Category: College

College Coxing Q&A

Question of the Day

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Hi. I’ve been rowing on my high school team for four years now and I’ve been considering continuing crew in college. However, my times aren’t good enough to be recruited and I’ve always wanted to cox. People have told me I would be good at coxing but my coach wants me to row for him. But my weight is an issue. I’m 5’3″ and weigh around 140. I don’t know if I can healthily get down to a weight to cox, so is it possible for me to cox men? Thanks!

Depends on where you go to school. If you go to a school with a club program you could probably row or cox because they’re typically more lax about the height/weight requirements since a lot of the people on the team are new to rowing or haven’t participated in sports before (thus they don’t have the typical rower’s build). I would agree with you that getting down to a healthy weight range to cox women is probably going to be tough so unless you’re at a club program where that’s not as big of an issue, I personally wouldn’t consider it an option.

As far as coxing men goes (at all IRA schools and probably 99% of the competitive clubs (men aren’t NCAA, remember)) , that’s also tough because like women’s teams, they typically want their coxswains to be as close to racing weight as possible for reasons I’ve discussed before (basically, no one wants to carry around more dead weight than they have to, which is understandable). If you’re 140lbs now, that’s 13-15lbs you’d have to lose. I can’t tell you if that’s healthy for you or not because I don’t know you but assuming you’re a senior now and start college in the fall … yea, you’ve got plenty of time if you wanted to go that route. It’s a lot of lifestyle changes though so make sure you take that into consideration.

(Quick edit because I forgot to include this before I posted this.) If you want to cox the guys this season, as in three months from now, I’d say it’s still possible but you’re giving yourself a bit more of a time limit, which can be some people’s downfall. If you want to cox in college you could always still row this season and then walk on to the team in the fall and say “I want to cox”. You don’t have to cox this season but the practice certainly wouldn’t hurt. If you’re not trying to be recruited though (that period is pretty much over now anyways, I think) then it doesn’t really matter what you choose to do. Just remember that if you try to cox the guys you’re giving yourself a very small window to get in the racing weight range.

As a general note to everyone reading, I want to throw out a clarification on coxswain weights and who you’re coxing for. I know I’ve said many times that if being or staying at 110lbs to cox for women is not feasible for you then coxing men is always an option because their minimum is 125lbs. I’m not backing down from that because I do think it’s a reasonable option. I don’t, however, want people to get the impression that you can just jump right into coxing men regardless of your weight because their minimum is higher than the women’s. Their minimum is higher because they’ve got to accommodate male coxswains who probably haven’t been 110lbs since 7th grade. That’s it.

However, if you’re thinking about coxing you have to understand that weight is an important and dare I say critical component of being a coxswain. It’s not the most important thing but it’s something that needs to be given the proper attention by everyone who’s considering coxing. There’s really no easy way to say this but please don’t just assume you can jump right into coxing guys if your normal body weight is 10, 15, 20+lbs over 125lbs. You’re going to be gently nudged or sometimes flat out told to lose weight depending on who you cox for. If you really want to cox that badly but are more than like, 130lbs, you need to start thinking about making some serious changes in order to get down to racing weight (in a healthy way) by the time the season rolls around.

Teachable moments

College Coxing High School Novice Rowing Teammates & Coaches

Teachable moments

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Yesterday someone posted a thread on Reddit titled “Things I Wish Novices Knew” and when I read it I ended up having a much different reaction than I thought I would. Maybe it’s because I’ve been around the sport for awhile, maybe it’s because I talk to so many novices on here, I don’t know. I cringe at the thought that maybe it’s just because I’m getting older but I’m starting to lean more towards finding the teachable moments in situations like this rather than just reading what’s written, closing the tab, and quietly moving on.

I posted a really long response to the original post (unintentionally, to be honest…) and got a couple emails from people asking me to post it on here because they thought it was “good advice that I wish my teammates would listen to” and “I know several people on my D1 team that need a reminder of how to treat/work with novices if they want them to stick around”. Another person asked “Can you please post this on your blog? I don’t think many of my teammates are on Reddit but I know many of them, including a couple of our coaches, read your blog and this is something I think they should all read. None of them would take it seriously if I brought it up (I’m a junior in high school) but I know they will if they see if on your blog.”.

Here’s the original post:

And here’s my reply:

“OK, I’m going to play devil’s advocate here and say that instead of just posting all this stuff on Reddit and snarking on the noobs because they’re all complacent about, well, everything, maybe actually spend some time discussing all this stuff with them. Like [username removed] said, regardless of whether or not this was what he/she actually meant, they just started and they’re still learning. The upperclassmen when we were novices probably/definitely felt the same way about us as we do about the novices right now. There’s no excuse though to not spend the time teaching them all this stuff. And maybe you are, who knows, but if you’re doing it through various offhand, easy-to-ignore conversations or pissed off diatribes before or after practice, your message isn’t getting across.

