Tag: novice

Question of the Day

By readyallrow April 2, 2015

Got 2 very different questions:

1) How would you describe the difference between a good men’s coxswain and a good women’s coxswain?
2) I’m going to be head of coxswains this fall – we call the position the Cox-Coach – so I’ll be in charge of cox education, both for novices and varsity. I’m already asking for input from our current coxswains and rowers, but here’s my question for you: ideally, what would week one look like in the training of a novice college coxswain (before ever going out on the water), and what are specific ways to help continue coxswain education long term?

Thanks!!

I’ll use our coxswains as an example for your first question because we just went over their evals from spring break today and it’s fresh on my mind. We have two women and one guy that make up our team of coxswains – the guy is a senior, one of the women is a junior, and the other is a freshman. All three of them are very good but what separates the guy from the girls (and why our team tends to favor him for racing) is his style of motivation. When we’re doing hard pieces he’s very loud, aggressive, raw, and in your face (you’ll see this when I post the videos I took last week). One of the rowers commented on his eval that he’s very good at getting them focused on pulling hard and winning but on the flip side he tends to only focus on rowing hard instead of first getting the individuals and crew as a whole rowing well. Basically his forte is that testosterone-backed style of motivation that just comes a lot more naturally to men than it does to women.

Alternatively, both the women bring a very calm energy to the boat. They can get aggressive when they want/need to but it’s a more calm motivational style that you typically associate with women. The energy they bring to the boat as described by the rowers is a more practical energy that they use to get the crew rowing well and swinging together. Having primarily coxed women in school this is definitely how I’d describe several of my friends. Personality-wise they tended to be a little more quiet and reserved off the water than others of us and that was reflected in their coxing style on the water. One thing I think we (and most women’s coxswains I know) were all really, really good at though was getting inside our rowers heads in that sick way that only women can do to each other. (I know some of you will know exactly what I mean by that too.) In my experience both with the men’s crews I’ve coxed and with coaching these guys, they all definitely prefer the more raw, in your face style whereas women’s crews don’t respond nearly as well compared to the calmer, more tactical approach.

So, I guess to answer your question … even though the answer is completely subjective based on each individual crew … what I think it comes down to is their style of motivation. Women’s coxswain also have to be a little bit better at how they phrase things and their approach to motivating certain personalities since in general women are a little more sensitive on that front compared to guys. The guys on our team probably wouldn’t blink an eye if our coxswains told them to stop being little bitches but if you said that to a women’s crew it probably wouldn’t go over as seamlessly. If anybody has any thoughts on this definitely feel free to share down in the comments.

For your second question, I think the first week should be spent just getting them familiar with the program and how things are run. Off the top of my head that’d most likely entail giving them a complete tour of the boathouse so they know where they can find things, where things are stored, which boats/oars are used by which crews, what the procedures are for various things (for example, how to notify someone that something isn’t working or needs fixed – we have a system for this at our boathouse where the rowers/coxswains/coaches fill out a slip that details whatever the issue is and then we attach it to a clipboard outside the workshop), etc.

Also introduce them to any relevant people, such as other coaches (it’s so awkward not knowing the other coaches and then having to awkwardly introduce yourself like, a week later…) and your boatman, if you’re lucky enough to have one. Boatmen can be a coxswain’s best friend (they always have spare wrenches which is great when the rowers lose yours … or in the case of our coxswains, drop them in the water three times in one week) so it’s worth it to get acquainted with them early on.

I’d also spend a day going over how your coaches run practice (what’s the standard “formula” look like – i.e. our practices start out with one or two drills that double as the warmup followed by pieces of some kind (the bulk of the workout) and ending with paddling/light steady state back to the docks) and what drills you typically do and how to call them (don’t get too into detail, just give them a brief “drills 101” overview). And then obviously you should also spend a day going over the different parts of the boat, how to work the cox box, how the steering system works, how to get the boats from the racks to the water (and back), and anything they should know about the water you row on (traffic pattern, shallow spots, areas to avoid, landmarks, etc.). The last two days of the week I would bring them out on the launch so they can observe practice themselves and see the thins you described about the waterway (traffic pattern, landmarks, etc.).

If you really want to go the extra mile, write all this down and give it to them in handout form so they can read it and not have to try to memorize everything you’re saying. Bonus points if you include labelled maps and diagrams since visualizing things tends to be a lot simpler and easier to understand than reading through dense paragraphs of notes.

