An aggregate resource for all those riding in the 9th seat
No video this week, instead it’s an audio clip from WGBH (Boston’s NPR station) on the etymology of the word “coxswain”.
Peter Sokolowski, the editor-at-large for Merriam Webster talks about where the word comes from, it’s pronunciation, what it actually means, etc. You can find his interview embedded within this article – it’s the second audio clip (the one that is 4:01 long) about midway down the page.
Previously: Rush(ing) || Body angle || Pick drill || Suspension || Skying the blade || Quarter feather || Pin || Run || Lunge || Washing Out
The catch.
Missing water (also known as “rowing it in”) is what happens when your blade isn’t in the water at the end of the recovery/top of the catch. What happens instead is you start with the blade in the air and place it in the water as you start the leg drive. Moving backwards on the slides without your blade in the water causes you to have a shorter and less powerful stroke as a result of missing out on the power generated by your legs in the first few inches of the drive.
“Get the blade wet before you start the leg drive…”
“Direct to the water…”
“Bodies set early, hands up at the catch…”
“Back it in…”, “Get that V-splash…” I use both of these a lot, particularly when we’re rowing in good water and there’s no excuses for sloppy handle heights or indirect catches.
“Hook, send…” is another call I make a lot because it gives a visual reference for what the catch should look like (think of a fish hook) – smooth and continuous. Usually the second half of the call will reference whatever else we’ve been working on during practice – for example, last week when I was coxing our eight in Florida I said “hook, send” and “hook, squeeze” a lot since we’d been working on both maximizing the run of the boat and completing the strokes during our drill sessions.
Front splash at the catch is the most obvious sign from the coxswain’s seat that someone is missing water at the catch. Ideally at the catch you should see some V-splash, which means there’s water moving in both directions (with just slightly more moving towards the bow than the stern) but at the very least you should be seeing some backsplash. Seeing neither is an indication that the rower isn’t getting their blade in before they start the drive.
Another thing to watch for is blade height throughout the recovery. If you see someone start skying their blade as they come into the front end then they’re almost certainly going to miss water at the start of the stroke.
Related: Top 20 terms coxswains should know: Skying the blade
Like just about everything else, the biggest effect on the boat will be in the form of balance. If someone (or one side) is rowing it in at the catch then the boat won’t be able to immediately stabilize, resulting in it falling over to whichever side is missing water.
Can you explain the term “rowing it in”?
To see all the posts in this series, check out the “top 20 terms” tag.
Previously: Rush(ing) || Body angle || Pick drill || Suspension || Skying the blade || Quarter feather || Pin || Run || Lunge
The finish.
Washing out happens when instead of drawing through horizontally at the finish, you instead pull/feather down into the lap (which in itself can also be a result of a loss of suspension). This results in the blade popping out of the water as you finish the stroke with the arms.
Related: Top 20 terms coxswains should know: Suspension
A lot of these are fresh in my head because when I was coxing in Cocoa Beach, I found myself making a lot of calls for holding the blades in (which we’d been working on), supporting your side, etc. We did some short pieces and there were occasionally stretches where the set was pretty awful but as soon as I’d make one (or several) of these calls, the boat would balance right up and we’d start getting some good run again. About 90% of the time we were down to port so the first call I’d always make would be for the ports to lift the hands and then if that didn’t change anything I’d call for starboards to lower theirs. From there I’d get more specific based on what I was seeing/feeling.
“Support your side…”
“Engage the lats, draw the handle through to your target…”
“Suspend through…”
“Hold the finishes…”
“Elbows up at the finish…”, “Consistency with the hands…”
“Hook, squeeze…” The relevant part of this call is the “squeeze”, which is supposed to remind the rowers to accelerate the blade and keep it buried all the way through to the finish.
Understanding suspension so you can communicate the relationship between a loss of suspension and washing out is also important. The key to speed in any boat is hanging on the handle and maintaining that suspension all the way through to the end of the stroke. The blade stays locked into the water until suspension is no longer being maintained and that moment when pressure is cut off is when the handle is able to come down and away smoothly. Every part of the stroke has to flow dynamically into the next without letting the body weight settle on to the seat. When making calls for washing out, make sure you’re not just reminding the rowers to pull into their targets but to also hang off the handle and stay light on the seats.
