Tag: novice

Question of the Day

By readyallrow January 16, 2013

Hi, I’m going to start coxing the novice men for this upcoming season, as well as rowing myself, but I’m so nervous about my first outing – do you have any tips? I’m mainly worried about the steering, spacial awareness, and other boats.

The number one piece of advice that I can give you is this: even if you are nervous, don’t let that affect your demeanor in the boat. I kind of look at it as being the captain of the Titanic – you’ve gotta be calm all the time so as to not incite panic aboard the ship. If your crew thinks that you don’t know what you’re doing, they might try and “take over” and tell you what to do and before you know it, you’ve got eight different opinions coming out you and each rower thinks theirs is the right one. I’ve seen this happen with several novice crews, which honestly just makes me laugh because the rowers are always novices too, so what do they know? Bottom line, stay calm and execute practice confidently.

The first few times you go out, your coach is probably going to run everything from the launch so all you’ll need to do is focusing on learning to steer. As you get more comfortable with steering, then you can start talking to the boat, learning what calls to make, etc. (If you want some more advice on steering, check out the “steering” tag.) After your first few outings, spend a few minutes talking to your coach and getting some feedback from them. Ask if they noticed anything in particular that you’ve improved on since the last practice and what you can do to keep improving. Even though most coaches are clueless when it comes to coxing, every now and then they offer up some good pieces of advice.

Once you get out on the water and can see the width of the boat with the oars extended, you’ll get a good idea as to how much room you take up on the river. Number one rule of coxing – use your common sense. (There’s actually like, 876 (at least) “number one rules of coxing” … this is just one of them.) Don’t get too close to shore and try to avoid other boats at all costs (for obvious reasons). Experienced coxswains will know to just move out of the way of novices but you should never assume that another boat will actually move. Your best bet is to maintain a safe distance at all times.

Coxing Novice Q&A Teammates & Coaches

Question of the Day

By readyallrow January 16, 2013

Hey there! Basically, my team lost all of their coxswains for the fall season, so I got bamboozled into coxing the Varsity A boat at the Charles with only 2.5 weeks of experience. So now winter training is in full swing and the novice team found a coxswain who coxed all four years of high school. The varsity guys are thinking about “stealing” her as their coxswain instead. On one hand, I want the boys in my boat to win and if they could do better with her as their coxswain then I want what’s best for them. But on the other, I don’t want to lose them! I feel like I’ve improved so much over just one season and I’ve been doing tons and tons of research these past few months off the water to prepare for the spring. I don’t know what I can do to keep my spot at their coxswain. What are your thoughts?

I’d talk to them and your coach (either separately or together) and state your case. Why should you be the coxswain that gets to cox this boat? What about you makes you the better choice? I can definitely understand them wanting to have a more experienced coxswain – that’s pretty natural. It sounds like you have a good relationship with your boat though so I doubt their intentions are malicious. Like you said, they want what’s best for the boat and what’s going to help them win. There are some serious advantages to having an experienced coxswain in your boat but that’s not to say that the research you’ve been doing the last few months hasn’t upped your skill level.

Talk to the guys in your boat and ask them what about this other coxswain is more enticing to them. Don’t approach the subject like “why do you want her instead of me” because that’ll just give them a reason to not want you. Instead, approach it as “if she’s doing something well then I want to learn how to do it too so I can incorporate it into my coxing and get better”. Also talk with your coach and see what his criteria is for choosing coxswains for his boats. Again, state your case as to why your name should be in the mix. Hopefully your coach will see your enthusiasm and recognize the efforts you’ve been putting in during the off-season and keep you on his short list for coxing that boat. This could also be a good opportunity to do a coxswain evaluation so you can keep everyone’s feedback organized.

During the indoor months, show up to every practice, be on time (which means early), help take erg scores down, cox the guys on the erg when they need it, volunteer to run circuits, help clean the ergs down after practice (gross, but necessary), take lots of notes, assist the coach with anything he might need help with … in short, be engaged. If you tell your coach you want to be considered for this spot in the boat, you’ve gotta work for it. Part of working for it involves not being a wallflower during the winter. Assuming you’re not on the water yet, you have to display a different skill set to demonstrate what makes you a good coxswain. (Granted, this is stuff you should do after you’re assigned a boat too, not just during the process of getting one.) Stuff like this can earn you a lot of respect from the rowers, which is one of the most crucial parts of coxing.

