Category: Q&A

College Ergs Q&A Recruiting Rowing

Question of the Day

By

Hey so following that junior girl, I’m going into junior year as well, I’m 5’9″ and on the lower side of lightweight. I pull an 8:00 2k, and I know that’s not low enough but do you think I may have a chance at recruitment? There’s only so many lightweight options and I’m not at that level, so I need a compromise. Tips for really getting that time down in the next year?

D1 programs tend to look for 2ks around 7:40-7:45ish as a starting point. As a junior, you’ve definitely got time to shave some seconds off your current 2k, it’s just going to be a matter of putting in the meters to get it done – basically it comes down to steady state, steady state, and more steady state. Build up your strength and endurance too – try to incorporate some lifting into your routine over the summer, as well as some cardio (running, biking, or swimming are great options).

I’m not sure if this is a misconception or just something that people don’t know but you don’t have to be recruited to row on the team in college. You could just email the coach up and say “hey, I was accepted into the Class of 2017, I rowed for four years in high school, and I’m interested in walking on to the team.” If you’re not sure your times are good enough to be recruited or after talking to coaches you don’t get any offers, you should consider this route.

To be honest, if you’re on the low side of lightweight (I’m assuming around 115-120lbs?) you’ll probably get more requests to cox rather than row, even though you’re tall. Height isn’t as much a big deal for coxswains as weight is, so even though the majority of us are vertically challenged there have been known to be a few tall coxswains. Your height is great for a rower but being 20+ pounds lighter than the other openweights can make it hard for you to actually be competitive with them, which is probably what coaches will point out.

Novice Q&A Rowing

Question of the Day

By

So I’ve been rowing for a year and a lot of people underestimate me because I’m young and short but I’ve been doing a lot better than people taller and those who’ve been there longer than me. The problem is the coaches look over me (I’m 5’5″) and automatically chose this girl for boats who’s a bit taller than me, even though my times are better and I’m a better rower. How do I get them to look at us equally?

Ask for a seat race. State your case as to why you think you deserve to be in whichever boat you’re going for and why you think you’re the best choice. What can you bring to the boat that will make it go fast? The key to getting your coach(es) to take you seriously is to talk yourself up instead of talking the other person down. Seat races, when done correctly, can be a really good indication as to who can move boats, so I think asking for one of them will be your best bet. Whatever the final decision though, you’ve got to respect it. Talk to your coaches one-on-one and and tell them that you feel like you’re progressing well with your rowing and really want to be considered as a contender for the top boats – what, in their opinion, should you work on so you can be considered for those lineups?

Assuming you’re only a freshman or sophomore, you are going to grow more (do as I say, not as I do – pretty sure I stopped growing in like, 8th grade). 5’5″ isn’t that short – the majority of junior women I know who row now, in addition to the girls I rowed with in high school, are all in the 5’5″ to 5’7″ range. Even if that is the reason your coaches aren’t boating you, don’t use it as a crutch. A rower’s height is only part of what makes them an efficient rower. Do everything you can to improve the other parts so that when your coaches look at you, they think about your technique, how coachable you are, what kind of teammate you are, etc. before the thought of your height even crosses their mind.

Q&A Rowing Teammates & Coaches

Question of the Day

By

Next weekend is the last race of the season. I’ve been stroke all year, but for this last race I’m suddenly put in bow seat. I can row both sides that’s not an issue, I just sort of feel useless because I don’t have the same responsibilities anymore. I really want to ask my coach about it, but I don’t want to sound ungrateful or cocky. How should I approach this?

If you want to ask your coach about it just be straightforward and to the point. As long as you aren’t whiny or accusatory, there’s really no way that you can look bad. Just say that you’re curious why the lineup was changed for the last race, if this is indicative of something you need to work on, etc. and listen to what they have to say.

Related: Hey, as a coach you might be able to tell me, in a quad how do you decide who goes where? And the same for an eight? Where you’re placed in the boat, should this tell you anything about where you “sit” compared to the rest of the crew?

