Previously: Intro || The recruiting timeline + what to consider || What do coaches look at? || Contacting coaches, pt. 1 || Contacting coaches, pt. 2 || Contacting coaches, pt. 3 || Contacting coaches, pt. 4 || Highlight videos + the worst recruiting emails || Official/unofficial visits + recruiting rules recap || When scholarships aren’t an option || Managing your time as a student-athlete + narrowing down your list of schools || Interest from coaches + coming from a small program || How much weight do coaches have with admissions + what to do if there are no spots left || Being recruited as a coxswain, pt. 1
If you’re a (good) coxswain then you know that recording yourself isn’t something you can avoid doing, particularly if you want to be recruited. Here’s a few tips and things to remember as you prepare to send your audio to college coaches.
Audio recording vs. GoPro
I always prefer GoPro footage because it lets me see how you interact with the blades, i.e. are you paying attention to what’s actually happening in/around the boat or are you just talking and running through a script? Ultimately I think it’s keeps coxswains honest and forces them to be more accountable. Coxing isn’t just about sounding good so if you have a GoPro I would always default to sending that over a regular recording.
When sending audio, include tightly clipped recordings from both practice and a race
“Tight” meaning the recording is cut down to just the important stuff. For the race, don’t send a 20 minute long mp3 with 14 minutes of unnecessary noise on either side of the actual race. I can’t even begin to tell you how annoying it is to receive recordings like that. The same goes for practice – follow the JNT rules and cut your practice audio down to 10 minutes.
My suggestion is to include clips of you calling your warmup (actually coxing it, not just saying “stern pair out in two, bow pair in”), a drill or two, and then 3-5 minutes from the actual workout pieces. A brief description (meaning a sentence or two max) of each section is also helpful. Also, for races make sure to note the race/regatta, the event, and how you finished. This is important for context purposes so don’t forget to include it.
Get a second opinion
Don’t send out just any recording – you want it to be a reflection of your best efforts as a coxswain. Narrow down what you have to your top two or three and then ask one of your coaches, a fellow coxswain, etc. which one they think represents your skills the best.
Be mindful of the swearing
Swearing in recordings doesn’t really bother me personally but I do roll my eyes when it’s obvious how gratuitous it is (and trust me, it’s always obvious). My advice to coxswains who ask if they should send a recording that has swearing in it is to just use your judgement but err on the side of caution when possible.
Coaches that get all high and mighty about a 17 year old saying “fuck yea, that’s it…” in the last 250m of a tight race also make me roll my eyes because a) rowing coaches literally swear more often and more gratuitously than any other group of people I’ve ever met and b) as long as you’re not saying “see ya later motherfuckersss” to the crew you’re walking through, who cares. Maybe that’s just my millennial showing but I really don’t think it’s that big of a deal. Still, you have to recognize that some coaches do care and it can be a turn off for them.
If the recording you’ve chosen has swearing in it but it’s the one that you feel is your absolute best recording and none of your other ones showcase your skills better than it does, then at the very least try to bleep it out. As long as it doesn’t end up sounding like the radio edit of a NWA song, you’ll be fine.
Next week: Technique and erg scores