As far as continuing coxswain education long term, making yourself available is definitely one of the most important things you can do. I don’t want to take too much credit for the improvements our coxswains have made this year but I think part of it goes back to them knowing that whenever they have questions or want to go over something I’m always available (and if I’m not, I’m always willing to make time outside of practice to talk). The more available you make yourself the more likely they are to ask questions or for feedback and in turn the better they’ll get. This might mean having regular “office hours” where you hang out at the boathouse for an hour each week and if someone has something they want to talk about, that’s their time to do it, or it might just be you putting out a general reminder, such as “I’m always free before/after practice, hit me up if you wanna talk”. Do what works for you.

Doing coxswain evaluations on a regular basis is also important because feedback from the rowers is critical in terms of know what’s working and what isn’t. Outside of that I don’t think there are any specific things you really need to do. I’ve done regularly scheduled meetings (usually on a weekly basis) in the past but it’s not always necessary so this year I’ve kind of adopted the whole “we’ll meet as a group if we need/want to and if we don’t, we won’t” mindset, which has worked fine for us. Like I said though, the biggest and best thing you can do is just making yourself available for when questions arise or they have something they want to discuss with you. It’s a really simple thing to do that can make a world of difference in the long run.

Coxing Novice Q&A

Question of the Day

By readyallrow March 3, 2015

Hi, I have never experienced rowing before and I would like to be a coxswain. I’ve done a little bit of research on what a coxswain does. I would like to know what you think is expected at tryouts.

Is there such a thing as coxswain tryouts? I don’t think anyone really “tries out” coxswains (mainly because it’s kinda hard to do due to logistics) so I can’t really say what you should expect. I would just show up, indicate you’re interested in being a coxswain, and plan on spending a good amount of time observing what the varsity coxswains are doing and how the coach(es) run things until it’s time to get on the water. The more you can educate yourself now on how the team does things, the basics of coxing, etc. the easier it’ll be once you’re actually in a boat.

Has anybody ever actually gone through coxswain tryouts? Did you have to do anything or did your coach just say “you’re invited to join the team, you’re not, etc.”?

College Coxing High School Novice

Some things to know as a novice coxswain

By readyallrow March 3, 2015

One of the most frequent emails I get from novice coxswains is some form of “I’m new, tell me everything I need to know, kthxbyeee“. Well, first of all, I can’t do that because everything you need to know isn’t always (or ever, really) at the tip of my tongue and even if I could, you’d remember maaaybe 5% of it. Second of all, stop it, it’s really hard to help you if you ask super general questions like that. Like, I understand that you’re clueless about this stuff but you’ve gotta narrow down your cluelessness to a few specific things at a time.

About a year ago someone posted a thread on Reddit asking “what are some things a novice coxswain should know” and then specified by saying “what are some things that I should learn, bring, and do to carry out my job better?”. I initially wasn’t going to reply because, as you can probably tell, generalized questions really irritate me but I liked the follow-up question so I responded with the following three pieces of advice:

Learn

The drills the coaches like to do before you get in the boat. This means asking them directly what the drills are, what their purpose is, what you should be focusing on when you do them, etc. Talk to the experienced coxswains about how to call them. Bring a notebook and write it all down because you. will. not. remember it if you don’t and then you’ll have wasted everyone’s time.

The names of the people in your boat and what seat they’re in. This might change day to day but it’s your responsibility to know who is where before you get on the water. Calling people by their seat number kinda gives off the impression that you don’t really care enough to learn their names or who’s in what seat.

How to keep your personal relationships with the rowers off the water and outside of practice. (Elaborated a bit on that here.) On the water and at practice you’re not their friend or enemy, you’re their coxswain. That means that you need to learn how to treat everyone equally regardless of your relationship with them (positive or negative).

Bring

A positive, “let’s get shit done” attitude every day, even on the days when you feel like shit.

A recorder every single day you’re on the water. Listening to yourself and getting feedback from others is how you improve.

One more layer (for top and bottom) than you think you’ll need and a waterproof jacket and pair of pants to put over everything. You’re stationary for pretty much the entire duration of practice which means you’re going to get colder faster than everyone else. You can always take layers off if you get too hot but you can’t put on what you don’t have. The waterproof stuff is great even when it’s not raining because inevitably there will be some splashing, waves if it’s windy, etc. In May when it’s warmer it’s not such a big deal but you don’t want to be sitting in the coxswain’s seat, not moving, with wet clothes on.