Without knowing your coach’s motives, here’s my take. As the stroke, you had one job – set and maintain the pace for the crew. Because strokes tend to spend so much time thinking about this their technique can start to falter, which is why sometimes coaches will throw them back in 6-seat for a practice or two to relieve them of the pressures of stroking and let them re-focus on their own rowing and technique. In bow seat your technique needs to be solid because you have a much more profound impact on the set because the boat is narrower there vs. in the middle of the boat or in the stern. So, if you’re moving from a position where you could theoretically get away with having okay technique to the spot in the boat that requires some of the best technique, that’s a sign that your coach is confident that you can contribute from any seat in the boat. I wouldn’t be too upset about that since that’s a good thing.

Plus, the whole point of the sport is that no one rower contributes more than another so regardless of what seat you’re in, you’re not useless just because you’re not the stroke.

College Q&A Recruiting

Question of the Day

By

Hello! I’m heading into my junior year interested in rowing Division 3 and I was wondering if you know any differences from D1 in terms of recruiting. I know all of the numerical stuff, like they can’t give me money, but do you think that coaches would help a tall, ~7:35 girl who is committed to row all 4 years get in? I have good grades but I’m not a straight A student and I’m going to need the help getting in. Do you think I’ll be able to get support from coaches? Thank you so much.

Other than money I really don’t think there’s that much of a difference in the recruiting approach between D1 and D3 coaches. They all only have so much input with admissions so you’ve gotta do a lot on your end (i.e. have good grades and test scores, having a well-rounded application, etc.) so that the coaches have something to work with if they need to make a case for you. That aside, if you’re committed to all four years and have a 7:35 as a junior I don’t see why you couldn’t be in the mix of people coaches would support.

Related: I’m a junior in high school and I’m 5’11”. What kind of erg times should I strive for to be recruited by colleges? I’ve heard mix things like sub 8 and sub 7:30 – is there a lot of variation among schools and divisions? I’m one of the better rowers on my team but I don’t know what kinds of times other kids have from around the country. I just started rowing a little less than a year ago and my last 2k was an 8:10. Would I realistically be able to get my time down before college?

Don’t sell yourself short though – with a 2k time like that you should really consider D1 schools too. Not that there aren’t any great D3 programs but assuming your 2k time drops over the next year, which it most likely will, you could probably have a shot at some solid D1 programs if you were interested. Sub-7:30 2ks are typically what D1 coaches are looking for and you’re pretty close to that. Like I said, unless your heart is really set on rowing D3 – which I can understand if it was, there’s a lot less stringency at that level compared to D1 – don’t sell yourself short.

High School Q&A

Question of the Day

By

My parents are guilting me about the cost of my summer rowing program, despite it being far cheaper than any camp my brother has ever done (sorry personal rant point right there haha). I feel bad about doing it but mad at my parents for giving me crap about it as well. We’re going to Club Nats and Canadian Henley and I was SO excited for it but not so much anymore, even though this is really important to me. How do I get my parents to see that this is worth it?

I totally get what you’re saying. Being really excited about something and then having someone be negative towards it or you is so frustrating. I understand why the money thing can be an issue too but it’s definitely not something worth being guilt-tripped over, especially if you’ve shown a serious interest and commitment towards rowing and isn’t something you’re just going to give up in a year.

Why did they think the camps were worth it for your brother? Explain to them how those reasons apply to you too. If you’re looking at rowing or coxing in college, explain to them why participating in a summer program, as well as being competitive at Club Nationals and Canadian Henley, can help you stand out with college coaches. Above all else, it shows commitment and dedication, two things coaches at any level appreciate. If paying for it is a real issue, offer to help cover part of the costs. If you can’t pay for it upfront, offer to pay them back 1/4 of the cost (or whatever you both decide is reasonable) at the end of the summer after you’ve had time to make some money.

Related: Can you explain Canadian Henley to me? People keep telling me it’s a national team thing.

Why do you want to do it? Why is it important to you? Why is racing over the summer something you want to do? What are you goals/what do you hope to accomplish? How is this summer program, the coaches, etc. going to help you achieve them? Saying that you just really love rowing and traveling to the regattas will be fun isn’t going to cut it in this case. You can tell them that but you’ve also got to tell them about how improving your technique is a goal so that right off the bat in the fall you can be in the mix of people being considered for the “A” boat that’s going to Head of the Charles. Make sense?