Ultimately though, the decision will most likely be up to the coach and whatever that decision is, you’ve got to respect it. If you don’t get to cox this boat, wish the other coxswain good luck, tell her what a great group of guys she has, and then throw your focus into your new boat. Approach them with the same enthusiasm as you would had you gotten to cox your other boat. Don’t make them feel like they’re your second choice – that’s a terrible way to start off the season and won’t do much for you in terms of gaining respect from the rowers.

Coxing Novice

Basic gear for novice coxswains

By readyallrow January 15, 2013

I’ve talked a lot about how coxswains should have a bag they carry with them when they’re on the water but as a novice you don’t really need all of the same stuff that experienced coxswains carry. There are definitely things I could add but this is just a “bare bones” list for when you’re just starting out. To see more tools frequently used by coxswains, check out the “tools” tag.

A good hat and pair of sunglasses can work wonders for a coxswain because they’ll help keep rain, wind, glare from the water, and (obviously) the sun out of your eyes. The less time you spend squinting the more time you can spend paying attention to everything that’s happening around you.

Besides your cox box, a wrench is probably the second most important tool that a novice coxswain should have. Being able to quickly run through the nuts & bolts before you go out and tighten them up ensures that you won’t lose any loose parts while you’re rowing. If you do have something come loose on the water though, having it on hand can be the difference between a quick stop and having to cut practice short. Just make sure you label them with electrical tape or nail polish so they don’t get lost. The type you’ll need will depend on the brand of boat you have – some use 10mm, others use 7/16in – so make sure you know what size you need before you pick one up.

There shouldn’t be a practice that goes by where you haven’t written something down in your notebook, especially as a novice coxswain. You can use it to keep track of lineups, practice plans, questions you have, warmups, drills, erg results, calls, observations from the launch, feedback from the rowers/coaches, etc. Any small pocket-sized notebook will work fine but one that has waterproof paper will ensure that it holds up against the elements if your bag gets wet or you’re using it in the rain.

A digital recorder is a tool you should be using on a regular basis (alongside your notebook) to help you develop your tone, calls, and overall presence in the boat. A good recorder shouldn’t cost more than $30-$50 either, which is much more affordable than the cost of replacing your phone should it get wet while you’re on the water.

To contain everything, you’ll want to get a minimally invasive bag that you can easily sling over your shoulder and access without much effort. Regardless of what kind of bag you have, it should always be waterproof. A small bag like the one above is perfect for the few things you’ll need to carry with you because it keeps them dry and organized … but most importantly, dry.

Image via // @sjaarslicht17

Coxing Novice

The “Three S’s of Coxing”

By readyallrow January 10, 2013

I was lucky enough to hear Mike Teti speak at a coxswain clinic I attended when I was in high school and one of the things he spoke about were “the three S’s”. The three S’s are what a coxswain should consider to be their highest priorities. For novice coxswains, consider this an introduction; for experienced coxswains, consider this a reminder.

SAFETY

Safety is always and forever your absolute number one priority. Why? Because you’re in charge of a $20,000-$40,000 boat and eight other lives. If something happens on the water, it is your responsibility to do what is best for your crew. I tend to compare being a coxswain to sitting in the exit row on an airplane. You have to understand how the boat works, how to operate it, be able to follow the instructions given by your coach, and assess, select, and follow the safest travel route(s), amongst many other things. Remember, it is always better to be safe than sorry.

STEERING

Steering is an imperative skill that all coxswains must become proficient with as quickly as possible. It’s not something to joke about and spend four months trying to figure out. Yes, it’s tricky learning to navigate a 53 foot long shell along waterways with a steering system that consists of two strings and a credit-card sized rudder but again, it goes back to safety. Zigzagging across the river and not following the traffic patterns can have disastrous outcomes for both your crew and anyone else on the water. The rowers are not there to steer the boat for you – it is your responsibility to figure it out.

SPEECH

I think if most coaches (and experienced coxswains) had their way, novices would be seen and not heard. Unfortunately, coxswains must be heard if they are to do the job that is required of them and to additionally ensure the safety of their crew. HOWEVER, I do believe that novice coxswains should be silent until they’re comfortable with steering the boat and have a firm grasp on their duties. Essentially, you must prove to me that you can handle everything that is being asked of you. Instincts are key as a coxswain and once safety and steering become second-nature, then you can talk. Another important part of “speech” is learning and knowing what to say. If what you’re saying isn’t constructive to the crew, you shouldn’t be saying it.

Being a coxswain is an amazing position to hold, but it is not one without responsibilities. Although these are just three of them, like I said before, they should be considered your top priorities. Mastery of these skills through practice, listening to your coach, and learning from your fellow coxswains will put you on the path to becoming your crew’s biggest asset.