If you notice this happening early on in practice or when you’re doing long-and-low steady state, start by telling the rowers to look out at their blades and follow its path through the water to ensure it’s staying buried all the way through the finish. Have them do this for 3-5 strokes and then call them back to eyes forward. It’s easy to get transfixed by the blade and start going through the motions so let them watch them for a few strokes before getting the crew refocused.
White water at the finish is a tell-tale sign of someone washing out. As a result of the blade coming out feathered or at an angle rather than fully squared, the extra effort being exerted during the draw through throws water backwards (towards the coxswain) rather than propelling the boat forward (towards bow) and creates that distinctive “whoosh”-ing sound.
From the coxswain’s seat it can be tough to see this but if you’re in the launch, look at the elbow and wrist position at the finish. The outside elbow should be up and out and the outside wrist should be flat, essentially acting as an extension of the oar handle. If the lats are engaged and you’re drawing straight through to your low ribs then this positioning of the arms should happen naturally. Having the elbows too close to the body, feathering down into your lap, elbows pointed down towards the back of your seat, etc. will all result in washing out.
The most obvious effect is that it causes problems with the set. If you’re on port then the boat is going to fall towards your side on the drive and then dump to starboard on the recovery (which, to say the least, is super annoying). The lack of connection and suspension that leads to washing out also leads to a loss of power, thus making each stroke less efficient and the boat to experience less run per stroke.
To see all the posts in this series, check out the “top 20 terms” tag.
I relate to this so hard. Both as a coxswain and a coach, everything she said is pretty much exactly how I’ve felt at each stage of the game over the last thirteen years. If you’re looking for something to do in the hotel on your training trip (which is what I did) or at the boathouse while your team is erging, I’d definitely recommend watching this with the other coxswains on your team.
Related: Katelin Snyder + winter training
Once you’re done with this one, another video you can watch that features Katelin is the one linked above, which is one row2k did on her experiences with winter training over the years. There’s some overlap when it comes to what coxswains could/should do but this one’s only 10 minutes long so it’s worth watching all the way through and picking up some new ideas.
Previously: Rush(ing) || Body angle || Pick drill || Suspension || Skying the blade || Quarter feather || Pin || Run
Lunging can occur at any point after bodies over but the point in the stroke where it’s the most prevalent is at the catch.
Lunging is another way of saying over-reaching, diving, or falling into the catch. When you go to the bodies over position, ideally you should be pivoting from your hips. Your range of motion is limited by your hamstring, knee, and hip flexibility so some people are able to pivot more than others but for those who aren’t super flexible, they try to compensate for that by bending forwards from their low backs to get their bodies over and attain some amount of reach. For those who are able to pivot forward without issue, they tend to think that more is better so they fall forward at the last second to get a few extra inches of reach when in reality they’re just derailing the boat speed.
One of the most consistent things I say to the crew in this situation is to remind them to set the bodies early and that all their body prep should be completed before the wheels start rolling. Any additional reach after that is lunging and it’s not only ineffective but it’s also detrimental to the speed of the boat. Noting the fact that they’re actively slowing the boat down rather than maintaining or building speed usually gets their attention if nothing else does.
I try to avoid saying “you’re lunging” or “let’s make sure we’re not overextending ourselves at the catch” too much because I think that draws attention to the problem (which could end up exacerbating it) rather than directing them to a solution, which is what those reminder calls attempt to accomplish. Sometimes it’s necessary to say those things (i.e. if it’s a consistent problem that isn’t being fixed) but I usually try to save this as a last resort. It’s also really easy to just say “you’re lunging” and think that’s going to fix the problem (and with more experienced crews that might be all you need to say…) but you still need to know what’s causing them to lunge in the first place so you can communicate the adjustments you want them to make. When I hear coxswains make simple calls like that over and over again and the problem still persists then I know that you have no idea what causes lunging or what you need to say to have the rowers make the necessary adjustments.
Pausing at 3/4 slide is a good drill to work on this because it limits the amount of momentum going into the catch and forces you to just drift up and quickly place the blade in the water. If you recognize that lunging is an issue with your crew and your coach says to do some pause drills during your warmup or to throw in a pause during a piece, 3/4 slide pauses can help you kill two birds with one stone.