Maybe your parents just aren’t sure of your reasons for wanting to do it, which is why they’re apprehensive about paying all this money. Hopefully it’s not their intentions to be buzzkills but it’s possible they’ll change their tune once you talk to them and make it clear what your intentions are.

College Q&A Recruiting

Question of the Day

By

Rowing scholarships. Where should I start looking? When? Who should I talk to? Is there a site that shows different ones? Or do I have to go to each college/uni site separately? And how good do I have to be at rowing and on the erg? Thanks! 🙂

I’m not sure what you mean by a site that shows different ones – athletic scholarships aren’t like other scholarships that require an application or whatever. Depending on where you look, scholarships might not even be an option since Ivy League and D3 schools don’t offer athletic scholarships period. D1 schools only have so many to offer as well – typically 20 that the coaches can split up in any number of ways.

Related: Hi, I was just wondering when you would suggest talking to college coaches? Like, 6 months before you start college? A year? 2 years? I’m a bit lost! Thanks!

I feel like it should go without saying that if you’re asking someone to give you money to go to school that you’d need to be pretty good … otherwise there’s no incentive. How good you need to be in overall is dependent on the schools you’re looking at but you definitely need to be in upper percentile to be considered for scholarships, regardless of where you’re looking. Most D1 programs are looking for sub-7:30 times and lightweights are around 7:40.

Related: What’s a good way to get the attention of college coaches? Everyone keeps telling me that with my times and progress “the offers will roll in”. I really just want to be proactive in my college search to be sure that I’m choosing the right school. Is it as simple as shooting coaches an email saying that I’m interested or is there some secret step that I’ve been missing?

Start by filling out the recruiting questionnaires on the athletic department websites and send an email to whoever is listed as the recruiting coordinator (typically one of the assistant coaches) that says who you are, what your current grades, stats, etc. are, and what your current 2k is. From there you can go back and forth with them about what their recruiting standards are and where you fall within that.

Coxing Q&A Racing

Question of the Day

By

Hi. I was recently contacted by the Junior National team because they want me as a cox for this year. I am so honored however I am scared that I am too heavy. I don’t know what I would be coxing and at the moment I am around 128 pounds. I feel as though because I focus so much of my life on a sport that does not require me to be active, I have slowly lost my fitness. I am going on a big trip this summer as well and am scared that I will gain weight while traveling. Do you have a good solid work out routine that can be done in a short period of time?

International rules state that you can’t cox the opposite sex so if you’re a guy you’d cox men and if you’re a girl you’d cox the women. This would mean that you’d need to be at or as close as possible to international racing weight, which for women is 50kg/110.2lbs and 55kg/121.25lbs for men.

This is coming straight from the section on coxswains from the JNT website:

Please note: We are looking for coxswains who can comfortably manage the international racing weight standard of 110.2 for women and 121.5 for men.

Now, don’t take this wrong way – I’m going to tell you exactly what I would expect/assume the JNT coaches to tell you. Being a coxswain comes with a lot of responsibilities, monitoring our weight when it’s necessary being one of them. In the beginning it’s not as important but as you progress through the sport and start coxing more competitive crews, it does become very important. I’ve said this many, many, many times – we have a purpose in the boat, yes, but no matter how you look at it or what way you try to spin it, we are dead weight. When you’re hauling dead weight, you want to haul as little as possible. That’s why short, petite people are chosen to be coxswains and why we’re “encouraged” to stay as close to the minimum racing weight as possible. Yea, it’s annoying, but it’s part of the job.

You signed up and went through the whole ID camp process which meant that at the very least you thought you had a chance of being invited to selection camp. When you did that and throughout the winter and spring you should have been keeping an eye on your weight, regardless of whether your were at, above, or below the minimum at the time. I really, really disagree with what you said about focusing so much on a sport that doesn’t require you to be active. That’s no excuse. There are plenty of opportunities to work out with the team when they’re lifting, running, doing calisthenics, core, etc., in addition to making time to work out on your own. When it comes down to it, you’ve got to be willing to put the time and effort in from the start, not at the last minute.