If they aren’t used to participating in a sport, let alone one that says “fuck the elements” like crew does, they ARE going to assume that on certain days you won’t have practice because of the weather. That’s what NORMAL people do. They see that it’s foggy and think “I can barely see across the street, there’s no way we’ll be on the water today” or “It’s basically hurricane-ing outside, we can’t row in this”. That’s a NORMAL reaction for someone who hasn’t done crew before. You can say “don’t assume we won’t have practice” but part of them always will, at least for the first year.

Instead of having issues with people missing practice, why not have someone send a text to the novices (or everyone) in the morning if the weather looks iffy and say “practice is on, see you in an hour at the boathouse” or “fog’s pretty thick this morning, we’ll be in the erg room on campus at 7:30am”. I know it might seem like you’re holding their hand and making them less responsible but in situations like this, communication is key. Assuming that someone is going to assume something and then getting pissed when they assume the opposite of what you want them to assume is pretty messed up on your end.

If you want them to respect the boat, have them help you fix it when something happens to it so they can see how much time and effort goes into repairing the damage they caused or contributed to. If you’re a club, ask them contribute to the repair costs if they snapped off a fin or lost all the nuts and bolts to one of the riggers. Just saying it’s worth more than your tuition literally means nothing. It’s a fun fact you can tell people at the beginning of the year but after that, no one cares. I can pretty much guarantee you that the only time you start thinking about how much your tuition actually is is six months after graduation when you get your first student loan payment in the mail.

Saying the boat has won more championships than you is a real asshole thing to say, plain and simple. I bet the boat you row in has won more championships than you too but again, that doesn’t really mean anything. All it does is make them feel less a part of the team and lower on the totem pole than they already do/are. Don’t say shit like that to people who are new to the sport if you want them to stick around.

If you want them to go to bed on time, talk to them about time management. How do you manage your schedule? Give them actual examples instead of just repeating the same shit they hear from their parents, teachers, and advisers. Don’t just say “you’ve gotta be awake for practice”. Yea well, no shit. There’s a difference between being awake and being awake and they’re most likely going with the definition of awake that says “my eyes are open” instead of the one that says “my eyes are open and I’m firing on all cylinders”. Explain to them how just having your eyes open doesn’t count as being awake and why it’s important for everyone to be fully coherent at practice because at the very least, it’s a safety issue if they’re not.

If they say they’re having trouble getting all their homework done because they’re having difficulty understanding the material they’re learning in one of their engineering classes, say “oh, Andrew took that class when he was a freshman too and did pretty well in it … you should ask him for help and see if you guys can get together sometime”. If they’re working on a really big paper, offer to proofread or help them edit it. If they’re terrible at math and struggling with their calculus class, hook them up with the person on your team who just happens to have been a TA for that class last semester.

Even if you did everything all by yourself your entire way through college not everyone is like that and sometimes people need help but have a hard time asking for it. If you want to earn their respect as a teammate, be there for them OUTSIDE of practice, not just when you’re at the boathouse. Offer to help them when you can see they need it. Stuff like this will not only help them understand the close-knit feeling that being on a crew team has but it’ll also help them get their work done, stay on top of their classes, and go to bed (hopefully) at a slightly more reasonable hour.

Tuning out, goofing off, etc. is to be expected until you help/make them understand that they are ONE boat, not five or nine individuals. In order for the boat to run smoothly, everyone’s gotta be on the same page. If you’re that one person who is on page 3 while everyone else is on page 5, the boat will be effected. If you can see that they’re tuned out, figure out why. Don’t just brush them off. Engage them, ask them how the boat feels to them, what’s something they’re having trouble with, how does what we worked on yesterday feel today, DUDE your catch timing looks so much better than it did last week, oh, your back’s hurting and that’s why you aren’t focused? well, your posture’s not great right now so let’s fix that and see if it helps. Stuff like that.

Make sure each member of the crew (including the coxswain) gets an equal amount of attention, regardless of how big someone’s issues are compared to someone else. Don’t give them the chance to goof off or tune you out because if they see it, they’ll take it if they’re that kind of person. You, the coach, and the other rowers might know that they’re fucking around but until one of you steps up and addresses it or finds out the root cause, it’s going to keep happening.

To an extent, I don’t disagree with you on having a healthy fear of the sport. I do disagree with what you said about how it will help you avoid things. People new to the sport (or any sport, really) don’t understand that healthy fear the way we do. All they hear is the word “fear” and think “this is something I should be afraid of” and then they become scared of those things. What happens when you’re scared of things? You become meek, timid, and do everything you can to avoid being out-pulled, running into things, catching crabs, etc.

