Category: Rowing

Q&A Racing Rowing

Question of the Day

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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.

High School Q&A Rowing

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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.

College Q&A Rowing

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Hi there, I’m a rower from New Zealand and I am considering going to Uni in the states. I was wondering if you could help me out on what type of rowing scholarships there were and what the benchmark erg times are? And how to go about applying for one? Thanks 🙂

You don’t apply for athletic scholarships, they’re offered to you if the coach feels you’re worth it. If you don’t get one your freshman year don’t worry though because you can still get them your other three years.

I’m assuming you’re a girl since you’re asking about scholarships so here’s what I’ve previously written about erg times as far as recruiting goes: lightweight and open/heavyweight.

Here’s a few more posts that might help you out too.

What questions to ask coaches during the recruiting process

What NOT to ask coaches during the recruiting process

Waiting for responses from coaches

Getting the attention of coaches

Making a beRecruited account

Also check out the “recruiting” and “contacting coaches” tags.

Coxing Q&A Rowing Technique

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One of my rowers get so much layback she looks as if she’s about to completely lay down! It’s affecting her timing with stroke seat, what would you suggest?

Tell her to stop. I know that’s the blunt and obvious answer but it really is what I say to rowers who layback like that. When they keep doing it after I’ve told them to stop I start telling them about all the ways they’re screwing up their low back (and abs, to an extent) and eventually that’s what gets them to quit. Have you talked with her outside the boat regarding her timing issues? Does she know that her timing isn’t with the rest of the boat’s? I’d tell her off the water and explain to her how her layback is playing a large part in that and ask her to work on it the next time you go out.

Her layback isn’t going to be something you’ll be able to see but you will be able to see what her timing is like. After practice talk with your coach and ask him how it looked today. Keep reminding her of both the timing and the layback. Say something to her about timing only when you notice it’s an issue but throw in a few “Jenny, sit up tall, support the stroke with the core…” calls just as a general reminder to her. This will get her thinking about it for a stroke or two and she’ll either remember to not layback too far or realize she is laying back too far and fix it by sitting up taller and only going back as far as she needs to.

Coxing Q&A Racing Rowing

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I’m a coxswain but since I’m the only available freshman they’re having me row this Sunday. I’m replacing a girl who’s going to a family party. Anyway, I feel like I can’t push as hard and I’m letting the rowers down! I’m so stressed out that I’ll catch a crab or something!

Whether anyone has told you this or not, no one expects you to go out and pull as hard as the girl you’re switching in for. What they do expect is for you to go out, try your best, and row as hard as you can. You know what to do since you’ve been telling the rowers how to do it while you’re coxing…now’s your chance to do it yourself. Use it as a learning experience. Even though you’re going to be focused on the rowing, take mental notes on your rowing – what seems harder than you expected, what is your technique like, etc. and then remember all of that the next time you go on the water and cox. Use what you learned to help you cox the girls in your boat.

Don’t worry about catching a crab. If it happens, whatever, it’s not the end of the world. Recover as quickly as possible and get right back into it. Watch your timing, make sure the blade is completely square at the catch and finish, and only bury the oar as deep as you need to in order to cover the blade. Don’t stress out either! That takes all the fun out of racing.

Racing Rowing Teammates & Coaches Training & Nutrition

Blood in the Water

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I don’t know when or how I stumbled on this article but it’s a great one. It was published in 1999 and briefly chronicles the selection process of Mike Teti’s heavyweight 8+ for the ’99 world championships and the 2000 Olympic team.

As the thin fog lifts over the pine trees and off the lake, Teti begins today’s practice session with his version of a pep talk. “For the past two weeks, I’ve been really flexible with your work hours,” he announces, his voice scratchy from weeks of shouting through a bullhorn. His face is tan and windburned from 18 years of flying up and down narrow channels of water with a clock in his hand. “I’ve been really flexible with your relationships. I have been really flexible with your academics. Well, I’m through being flexible. I’m going to the World Championships to win. Anyone who requires maintenance, you are not welcome here. I will provide the coaching, the equipment, and the expertise to those who want to go to the Olympic Games and win a fucking gold medal. Anything that gets in the way of that, I’m gonna run it the fuck over. Some of you guys are severely on the bubble, and most of you here will not make the Olympic Team.”

And this one…

“I don’t have all fucking day!” Teti screams. “Line up.”

And this one…

Teti never simply shouts, “Pull!” He yells things such as, “Pull like you’re the biggest, baddest motherfucker in a bar, and everybody in the bar knows it!”

Coxswains, remember that one – you never know when it might come in handy.

Novice Q&A Rowing Technique

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In a week’s time I have my first (of three) 2km scull and 2km ergo trials. I’m really nervous about the scull because I only just got off floaties (floats that sit under the oar gates for stability) and now every stroke at the finish I’m having a lot of trouble getting my blades out cleanly and together. Like my left is always on time and clean but my right always lags and such gets a bit stuck? How do I combat this?

My guess is that it’s one of two things: one, it might be a timing/coordination thing since you said your left is on time and clean but your right isn’t or two, your set is off and you’re leaning to port, which would explain why the starboard oar comes out clean (plenty of room to tap down vs. no room). Something I’ve noticed with the kids I see going from the stable boats to the less stable racing shells is that they’re afraid to lay back because they’re afraid of becoming more parallel with the boat. Since they don’t lay back, they don’t give themselves any room to tap the blades down which results in them having really sloppy finishes. That, combined with questionable handle heights to begin with, usually results in one or both of the blades getting briefly stuck in the water.

