West Seattle, Washington
19 Sunday
That’s the first song the local band Chewing Gum performed at their Easy Street Records show tonight, celebrating the release of their EP “Possum.” Since we had talked about the show with Magen Holgate, who runs their label The Big Dark Records, we wanted to hear their sound, and it was just as billed – classic grungy Seattle, loud, unapologetic. You can catch them at two summer shows – 7 pm Friday, July 10, at The Big Dark Corner stage (California/Alaska) at West Seattle Summer Fest, and 4 pm Friday, July 17, at the Alki Art Fair.
One member of the West Seattle High School Class of 2026 who missed last night’s graduation ceremony had an understandable reason. Claire Gordon was busy rowing, on a boat whose crew just won sixth place in the nation! Claire’s proud mom Stephanie Jordan catches us all up:
West Seattle High School senior Claire Gordon raced in the Green Lake Crew Women’s Youth 8+ that earned a sixth‑place finish at the USRowing Youth National Championships — this was the capstone race for junior crews throughout the US and took place last weekend at Nathan Benderson Park in Sarasota, FL.
To reach the national A final, Claire’s boat won the Northwest Youth Regional Championship in May, advanced through the time trials in Sarasota, and placed third in their semifinal. The Green Lake women also had to contend with conditions very different from Seattle — triple‑digit heat, 90% humidity, and knowing that the course at Nathan Benderson Park is home to actual alligators. The ranking closing out a standout season for Claire’s crew. Along with their regional title, they won the Husky Open and Head of the Lake. Green Lake was edged out at the Windermere Cup by Brentwood College — a loss softened by Brentwood’s Canadian national championship win last week.
For those unfamiliar, an 8+ is a racing boat with eight rowers and a coxswain, all working in sync to move the shell as fast as possible. Each rower controls one oar on either the port or starboard side of the boat, a technique called “sweeping.” Rowers face backward, relying on their coxswain to steer, strategize, and give them directions. The sprint course stretches 2,000 meters with lanes slightly wider than twice the boat with oars extended – the crew balances power, precision, and rhythm to hold a straight line at race pace. Faster junior women can finish a sprint in under seven minutes.
Claire just completed her senior year at West Seattle High School but missed both graduation and signing day to race with her boat. She began rowing in middle school, encouraged by her older brother William, also a Green Lake alum. After Nationals, Claire and her teammates traveled to England, where they are currently training to race at the Henley Royal Regatta. They are excited to test themselves against some of the best junior boats in the world. Claire will join the University of Washington women’s rowing team as a freshman this fall.
Green Lake Crew, along with Mount Baker Crew, operates through Seattle Parks and Recreation and draws athletes from schools across the city. Claire encourages other West Seattle kids to try the sport through one of the program’s Learn to Row classes.
As noted here in 2023, both Claire and her brother have been on championship teams.
Washington State Ferries says that, after a day and a half out of service, M/V Kitsap will be back up and running tomorrow, so the Fauntleroy-Vashon-Southworth run will return to three-boat service in the morning. Kitsap will be the #3 vessel, WSF says.
3:50 PM: We are at Nino Cantu Southwest Athletic Complex, where the USA vs. Australia informal soccer match has just ended with the “Puget Sounders” beat the Australian squad – both led by elected officials – 4 to 3, in a prelude to tomorrow’s World Cup match. Full story to come.
ADDED 5:50 PM: It was a beautiful day to play – clear skies, not too hot. The match was coordinated and hosted by West Seattle Junction and Rhodies FCs‘ owner Jessica Pierce, who talked to the spectators about the match’s significance:
Her work making this happen included support from King County Councilmember Teresa Mosqueda, who energetically emceed. Councilmember Mosqueda also was one of five West Seattleites who played for the winning team; the others were 34th District State Sen. Emily Alvarado (who demurred that she was “more of a soccer mom than a soccer player”), District 1 City Councilmember Rob Saka (whose family was a lively part of the cheering section), Seattle School Board president Gina Topp, and Councilmember Mosqueda’s deputy chief of staff Chris Lampkin. Here’s our video of some of the action:
One of the non-WS electeds on the team scored two of the goals, 3rd District (Spokane) State Sen. Marcus Riccelli; the other two were by West Seattle Junction FC players who joined the match, Kellen Pierce and Will Masschmedt. Two Seattle citywide electeds played too – Mayor Katie Wilson and City Attorney Erika Evans.
Here are the final few moments of the match:
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