In the boat, you know what that translates to? Pulling harder than you’re capable of right now which leads to you getting injured. As a coxswain, you become over-zealous with the steering leading you to zig zag across the water or you firmly plant yourself smack in the middle of the river so that you’re far, far away from anything that might impede your path, traffic patterns be damned.

With catching crabs, you try to avoid catching them by fighting the handle which either a) gives you a really sore ribcage for a few days or b) throws you out of the boat, which then causes copious amounts of embarrassment that makes you question whether or not you want to keep doing crew. As a novice, is being out-pulled that high on the priority list? No. Learning the stroke and developing good technique should be WAY above anything involving power. If you want to worry about being out-pulled when you’re just starting out, go join CrossFit. The douchebro attitude you’ll develop and the injuries you’ll sustain will be the exact same. You’re most likely all gonna be in the freshman/novice boats anyways so it’s not like there’s going to be THAT much individual competition.

If you want them to worry about not hitting things, have an experienced coxswain walk them out of the boathouse and down to the water with the novice coxswain beside them so that they can see the path of least resistance that they should take when going out/coming in. Remind them that the equipment is precious and they should treat it as such. That’s all you have to say. Have your experienced coxswains explain how to steer the boat, what to do if they get in various less-than-ideal situations, etc. and then put them in a boat of experienced rowers so that if something DOES happen they’ll at least have knowledgeable people on hand to help them out. If they hit something because they don’t know how to use the equipment because YOU as the coach/experienced teammate didn’t THOROUGHLY teach them how to use it, that’s on you WAY more than it is on them and you HAVE to understand that.

Telling them to be afraid of something is going to do the exact opposite of what you want. Instead of saying “have a healthy fear so you can avoid all these things” explain to them that these are things you should always be conscious of so that you can always be striving to improve. Let the thought of catching a crab MOTIVATE you to really work on your technique so that crabs don’t happen. This will lead to all of those issues becoming less-than-likely to occur because you’ve developed the necessary skills that allow you to avoid them with no effort.

Raising the hands, lowering the blades, etc. is just something that you’ll have to keep explaining to them until it sinks in. I’ve worked with enough novices to know that they think the handle is everything, so if you say “lower the blade” they’ll put their hands down instead of the blade. Come up with some drills or something that will help them distinguish the two. You could do something like a basic catch drill at the finish and have them say “blade” when the blade goes in/hands go up and “hands” when the blade comes out/hands go down. I donno. Do the thing where all the starboards put their hands on the gunnels and all the ports lift their hands up to their faces, then switch, then have them figure out how to balance it on their own. Once they’ve got it, ASK THEM what they did to fix it and how did they know that’s what they needed to do. The more you engage them instead of just talking at them the better they’ll understand and the more focused they’ll be come.

Novices drive me insane so it’s not like I don’t understand how you feel. I’ve been in your position as a coxswain and a coach many times. I’d pick an experienced crew over them any day but working with them has taught me a lot of things that we tend to forget the more experienced we become. 10+ years of coxing more and more experienced crews made me complacent about a lot of the basic stuff. It wasn’t until I started coaching novices that I had to really go back and think about each individual step so that I could break everything down into individual parts so that they’d understand what I was trying to communicate. You really do have to spell out everything for them in the beginning. Is it time consuming and kinda annoying? Obviously, but it pays off in the end.

I’m one of the most impatient people on the planet and I get frustrated very easily when things that seem like common sense to me appear not to be to other people. With novices, everything we think is common sense isn’t to them. You have to be patient and work with them but I promise you that when it clicks and they finally get it, you experience a really rewarding sense of accomplishment, not only for them but for yourself too.

As much as I enjoy snarking on novices for the silly things they say and do (and man, do they say and do some seriously snark-worthy things…), ultimately that doesn’t do anything to help them get better. If they’re (hopefully) working hard to get better we should be working just as hard to help get them develop their skills and become competitive athletes. You most likely had someone like that when you were a novice so now it’s your responsibility to go be that person for someone else.”

I won’t elaborate any more on this since I think I covered everything pretty well already but what I hope you guys will take away from this is what I said in the last paragraph. That doesn’t mean you have to stop getting amusement out of the things novices do – I know I never will – but at least guide them towards the right way of doing things instead of just posting about it on the internet.

Image via // @lucerneregatta

College Q&A Teammates & Coaches

Question of the Day

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A coach reached out to me a couple months ago and we emailed and talked on the phone for a couple of weeks. I sent him an email about a week ago just to check in, give him an update, and reassure interest. How long should I wait for a reply? When we spoke before it was no longer than two days between emails so I didn’t know if it was weird that things were moving slower or if most seasons are just starting to pick up now.