Carry (in something like this, this, or this)

A notebook (and writing implement of your choice). Before you go out, write down the lineup and get the workout (or at the very least, the warmup) from the coach. Ask questions and take notes on anything you don’t know/understand once they give it to you. After practice is over, write a quick summary on how it went, what you did, what did you specifically work on (calls, steering, etc.), etc. When you get home, go through it again and fill in any details that you didn’t write down before. Refer back to this frequently so you can see the trends with your boat(s), keep track of any technique issues that individual rowers have problems with (and how/what to say to fix them), etc.

A 7/16 wrench because you never know when a nut and/or bolt will need to be tightened.

Spare band-aids, alcohol swabs, Neosporin, and athletic tape because when rowers get a blister they rival toddlers in their ability to whine incessantly so having stuff on hand to take care of them will just make your life easier.

Something else that someone said that I think is especially important to learn and internalize early on in your career is that yelling as loud as you can is not the same as having authority or being a leader. You’re not automatically a “leader” just because you’re named a coxswain – it’s something you have to embrace and grow, nay mature, into and negatively embracing the Napoleon complex mindset is only going to hurt you.

In that same vein, don’t be that coxswain (or rower) that tries to rally your teammates against the coach because you think after three or four weeks you suddenly know more than us. Everyone has their own leadership style that they grow into with time and experience so don’t dig yourself into a hole right off the bat by assuming that everyone will look up to you just because you yell loud and tell them what to do.

That pretty much covers the basics but if you want to know more, check out these posts.

Making improvements as a novice coxswain

Body language, coxing, etc.

Steering and docking

Earning respect and how not to piss off your rowers

Basic gear for novice coxswains

Image via // @rowingrelated

Coxing Novice Q&A

Question of the Day

By readyallrow January 26, 2015

Hi, I was wondering about coxing brand new novices. I’m in boats right now where most, if not all, people are still learning how to row and working on figuring out technique so I haven’t been making very many calls other than if the balance is terrible or if people aren’t rowing together because my coach is talking individually to people to work on body form and things I can’t see. I feel bad about not saying very much, but I don’t want to interrupt the coach or focus on things not important right now. Other than steering straight and paying attention to explanations for correcting form, what should I be doing to improve my coxing?

This is a great question and one I know plenty of novices (and occasionally experienced coxswains) have at the start of each new season. It was also one of those “hard lessons” that took me awhile to learn, understand, and fully appreciate when I first started coxing. Truthfully, as long as you take advantage of what you’re already doing (steering, etc.), even though it might not seem like much, you’ll go a long ways in improving your coxing in a very short period of time.

Gonna go off on a tangent here for a sec. I don’t know if it’s a “just me” thing or if it’s because coxing can be really boring sometimes but I’d always think that I was listening to what my coaches were saying and then I’d get off the water not being able to remember a single thing that we’d done for the last 90 minutes. When I was a freshman in high school, I learned one thing from my math teacher and it’s stuck with me ever since. She was kind of an asshole and always made me feel like an idiot for not understanding what was going on but I reluctantly went to her for help because I was having a lot of trouble grasping what we were doing. She said, in response to me saying in an exasperated voice “yes, I’m listening (when you explain things)”, “Are you listening to me or are you just hearing the words I’m saying?”.

This really made me think and start to approach things a little differently, not just with my math class(es) but with crew too. When I’d come off the water not remembering anything we’d done, I’d think “had I actually been listening to my coach or was I just hearing him”? This was when I started teaching myself to be objective when it came to evaluating my own coxing. It’s really easy (like, really easy) to make excuses for yourself when you fall short of your goals and/or expectations because they’re not always as tangible or out in the open the way a rower’s are but you’re really only going to improve when you can objectively look at the situation and say “this is where I can do better”.

