Category: Q&A

College Q&A Recruiting Rowing

Question of the Day

By

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! 🙂

You should start looking at schools when you’re a junior, reaching out probably mid-year to the ones you’re interested in (start by filling out the recruiting questionnaires on the team’s website and follow up with an email introducing yourself), and then beginning to send them regular updates on your progress, race results, etc. starting that spring. Then over the summer if they’re interested in you they’ll reach out to set up an official visit for that fall.

For more on recruiting, check out the “recruiting” tag.

Coxing High School Novice Q&A Teammates & Coaches

Question of the Day

By

This is my second season on my team and although I rowed in the fall, I was drafted to cox this spring by my coach. The novice girls had widely out-shined the novice boys (beating their times twice in the fall) and that was exacerbated by the loss of everyone but their bow four and five seat. Five seat quickly became a sculler, and a walk-on became our other coxswain. She’s super friendly and I love her to death, but her steering and calls need improvement. I’ve busted my ass to become what the varsity and head coxswains have called “the best novice cox on the team”, and have medaled with my girls four at every single regatta this season, even though the four is usually an afterthought. The other coxswain had not medaled yet, and has crashed several times. However, she got to take out the boys in our BRAND NEW Vespoli bowloader, while the girls are relegated to a slightly old stern loader.

Due to her being a sophomore, I was sent with the boys to states and had a week to practice in our other bowloader, while our head got the new one. I worked to keep the boys in check, and was not afraid to be frank with them, also being professional and focused in the boat. In a week, they went from placing 8/16 to second at states. She was with the novice girls, and screwed up their start which resulted in them not making finals, and had at least three people say something along the lines of “I wondered what would have happened if you…” We got back to practice today, and she was allowed to take out the boys in our brand new bowloader while I was sent with the girls. I love my girls and we had a great practice but I had three out of the four boys say they wanted me back in the boat and my bow pair ask me to specifically not do things she had done. I just feel like ALL my hard work with the boys is being ignored and I’m probably being ridiculous but it just feels so unfair to me because I worked so damn hard to help them get that medal. Sorry if this was long, I guess I just wanted some coaching input on why this decision was possibly made. Thanks for reading, I needed to vent.

I get the frustration. Have you tried talking to your coaches? They’d be able to give you actual insight into the situation vs. my speculation. It’s worth doing if you haven’t already. It’s possible that they don’t realize how irritating this situation is for you so it’s not even something they’re thinking about (which isn’t an uncommon thing with coaches and coxswains). I wouldn’t bring up the boys saying they wanted you back or the other coxswain messing up the start (because it’s never just one person’s fault, although I understand what you mean) but instead focus solely on what you’ve done since joining the team, what you’ve accomplished, why you think you’re the best coxswain for that boat, etc. State your case.

I can’t really say why your coach(es) would put a coxswain with a history of crashing into a brand new boat but if I had to venture a guess I would say that they’re hoping the responsibility of coxing the new boat would force her to pay more attention to her steering and make better decisions while she’s out on the water. Trial by fire, almost. It really bugs me when coaches do that though rather than just teaching the coxswains what to do and how to do it properly.

Have you talked to this other coxswain and offered to help her? Like, give her tips on steering or things to say when she’s in the boat? You obviously don’t have to give up all your secrets but if you see she’s taking the guys out again, tell her that saying _____ really helped when you were doing this drill or when you were halfway through a piece and then explain why it worked. What helped you when you were first learning to steer? Help her out and give her some advice on how to not hit things (without being sarcastic, which can be tough in situations like this…). Part of being a good/great coxswain is sucking it up when you really don’t want to and helping the other coxswains, even the ones who might be coxing the boat you want/deserve. It shows a certain level of maturity that everyone will appreciate for different reasons.

If after talking to your coaches they end up keeping her in that boat, say OK and let it go. Focus on making the boat you’re in the fastest boat on the water. Being bitter over a coxswain who is not as good as the boat she’s coxing (sorry, I don’t know any other way to say it) getting that spot over you does absolutely nothing for anyone – trust me, I’ve tried it. Be proud of your accomplishment in being part of the 4+ that got 2nd place at States but if you end up having to cox another boat, commit yourself to them. Even though you’re not outright saying you want to be with the guys, it can be obvious through your body language or you hanging out with them before/after practice that you’d rather be with them and the boat you’re currently with is your second choice. Try to help her out though and give her pointers if you see she’s having trouble. Ask her how practice was, how that last piece went, etc. You’re still teammates and the overall success of the team requires everyone working together to get better.