Right now most teams are returning from winter break/training camp and getting back into the swing of things with school and stuff. I wouldn’t worry too much right now about not hearing back from him right away. Plus, if you didn’t include anything that he thought warranted a reply (i.e. you didn’t ask any questions or anything) then he might have just looked at your email, said “great!”, and filed it away for later. If you did ask him a question, especially if it’s time-sensitive, maybe give it another week or so and send a short follow up with the original email attached below the new one and just say “Hi Coach, just wanted to follow up on the email I sent last week. I know you’re probably busy with XYZ but I wanted to get your opinion/some advice/some insight on _____. Looking forward to hearing from you!” and leave it at that.

Even if you don’t hear back from him, I’d continue to send emails (maybe once a month at most) to update him on any progress you’ve made with the university (such as being accepted, deciding on a major and wondering if anyone else on the team has also majored in it/what their experiences were/how tough was it to handle the academic requirements of said major while on the team, etc.), your plans to come visit campus, any PR milestones erg wise (especially if you’re planning on going to CRASH-Bs next month or participating in any of their satellite events), as well as your race results once the season rolls around.

Moral of the story is don’t take it personally and don’t worry too much about it. Keep him updated on your progress and go from there. If you have a question or something you want to know about, CC the assistant coach (almost always also listed as the recruiting coordinator) on the email if that’s not who you’ve already been talking with. It tends to be their responsibility to deal with the incoming freshmen and all their questions so you might get a quicker response from them than you would from the head coach.

College Q&A Recruiting

Question of the Day

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Hello! I am attending a “business casual” open house this weekend at a college that I am strongly considering. I want to make a strong impression, I was just wondering, as a coach, what do you think would be appropriate to wear? I want to look nice without looking silly or too glitzy. Thanks in advance!

Long after you’re gone, the coaches are going to be remembering you, not your outfit. Looking nice is obviously a given but don’t forget that what’s going to leave the strongest impression is your personality, interest in the school, and what you feel you can bring to the program.

Pro tip though, don’t overthink what you’re gonna wear. The key is to pick something you’ll be comfortable in since that’ll help you project confidence in whatever situation you’re in.

I usually wear similar iterations of what’s above to job interviews or other business casual-ish events (rowing related and otherwise) and dress it up or down as necessary, either by swapping the top for a blouse and jacket or the shoes for a more casual pair of flats or sandals. I’d probably dress up a little more for schools like Harvard than I would for somewhere like Miami but it’s your call based on the environment you’ve seen when you’ve visited previously.

For shoes, stick to flats or, if the weather’s wet, snowy, etc., a pair of tall boots. If you wear any jewelry, try to keep it simple and not too flashy, noisy, or in your face. If you wear any perfume, try to keep it toned down too. You don’t want that to be what announces you when you walk in a room.

For guys, you really can’t go wrong with a button down and a nice pair of slacks or chinos. I wouldn’t completely rule out jeans as long as they’re a darker wash – anything lighter looks way too chill for something billed as “business casual”. If nicer shoes are deemed appropriate, just go for a pair of dress shoes or boots. Do not wear tennis shoes and don’t forget a belt.

College Coxing High School Q&A Recruiting

Question of the Day

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Hi there! So long story short I’ve been rowing for my high school team for the past 3 years (I’m a junior this year) and my novice year we needed a coxswain for one of the novice boats, so I both rowed and coxed that year. My coach that year told me I was a natural coxswain and I was really passionate about it. Unfortunately, I’m a little on the tall side for a coxswain (I’m 5’5″) so when I got to varsity under a new coach she found other coxswains that were smaller and so I just became a rower full time. Fast forward to today and unfortunately my erging times have not gotten as fast as I would like them to be :(. However, I really want to row/cox in college and it’s looking unlikely that I could row for any of the schools I want to go to. I would be interested in coxing again for either men or women in college though. My current coach just doesn’t see me as a coxswain for some reason, and won’t let me start coxing again even though I’m one of the slowest rowers on varsity and our men’s team is in need of a cox. Last year, one of our rowers on the girls team got injured and became a cox for the guys, so I just don’t see why I couldn’t at least try coxing again. Anyways, do you have any suggestions on how I could convince her to let me cox? Also, would it be too weird for me to email college coaches from schools I’m interested in and tell them I’m interested in coxing for them even though I haven’t coxed very much since freshman year?

I would say that if the guys are in need of a cox then you should talk to their coach and see what you can work out. Explain to him that you’re interested in rowing in college but with your times and being on the shorter side (for a rower), you feel like you’d be a bigger asset to the team as a coxswain. You don’t need your current coach’s permission in this case (at least in my opinion you don’t…) and if she’s already said she’s not going to let you cox, it’s probably not worth it on your end to try forcing the issue.