Once I realized that I was taking advantage (in the wrong way) of that very small window where you’re new and not being held accountable for anything yet, I started to challenge myself to be better at holding myself accountable. This meant listening to my coach’s explanations, mulling them over in my head to make sure I understood what he was saying, and then applying what he was saying to what I was seeing. Obviously after only a few weeks on the water I didn’t know very much about technique yet so after practice while the rowers were putting stuff away I’d try to run one or two things (be it a drill we did, something my coach said, something a rower asked me, etc.) past either our varsity coxswains or our coaches if they weren’t busy. I’m a huge proponent of the whole “you don’t understand something if you can’t explain it to someone else” so to make sure I understand how X related to Y or why A caused B to happen I’d explain it to someone else and have them help me fill in the holes or provide more context/details. Outside of doing what I talked about in the post linked below, this was one of the ways that I took my “coxing education” in my own hands (which I think we can all agree is pretty imperative).

Circling back around to your question, the biggest thing I can recommend is to make sure you’re actually listening to your coach when he’s talking to the rowers and not just hearing the words he’s saying. Try to relate what you’re seeing to what he’s saying and the effect that implementing a change has on an individual’s bladework, how the boat moves/feels, etc. After practice pick the thing that you least understood from practice and have someone explain it to you. Also pick the thing you felt you understood the best and run it by a varsity coxswain or a coach to make sure you actually understand it. (If you only have time to ask one of those questions, go with the thing you understood the least.)

As you get more comfortable with the basics of technique, start trying to make the connections between the blades and the bodies; if X is happening with the blades what does that say about what the bodies are doing? Don’t let your inability to see the bodies act as an excuse to not think about or understand how they work in the context of rowing. If the coach tells 5-seat to do A with his body, what kind of effect will that have on his bladework? Or, alternatively, if the coach is saying 5-seat is doing A with his body which is causing B to happen, how does that actually work? What about A is causing B … and why/how? For example, sinking into your hips at the finish. First of all, what does that mean? Can you visualize what it looks like (rounded low back instead of a long and supported core)? Poor posture is causing the rower to pull down into his lap … why? Pulling down into his lap is causing him to wash out with his blade at the finish … why? The effect that washing out is having on the boat’s speed and balance is … what? Once you understand all of that (which will take some time – there’s nothing wrong with spending a couple practices thinking about all that) start thinking about what the corrections should be (with regards to posture, body position at the finish, where the hands should be, etc.) and how they will in turn effect the bladework, balance, and speed.

Another thing to do that will really help your coxing, albeit in a slightly different way, is to give yourself at least one practice a week to just do … nothing. If you’re spending four or five practices doing everything I suggested up above then by the end of the week you’re probably going to feel a little overwhelmed. Give yourself a day to not pay attention to anything other than your steering. For me that day was always Wednesday (for four straight years with very few exceptions) but you can pick whichever day you want. Think about how your coach schedules practices, what you tend to do each day during the week, and then pick one of those days to be your “just go out and steer” day.

Consistency was key for me because once you start really getting in the grind of things, combined with whatever you’ve got going on with school, work, and life, you really need a day to just unwind and relax and having it always be whichever day you choose gives you something to look forward to. Wednesday was my day because it was the middle of the week and if you’re already having a shitty week then Wednesday is kind of that make-or-break point. Ending the day with two hours of “no talking, just steering” was how I cleared my head of everything that had happened during the week up to that point and got myself in a positive (or at the very least, not negative) mindset to tackle Thursday and Friday. It sounds silly and you might not appreciate it right off the bat but trust me, there’s always at least one or two days during the season where you show up to practice and you’re like “thank god it’s Wednesday and I can just steer and not think for two hours”.

Coxing Novice Q&A

Question of the Day

By readyallrow November 18, 2014

Hi, I am a novice cox and was just wondering about what to do during the winter training. Thank you so much.

Check out any (or all) of these posts:

Winter training tips for coxswains…

Coxswains + winter training (Similar titles, different posts, I promise…)

How To Survive Winter Training, pt. 1b: Coxswains

“The Coxswain in Winter”

How do you as a coxswain help your rowers when they are erging in the winter?

College High School Novice Q&A Teammates & Coaches

Question of the Day

By readyallrow November 5, 2014

What are some good team bonding exercises to do at practice? Our novices are moving up to varsity and we are looking for ways to bring the two groups together. Thanks! Love your blog!

Check out the two posts linked below. They all touch on “team bonding” in one way or another so there might be some ideas in there that you can use. The “secret motivator” one was a ton of fun for everyone so I definitely recommend that one as you get farther into the season.