Coxing High School Novice Q&A Racing

Question of the Day

By

Hi, I am a exchange student and I joined our crew team. Since I am pretty small I am a coxswain. I am now moved up into our first boat but I never know what to say during a race. The problem is I am not a native speaker and so I have even more problems to make good/clear calls. Do you have any tips for Nationals (YES we qualified) and Stotesbury?

Do you have a race plan? If you have a race plan that you can go off of, that tends to make it easier to come up with calls vs. not having one and doing everything completely on the fly. It allows you to have a “skeleton” to go off of for about 50% of the race and then the other 50% you fill in as you go based on what you’re seeing happen around you. Below is a hybrid of some of mine:

Starting 5 (pry, 1/2, 3/4, lengthen, full) + high 20 + settle 10 (5, 6, 7, let’s lengthen in 3, 2, 1, lengthen boom).

10 at 500m (what it’s for is based on what I see…it could be to push a crew back, to walk, or just for ourselves, so I’d call it to push our puddles back, to feel the acceleration, etc.)

Related: One of the varsity rowers told me about a certain race move/call-10 for pairs? Like having all 8 take a 10, but emphasis for specific pairs. I’m not sure how to call that, can you help me out?

3 + 20 at the 1000m (3 to build into a 20 at the 1000m. No change in stroke rate, just building the power on the first 3.)

5 at 750m to regain composure and shift our focus to the last 1/3 of the race.

15 at 600m to make one final move on the field, either to walk or walk away.

10 at 400m, final 3 building into the sprint (1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, shift up to our sprint (7), over three (8), two (9), and one (10)…sit up and go)

Related: When do you call power 10s, both on the erg and the water?

Last 250-300m is an all out sprint, driving for the line

10 in the last 100ish meters to charge the line, get the bow ball ahead if necessary, etc.

As far as calls go, talk to your rowers and ask the what they want to hear. I tend to ask them to tell me one technical and one motivational thing they want me to call and then I’ll write that down and try to work it in somehow over the course of the race. They are your best resource though for figuring out things to say because you want to make calls that resonate with them.

Coxing High School Q&A Racing

Question of the Day

By

My boat qualified for Nationals! Yay! Now what? I’ve never coxed in such a big event. Any tips?

One thing that I learned from gong to nationals that I also learned with HOCR (probably more so with HOCR…) is that there is no such thing as a “big race”. A race is a race is a race. The regatta is “big” because there are tons of people there and people build up the hype around it but in the end, the racing is the same. The goal isn’t to do anything differently – you’ve reached this point because you’ve been doing the same stuff all season only you’ve been doing it better week after week.

So, tips:

Keep doing what you’ve been doing. Clearly it’s working.

Keep your nerves to a minimum. Don’t be any more nervous for this race than you are for a scrimmage against a local team.

Research the location and course ahead of time. Ask other teammates, people on Twitter/Tumblr, etc. if they’ve raced here before and get as much information as you can.

Start coming up with your race plan as early as possible.

Practice said race plan at least two or three times before you leave for Nationals. (Remember, the race plan is not just what you do between the starting and finish lines. The race plan begins when you call hands on, your warm-up, backing into stake boats, the actual race, and your cool down.)

Don’t pack the night before. Do it at least two days ahead of time so you have the day before to grab anything you missed the first time around.

Don’t forget the charger to your cox box.

Make sure your cox box and it’s case are labeled with your name, your team’s name, and the event you’re racing in.

Go to the coaches and coxswains meeting and ask questions. Any question you have I guarantee five other people have as well. Just ask it. Make sure you understand everything the regatta officials go over and don’t leave until you do.

Most importantly though, have fun. It’s a good experience and you don’t want to miss out on it by being hyper-focused on unimportant stuff.

Coxing Q&A

Question of the Day

By

Hey! In terms of calls, what do men prefer to hear? Cheerleader? Technique? Basically, how to become a successful men’s coxswain?

No one – literally no one – who’s serious about rowing likes cheerleader coxswains. Especially guys. That I can promise you. The girls who are cheerleader coxswains for boys teams are usually the ones who are only coxing guys because they’re cute and OMG I get to boss boys around, I’m so cool. Know what I mean? Don’t be that girl.

Guys tend to like not a lot of “fluff” – aka get to the point and eliminate anything unnecessary. They want to hear only what they need to hear. That doesn’t mean they don’t also like or need the motivational stuff too but keep it concise. Guys also like to be pushed hard too and they want the calls to reflect that. When you make technique calls (which you should be making regardless), know exactly what needs to be fixed and how they need to do it.