I don’t think it’d be weird. You have rowing experience so you’re not inexperienced with the sport itself, just the coxing aspect of it. I wouldn’t try to be recruited though. Walking on is your best option in this case. I’d say what I said above in regards to talking to the men’s coach of your current team. Start by saying that you’ve been involved with crew for three years, started out as a coxswain before transitioning to a rower, and now that you’re looking at colleges you’re interested in coxing again. You don’t have to say anything about your height, erg scores, etc. since that’s all fairly irrelevant at this point. Plus, you don’t want to bring up something “negative” when you’re trying to highlight your positives, if that makes sense.

Coxswain recordings, pt. 16

College Coxing Racing Recordings

Coxswain recordings, pt. 16

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Sacramento State Start Lake Natoma Invite

This is a short clip that gives a good example of how to call a start. I’m not a huge advocate of counting down the strokes unless it’s two or three strokes leading into a move or stride (i.e. “let’s shift in three … in two …  in one, now…”) but that’s beside the point in this particular recording. The takeaway here is her tone and how she delivers her calls – sharp, quick, and concise.

Bucknell Men’s Novice 8+ Grand Final ECAC New England Championships

https://www.youtube.com/watch?NR=1&feature=endscreen&v=d14Y4JzmsRM

Overall this is a good recording for a freshman/novice race. He starts off the first 500 by spending a lot of time noting their position on the other crews, which on one hand is good that he’s giving his boat that information but there’s definitely a better way to present it. You don’t want to put all your energy into talking about the rest of the field because that takes the focus away from your boat, which is the number one priority. You want to make sure you’re throwing down a clear, established rhythm right as you settle to your base pace and then once you’ve got the boat running and swinging well, that’s when you can start shifting your focus to how the race is evolving around you.

At 1:25 when he’s building into their upcoming move, it feels super frantic when he yells “get the bow ball ahead”. I get what he’s going for but I think this could have been executed a little cleaner. The subsequent calls though are good.

As the race goes on, he’s doing a great job of telling the crew where they’re at on the rest of the field … which I know is contrary to what I said earlier but the difference is that now is actually the appropriate time to be making all those calls. You hear him talk about how close they are to Michigan and Ithaca right before and right after they cross the thousand – that would have been the opportunity to shut them down with a move. When you’ve got crews that are half a seat or one seat off of you, you’ve gotta shift your priorities from whatever you’re currently doing to putting them in your rearview mirror for good. You don’t want to be on the losing end of that seat race once the other crew finally decides they’re sick of you guys sitting on each other.

Last thing to point out – look at the courses of each of the coxswains as they’re coming down the course. Trinity was swerving a bit in the last 250m or so, which probably/definitely cost them a seat or two. You can see Bucknell and BC doing the same around 5:00 and in the last 10-15 strokes, respectively.

Other calls I liked:

“Our race to win…”

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

“The Coxswain in Winter”

College Coxing High School Novice Training & Nutrition

“The Coxswain in Winter”

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My coaches showed us this article sometime in high school, possibly my sophomore of junior year and I remember thinking “holy shit, somebody else gets it!”. Because of that, I really took to heart what was said and learned to appreciate the winter training season a little more than I had previously.

It’s written by Charles Ehrlich, a former coxswain (Phillips Exeter, Harvard lightweights, and Leander Club) and coach (William & Mary, Oxford lightweights, etc.). I wanted to share it with you guys because I think you’ll definitely be able to relate to this and hopefully be able to take away a few things that you can apply to your own winter training experience. I’ve gone through and highlighted some of things that I’ve tried to reiterate in here and that I think are important for you guys to ponder.

“Winter is the most ill-defined time of year for coxswains. The training shifts to the land and there is not much obvious for the coxswains to do but stand around.

I remember my first Winter as a coxswain. In the Fall of ninth grade (I think that is Third Form, for you Brits out there – 14 years old), we had a physical education program designed to introduce us to all of the sports offered at the Academy, which included rowing. But we really didn’t have a clue. I knew I wanted to be a coxswain, because when I arrived at Exeter the rowers in my dorm looked at me, loud and diminutive, and trotted me down to the boathouse to meet Tom Taft, the boatman (now at Yale). Tom quickly sold me on the sport. But my intro that Fall was brief.

