The thing about rowing is that you'll get punished, tattered, you'll sweat, you'll bleed, you'll cry, and you'll be in more pain than ever before but every time you will get back up, possessed by the power to win, and you will never give up.

That's the thing about rowing - you always have that option to quit. With 750m to go you are totally allowed to say "fuck this", get off the erg, and never look back but every rower I've ever met has something to prove, whether it's to their team, their coach, their parents, or themselves, they have to prove that they are stronger than they think. That's the thing about rowing. It proves that just because you have the opportunity to give up, doesn't mean you will.