Related: Yesterday a friend of mine told me “You’re definitely a men’s coxswain. That’s where I see you. That’s your coxing style.” I agree with her (good thing, because I AM a men’s coxswain!) but I’m not sure how to articulate what it is about my style that makes it more geared toward men. What do you think makes that distinction? What makes someone’s style better for men or women?

Each crew is different, so a lot of becoming a “successful” coxswain is going to depend on your guys. Once you figure out their personalities, their style, what they like/don’t like, etc. you’ll be able to tweak your style to what they like. Being successful isn’t all about what you say though. You’ve got to mesh well with them and be just as committed to moving the boat as they are.

High School Q&A Racing

Question of the Day

By

Today we were counting on medaling in our race so that our coach would keep it for districts but we were super tiny and the competition kicked our ass (not really, it was a really close race), but we’re all really disappointed now and we’re scared he’s going to make a heavy weight boat instead and we’ll just be stuck in boring old eights…

What’s wrong with eights? They’re the best and like, the main event at every regatta. I would just talk to your coach and see what he wants to do. Make a case for your current boat and train like hell when you go out. Don’t be disappointed – that doesn’t solve anything. Figure out what you can do better (not differently, better) and then do it. If he decides to put you in an eight, don’t be bitter about it. Commit to making that boat go fast and having the best race possible.

Q&A Racing Rowing

Question of the Day

By

How do you deal with losing, especially if it was a big race? As my boat’s coxswain I feel like I’m taking it way harder than everyone in my boat. We did really well and my rowers gave it their all but I’m just very upset that we didn’t do as well as we wanted. I’ve been crying and while I am SO PROUD of my girls (and of myself) I just feel like I let my boat down. Please help?

My senior year we finished second at Midwest and initially I was pissed because we lost by a bow ball. Like, are you kidding? All of those months of practice and it comes down to two inches? I was so angry. I kept going over in my head every single stroke we took, every single call I made, would the outcome have been different if I’d waited ten meters to call the sprint or if I’d done this instead of that.

I realized later though that there was nothing I’d change about that race. If I had to do it over again I’d do everything the exact same, even if meant losing by a bow ball again. I was that confident in our race plan, our rowing, and my coxing. That’s all you can be is confident and steadfast in the thought that you did and gave everything you could in your race. Losing doesn’t mean someone did something wrong or that someone let someone else down. The beauty of rowing is that no one individual can let the boat down because it’s a team sport. Nine people have to work together to go from Point A to Point B and those nine people are collectively responsible for the boat’s successes and failures.

Related: What do you like to do to cheer yourself up after a lost race or tough practice?

As a coxswain you will take it harder than everyone else. It’s natural to feel like that because from the time the official says “go” to when we cross the finish line, every decision that’s made is ours and regardless of the outcome, but most especially if we lose, we’re going to scrutinize every call we made. Instead of doing that, which only makes you feel worse, get together with your boat (and coach, if you want) and talk about the race from beginning to end. Don’t over-analyze it, just talk about it. Beginning being the moment you called “hands on” to take the boat down to the dock and the end being when the boat was derigged and on the trailer. Before you went out, was everyone’s head in the game? How confident did you feel in yourselves and in your race plan? During the race, what happened? What did you call? Where did you make your move? Why? Why there? What were you seeing? How did the boat feel? What did it look like? Could you see/feel the improvements you’ve made the last few weeks at practice or did it feel like you reverted back to some bad habits?

Most likely what you’re going to notice is that overall, everyone is proud of how they did, how you did, etc. You can have a good, even great, race and still have a shitty outcome. It happens and it sucks but the only thing – the only thing – you can do is reflect on it, learn from it, and go out at your next practice with the expressed intent of doing things harder, better, faster, and stronger. Expectations of how well you want to do are something you should have but you shouldn’t put all your eggs in that basket. Not meeting them this week shouldn’t do anything to your psyche other than motivate you to work harder so you can meet/exceed them at your next race.

Coxing Q&A Teammates & Coaches

Question of the Day

By

I consider my crew to be very lucky. We possibly have one of the best coxswains around. She can steer like a BOSS and has the patience and the nature of a saint. However I think we pushed her to her limits at one point and I don’t think I have ever seen her that angry. I often read this blog and I always read tips on what makes a great coxswain, how to deal with your rowers, and things not to do however I would like to hear from a coxie’s point of view is what are the things that rowers do that really sets you off edge and how we can avoid those things. I know coxies are all different (…and I have had some interesting ones at times) but it would really help if you could give some pointers from a coxswain. As rowers our biceps are sometimes bigger than our brains so it would help if you could give us some insight. Thanks…oh, and great blog!

This is the best question ever. It’s great that you recognize how lucky you are to have a such a skillful, knowledgeable, and personable coxswain. Out of curiosity, how did you push her to her limits? Were there any repercussions? How did you apologize? (You did apologize, right?)

