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John Whelan, champion oarsman, has all but given up on competitive rowing. On the cusp of forty, the Outer Cove fisherman is trying to accept that his time as a rower has passed. His wife agrees, telling him, “Breaking your back down on that pond, that’s a young man’s sport.” But a fracas with the Torbay rowing crew in a St. John’s tavern rekindles his desire to beat his long-time rivals in the upcoming St. John’s Regatta. With the regatta just ten months away, can he and cox Watt Power assemble a championship crew in time? The answer is the stuff of legends. A Stroke in Time is Gerard Doran’s debut novel. Inspired by true events, this tale of the record-breaking Outer Cove rowing crew of 1901 is a tribute to the everyman hero and a dedication to the outport fishing culture of more than a century ago.