It’s not all about exercising either. You can work out all you want but if your diet is bad, you’re negating any gains you would have gotten from the exercise. There has to be a two-part approach/commitment to losing weight: one, adjusting your diet and two, exercising. Cardio is everyone’s best friend when they’re trying to lose weight, so running, biking, swimming, erging, etc. As far as gaining weight while traveling, you just have to be conscious about what you’re doing. I’m not going to say you should question whether you want those French pastries more than you want to cox the JNT because that’d make me a hypocrite and an asshole but my theory on stuff like this is that if it’s important to you, you’ll find a way to make things work.

I would suggest getting a hold of the coaches who sent you the invite and talking to them about any concerns you have. You’re obviously a good coxswain otherwise you wouldn’t have gotten the invite but I’m not going to lie to you and say that excellent coxing is going to win out over weight all the time, especially when you’re competing at this level. The coaches wouldn’t have emphasized the part I quoted a few paragraphs ago if it wasn’t part of their consideration for who makes the final boats. You essentially have to always assume that given the choice between two coxswains of equal skill, the coxswain who is closest to or will have the least difficult time maintaining their racing weight will be the one chosen. I don’t mean to say that to make you lose hope or anything, it’s just one of those harsh realities that people tend to gloss over or that coaches don’t fully explain, which ends up making people way worse than if they’d just known the rationale ahead of time.

College Coxing Q&A Teammates & Coaches

Question of the Day

By

Any words of advice for making the transition from coxing at the high school level to coxing in university? I had my first practice this week (the uni has a club program in the summer) and it’s safe to say that the practice was a little … rocky. Is this normal for the first practice? My coach was really great about it all, saying I have the whole summer to get up to speed and I made sure to take full responsibility for any errors or spotty bits in my communication so as not to start off poorly with the rowers (I’m a girl coxing the men’s team, by the way). But I guess I’m just worried about all the usual things … gaining respect, executing the workout and drills properly, meeting the rowers’ and coach’s expectations, etc. I could rant all day to you about this but I suppose it just comes down to: do I have too high expectations of myself in wanting things to go smoothly right off the bat? How long do you think it will take to get in the swing of things? Sorry if this question isn’t quite coherent.

It is normal I think because you’re coxing people that you don’t know (that well) and haven’t ever coxed before. There’s going to be that initial period in the beginning where things will be a little “off” because they’re getting used to your style, which is probably different than the way their previous coxswain did things, and you’re trying to figure out eight new people in addition to how to manage practice with a different coach. I wouldn’t worry about it too much. Once you get to know them and vice versa things will be fine. It’s great that your team has this summer program because, like your coach said, you’ve got all summer to hone your skills and get up to speed which means in the fall you’ll be 100% on top of your game.

Gaining respect comes with time. It can’t always be earned on the first day but it can definitely be lost there. Treat your rowers like you want to be treated, carry out your responsibilities appropriately, effectively, and diligently, own up to your mistakes when necessary, and remember that there are people around who are always willing to help you – all you have to do is ask.

Related: Respect

If you’re worried about the workouts or drills, see if you can meet up with one of your coaches one day to go over the drills they like to do. This would be great to do for two reasons – one, you find out what the drills are, how to do ones that you aren’t familiar with, and can get some basic insight on what the coach is specifically looking for with each one and two, it shows your coach you’re committed to the team, you want to be the best coxswain you can be for your boat, and that you’re willing to put the time and effort in off the water to get better on the water. I feel like people are afraid that something like this would make them look like a kiss-ass but from a coach’s perspective, my respect and level of trust in him/her would skyrocket.

Related: Do coaches generally like it when novice coxes go into their office asking questions about last practice/tips on what they could have done better coxing wise, etc? Or does it make the novice, look like a nervous, needy, annoying cox? That’s what I’m always worried about going into coach’s office. Thanks! I love that you’re a cox/coach and you answer all our questions!

