Day: August 13, 2013

Question of the Day

By readyallrow August 13, 2013

I heard that you should just steer whilst the blades are in the water to reduce drag and maintain the set. Does that mean I only move the strings when the blades are in, or do I return them to the straight position during the recovery? The latter doesn’t seem like it would turn the boat much.

During the recovery yes, unless you’re going around a really sharp curve, you would go back to having the rudder straight and the strings even. In my opinion the whole “steering while the blades are in the water” thing only truly applies to when you’re racing, especially during sprint races, because you don’t want to be steering much to begin with and, obviously, you don’t want to slow it down by creating drag from the rudder. During practice it’s not as big of a deal but the same idea still applies.

Like you said, going back and forth between having the rudder turned and having it straight won’t turn the boat as much as just holding it in the direction you want to go, but the “con” of that is that it’ll affect the set of the boat (more or less depending on the skill level of the rowers you’re coxing). You should only hold it to the side like that though if you’re trying to get around a big curve or a sharp turn. In cases like this, just tell your rowers that you’re steering to port/starboard (you should do this regardless), and have them adjust their handle heights as necessary. (Don’t forget to tell the when you’re off the rudder too so they can readjust their hands.)

So, to answer your question, when you’re going straight or going around very slight curves, you should make small adjustments as necessary and go back to having the strings straight on the recovery. I usually steer for a stroke, take a stroke or two off, and then make another adjustment if I have to. If you’re going around a larger turn just hold the rudder to the side you’re trying to go and have the rowers adjust their handle heights until you’re finished steering.

College High School Q&A Recruiting

Question of the Day

By readyallrow August 13, 2013

How much contact is too much contact for juniors? Are we allowed to pop in and visit quickly whilst touring? Or no personal contact at all?

I would at least email them first to say you’re coming to tour the campus and to see if they’re available, but meeting with them isn’t usually a big deal. It’s considered an unofficial visit but if you’re already going to be on campus it’s definitely worth seeing if you can meet up with them to save yourself an additional trip later on. Plus your parents will most likely be with you so they can ask the coach any questions they have too. I wouldn’t just go straight to their office with no prior warning though because that’s a little … weird, especially if you haven’t had much contact or interaction prior to that. I don’t think the NCAA has a definition of “too much contact”, at least from your end, but you should be able to use your common sense to determine how much is too much.

Q&A Teammates & Coaches

Question of the Day

By readyallrow August 13, 2013

All the girls on my team are pretty good about the no crewcest thing, except this one girl, who keeps hooking up with many of the guys on the team and the team is slowly dying as a result. I’ve told her this would happen, but she doesn’t seem to care. The coach can’t really do anything, as its always after practice hours. Also, I feel for her, the team is more of a place to get guys than to actually improve her rowing and get faster. Any advice?

If the team really is being affected by her “extracurricular activities” then the coaches should say something. If she was doing this outside of practice with no effect on the atmosphere at practice then whatever but that doesn’t sound like it’s the case. Granted, if they do know what’s going on then they might not have any idea how to bring it up to her, especially if they’re men and especially if you’re in high school, so I guess I wouldn’t exactly blame them for not addressing it.

As her teammates you definitely have a right to be annoyed at her for playing a part in messing with the team culture but at the same time, you can’t put all the blame on her. Has anyone told the guys on the team to maybe, oh I donno, stop hooking up with her? It’s a two way street so if something is being said to her, something should also be being said to the guys. If they all want to hook up and cause drama and whatever else, by all means go for it but don’t bring all of that to practice. If that’s what you’re going to do then there’s no place on the team for you, plain and simple. Without getting into the dirty details, that’s really all your coaches need to say. I’d have no problem asking someone to leave the team if they disregarded that rule/request. Everyone else is there to make boats go fast and it’s hard to do that and build camaraderie with each other if everyone is constantly acting weird or giving off that awkward “morning after” attitude.

In the end, everyone is going to do what they want to do. The only thing you can ask of them is to stop bringing all the unnecessary drama to practice and be respectful of their teammates who just want to row. Point out to them how their actions are affecting the team and hope that from there they’ll recognize that they either need to stop or keep whatever’s going on amongst themselves and not the business of everyone else on the team.

Coxing Q&A Teammates & Coaches

Question of the Day

By readyallrow August 13, 2013

What would you do if you were a lightweight with a coxswain that’s actually heavier than the rowers? I don’t want to be rude about weight or anything but the mentality of it is just hard because we’re not big ourselves so the stationary person shouldn’t be bigger. Or am I just being a bitch?

