I was switched from 7 seat to 3 seat after having been 7 for over 6 months. What might’ve caused my coach to do that?
There are two reasons – the logical one and the illogical one. And I only say illogical because it’s the opposite of logical, not because it’s being done for a stupid or malicious reason.
The logical one, if you think about where individual rowers are placed in the boat, is that your coach thinks that you have the power to make the boat go faster and that you’re better utilized in the engine room than in stern pair. That’s not to say that you didn’t do a good job of translating the rhythm back to bow 6 but you’ve got the ability to harness your power and push the boat along, and that’s something he wants to capitalize on.
If you’ve been working on your technique lately or have been having issues with something, he might have also put you in 3-seat because it’s the least disruptive seat in the boat. It’ll give you a chance to refine whatever you’re working on without causing too much harm to the balance of the boat.
Alternatively, maybe he just wanted to make a switch. Sometimes coaches do that and there’s no rhyme or reason for it. Maybe it has nothing to do with you at all – he might just have another rower he wants to try in 7-seat. In both situations, the best way to find out what’s up is to talk to your coach and see if there’s something specific he wants you to work on or if he’s just tweaking the lineup to see which combination makes the boat the fastest.