We were finally allowed to join the team for real in late Winter, when we were introduced to the ergs. This was in the days of the Model A, rickety contraptions made out of old bike parts. To provide air resistance, the manufacturers, the Dreissigacker brothers, had affixed plastic flaps to the spokes of the flywheel (actually a bicycle wheel). As the ergs got use, these flaps had a tendency to become dislodged, and would fly at great speed across the room. The footstraps were also primitive, and tended to wear out. So coxswains were employed to hold down the feet of rowers testing on the ergs. Because of the flying flaps, however, this job was considered fit for those coxswains at the bottom of the pecking order. So I spent my first few weeks on the team dutifully holding feet down and ducking to avoid flying flaps, not having the slightest clue what was going on. I remember these enormous looking Seniors teaching me exactly how they wanted their feet held, and when I got it just right they smiled at me and said approvingly: “Keep it up! You’ll make a great coxswain.”

When we weren’t in the erg room, we were doing land-training circuits in the wrestling room or running around the indoor track (Winters in New Hampshire preclude much outdoor training). As far as I knew, I was supposed to join in. I used to enjoy running (a good sport for someone like me with little hand-eye coordination), until I damaged my knee when I was twelve, but even so I limped along as best I could.

The point of all of this, however, was simple: Even though I wasn’t coxing and knew virtually nothing about the sport, there was something I could do to become a better coxswain that Winter.

Even though I wasn’t coxing and knew virtually nothing about the sport, there was something I could do to become a better coxswain that Winter.

I could train with the rowers and get in shape with them, while bonding. I could hold feet better than any other ninth grader. And while holding the rowers’ feet, I could look at the odometer needle (these were the days before computers on the ergs) and try to figure out how the needle’s fluctuations correlated with the strokes being taken. Whatever it was, I had a purpose.

Most coxswains going through Winter training at least come in with a little more background and do not have to feel like tools or glorified footstraps. But whatever it is a coxswain does in Winter, it must contribute in some way towards learning how to be a better coxswain in Spring.

But whatever it is a coxswain does in Winter, it must contribute in some way towards learning how to be a better coxswain in Spring.

Rowers hate Winter training. People row because they enjoy rowing, not because they enjoy sitting on ergs, lifting weights, running up and down endless stairs, or splashing around monotonously in the tanks. But they put up with all of this for one reason: it gives them skills which will make them faster in the Spring. It is frustrating waiting for the ice on the Charles River to melt (or the floods on the Isis to subside). But if approached with the right attitude, Winter training allows rowers to emerge in the Spring with an increased knowledge of their own capabilities.

Coxswains must approach the Winter with the same attitude. Too often, coxswains only make token appearances at the boathouse. The logic is, of course, that off the water the coxswain is not necessary. Certainly, it is true that it matters not in terms of boatspeed what sort of physical shape a coxswain is in. Therefore, many coxswains figure they’ll use the free time to go study or something rather than trying to figure out how to become a better coxswain.

Winter is a great time for coxswains to work out – time they usually spend sitting immobile in the stern of a boat can now become workout time. The crew really does not expect the coxes to set any sort of speed records, so if they are not the most athletic specimens in the world that is no problem. But working out with the crew accomplishes several objectives. First of all, the rowers appreciate the effort and that effort alone is all that is necessary. They will only gain respect for a coxswain willing to put in the effort. Furthermore, when the cox needs to ask the rowers for superhuman effort during a race in the Spring, the rowers will know that the cox knows what he is asking for, and that will make it easier for them to respond. And that leads to another underlying truth: that the coxswain really will understand what he is asking for, because the coxswain has been there himself.

The crew really does not expect the coxes to set any sort of speed records, so if they are not the most athletic specimens in the world that is no problem. …and that leads to another underlying truth: that the coxswain really will understand what he is asking for, because the coxswain has been there himself.

I have erged myself into oblivion: one year at CRASH-Bs I blacked out with about 800 meters to go, yet somehow finished the piece (albeit slowly). The next thing I remembered was forty-five minutes later when I awoke on a cot in the Red Cross observation area where they had administered oxygen. When I asked a crew to row until it passed out, I knew what that was like and the crew knew it.

I did the CRASH-Bs every year as an undergrad, as did most of my fellow Harvard lightweight coxswains. We also had a Christmas Challenge contest over the Christmas vacation, where exercise added up to points. Our coxswains regularly exceeded the team average in points accumulated over the break. I think this helped us to be better coxswains.

If a coxswain has a physical problem and cannot do a certain workout, the rowers will understand. No one wants to see their coxswain drop dead of an asthma attack. Since I could not run because of my knee, and rowers had priority on the ergs, I spent many practices observing the upstairs of Newell Boathouse on one of the stationary bikes in the corner. Since I was unable to do two legs of the triatholon because my knee (Harvard’s triatholon, in December, is erging, running, and a stadium – I could only erg), I have distinct nightmares of having to do three times the erg (that’s 22.5K, a long time to spend on an erg especially for a coxswain-weight person who has been coxing all Fall and has only just recently begun to train). The important thing, though, was not necessarily doing exactly what the rowers were doing but doing as much as possible.