For more on each of the three S’s check out the “safety“, “steering“, and “communication” tags.

Image via // @merijnsoeters

Coxing Novice Q&A

Question of the Day

By readyallrow January 9, 2013

Hi! I love your blog, it’s really helpful! I’m a novice coxswain and our team integrates varsity and novices for the spring. Combined, there are 2 varsity coxes and 3 novices including me. We’re all competing to make one of the 3 cox spots for the spring travel team. Being on the west coast, we’re able to be out on the water once a week during winter. The problem is, I’m the least experienced cox. I’ve coxed for total 2 1/2 weeks before our last head race in the fall. Do you have any advice?

As a coach, right off the bat there are three things that I observe with coxswains: how you interact with your teammates, how interested/focused are you on learning (everything there is to learn) and what efforts are you making to practice what you’ve learned, and what kind of leader you are. One thing you do NOT want to do is to get in an obvious competition with the other coxswains to the point where there’s just an abundance of negative energy in the atmosphere. Competitiveness for a spot is fine to an extent – I touched on that briefly in the post linked below.

Focus on improving yourself and not what the other coxswains are doing. Take inventory of the two and a half weeks you’ve spent as a coxswain so far. What are the most GLARINGLY obvious things that you need to work on? (You should have plenty of stuff to choose from.) Was there anything you picked up quickly? How assertive were you with your crew and teammates? Would you consider yourself a leader? How can you continue to improve your leadership skills? In observing the varsity coxswains, what did you notice about how they did things?

Give yourself goals of things to work on so that you’re not just showing up every day and going through the motions. Be enthusiastic about being there and make sure everyone else is excited as well. They don’t have to like what they’ll be doing that day but they need to come at it with a certain level of “pep” if they want to do well. If the coach asks “who wants to run circuits”, volunteer. If he says “who wants to take down erg times”, volunteer. Don’t be that coxswain that slinks to the back and never steps up. Get to know everyone on your team, even the people you know and don’t like. Your role on the team is to be objective, so personal relationships don’t matter when you’re in the boat.

Also spend time learning about technique, what calls to make, steering, etc. When you’re taking the boat out, take your time, especially if you haven’t had much actual experience with the boat (more on that below) – better safe than sorry. Talk with your coach beforehand and see what the plan is for when you’re on the water. If you’re not comfortable yet with steering, spend a practice or two figuring it out and getting comfortable navigating around your waterway before you start trying to talk to the rowers. Learn the calls you’ll make with your crew, what the warm ups are, how to transition, etc.

Basically, make an effort to show that you are just as committed as the other people on the team. Don’t skip practice or assume that your presence isn’t necessary. The respect you gain from your rowers is like currency … the more you have, the better off you are. It doesn’t mean you should work any less hard but it does put you in a much better overall position.

Coxing How To Novice Rowing

How to prepare your crew to row

By readyallrow January 6, 2013

One of the best ways to keep practice moving and avoid wasting time is to give clear instructions before you start rowing. Telling the rowers exactly what you want avoids having to listen to them say “well, I didn’t know where we were starting from” or “oh sorry, didn’t know it was just stern 4 rowing”.

Before you start a drill or a piece, here’s what you should be saying to your crew.

Who is rowing – all eight, stern four, bow four, outside pair, etc.

Where to start from – the catch, finish, 1/2 slide, etc.

What sort of rowing – a) slide position, either arms only, bodies over, quarter slide, etc, b) feather or square blades, and c) continuous paddling or paused (don’t bother saying unless it’s paused)

How hard to row – light, quarter pressure, half pressure, three-quarters, firm, full, etc. Make sure that when you ask for a pressure, the crew respond appropriately. Don’t be afraid to tell them to bring it up if it seems inadequate to you.

When to start – “Ready all, row.” Remember, you’re not really asking them if they’re ready…you’re more so telling them. If someone isn’t ready, more often times than not you’ll know before you make this call.

“Ready all, row” is a significant call that means many things. When I first started the blog this was what I said about this particular call:

“The title of the blog comes from the command that coxswains make before the rowers begin rowing. It signifies that everyone knows what’s going on and they’re ready to row. For coxswains, it signifies an understanding of the instructions given by the coach.”

