Getting to Know You With Meghan Farrell

April 27, 2010

Throughout the 2010 season, SoonerSports.com provides an inside look into OU rowing. This week freshman Meghan Farrell is on the hot seat.

Favorite moment on the water...
After winning our duel in Alabama we pulled up to the dock, and were waiting around for a while for the coaches because we weren't sure where to put the boat. Turns out it was the wrong dock so we had been standing around for quite sometime, then all of a sudden we see Coach Marina running full speed at us with bloody knees because she had tripped and fell running along side our race, and she yelled "Boomer!" We all replied "Sooner" of course. It was cool because usually when we get off the water, even if we win, they pick out something for us to work on, but after that race we just group hugged on the dock...it was pretty awesome.

Interests outside of rowing...
Finding new music, napping, coaching rowing for a corporate league, and skateboarding

Person that most shaped my life...
My parents were the most influential people in my life. They taught me to be understanding and welcoming to others. Growing up I can remember several times where family members or friends lived with us for a period of time for one reason or another. My parents were always willing to open their door to others and let them stay under our roof as long as they needed.

What is your favorite thing to do in Norman?
Trying new restaurants, hanging out with the team, and going to various sporting events.

List three words that describe you...
Ambitious, hardworking, and diligent

Name one thing that fans don't know about you...
I play the guitar and ukulele, and I would really like to learn how to play the piano one day.

Why did you choose OU?
It was a gut check when I came on my official visit. I really liked the coaches, and I really liked the team, something about the university just felt right. I knew on the flight home that I wanted to go to OU.

What are your plans after college?
I'm thinking of being a trainer, or doing research in the Health and Exercise Science field.

What's your nickname? Reasoning behind it?
MJ. It stands for Meghan Junior. The first reason is the fact that there is a girl named Meagan Harrell on our team, and at the beginning of the season it was extremely confusing to know which one they were referring to. The other reason is that several nicknames were created, but didn't really stick until I was talking to a coxswain of ours, Kelsey Witten, and she said something like "We're gonna call you MJ...as in Meghan Junior." I replied, "Go for it...there's no way its gonna stick." Kelsey then went around and got everyone to call me MJ, just because I made it a challenge. Ever since then it's been my nickname.

Favorite aspect of OU Rowing team...
That nature of the program. It seems to me that some collegiate rowing programs are run so that each rower isn't a person on the team, they're an erg score. It's not like that at all on our team, everyone is pretty tight and the coaches talk to us like people, they let us know exactly why they do things, and don't mind joking around with us either.

What is the last song you downloaded?
Break Your Heart by Taio Cruz

What's your favorite TV show?
Modern family

Favorite book?
Deadline

Favorite restaurant?
Eskimo Snow

If you could invite three people to dinner, who would they be?
Paul Rudd, John Krazinski, and Taylor Swift

Most cherished childhood memory?
Every year we would go to Carlsbad, Calif., and camp on the beach. A bunch of family and family friends would come and join us for a week. I think we had close to 40 people once. It's where I learned to surf and was always the highlight of my summer.

What do you picture yourself doing 10 years from now?
Being the trainer for a professional or collegiate team, and living in California, preferably San Diego or Santa Barbara

Most visited web site?
Google

Favorite Quote?
"To live is the rarest thing in the world. Most people exist, that is all." Oscar Wilde