In terms of expectations, wanting to meet the expectations of the rowers and coaches isn’t a bad thing. Just know that right off the bat, they have little to no expectations because they don’t know you. The coaches know you from recruiting (if you went through that process) so they have expectations based off what they’ve seen on paper but that’s all. In the fall, yea, they’ll have some that are more established but I don’t think it’s something you need to seriously concern yourself with right now. I don’t think wanting things to go right immediately means you have expectations that are too high but just remember that the expectations you consider to be reasonable may be considered too high by others. Your expectation of the boat has to be a combination of fifty other minor expectations, which I don’t think is something most coxswains realize. For now, you should have one expectation and that’s of yourself to go out each day and execute practice well. If you can get off the water saying that today was a good day, consider your expectations met. If you can’t say that, don’t necessarily chalk one up in the loss column right away. Instead think about why they weren’t met, what happened, what you can do differently, and then apply your realizations to tomorrow’s practice.

Depending on how often you’re practicing, I’d say give it a week or two. It’s not like you’re a novice learning how to cox for the first time – you already know how to do that. What you’re doing is getting used to coxing a new group of people while being coached by a new group of coaches. That takes time but it sounds like your coaches are really encouraging and I would assume willing to help you should you need it. For now, don’t stress yourself out over anything. The summer is supposed to be relaxing, regardless of what you’re doing. And crew, hard as you might/should be working, should always be enjoyable. Don’t ruin it by over-thinking things. Been there, done that, was 10x more miserable. Use this time to get to know your rowers and don’t be intimidated by them. Like I said earlier, treat them like you want to be treated, be friendly and approachable, spend time with them outside of practice, etc.

Coxing Q&A Racing

Question of the Day

By

Hello! I’m not great at estimating distances but I’m learning and getting better – but my coach told me and the other coxswains on the team that it is better to call the sprint early and then ask for 10 more strokes than to call it a little late and wonder what could have been (strokes used in the race). However, I always feel bad if I tell the rowers we have twenty strokes left when we actually have thirty. What do you think? Is my coach wrong or do I just need to suck it up? Thanks!!

I don’t think your coach is explaining this properly. He’s taking two separate things and explaining it like they’re one in the same. The sprint doesn’t have to do with a certain number of strokes – you’re calling it for a certain number of meters, like the last 250m or something (which is the start of the red buoys to the finish line). Some teams do X strokes at 36, X at 38, etc. for their sprint but they still start it when they cross the last 250. The “10 more strokes” thing comes in if you say “last 10 to the line (regardless of whether you’re sprinting or not)” but it ends up being not the last 10 to the line.

Related: Judging distance

As far as wondering “what could have been”, you’re going to wonder that after every race that doesn’t result in a gold medal. If you aren’t paying attention or “forget” to call the sprint at 250m, don’t call it until there’s 100m left, and then lose by a seat, yea, you’re going to really wonder what could have been.

There’s nothing for you to “suck up”, really. Just keep practicing. At some point or another every coxswain has said “last X strokes” and it’s actually be a few more or less than that. If you can nail it and have the last stroke happen just as your bow ball crosses, rock on, but it’s not an exact science and most of the time you are estimating and hoping you’re within a stroke of what you call for. If you say “last 10” and it ends up being the last 11, it’s not a huge deal. If you say “last 10” and it’s actually the last 20, that’s a bigger issue because by now you should have an idea of how far your boat travels in ten strokes and be able to guess when you’re that far away from the line. Plus, your rowers are trusting the fact that you can see where the line is since they can’t, so they assume that when you say “last 10” you really mean last 10. Like I said though, it comes with practice and consciously making an effort to gauge the distance you’ve traveled in ten strokes, twenty strokes, etc. when you’re out doing pieces.

Coxing Q&A Racing

Question of the Day

By

This kind of relates to the not being first off the start but my coxswain would always tell us not to walk, even if we could, until the sprint so that we would be sure we could hold it. She thought it made more sense and the majority of my boat agreed with her. I however think that if you can walk then you should walk, where ever you are in the race. We kind of saved it for the first thousand and then just went crazy in the second thousand and won our regional final but I think it would’ve been a much more clean and firm win had we walked in the first thousand like we could have. What do you think?

I disagree with her because I think if you don’t walk you’re potentially digging yourself into a hole that you might not be able to get out of by the time the last 250m rolls around. I assume by “hold it” she means to conserve your energy throughout the race so you can apply it all to the sprint. That reminds me of this scene from The Incredibles.

I’m the guy at 0:17.

I guess in the end the hardware is all that matters but I agree with you, it probably would have been a smoother race overall if you hadn’t held back at the beginning.