When you’re transitioning between exercises, pairs, etc. it’s always “in two”. Make sure you say “one … two” with the stroke’s catch, since that is what everyone is following. One of my biggest pet peeves is when coxswains say “one, two” like they’re counting seconds … the rowers probably aren’t even at the catch yet when they say “two”, which causes them to rush up the slide to match what you’re saying and it just turns into a clusterfuck because people don’t know what’s going on. Yes, the transition is on your call but your call has to match up with when the stroke is rowing. With more experienced crews you can say “on this one” denoting the transition on the NEXT stroke instead of in two. This is what I frequently use with my eight. If you have strokes 1, 2, and 3 and you want to make a transition on stroke 4, you would call “on this one” at the finish of stroke 3.

The specific calls themselves tend to differ between countries (in the UK, “easy there” vs. “weigh enough”, “from backstops” vs. “at the finish”), but the instructions themselves are relatively similar. The end goal, however, is the same – everyone doing exactly what you want. (That sentence is probably the main reason why coxswains get egos too big for our tiny bodies.) Giving clear and concise instructions when you’re on the water maximizes the time you’re able to spend rowing and minimizes the amount of wasted time, so be sure that you are giving them the information they need to be ready to row.

Image via // @harry_brightmore

Coxing How To Novice Q&A Teammates & Coaches

Question of the Day

By readyallrow December 29, 2012

So I’m going to begin coxing this coming spring season, and I am constantly reading about experienced coxes getting annoyed with the newbies. Any recommendations for things I should do to avoid pissing everyone off?

It’s impossible to avoid pissing people off though because no matter what you do, someone will be annoyed by what you’re doing. So instead, I’ll give you some general advice.

Pay attention

Soak in the information. Listen intently to the coaches and listen to the varsity coxswains when they’re telling you how to do something or what to do.

Focus

Separate yourself from your friendships and realize that you’re now in a leadership position and favoritism is not something many people appreciate. When you’re on the water, focus on accomplishing the task at hand and not the fact that your friends are in the boat with you. Practice time is not synonymous with sleepovers…you can talk about school, boyfriends, girlfriends, etc. AFTER practice.

Do something

When you’re not on the water and you can see the varsity coxswains and coaches working on something, ask if you can help. If you see things out of place, put them back where they belong. Wipe down the ergs after people get off them, take down times, splits, etc. when they’re doing pieces, etc. Never just be standing around. Crew is not the place to be a wallflower.

Make an effort

Educate yourself. Do research. Coxswains are in the unfortunate position of being expected to do a million things but we’re very rarely ever instructed on HOW to do those things. If there’s something you don’t know or understand, talk with your coach about it and ask them to explain it further, then go home and Google whatever it is and see what else you can find. Ask questions – the only stupid question is the one you don’t ask.

Be enthusiastic

Don’t mope around and make it obvious that you’re bored or unhappy with your role on the team. If you’re actually unhappy about something, talk with your coach or a varsity coxswain before or after practice. During practice, keep the rowers engaged and on point. If the rowers aren’t looking forward to something, get them excited. Be THAT coxswain that always has a smile on their face and can make their teammates smile too.

Rest assured, varsity coxswains piss off novices coxswains just as much as novices piss them off. There’s a learning curve when you first start coxing that varsity coxswains forget about, which is why most of them tend to get annoyed. What I said up above is the bare minimum of what you should be doing but it’s a good place to start.

College Novice Q&A Teammates & Coaches

Question of the Day

By readyallrow December 27, 2012

I guess this is more a social life outside of rowing kind of question, but I’m in university rowing and there are a lot of socials which a lot of people attend. But, being in the UK, it’s all about getting drunk and partying etc, and I don’t particularly enjoy that so most of the time I feel left out and only go to the bigger ones (like Christmas ball) and have one glass. But I’m also a novice and want to meet people/seniors which is hard if you just go to practice. Do you have any advice?

When you go to the socials, try not to focus so much on the fact that you feel left out – instead, try and join in on some conversations if you see any happening, as well as look for anyone else who looks equally bored. There’s almost always someone else who is uncomfortable or feeling left out too that you can strike a conversation with.

If parties aren’t your thing, that’s OK! Take the initiative to try and organize something more low-key – maybe a team dinner at one of the senior’s apartments at the start of the year/season to get to know the new team members or a team activity to raise money for charity (an ergathon, triathlon, etc.). You’d be surprised how well you can get to know someone when you have to be on an organizing committee with them. You could also have once-a-month team get togethers … ideas for that could be each boat brings their favorite board/card game to play and you spend the night playing games, going on a restaurant crawl (drinks at one restaurant, appetizers at another, entree at another, desserts at another), etc. You could also look on Groupon or similar deal-sites to see if they have any good deals on stuff like rock climbing, laser tag, spa days & massages, etc. that you and some teammates can do.