Things that rower’s do that irritate coxswains:

Talk or screw around in the boat, especially if you’re in bow pair.

This drives me nuts. There’s a time and a place for it and 99% of the time, while you’re on the water is not it. The reason it annoys me is not because I think that the boat should be some kind of rigid, military-like atmosphere while we’re out but because if I’m trying to get you to do something and you’re not doing it because you’re talking or screwing around with someone else, time is being wasted. If we say “bow six, row” we mean bow six, not bow, 2, and 5. Me telling you to take two strokes so I can get my point should not be something I have to repeat three times, especially when my already-loud voice is amplified through a microphone. Plus, my number one job is to maintain the safety of the crew. If I see something that could potentially be or is a dangerous situation, it’s my responsibility to get us away from it as quickly as possible. I can’t do that if no one is paying attention.

To avoid pissing off your coxswain in situations like this, don’t start a conversation with the four people around you as soon as you’re told to weigh enough, always be listening for your coxswain’s instructions (especially if you’re in bow pair), and in general, use your common sense. If the conversation can be had off the water, don’t have it on the water. Also, regarding safety, If we’re rowing and you start yelling things out, please know that I have no clue what you’re saying and I’m basically going to assume that a shark just jumped into the boat and ate your face off or we’re about to hit someone or something. I will stop the boat, ask you what you said, and then get royally pissed at you when you say you were saying something stupid like “set the boat”, “pull harder”, or whatever. Do. Not. Do. This.

Not carrying your own water bottle.

If you can see that your coxswain’s hands, basket, etc. is full or looking particularly heavy, don’t walk over and toss your full water bottle in it just as she’s about to pick it up. Stick your water bottle in your spandex and carry it yourself.

Assuming we know everything the coach is thinking and then getting pissed at us when we don’t.

To quote the person that sent this, “”Will I be rowing today? Will today be hard? What erg piece is he going to make us do next? Will I be in the boat this weekend? What are his plans for ‘X’ boat? Who’s he considering?” While some of these things are stuff coxswains SHOULD know, there is a lack communication, and/or coaches can change their minds in a heart beat if the need be.” Feel free to ask your coxswain these questions but know more often times than not that they are just as clueless as you.

Assuming you’re not doing something your coxswain (and/or coach) says you are and/or not making a change when it’s called for.

If your coach tells you to make an adjustment or points out something you’re doing, it’s our job to remind you to do it and then reinforce it as we row. Don’t assume that you’re not doing something that two people are making an effort to point out to you that you are and please don’t actually say out loud to us that you aren’t doing it. We’re looking directly at your blades so if we say that you’re skying, digging it in, late to the catch, washing out at the finish, etc. you can bet that you’re doing it.

Don’t be that guy in the boat that has such an ego that he refuses to make any changes either. If we say your name or seat number or “bow 4” or “stern 4” or “starboards” or whatever part of the boat you’re a part of, make. an. effort. to make the change we’re calling for. We can see and feel when people make those changes and as you get more experienced you can tell who specifically did and didn’t do it. I haven’t had this happen too often to me when I’ve coxed but the few times it has it’s made me feel a little disrespected and like you don’t think I actually know what I’m talking about. I understand “getting in the zone” and tuning other things out but your coxswain should not be one of those things.

Unnecessarily taking control of the boat/backseat coxing.

There are only two reasons that I can think of (as a coach and coxswain) of why it would be acceptable for a rower to take control of the boat. One is if the the coxswain is legitimately unable to cox (99.9% of the time due to a medical reason – I’ve seen this happen once) and the other is if they’re a novice and genuinely don’t know the right things to say and/or are inadvertently putting the crew in a dangerous situation. At that point the only person in the boat who should be saying anything is the stroke.

If you are shouting at your coxswain or the rest of the crew to do something, you’re undermining the coxswain’s authority. If they’re a novice, this can really hurt them in terms of trying to gain the respect of the crew. If they’re experienced it can actually make the rowers lose respect for them because it comes off as them not knowing what to do or what’s going on or more importantly, not being strong-willed enough to stand up to the rowers (who, by the power vested in them by the coach, they are technically in charge of while on the water).

Yelling at your coxswain after the fact.

Sometimes coxswains do things that piss the rowers off and you are well within your right to call them out on that. Waiting until you’re off the water and the boat and oars are put away to lose your shit on them though accomplishes absolutely nothing and only makes you look like an ass. Instead of screaming at them about whatever happened, ask them when you get off the water if you can talk to them after practice and then go down on the dock away from the rest of the team and have a conversation with them. I’m not saying the conversation has to be friendly or anything because emotions happen and I get that, but at the very least it does have to be civil. Explain what the issue is, why it’s an issue, and what you’d hope they could do differently in the future.