I look for three things all happening at the same time, or at the very least on a consistent basis within a couple strokes of each other. They are: skying the blade at the catch, an increase in the speed of their blade moving back towards bow when the rowers are moving through the top quarter of their slides, and the feeling of check in the boat. Individually those three things are separate issues with their own causes and effects but when they’re happening in rapid succession it usually means someone (or several someones) is lunging.
The biggest effect that lunging has on the boat is in the amount of check it causes. Because you’re throwing your upper bodies forward and downwards so suddenly (and drastically), you’re generating a lot of momentum that is hard to counteract. Not only does this slow the boat down and create a lot of check but it also results in slower catches (mostly because you end up skying as a result of your shoulders and hands falling down towards your feet). It can also really screw up your back, not just because you’re swinging forward improperly but also because it can also cause you to shoot your tail on the resulting drive.
To see all the posts in this series, check out the “top 20 terms” tag.
Previously: Rush(ing) || Body angle || Pick drill || Suspension || Skying the blade || Quarter feather || Pin
The recovery.
Run refers to the distance the boat travels between strokes.
The majority of the calls you’ll make are interchangeable with most ratio calls since minimizing check and disturbances to the boat’s run have a lot to do with how controlled the recovery is.
“Row long through the water, let the boat run at the finish…”
“Steady speed into the catch…”
“Roll the wheels at a constant speed…”
Calls for the finish can also be used to set up the run, such as “send” (the most ubiquitous finish call in existence), “long”, “chaaa”, etc.
The thing with run is that there’s not that many specific calls for it but there are a lot of calls for other parts of the stroke (specifically the finish, swing, body angle, and the slides) that pull double-duty and apply to it in addition to whatever their primary meaning is.
One of the best/easiest ways for a coxswain to tell how much run you’re getting is to watch your 2-seat’s puddles. If the boat is running well then their puddle should pass your stroke seat before they (stroke) take their next stroke. Also, during steady state rows the bow pair’s puddles should be clearing the stern by at least a seat or two – this applies to most experienced crews but for younger crews, they puddles should at least be able to make it to the coxswain.
Another thing you can look for (that isn’t always easy to see unless you’re in the launch) is where the boat is sitting in the water. If the boat feels heavy and the shell is sitting low (rather than rising up slightly) then the run isn’t being maximized.
If you’re able to achieve good run (which is in effect a product of how well executed the transfer of weight from the bow to stern during the recovery was) then the ultimate effect on the boat will be that you’re able to travel farther with less wasted effort.
To see all the posts in this series, check out the “top 20 terms” tag.
I realized after uploading this that I think I labeled the video incorrectly – rather than the varsity eight race I think it’s actually the men’s open eight since “Western” is Western Washington and they weren’t in the V8+ race.
Starting at 0:22, I like this series of quick calls (“now build it and here we go, get on it now…”) right before they start their high strokes. It’s a good alternative to not calling the first four or five stokes if you’re not into that kinda thing.
“One seat up, that’s fine…” Compare his call of “one seat up, that’s fine” at 0:59 to what a lot of coxswains do – “200m in, we’re one seat up, by 250m I wanna be on their bow ball, power 10!” – and it’s not hard to see why I like this, not just for what he says but for how he says it. If you’ve established your rhythm, are taking tight, clean strokes, the boat feels good, etc. then ride that and use it to your advantage for as long as you can, regardless of whether you’re up one seat or down three seats.
If you watch the time on the video, you’ll notice that 200m to 300m and 300m to 400m only took them roughly 20 seconds per 100m. That’s a little over 11mph (18km/hr). For comparison, Germany rowed the first 500m of the final in London at just over 13mph (21km/hr). I stopped paying attention to this after awhile but in the first third of the recording you’ll hear him call 200m, 300m, 400m, 500m, 600m, 750m, etc. While he’s probably rowed on the Montlake Cut long enough to know where each 100m mark is along shore, another way you can tell your crew where you are is by paying attention to the times. If during practice you’re pulling similar splits during pieces to what you’re pulling during your race then you’ll be able to guesstimate that each 100m is taking you roughly X seconds. This in turn means that even if there aren’t markers along shore telling you where you are, you can make a good guess based on what the clock on your cox box is saying.
