At 5 a.m., the San Francisco Bay is an ice-cold, shimmering pool of darkness. Sloshing breaks the silence as Palo Alto High School senior Dorin Flynn tears her oars through the calm waters. Commanding instructions crackle through the megaphones of the Redwood Scullers coaches, pushing the team through their grueling morning practice. Despite the strong winds, the rowers peel off layer after layer of clothing that kept them warm just moments earlier. Minutes turn into hours as the sun begins painting the sky in orange and yellow hues, signaling the fast-approaching end of practice.

For five years, Flynn has rowed for Redwood Scullers, a pre-elite competitive rowing club in the Bay Area. With the program’s prestige, many Redwood Scullers rowers go on to row for Ivy League schools. As a 2023 Youth National Champion and a gold medalist at both the San Diego Crew Classic and the Royal Canadian Henley Regatta, Flynn is one of few Paly athletes committed to play a Division I sport in college and the only committed rower of her class.

Flynn is committed to row at The University of Virginia. However, her plans were completely different just a few months prior.

“Back in February or March last year, I committed to the United States Naval Academy, but medically, they couldn’t guarantee admission,” Flynn said. “So then I had an offer from UVA that they were going to hold for a while, so I took them up on that offer.”

Though her admissions process had its ups and downs, Flynn says she is looking forward to the next four years in Virginia. She has her eye on this summer’s national U19 rowing team, and hopes to place at the National Collegiate Athletic Association.

“It [admissions] was definitely a stressful journey because in my head, I was set on the Naval Academy until about October, and then I had to change plans last minute,” Flynn said.

Flynn grew up around the sport because of her father’s competitive rowing career. However, her own experience with rowing began at Vermont’s outdoor camp Hosmer Point, which she attended the summer before fifth grade. The camp offered rowing as an option, so she figured she would give it a shot.

Flynn’s time at camp set her passion for rowing in motion — she began hopping from team to team in middle school until she joined Redwood Scullers in eighth grade, where she still rows today.

Besides her journey to commitment at UVA, rowing brings Flynn all kinds of hurdles on a regular basis.

Rowing calls for strict practices multiple times a week, with some beginning as early as 5 a.m.

Flynn says that having discipline is essential for each team member. Though some days are worse, remembering that people are relying on her gives her motivation to keep showing up.

Flynn’s dedication in putting in effort and time is part of what makes her an incredible rower, according to Ali Bollyky, Flynn’s rowing teammate and a senior at Castilleja School who is also committed to rowing at UVA.

“We will go out in the water and we’ll have eight really hard pieces lined up, and Dorin is somebody in the boat who’s going give her 110% every single one of those eight pieces,” Bollyky said. “And I think that’s the kind of person you want in your boat and you want as a friend.”

With practices both on land and in the San Francisco Bay, rowers are exposed to numerous forms of exercise throughout the week. Practices are a mix of intervals, tempo rows, technical rows — focused on technique — and low-intensity ‘steady state’ rows.

Chris Flynn, Flynn’s father, has been in the same position as his daughter. After rowing through college and pursuing a competitive rowing career, he is now the director of operations at Bair Island Aquatic Center. He says her competitive spirit has been present since childhood.

“From a very young age, from like three years old, she would be very achievement-oriented and very focused on grinding it out, but she was always a really enthusiastic participant in the most craziest adventures I would take both our kids on,” he said.

Bollyky agrees that Flynn’s enthusiasm and eagerness to grow play a huge role in her success in the sport.

However, at times, Flynn still struggles with feeling unmotivated.

“There are better seasons and worse seasons,” Flynn said. “Last season was rough, and mentally I was not in the greatest place … It was really hard to wake up early and go to practice.”

During these times, Flynn’s father pushes his rowing background to the side and focuses on acting as a parent figure, rather than a coach.

“I’m her father, and I think it’s important that I keep that separation so if she’s frustrated with the coaches or at practice, she can vent to me,” he said. “I understand the challenges, and so I just kind of let her take ownership of what she wants to do in the sport.”

Ultimately, Flynn chose her own path, and intends to follow it to Virginia this fall. While the moments last, she continues to dedicate herself to the team that helped her get to where she is today.

“You have to do it for yourself,” Flynn said. “You have to do the sport because you really like it. And it’s definitely going to be hard, but I think it’s worth it.”