Back in August PBS aired their documentary on the crew from The Boys in the Boat that they shot in Seattle with some of the UW guys. This video is a quick behind-the-scenes clip that shows the guys talking about what it was like rowing in a wooden hull with the spoon blades and in the much shorter half-slide style that was common back then.
Category: Video of the Week
Coxing Racing Video of the Week
Video of the Week: That time a boat sank at HOCR
Legend has it that the coxswain of this eight (from a university in China) got held up at customs and wasn’t allowed into the United States. None of the rowers spoke English which meant not only did they have to find a coxswain, they had to find one that spoke Mandarin. Luckily they found someone at MIT who spoke Mandarin and could cox but they later found out (too late, of course) that she and the rowers spoke different dialects of Mandarin which meant they could barely understand each other. This proved particularly problematic when they collided with another boat and eventually sank two miles later. It also produced what is probably one of the greatest photos of a coxswain ever. Good luck this weekend!
Video of the Week: HOCR River Operations Timelapse
You can’t see it from this angle but from our balcony we have the best view of the skyline, which is why I’ll never tire of watching the sunrise from our boathouse.
Video of the Week: “Our reasons to row differ but the sport remains the same…”
“Rowing is a sport where the whole is greater than the sum of its parts and teamwork is embedded in our soul.”
Video of the Week: What It Costs To Send A Team To Rio
Pretty interesting video on the breakdown of costs per athlete that raced in Rio. As a raw number $4.1 million doesn’t sound too bad either … until you realize GB’s funding totaled nearly $44 million (£32 million) and Canada’s was around $17 million.
Update: Better numbers for comparison – thanks Pete!
Video of the Week: Boat strapping failure
This deserves a place in the vault that houses all the classic rowing videos. I posted this a few years ago as part of a post on how to strap boats to the trailer so if you haven’t read that yet, you can check it out below.
Related: How to strap a boat down
There are two good videos in there that show how it’s done, as well as some other pieces of advice that are hopefully all common sense … but if they’re not, well, now you know.
Ergs Technique Video of the Week
Video of the Week: Rowing posture
This is a good video for coxswains to watch so you know what to look for when the rowers are on the ergs.
Video of the Week: Cadence
The UW hype machine is … aggressive … but its redeeming quality is how solid the cinematography is.
Ergs Teammates & Coaches Training & Nutrition Video of the Week
Video of the Week: Ergo
I think this just found a spot on my list of top five best rowing videos. Can you imagine if your seat in the boat came down to that? I gotta know though … who won?!
Video of the Week: “Why I Row” with Gevvie Stone
Coming from a mainstream magazine with no ties to rowing, this video is really well done. My favorite part is her subtly counting in the background from one to ten as the video nears the end. It’s a good strategy, especially when you’re on the erg, but the way it’s presented here is just really powerful and motivating.
There’s really nothing like being on the water early in the morning and seeing a pack of singles, usually led by Gevvie, storm into the basin. Kinda similar to how you know Harvard is nearby when you hear their distinctive freight train-like exhales at every finish, you know when Team Gevvie is on the water because it has the power to change the atmosphere of the basin in an instant. I can’t really put a finger on what exactly it is but it’s been incredible to witness over the last few years.