When I coached at Marietta in the spring I was still trying to learn everyone’s names after about a week of being there and I noticed that a lot of the freshmen didn’t know any of the varsity girls names either so one day while they were warming up I had everyone get in a circle and go around one by one and say their name and grade. The catch was that you had to also say the names and grades of the people that went before you, which got progressively more amusing the farther around the circle we got. It was a good way to introduce everyone and break the ice, in addition to being a sneaky way for me to learn the names/grades of the people I didn’t know yet.

From there the “bonding” kind of happened on its own. Carpooling, boat dinners, traveling, silly activities like the name/grade thing, etc. all facilitated some of it but I’ve always been of the opinion that you can’t really force stuff like that, you’ve just kinda gotta let it happen naturally. If people are friendly and make an active effort to get to know one another then the two groups will merge into one pretty quickly.

Coxing High School Novice Q&A Racing

Question of the Day

By readyallrow October 29, 2014

Hi. So this is my first year being a coxswain and I’m pretty young (not going to specify). We have just started the season for regattas and I was wondering if you have any advice on what to call during a race with a novice crew? When we are just practicing I don’t really call much because our coaches like to come out on speed boats and help. Also what kind of weights do you take in the boat with you because at the last regatta we have had some problems with weights changing before and after the races which meant we got disqualified.

If you’re not talking a lot during practice because the coaches are working with the boat then the (usually unsaid) expectation is that you’re listening to what the coaches are saying to the individuals and boat as a whole so that you can incorporate the things they’re saying once you start coxing the boat more. So ideally, if you’ve been paying attention and not zoning out, you should already have a solid list of things that you could say to your crew.

As far as weights changing, I’m not sure I know what you mean. That would only matter if you’re coxing a lightweight boat but novice lightweight crews are fairly rare. Weight changing after the race doesn’t matter either, the important thing is that you’re at weight when you weigh in a few hours beforehand. After that you can pretty much do whatever you want. Most places will give you a wrist band or a stamp on your hand or something that indicates you’ve made weight too.

The only weight that should go in the boat is if you are below the minimum of 110lbs for women’s crews and 120lbs for men’s crews and you have to bring a sandbag or weight plates out with you to make up the difference (i.e. I weigh 95lbs so I’d have to carry 15lbs if I was coxing women or 25lbs if I was coxing men). Unless you’re going to actual USRowing sanctioned events though it is highly unlikely you’ll ever weigh in. I think I only did maybe three times my entire high school career. Sorry I couldn’t be more helpful with this part of your question though. Feel free to clarify in the comments or shoot me an email if what I said up above totally missed the mark.

Check out the posts linked above – they all kind of touch on first races with novice boats, things you can say, etc. Some might be for spring races but nearly everything is applicable regardless of whether you’re doing a head race or a sprint race. There are also links within those posts that might help you out as well.

College Coxing Novice Q&A Racing

Question of the Day

By readyallrow October 24, 2014

Hi. This is my first year being a coxswain ever and also my first year rowing for my college team. Our first race is this weekend on the Willamette. Any words of advice for someone who’s never done this before?

I’ll tell you the three things that I just told someone else:

Make sure you get plenty of sleep so that you’re well rested on race day. Fight the urge to lay in bed and scroll through social media on your phone or watch TV because before you know it it’ll be two hours later and your alarm is set to go off in two hours. This is a really bad habit of mine so whenever I know I need to get some sleep but am not feeling tired or would rather be catching up on Twitter/Instagram I’ll put an eye mask on so that it essentially forces me to close my eyes and try to fall asleep.

Pay attention during the coxswains meeting and if there’s something you don’t understand or want/need clarification on, speak up and say something. There’s a good chance that you’re not the only person with that question so you might as well ask it so the race officials can clarify it for everyone. One of the things that really encouraged me to speak up at these pre-race meetings was occasionally having the officials say “oh, that’s a great question” or “I’m glad you brought that up, I almost forgot to mention that” or something along those lines in response to something I’d asked. It might not seem like it’s that big of a deal but hearing that verbal confirmation that you had a good question can do a lot for a coxswain’s confidence (both at that moment and going forward).

Stay calm no matter what happens, both on land and on the water. Head races are always a little hectic, especially for coxswains (and even more especially for novice coxswains) but it’s a great way to test your ability to maintain your composure while executing your race plan and showing off your leadership skills to your coach(es) and teammates.