At the 500m, I like the “five to set the swing” they took. Especially after the first 500m, which can tend to be a little frantic, it’s always good to take a couple strokes to re-establish that long, smooth stroke that you wanna maintain throughout the bulk of the race. Making focus-specific calls like he did here for swing is also important, especially when your busts are short like this one was. I liked the “good swing through the back” one the best.
Overall, this was a really well-coxed piece. What I really liked and what you should be taking away is how there was a good balance of everything a coxswain should be focused on during a race – position on the course, position on other crews, splits (if you’ve got a SpeedCoach), technique (maintaining a balance between general calls and calls for individuals when necessary), etc. His voice is great too – calm at times, in your face other times, but intense as hell from start to finish.
Other calls I liked:
“Hands up to the front bow six, we want no missed water…”
“Keep walking away, give them nothing…”
“Curb stomp the shit out of ’em…”
“We’re comin’ into the Cut, it’s Husky territory now, show ’em a hell of a race…”
“With the push…”, with regards to the leg drive. “On the legs” can get old after awhile so I like this as an alternative.
So this video is of an eight minute steady-state progression starting at rate 20 and finishing at a 26. At the start of the piece it takes a few strokes to find that long 20spm (during the 5+10) so going forward what I would do in that situation is try to hit the rates just like I would during a race, which means calling it the same, giving the same instructions, etc. (albeit minus the intensity of a race – her tone here was perfect for what they were doing), that way if you have to do something similar during an actual piece you’ll already know what to say to get them to respond (and in turn, they’ll know what they need to do).
That means telling them to hit it the rate “on this one”, making rate-specific calls such as “lengthen out a beat here”, etc. If you’re doing 5 to build or something similar then you’ve gotta communicate with your stroke beforehand and say “we’re at an 16 right now and we’re doing a long build into a 20, all you’ve gotta do is hit half a beat each stroke and we’ll be good”. From there, as long as you’re in the 19.5 – 20.5 spm range, you’re fine. Particularly at the junior level it’s unlikely that you’re going to be right on your desired rate every single stroke so going with a tight range like this gives you some wiggle room and prevents you from having to say the stroke rate every stroke to try to get it exactly on a 20.
This applies to all the other transitions too. Instead of saying “OK let’s take it to a 24 … 22.5, 22.5, 22.5, 22.5, 23.5, 23.5, 23.5, 24…” just say “OK we’re at a 22, let’s hit that 24 in one stroke with the legs … on this one, leeegs, good 24…”. Or, if you’re doing a long build again (which I think they did going from the 22 to a 24), instead of saying the rate on every stroke and nothing else, say something like “OK we’re gonna take another long build into this 24, let’s make sure we’re staying controlled, finding our length, and moving right with stern pair. Ready to go … on this one, that’s 1 through the water, 2 23, 3 controool here, 4 let’s hit that 24 … on this one, boom send…good, right on rate.”.
One of the things I think she did well was build her tone/intensity across the duration of the piece. It drives me crazy to hear one-note coxswains cox pieces like this because they never do anything different with their voice. If the rate and pressure is going up, by default so should your tone/intensity.
I love how she docked too. Good job giving them instructions and telling them what to do every step of the way. Novices in particular, take note – this was a pretty good example of how to bring it in at the end of practice.
You can find and listen to more recordings by checking out the “Coxswain Recordings” page.
Previously: Rush(ing) || Body angle || Pick drill || Suspension || Skying the blade || Quarter feather
This week’s term is one of two that aren’t specifically part of the rowing stroke – it’s actually part of the rigging. In relation to the stroke though, the first half of it (push + hang) occurs in front of the pin and the second half (the draw through) occurs behind the pin.
In physics terms, the pin is the fulcrum for the oar, which is the lever. It’s hidden when the oarlock is on so you can’t see it but it’s the vertical axle that the oarlock rotates around and is also where pressure is applied throughout the stroke. In order for the stroke to be effective, lateral pressure must be applied against the pin in the direction that the blade is moving (not the legs).
“Maintain pressure against the pin…”, “hold your weight against the pin…”
“Rotate around the pin…” This is mostly in relation to achieving the proper length and body angle. Reminding the rowers to reach out over the knees and rotate the torso around the pin (while leaning into the rigger) helps emphasize keeping the chest up and not dropping the outside shoulder.
