from the East River, and a paddleboarder.

It reminded me of one of the ideas behind the Architects Regatta: the city’s waterways are an amazing resource for recreation and education, as well as commerce. Judging by the number of people using that one dock, we need more access points like it. Then a flotilla of small wooden boats rowed into view. These were the reason I was there.

Rocking the Boat‘s annual Rocking Manhattan event brings teams together to circumnavigate Manhattan in hand-built Whitehall gigs. These fast, stable rowboats were a familiar sight in nineteenth-century New York Harbor, carrying passengers, messengers, and freight between ships and shore. When talking about the Regatta, I often say that sailing is simply the mechanism. Adam Green, founder and CEO of Rocking the Boat, expresses a similar idea: “It’s about using boats as tools to help young people develop into whatever they want to be in life. And the thing about a boat that’s so fantastic is it’s this magic wand of sorts that can turn what is otherwise a barrier into an opportunity. In this case, it’s the water. For most people, the water is the end of the road. If you have a boat the water becomes a whole new opportunity to go anywhere you want.”

Students spend a year building a boat in the Hunts Point shop, learning traditional craftsmanship along with math, science, engineering, and history. Once afloat, their boats become classrooms and laboratories where students explore ecology and the environment. Through the free community rowing and sailing program, New Yorkers of all ages also have a chance to explore the Bronx River. For Rocking Manhattan, the organization uses a fleet of larger, 26-foot gigs, mostly built by volunteers at Village Community Boathouse and rented for the event. One, Serenity, was built by Rocking the Boat students. That Saturday, these boats served as floating fundraising platforms. Eight teams, with crews working in shifts, rowed nearly thirty miles around Manhattan, a journey that took about ten hours. From Brooklyn Bridge Marina, they headed up the East River, through Spuyten Duyvil, where I met them, and down the Hudson. After rounding the Battery, they returned to Brooklyn for well-deserved pizza and beer.

The New York Architects Regatta has supported Rocking the Boat since we became a foundation in 2012. During that time, we have been pleased to see their remarkable growth. Alongside boatbuilding, they offer hands-on environmental education, job skills training, community rowing, and sailing. Recently, they also expanded to San Francisco. The dedicated team at Rocking the Boat brings energy and passion to this work. Around them is a community of supporters that helps make it all possible. At Rocking Manhattan, I saw one part of that community: the eight teams rowing thirty miles around the city, the support crews, and the spectators. That community also includes you. Through your support of the New York Architects Regatta, you help Rocking the Boat give students opportunities to build boats, learn new skills, and explore the city’s waterways. It was a pleasure to see that work firsthand and share it with you.