Jim rowed for three years at Phillips Exeter Academy, four years at Dartmouth College, three years at Vesper Boat Club (plus three other summers), six competitive years at Long Beach Rowing Association, and a number of years with Motley Rowing Club, which he founded.
With Exeter, Jim reached the finals of the Prince Phillip Cup (for coxed fours), losing by 2 1/2 lengths to Britain's Olympic four. With Dartmouth, his best was second in the IRA. With Vesper, he was in the eight at the World Championships at Saint Catherine's, and a spare on the team to the European Championships in Copenhagen.
Jim's coaching career included two years coaching the freshmen at USC, starting the women's team at USC and coaching them for seven years, coaching the women's team for four years at Long Beach State, and assorted short stints to help out here and there.
- Jim has also been a Referee for over 30 years.
- As of June 2007, Jim will be the coach for the Masters Comp Crew.
- When asked why Jim likes to coach he says:
"Whenever I see a crew that could go faster if their technique was better, I feel the need to kibitz. I like to pass on some of the knowledge I have gained through my experience. I hope that any team I work with can do a little better and enjoy the sport as much as I did."
Self taught rower starting in July 1993 in an open water shell in Arizona. After joining RSRC in 1997 was asked to join the club’s Board of Directors working primarily on the boathouse committee, regatta development, and fund raising. Became the regatta director and developed what became the Hot Head Regatta and the Desert Sprints. Started coaching for RSRC evening learn-to-row classes in 2002. In that same year launched RSRC’s first Junior Program with a modest 4 rowers. Two of these rowers went on to get rowing scholarships at Cornell and San Diego State.
I currently serve as President of RSRC. In the fall of 2009 I was asked to join Tempe Junior Crew by Head Coach Dan Duxbury to coach his novice juniors. In December of 2009 I passed my USRowing Level I Coach exams. I was the 2009 USRowing SW Regional Gold Medalist for the Single in my age group. My background as a naturopathic physician has greatly helped my coaching and rowing with good application of sports nutrition and physiology.
Magill has been involved in rowing for almost as long as she can remember, but in real time, almost 20 years. As a 4-year varsity women's coxswain at Bates College (Div III), she coxed crews to medals at Head of the Charles, Head of the Connecticut, Dad Vails, ECACs, Champion International Collegiate Regatta, and New England Championships, qualifying for post-season nationals regattas in her junior and senior years. Magill started coaching during her undergraduate summers, instructing sculling at Austin Rowing Club in Texas. During graduate school and law school, Magill was a volunteer assistant coach for the University of North Carolina novice women's crew, The College of William & Mary women's crew, and coxed and rowed for Carolina Masters Rowing Club, Virginia Boat Club and Mendota Rowing Club in Madison, Wisconsin. Over the last decade, Magill has also coxed for a number of composite masters crews and alumni crews at most of the big eastern regattas and at masters rowing camps. As a coach for Rio Salado's Learn to Row classes, she strives to help new masters rowers get hooked on the world's best sport. Her favorite place in the Valley is the east dam of Tempe Town Lake, preferably just after sunrise when the birding is good. Magill recently completed her USRowing Level 3 coaching certification.