If the issue is really serious, talk to your coach and let them do the yelling. That’s their job. (Well, not really but you know what I mean.) If you’re more experienced than your coxswain (i.e. varsity vs. novice), you have a responsibility and a duty to help teach them and yelling is not how you go about doing that, even if at times that seems to be the quick, go-to, natural reaction. Don’t shatter their confidence before they’ve had a chance to even build any.

Bringing up a past bad race, piece, or loss to your coxswain.

That shit isn’t funny. I promise you – promise you – with absolute certainty that coxswains take these things way harder than any rower. For me, I feel a personal sense of responsibility whenever something goes wrong because it’s my boat. I’m in charge. Regardless of whether whatever made it bad was my/our fault or something completely out of our control, it eats at me and takes a while to move past, even if it seems like I’ve gotten over it pretty quickly. If we’re in a similar situation or about to do another piece or racing the same crews, I guarantee that I was already thinking about that “last time” 20 minutes before the thought even crossed your mind. I’m going over everything that happened previously so I can make sure we/I do things better this time. I don’t need you putting on your “snarky rower” hat and saying “don’t fuck up!” because I’ve been saying that to myself since I first got in the boat.

Trying to get them to be a clone of your old, last, or favorite coxswain.

I hate when coaches switch lineups and who’s coxing who each week because it causes issues for everyone. What makes things especially awkward though is when you get in a boat with a new coxswain and ask them to do everything the exact same as another coxswain on the team. The person who sent me this said that asking a coxswain to call, say, or do things the same way as another coxswain feels disrespectful and like you’re just putting up with them being in the boat because the coach put them there and not because you actually want them to be there.

I’m a big proponent of collaborative coxing while still maintaining your own individual style and way of doing things. If you had a coxswain that had this one call that you really responded to, by all means, absolutely  talk to your new coxswain about it and ask if he/she would mind trying to incorporate it into their calls. Explain why so they can get a bit of background on why it works and why you like it. If they’re smart though they’ll have already talked with the previous coxswain of their new boat to see what works and what doesn’t when coxing them, what they respond to, what they like, etc.

I hope that helps. Coxswains, feel free to leave a comment and elaborate on something I’ve said or add something I didn’t mention.

Coxing Q&A

Question of the Day

By

How do you keep your wrenches and pliers from going all rusty? My team goes out on the water year round, rain or shine, in a salt water marina. My tools tend to rust within a season, if not sooner which is quite inconvenient because then I’m constantly purchasing new tools.

Well, first suggestion is an obvious one – don’t get them wet. Definitely consider getting a waterproof bag (like this one) to put your tools in so they don’t get wet if you plan on carrying them on the water with you. If they do get wet, wash them off with regular water when you get back on land and make sure they’re dry before you put them away.

High School Q&A Rowing

Question of the Day

By

Hey there! I’m in a lightweight boat where the average is about 115-120 lbs and the girls are about 5’7, maybe even 5’6. Only thing is, I’m a little more than five pounds heavier than the others and a good 2-3″ taller. I feel like I’m weighing down the boat and there are other lightweights who could have my place. I never really feel worthy of the boat, I guess its reasonable to say. We all pull around the same times but I’m a tiny bit more technically sound, but they’re also smaller. Thoughts?

If you weren’t worthy of being in the boat you wouldn’t be there and those other lightweights would be in your place. You’re not weighing down the boat either. You weight what, 125lbs? You’re not weighing it down. Maybe if you tied a cinder block to your stomach and then switched to bow seat, yea, you’d be weighing the boat down, but at 125lbs … come on. Whatever/whoever made you think that is wrong. I can’t say it anymore plainly than that.

The fact that you are more technically sound is an advantage for you and probably part of the reason why you’re a member of this lineup. Because lightweight rowers weigh less, they have to be better technical rowers since they can’t rely on sheer strength to move the boat. Heavyweight rowers have a greater overall muscle mass, leading to an increased output of power, but since lightweights don’t have that they have to make up for what they lack in strength in other ways, which is why technique is so important to them.

I tell this to coxswains on an all-too-frequent basis but it absolutely applies to rowers as well: you have to be confident in yourself and your abilities. If you’re not your rowing will suffer. Row every stroke like it’s the most perfect stroke to have ever been rowed and assume it was perfect until someone tells you otherwise – and trust me, they will tell you. Don’t compare yourself to the other rowers either. All it does is mess with your head and take your focus off of rowing.