The 36th annual San Diego Crew Classic rowing regatta returns to Mission Bay on April 4 and 5 when the colorful spectacle will send thousands of athletes out to compete for trophies and tradition. The races launch at 7:30 a.m. both days on the east side of Crown Point and continue until 5 p.m. Top universities and club teams from throughout the country will send their eight-person boats to compete. Local university crews from USD, SDSU and UCSD will each compete in the preliminary events Saturday that will shape their weekend tournament. The hopeful collegians will race against crews from UCLA, USC, Notre Dame, Stanford, USC, Washington, Georgetown, Harvard, Purdue, Princeton, Yale and Texas to name a few. USD’s Toreros and Lady Aztecs women crews will compete for the Women’s Cal Cup, starting in separate heats Saturday morning. But they could go head-to-head in the finals. The SDSU and USD men’s crews will also fight for the same varsity Cal Cup. With just 300 athletes at the inaugural Crew Classic in 1973, the competition now draws more than 3,500 competitors to Mission Bay, representing more than 100 teams, from Washington to Minnesota to Massachusetts and Florida. More than 20,000 friends, family and fans are expected to participate in the festivities. Six teams line-up their “shells” for the start of each race under the sky chair ride at SeaWorld, and the roughly seven-minute races finish in full view of fans on Crown Point Shores. Races start every 10 minutes. Fans can watch the races on huge projection screens near the alumni tents. Most races are decided by just 10 feet. The San Diego Rowing Club (SDRC) on El Carmel Point and the ZLAC women’s club on Pacific Beach Drive will compete. The historic SDRC was founded in 1888, and the women founded their own all-women’s club “ZLAC” in 1892. Junior-team members of SDRC and ZLAC who have earned crew scholarships will return to Mission Bay to represent their universities on familiar waters. Championship finals for the Jessop-Whittier Cup for women and the Copley Cup for men will run mid-morning on Sunday. Overall the event will include 90 races. Crew competition dates back to the mid-1800s and is the oldest intercollegiate sporting tradition in America. Collegiate rowers achieve the highest academic performance and graduation rates of any sport, according to the US Rowing Association, founded in 1872. Modern 62-foot, carbon fiber “shells” and oar materials challenge the disciplined athletes to excel even more in the human-powered sport. Teams are classified as Collegiate, Jr. Varsity, Novice, Junior, Club or Masters. Some classes are further divided into light weight crews; women in the team must be under 130 pounds and men under 160. Crews race in their class except for the “open” events where colleges and clubs can go head to head. Eight-oared crews carry a coxswain to steer and keep the team paced as they battle their competitors. Tickets cost $7 or $10 for a two-day pass. Guests under 13 and active military, policemen and fire fighters are admitted free. There is a fee for parking near the gate, but free parking is available in the lots on Vacation Isle by Ski Beach. A free ride by Cloud 9 Shuttle is available from the lots to the gate. Guests can bring a lounge chair or blanket for seating, since there is plenty of grass or sand for race viewing. No personal tents, bottles, bikes, skateboards or dogs are permitted inside. Crew Classic event information is available at www.crewclassic.org.