Don’t be afraid to admit that parties aren’t your thing. If there is an upperclassman that you know fairly well, ask them for their advice … just say that parties aren’t your thing but you don’t want to seem anti-social or like you don’t want to get to know people, because you do. They might have some ideas for you too!

High School Novice Q&A Training & Nutrition

Question of the Day

By readyallrow December 27, 2012

I’m a novice rower in my third season. I’m one of the strongest novice rowers, but also the heaviest (female) novice. This hasn’t seemed to be a problem before, I’m very healthy and strong, but when we did weight-adjusted pieces I began to realize it was a bit of a problem. I’m 5 7 and about 178 pounds, and about 20 pounds heavier than the other girls. I’m not self conscious about my weight, although according to my BMI I am slightly over weight, and now I’m realizing I could perform better if I was slightly lighter. I’ve tried dieting before, but I’ve always felt weak and worried about my strength while working out three hours every day. Do you have any tips about losing weight healthily as rower?

First, as an athlete, don’t take your BMI too seriously. BMI can’t tell how much muscle mass you have and since muscle tends to weigh more than fat, it more often than not classifies athletes (of all kinds) as overweight or obese when they’re obviously not.

To lose weight in a healthy manner, it’s requires a fairly simple, boring combination of diet and exercise. To lose fat mass, cardio is the way to go – biking, runnng, swimming, erging, etc. 3-4x a week. To maintain your strength, do core and weight training 2x a week. The biggest change will come from your diet. Successful weight loss tends to be about 70% diet and 30% exercise. As a rower, you’ve got the exercise part covered, so your diet is where you’ll want to focus your attention. Take inventory of what you eat and then spend some time finding healthy substitutes and slowly phasing out the unhealthy stuff. Don’t try and go cold turkey on Ben & Jerry’s or whatever because that’ll just make you want it more.

The reason you were probably feeling weak before when you were dieting is because you weren’t doing it the right way. To some extent, yes, dieting is about adjusting your caloric intake, but it’s more about just making healthier overall choices. You’re young and active, so your metabolism is probably still fairly high, so you’re burning energy a lot faster than the normal person, which means you need to be eating foods that provide an adequate amount of energy for a long period of time. Don’t try and limit how much you eat..if anything, you want to increase the number of meals you eat (instead of 3 large meals, eat 5 small meals) and substitute healthier options for the not-so-healthy stuff.

Also, don’t focus too much on what the scale says. Check it periodically (like, every couple of days or once a week) but look for more noticeable changes, like your jeans fitting a little looser or changes in your measurements – tangible stuff like that is a better indication of weight loss than the scale.

Ergs Novice Q&A

Question of the Day

By readyallrow December 21, 2012

Related to what the other girl asked about mental issues with the erg – I have the same problem and can’t do anything without covering my split & predicted time. I recently pr’ed on my 1k (4:14, I’m a novice lightweight) but have only finished one 2k which was over 9 minutes. I need to be able to do an 8:40 2k, but I just don’t know how to do it. I can easily do 4x10minutes so I know I’m physically capable, but I don’t know how to do it. I just panic and stop. Help.

This is a really hard question to answer because it’s so personal. Only you know why you stop. I think in order to get past it you have to first figure out why you panic and what you’re afraid of. Only after you’ve done that can you actually acknowledge what’s making you stop so that when the point comes during a test, you can ignore it and keep going.

It starts with baby steps … first think back on your previous tests. Why do you stop and what scares you about continuing? Once you have that figured out, think about a solution. If you’re scared because you know it’ll hurt, that’s just something you have to accept. You can’t be a rower and not be a low-level masochist. Then try erging with just your splits uncovered. When you can comfortably do that, uncover your split and projected time. You can row with your eyes closed too, there’s not really a “rule” against that. For me though as a coxswain and a coach, I’m a firm believer that you have to look at the screen and be aware of where you’re at, otherwise how are you going to know how to approach the rest of the test or where to start sprinting, etc? Having a plan going into the piece tends to help alleviate a lot of nerves because you’re not just blindly erging – you’re actually completing mini-goals each time you pass a certain meter mark.

I hate to say you have to just “suck it up” because I know it’s harder than that, but at some point that’s what you have to do. You have to sit down and tell yourself that you are NOT going to let something stupid like an erg test defeat you. Between you and the erg, you have to be the bigger person.