One of my freshman coxes came to me in tears a few Decembers ago. Her asthma was acting up so badly that she could not work out with the guys as we moved onto land. She was crying because she thought that she was going to have to quit. I explained that she could still cox even if she couldn’t work out. But she feared that it would count against her if the rowers saw the other coxes working out and she just sat there. But they knew she had bad asthma and had no desire to see her suffer like that. There was always something else she could do: encourage them, help me time, get them water, or my old stalwart: hold down their feet while they erged. Whatever she did would help her become better. The rowers just needed to see her there doing whatever it was she could do.

And there are a lot of things a coxswain can do off the water.

There was always something else she could do: encourage them, help me time, get them water, or my old stalwart: hold down their feet while they erged. Whatever she did would help her become better. The rowers just needed to see her there doing whatever it was she could do.

Ergs are a tricky topic. They play mind games with rowers. A little computer readout basically says to the rower: “Ha ha! You aren’t pulling hard enough!” It is hard for rowers to overcome this mental problem, and so they react to it in different ways. Every rower has different approaches to coxswains on the erg. Some like to be yelled out like they are in a boat. Some like to be told specific things (how fast someone two ergs over is going, or technique pointers as they get tired, or reminded about some dude at Princeton). Some, who in a boat might like a lot of chatter from their coxswains, want complete silence. Most rowers get downright ugly when they erg if a coxswain crosses whatever line it is that they have drawn between their pet likes and dislikes. Coxswains must learn not to take it personally if a rower who may think highly of their coxing on the water suddenly starts shouting obscenities at them from an erg. It is better not to cross the line, and let the rowers have it entirely their way.

Coxswains must learn not to take it personally if a rower who may think highly of their coxing on the water suddenly starts shouting obscenities at them from an erg.

But being there for erg tests is nevertheless instructive. It is a chance to isolate rowers individually and break down their psyches. Since coxing on the water is 100% mental and all about maximizing speed through mental manipulation, it helps to know as much as possible about each rower. Besides seeing what sort of chatter each rower responds to, the coxswain should also ask the coach what he is looking at when he observes erg tests.

Since coxing on the water is 100% mental and all about maximizing speed through mental manipulation, it helps to know as much as possible about each rower.

I watch the rowers’ pacing and rhythm as they respond to different situations and levels of exhaustion. I watch how their tech holds up. I watch their faces and see if I can read their minds. Coxswains do not get this sort of close-up view of everyone when they are sitting in a boat – so an erg is a good place to inspect the rowers’ psyche. Rowers learn about themselves isolated as individuals when they sit on ergs. The coaches learn about them isolated as individuals. The coxswains should take advantage of the same opportunity. Watch. Observe. See what can be seen that cannot be seen from the coxswain’s seat in a boat. If there are any questions, ask the coach.

See what can be seen that cannot be seen from the coxswain’s seat in a boat.

Similarly, the coxswains should use tank sessions to get insight into each rower which cannot be gained from the boat. Part of a coxswain’s on-the-water job is to get the crew to row better. That means translating the coach’s technical objectives into more proficient actual rowing. After a certain period of time, a cox should be able to coach effectively from the coxswain’s seat. But one way to double check this skill is to pay attention in the tank. Stand at the stern of the tank and observe the blades, then watch from different angles to see what each rower does which makes the blade do what it does. Listen to the coach. If the tank session is being filmed and analyzed, make sure to attend the analysis. It is not just the rowers who learn in the tank. While a cox may feel like he is just standing there while the rowers work, the observation is critical.

If, of course, the cox gets guilty just standing around during tank sessions, then this is also the perfect opportunity to hop into an empty seat if there is one. Coxswains do not normally get enough opportunity to learn to row themselves. A tank is a good place to learn. If they are lucky, the coach will not skip the coxswains when doing filming. Going through the stroke, trying the same drills the rowers are working on, and basically coordinating the motion is a great way to understand the mechanics of rowing better. Again, it does not matter how odd the cox looks in there, every little bit helps the learning process.

Stand at the stern of the tank and observe the blades, then watch from different angles to see what each rower does which makes the blade do what it does. While a cox may feel like he is just standing there while the rowers work, the observation is critical. If, of course, the cox gets guilty just standing around during tank sessions, then this is also the perfect opportunity to hop into an empty seat if there is one. Again, it does not matter how odd the cox looks in there, every little bit helps the learning process.

On the water, the cox is going to have to coach the crew, and get the crew to perform as a unit. To do that means knowing as much as possible about each rower and about what the coach is trying to get across. Winter is a great time to step back. We may not know which crew each coxswain will sit in, nor do we know the line-ups of the rowers, but that should not prevent the coxswains from making progress.

