The thing to take away from this, especially for novices, is that there is no such thing as perfect technique. You’ll pick up how to row really quickly but then spend the rest of your rowing career (however long that is) trying to get your technique as close to perfect as possible.

What you’re chasing right now as a novice is exactly the same thing that these guys are chasing … and they’ve probably been rowing for 8+ years. Don’t let that frustrate you. If you don’t get something, talk with your coach or coxswain and have them break it down for you. Do what basketball players do when practicing free throws – similar to how they aim to make a certain number of free throws before they leave each day, get on the erg before you leave the boathouse and try to take 3, 5, 10, 15, etc. good strokes that reinforce whatever technical focus your coach had that day. Little things like that go a long way.