I have been rowing starboard and mostly 7 seat recently in a women’s masters 8+ and for the last two practices they’ve had me stroking, which I really disliked. Granted we’re all pretty new to rowing, and there are some definite strength/power issues with teammates, but every time I’m in stroke seat I feel like I just can’t get my oar out of the water fast enough. I’m literally hitting my legs over and over, and sometimes I feel like there’s nowhere for my oar to go when I try to take a decent stroke. I rarely, if ever, seem to have this problem rowing starboard, or in my usual 7 seat. Last practice was fantastic, and then I’m stroking and its a mess. Is it a boat set issue, or is it just me? Even on simple pick drills I’m having a difficult time getting the oar out of the water cleanly in stroke seat. One of our coaches just told me to tap down more and the other said it was a boat set issue..How can I fix this? I’m confused. Help!
Oh come on, that’s just lazy coaching. I think it’s the rigging. Have you checked the spacers to see where they’re positioned? If you haven’t got enough on the bottom then that might be why you’re having a hard time getting the blade out of the water. You’d be pulling into your lap which would be why you can’t tap down anymore. How is your coach not seeing that? If there are too many on the bottom then you’d have a hard time getting it in at the catch. I’d look to see where they’re at and then based on the issue you’re having adjust from there. Ask your coaches about that too … like, actually say “what if I tried adjusting the spacers” and then see what they say.
It partially is a boat set issue because, if I’m right, you’re being forced to pull in too low. That’s gonna throw it over to your side which will exacerbate the issue of you not being able to get your blade out. Plus you’ve got seven other inexperienced rowers who all have their own weird technique quirks going on that are contributing to the boat being off set. Set issues are never caused by one thing but sometimes you’ve gotta look past the obvious stuff to figure out what the problem is. Check your spacers the next time you go out and see if adjusting them helps. If not, bug the hell out of your coach(es) until they give you something better than “tap down more” or “set the boat”.
Oh, and if you really don’t like stroking, tell them that. Just say that it’s difficult to focus on rowing well and establishing a rhythm that everyone can follow and that you’re more comfortable rowing in 7-seat, especially since starboard is your natural side. There’s no sense in repeatedly rowing on a side where things are constantly going poorly because that’s how bad technique and bad habits develop. You start changing how you row to compensate for whatever’s going on. Talk to your coaches, explain why it’s frustrating, and again, see what they say.