The coxswains’ schedules do not have to match the rowers’ exactly every day – since these are not water practices which need the coxswain there in order to happen, there is more flexibility. Coxswains can look at their own schedules, and mix and match the times they come down in order to observe particular bits of practices and to join in with their own work-outs. Also, it is useful to set up a different time during the day to come in and meet with the respective coach. This time can be spent reviewing films (of recent tank sessions, of Fall water practices, or of the World Championships), or simply talking about the objectives for the upcoming season and what the rowers need to be working on now. This is useful for the coach as well, because it provides the coach valuable feedback about the squad. Also, it will be important that the coach have an excellent working relationship with the coxswains on the water during the season – communication during the Winter both improves the working relationship and makes sure that the coxswain is on the same page as the coach going into the season.

Also, it is useful to set up a different time during the day to come in and meet with the respective coach.

The critical thing for all coxswains to remember is that they are always learning. Every time they go down to the boathouse – even if it is only for a land practice – they should come away thinking, evaluating what they have learned that day. If they are not sure, they should talk about it with the coach or other coxswains. Coaches often neglect their coxswains – it is a natural tendency. Coxes should realize this and not be afraid to approach the coach directly, or to chat among themselves.

Every time they go down to the boathouse – even if it is only for a land practice – they should come away thinking, evaluating what they have learned that day.

The final piece of advice I had for the coxswains assembled at this clinic was that they get their family to buy them a whole lot of warm and waterproof clothes this holiday season. When they return to the water, they will need it. After the return to the water, the weather is still quite cold. And the coxswain is in the coldest seat in the boat. Dress warmly.”

All good points, right? I hope you guys got something out of this. My challenge to you is to pick something from here that you are capable of doing and commit to doing it for the rest of the winter season. Don’t be a wallflower at the boathouse! Also, don’t forget to check out some of the other posts I’ve written on coxswains and winter training too.

Image via // @yalecrew

College Quotes Racing Rowing Training & Nutrition Video of the Week

Video of the Week: Yale Men’s 8+ at the 1956 Melbourne Olympics

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Wouldn’t it be cool if collegiate crews still represented the USA at international regattas like this? This video talks about Yale’s eight that competed in Melbourne and the tough competition they faced, mainly in the Australian crew, on their way to winning the gold medal over 2nd place Canada and 3rd place Australia.

There were a couple things I took from this video but the biggest one is what is said at 6:20 – “he has the phenomenal ability to pace himself so that the last stroke he has to row is the last stroke he can row”. Ponder that thought the next time you’re on the water or on the erg. Condition your body so that the last stroke you have to row is the last stroke you can row.

College Coxing Q&A Teammates & Coaches

Question of the Day

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My transition from novice to varsity has been a nightmare. I was the top novice cox, but my coaches told me the highest they’d boat me was 3V b/c I’m a senior and they want to ‘invest’ in training younger coxes. My rowers from last year are on V8/JV8 & I never get to see them. I had a panic attack 2 weeks ago from being switched into the worst boat. There are too many coxes on the team & I feel like it doesn’t matter if I’m there or not. Is it time to quit? How should I tell my coaches/team?

Aw man, that sucks, I’m sorry. To an extent I guess I can understand the coaches wanting to “invest” in training the coxswains that will be able to race at the varsity level for more than one season but I don’t think that means you should just write off another coxswain just because they’re older. You should invest equal amounts of time in training all your coxswains, regardless of what year they’re in, and then decide what boat they’ll cox the same way you would any other time – evaluations, observations, etc. It’s really frustrating when it doesn’t work out that way. It doesn’t exactly put forth the message that “you’re a valuable part of the team”…instead it says “great, now that we’ve got somebody to throw in that boat we don’t really care about we won’t have to worry about putting any of our good coxswains in there”. Everybody needs to cox the 3V at some point, regardless of how good of a coxswain they are. It teaches humility and punches down the ego a bit, which is something that coxswains tend to need every so often.

If you don’t feel like you’re going to have any opportunities to compete for the V8+ or  JV8+ and that your time isn’t being well spent while you’re at practice then I would say you have a good reason to talk to your coaches. If you think those reasons are good enough reasons to walk away from the sport, then that’s your choice. I’d think about the next few months, getting ready for college, all that fun stuff, and ask yourself if crew is going to be “good stress” on top of all of that or if it’s going to be something that causes “bad stress”. You don’t have to say anything to the “team” if you don’t want to. If you just want to tell your friends that you don’t feel like crew is working out for you, then do that. I’d save all your actual reasons for your coach(es) and tell them the same thing, although maybe elaborate a little more so that they understand that you have legitimate reasons for quitting and that you’re not just throwing a temper tantrum because you’re not getting the boat you want.