The pin is one potential spot of connection in the boat so if you lose connection there then you lose efficiency in your stroke. More so with novices than with experienced crews, you’ll want to keep an eye on the oars to ensure they’re flush with the oarlocks at all points during the stroke (see the first link down below).
You can also draw attention to the pin during drills like the pair add-in drill where the shell is gradually getting lighter and picking up speed as each pair comes in. The load is going to be a lot heavier when there’s two people moving the shell vs. eight people so keeping pressure against the pin while cleanly accelerating the blade through the water should be the focus of your technical calls.
In a rigging sense the pin plays a big part in determining the pitch, spread, span, oarlock height, and work through (all discussed in the intro to rigging posts linked down below). As far as the actual stroke goes, the key thing to remember is that pressure against the pin + acceleration is what allows rowers to effectively move the load.
To see all the posts in this series, check out the “top 20 terms” tag.
Previously: Intro || The recruiting timeline + what to consider || What do coaches look at? || Contacting coaches, pt. 1 || Contacting coaches, pt. 2 || Contacting coaches, pt. 3 || Contacting coaches, pt. 4 || Highlight videos + the worst recruiting emails || Official/unofficial visits + recruiting rules recap || When scholarships aren’t an option || Managing your time as a student-athlete + narrowing down your list of schools || Interest from coaches + coming from a small program || How much weight do coaches have with admissions + what to do if there are no spots left || Being recruited as a coxswain, pt. 1
If you’re a (good) coxswain then you know that recording yourself isn’t something you can avoid doing, particularly if you want to be recruited. Here’s a few tips and things to remember as you prepare to send your audio to college coaches.
I always prefer GoPro footage because it lets me see how you interact with the blades, i.e. are you paying attention to what’s actually happening in/around the boat or are you just talking and running through a script? Ultimately I think it’s keeps coxswains honest and forces them to be more accountable. Coxing isn’t just about sounding good so if you have a GoPro I would always default to sending that over a regular recording.
“Tight” meaning the recording is cut down to just the important stuff. For the race, don’t send a 20 minute long mp3 with 14 minutes of unnecessary noise on either side of the actual race. I can’t even begin to tell you how annoying it is to receive recordings like that. The same goes for practice – follow the JNT rules and cut your practice audio down to 10 minutes.
My suggestion is to include clips of you calling your warmup (actually coxing it, not just saying “stern pair out in two, bow pair in”), a drill or two, and then 3-5 minutes from the actual workout pieces. A brief description (meaning a sentence or two max) of each section is also helpful. Also, for races make sure to note the race/regatta, the event, and how you finished. This is important for context purposes so don’t forget to include it.
Don’t send out just any recording – you want it to be a reflection of your best efforts as a coxswain. Narrow down what you have to your top two or three and then ask one of your coaches, a fellow coxswain, etc. which one they think represents your skills the best.
Swearing in recordings doesn’t really bother me personally but I do roll my eyes when it’s obvious how gratuitous it is (and trust me, it’s always obvious). My advice to coxswains who ask if they should send a recording that has swearing in it is to just use your judgement but err on the side of caution when possible.
Coaches that get all high and mighty about a 17 year old saying “fuck yea, that’s it…” in the last 250m of a tight race also make me roll my eyes because a) rowing coaches literally swear more often and more gratuitously than any other group of people I’ve ever met and b) as long as you’re not saying “see ya later motherfuckersss” to the crew you’re walking through, who cares. Maybe that’s just my millennial showing but I really don’t think it’s that big of a deal. Still, you have to recognize that some coaches do care and it can be a turn off for them.
If the recording you’ve chosen has swearing in it but it’s the one that you feel is your absolute best recording and none of your other ones showcase your skills better than it does, then at the very least try to bleep it out. As long as it doesn’t end up sounding like the radio edit of a NWA song, you’ll be fine.
Next week: Technique and erg scores
College Coxing Training & Nutrition Video of the Week
This week’s video isn’t embeddable so you’ll have to go here to watch it. Yale coxswains + 500m erg race = GOLD. Note: for the most part, their technique is pretty damn good … no excuses, coxswains!