No, you’re not being a bitch. Other people might think it’s a petty concern but I’m with you. Weight is a touchy subject but everyone has to be realistic and accept the fact that it’s part of the sport and part of being a coxswain or lightweight rower. Coxswains need to be cognizant of their weight, especially when they’re coxing lightweight crews, because it really doesn’t make sense to have someone who isn’t contributing to the boat’s movement weigh more than the people doing the actual work. It just doesn’t. There’s always been this unspoken rule that a coxswain shouldn’t weigh more than their lightest rower and I have to say that I agree with it.

It’s an awkward situation but it’s not really your or your teammates place to say anything. I totally get that she’s part of your boat and as such you’re going to have an opinion on the issue but you guys saying something will either a) cause a huge problem, b) come off as typical bitchy girl shit with some kind of hidden agenda, or c) just not be taken seriously. If you’re a freshman or sophomore, I wouldn’t worry about it too much because you’re just getting started with rowing so stuff like this isn’t as big a deal at that level but if you’re a junior, senior, or in college, it might be worth bringing up if you truly do think it’s an issue. If you all weigh 115lbs and she weighs 117lbs, yea she weighs more than you but not by anything incredibly substantial that it’s worth potentially igniting something over. If you all weigh 127lbs and she weighs 133lbs then yea, I can see why it’s an issue because that’s 23lbs over the minimum and about 15lbs (ish) over a reasonable “max” for a women’s coxswain.

The real problem is how to bring it up and who to bring it up to. To be honest, if I was coaching a crew that had an issue like this (or felt that it was an issue) I’d rather just have you come to me and say something rather than say something directly to the other person and then leave me to piece together the details and deal with the fallout. You kind of have to judge what your coach’s reaction would be before you do it though because, depending on their coaching style, your relationship with them, your coxswain’s relationship with them, etc., it could end up making you look … not good. Unless you are really good friends with your coxswain (and even then, a little bit…), I’d caution bringing the issue up with her yourself for the reasons I mentioned earlier.

College Coxing Racing Recordings

Coxswain Recordings, pt. 11

By readyallrow August 13, 2013

George Washington University vs. Navy

At the start, make sure you remind everyone to bury their blades. 7-seat was only about 3/4 of the way in during the countdown. You can really see it at 2:17 how everyone’s blades are just under the surface but his is peeking out a bit. You can also see it on his first puddle, there’s a lot of whitewater compared to everyone else’s deep, dark ones.

Similarly to the previous GW recordings I posted, the tone, annunciation, etc. of the calls are spot on. A couple examples here include the “jump and send” at 3:13, the intensity at 5:32 when he says “I’m on bowball”, and the actual calmness in his voice when he says “first 500m move, nice and calm” at 3:42. If you’re calm when you tell them to be calm or aggressive when you want to see/feel the aggression, you’re going to see and feel that response on the next stroke.

I was paying more attention to the coxing than the actual rowing but I noticed that it looked pretty unset at times, like they were on a different side every stroke for multiple strokes at a time. You’ve gotta remind them not to settle for that. Small adjustments, get it right at the finish coming around the corner, stabilize it coming into the catch, lock on, send; stabilize, lock, send. Also, compared to the rest of the piece the slingshot 10 at 5:48 looked sluggish. For a move like that, make sure you’re preceding it with calls to stay light on the seats, stay up tall, keep the catches quick and the finishes tight, etc.

George Washington University 2013 IRA Freshman 8+ Petite Finals

One of my favorite things about Connor’s coxing is that he has managed to find that perfect balance between being calm and aggressive. Coxswains that can find and perfect that balance are the kind of coxswains I would give everything for as a rower. Another thing I like is everything that happens after the race is over. He tells them exactly where they were on the other crews when they crossed, congratulated them on a great race and season, and really just made it evident that he loved coxing this boat regardless of the outcome of the race. You don’t say “that was fun as fuck” unless you mean it, trust me. You can also hear one of the guys say “we gave ’em a run for their money” in reference to Princeton (“fucking Princeton”, to quote that person) and they did – they finished 0.8 seconds behind them.

Between 2:58 and 3:03, listen to how he calls their position on Princeton. “Holding our margin … even with Princeton … one seat up on Princeton.” In five seconds he told them their location on another crew three times with minimal effort. All it takes is one quick glance over to see where you’re at. I also like how he calls their position on Wisco a little earlier at 2:26 – he just says “up Wisco”, which is a quick and easy way to say you’re up on a crew while in the middle of making more important calls.

At 4:18 he says “we gotta move, we can’t sit” which is a good call as long as you follow it up with an actual move. Not doing that just kinda leaves the crew hanging and you can lose a bit of that motivational momentum that comes with a call like this.

Again with the tone of voice, the 20 seconds between 4:39 and 5:00 is another good example of how to build intensity with your voice and evoke a response from your crew.

Other calls I liked:

“Get ready to fuck them in two, that’s one, and two, fuck the lightweights!“

You can find and listen to more recordings by checking out the “Coxswain Recordings” page.