Community Rowing at Pier 40

Every Sunday at noon

Go here to sign up for rowing on Sunday, June 15.

Wednesday evening rowing resumes May 7 at 5:30PM.

Village Community Boathouse provides free, no experience necessary Community Rowing on the south (downtown) side of Pier 40 on the Hudson River every Sunday at noon and every Wednesday evening, from April through November, weather permitting. Check the website for more information.

Make sure you have signed the 2025 online waiver.

At each session, after a brief orientation, participants will be assigned to a crew with an experienced coxswain to steer the boat and a mixture of experienced and new rowers. Our boats, Whitehall gigs, are stable, traditional working boats for four rowers and a coxswain.

Please note: Rows will last between one and three hours, dependent on weather, tides, and destination. Participants are expected to help launch, retrieve, and clean the boats each session.

Community rowing is open to all, although some physical agility is required. The focus of the program is on teamwork and recreation in a safe and respectful environment. Each participant must sign a waiver. Life jackets are provided. Expect to be out in the hot sun for several hours—bring water and sunscreen!

Click here for directions and a map.

Youth Rowing

VCB youth rowing resumes April 18. Contact us to sign up.

Each Friday at 4 pm high school students congregate at the boathouse on Pier 40 for free rowing. Youth rowing is open to all high school students. No experience is necessary. All students must bring a waiver signed by a parent or guardian. After gaining experience in the program, students can get on our race team for several events throughout the Northeast. For more information email info@vcb.nyc.

Click here for a gallery of youth rowing.

Community Boatbuilding

The VCB boatbuilding program will be paused until Labor Day. This summer we will be vacationing and prepping for a major new build in the fall.

If you would like to help us maintain our fleet and build new boats you are welcome to join the boatbuilding crew on Sundays and Wednesdays at noon, year-round. No experience or advance signup is necessary. Come to our spacious and well equipped boat shop on the south side of Pier 40 where we build and maintain our gigs. The work varies from scraping and painting to cutting and glueing, all under the supervision of experienced boatbuilders.

Commission a Boat

Find out how here.