My suggestion would be to work on some release drills. Sit at the finish (laying back, sitting up tall, supported with the core), get your set, and then bob the oars up and down – all you’re doing is tapping down. This is obviously done on the square. Don’t go at a frantic pace but don’t go so slow that you’re losing your set on every stroke. Make sure you’re moving your hands at the same time, pushing the oars into the pins, and maintaining that pressure against the oarlocks. When you’re tapping down, occasionally look out at your oars to see how far you actually need to press down with your hands to release the blades from the water. If the blade isn’t at least an inch or two above the water, tap down more. Make sure you’re releasing them smoothly and not yanking or jerking the handles in and down. Once you’re comfortable with this, move on to the pick drill while continuing to work on the finishes. I’d do this on the square a few times before switching to doing it on the feather. Another drill you could do is work on the delayed feather drill. This one works to ensure that you’re coming out of the water square before feathering your blade (possibly another reason why it’s getting stuck, especially if the boat is offset). When you do this drill, you tap down and go to hands away on the square, then feather between hands away and bodies over, then square up again at 1/2 slide.

One final important thing that you’re going to need to work on is finding your balance and keeping the hands level throughout the entirety of the stroke. You don’t necessarily need to be balancing the oars off the water at any point other than the release just yet but the boat itself needs to be level. A couple weeks ago I heard some of the pre-elite scullers on the Charles being coached and something their coach said might help – I’m not sure if it actually works so scullers out there, feel free to correct me. He said that a “foolproof” way of keeping your boat set is to always have the knuckles of your right hand touching your left wrist. I didn’t hear the explanation but from thinking about it my assumption is that it would help you to keep your hands together and work on the timing to ensure they’re moving together.

How To Q&A Rowing Technique

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Tips on how to correct posture while rowing? Apparently I slouch a lot around the catch!

It all starts at the finish. Well, sort of. It’s kind of like the chicken-egg thing … which comes first? Finishes are affected by catches and catches are affected by finishes, but where does the problem actually start?

At the finish you’ve got to make sure you’re laying back while sitting up tall. The next most important thing after that is swinging while maintaining a straight back. Keep the core solid, almost as if you’re preparing to be punched at any second, without hunching the shoulders or stiffening the upper body. Make sure that you’re moving in the proper sequence – arms, back, legs – and not letting your butt slide under your shoulders. This is a huge reason why a lot of people slouch at the finish. Your shoulders should always be ahead of your butt. If you get to half slide and stop moving your shoulders but continue to move your butt, your body is going to go from being at a 55(ish) degree angle to being at 90 degrees, which you obviously don’t want and will cause you to curve your lower back, sink into your hips, and open your back early on the ensuing catch. Your stroke will also be very short. Focus on keeping your head and chin up and level – memorize every intricate detail of the back of the person’s head in front of you. This also tends to help with keeping your back straight because if your eyes are down, everything else tends to follow, but if your eyes are up, everything tends to stay up and supported (including the handle).

If your core isn’t well developed, sitting up tall and avoiding the slouch will probably be difficult for you. Having abs or any kind of 6 pack doesn’t count as having a strong core so don’t let your hot rower’s bod fool you into thinking your core is strong just because you’re ripped. Planks and side-planks are great core developers so if you find you’re still having issues sitting up at the catch after you’ve worked on the basic technique stuff I’d definitely recommend adding some planks into your pre-row warmup/on-land workouts.

Q&A Rowing Training & Nutrition

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So I’ve been rowing for 6 months now and I work really hard and do extra coaching sessions and am super passionate about it, but I feel as though I’ve recently stopped improving. Is it normal to plateau for a while in terms of your rate of improvement with rowing? Also, when rowing a double scull what does each seat mean? I was put in bow seat. Thanks!

I got an email about this the other day that asked a similar question. I think the plateau is fairly normal, to be honest. It’s very much like losing weight. First the weight loss is rapid and then it starts to gradually slow down as you continue to lose more. Eventually it gets to a certain point (i.e. those last five pounds) where you level off and it feels like you aren’t losing anymore. After a period of time you’ll find a way to jump start your system, either by ramping up your exercise, changing your workout routine, or making additional tweaks to your diet, that will get the process going again. When the body gets used to something it tends to become desensitized to it to the point where it stops responding, essentially because it’s bored. If you’re going out and doing the same workouts on the water over and over and over day in and day out, your body is probably thinking “eh, been there, done that, I’m over it”.

Talk with your coach and see if you can change up what you do during practice by throwing in some different drills and pieces than what you’ve been doing. After a week or two of going that you’ll probably start to notice some changes because you and your body will be excited again. Also make sure you’re recovering properly in between sessions.

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?

Check out the post linked above – I wrote it awhile ago in response to a question about who goes where in the boats. This person asked about where people go in a quad and an eight, but the responsibilities of each seat are the same regardless of what kind of boat you’re in. The only change is that as move down towards the smaller boats, people tend to pick up more responsibilities. Your best answer to this question though is going to come straight from your coach since he/she is the one that put you there. If you’re curious as to why you’re in a certain seat, always ask!