Since this is your first race as a coxswain it’s unlikely than anyone’s expectations are that high. That’s not to say that basic expectations aren’t there but no one expects you to go out and steer a perfect course or cox a perfect race your first time out. I always look at races like this as a learning experience first and a competition second. Make sure you have a rough plan going into the race and an idea of what things your coach wants you to focus on. Be aware of the traffic pattern (please) and try to focus on one thing at a time while still being aware of what’s going on around you as you make your way to the starting line and the starting chute.

Above all else though, have a good time. Enjoy the experience and be able to move past anything that doesn’t go according to plan.

College Coxing Novice Q&A Racing

Question of the Day

By readyallrow October 22, 2014

Hi! I’m a freshman coxswain on my college’s club crew team and I coxed for four years in high school. My team is going to our first race this weekend and it’s a head race. We only have about 1000 meters of water to use when we practice, so we haven’t actually rowed a 5k at practice and my boat has only really had one practice together. How do I go about coxing a head race when my boat hasn’t been together very long and some of the boys in my boat have never even rowed 5000 meters continuously?

There’s a first time for everything, right? Obviously things aren’t going to be perfect because as you said, you haven’t rowed together for very long and where you train doesn’t allow you to actually practice the distance you’ll be racing so one of the things that you could/should do is try to keep the focus on maybe two or three basic things (i.e. the set, the sequencing, and the timing). You know how you cox hard steady state pieces during practice where you’re not racing but there’s still that intensity about the piece and the focus is mainly on the technical aspects of the stroke, having enough power and ratio to get some good run on the recovery, etc.? That’s what I’m talking about. I’d approach it like that while including some hard 10s and 20s as you see fit.

Related: All about Power 10s

Having your expectations adjusted accordingly lets you (and your crew) shift your focus to things that can actually help you get better in the long run. Rowing 5,000 meters for the first time, both individually and as a crew, might not be easy but if you go into saying “here are our goals, this is what we’re going to focus on” then you can come off the water hopefully being able to say that you worked on them and felt them get better over the course of the race, in which case you could say that you had a successful race … vs. going into it with the sole goal of getting from Point A to Point B as fast as possible and only making calls about walking on other crews, “power 10!”, etc., all while knowing that none of those things are realistic for your crew to be trying to do right now. Hopefully that makes sense too.

The pressure of being in a race situation is obviously something they need to experience and learn to manage but your biggest responsibility will be to keep them focused on whatever goals you or your coach gives them (set, sequencing, timing, etc.) and not let everything fall apart once they start realizing how difficult it is to row full pressure at 30+ SPM over the course of 5,000 meters. Pacing will be important, especially at the beginning when they’re like “huh, this isn’t that bad… *tries to row full pressure at 38spm with no semblance of timing, set, or technique*”. As an experienced coxswain this is definitely something that you’re capable of doing so those would be my suggestions for how to cox them. Make sure you talk with the rowers and coach sometime in the next couple of days to figure out what they feel the current strengths and weaknesses are so you can start planning your calls accordingly. Good luck!

College Coxing Novice Racing Video of the Week

Video of the Week: “Ignatius, stop rowing”, pt. 3

By readyallrow October 20, 2014

Really? Really?

That novice boat should have been disqualified and given a serious talking to by the regatta officials with their coaches present. (Supposedly they only received a 20 second penalty.) This goes way past your standard novice screw-up. The blades of the two boats were overlapping which means they were probably less than 10 feet apart. This was almost a head-on collision between a varsity four at full race pace/pressure and an eight that appeared to be rowing at least by bow 4. It doesn’t matter that they’re novices, “oh they weren’t going that fast”, “they probably just didn’t know where to go”, etc. … NO. Not buying ANY of those excuses.

Coxswains, I implore you to use your common sense and pay attention to the traffic patterns so you know where the travel lanes are and where the actual race course is. I don’t care if you’re a novice or varsity – pay attention. Varsity coxswains (and coaches, because … it’s your job …), you should be asking the novices multiple times if they understand the course, the traffic pattern(s), etc. so that there is no question that they’re prepared when they go out on the water and aren’t going to be at risk of putting themselves or another crew in danger. Novices, you need to suck. it. up. and get over being intimidated by asking questions and ask someone if you don’t know where you need to go. There are plenty of people on land that you can ask, in addition to regatta officials and other crews on the water. You should also have your head on a swivel at all times so that situations like this don’t happen.

There’s really no question with regards to how the coxswain from Marietta College handled this. Given the nature of the situation, I think he did well. I mean, what else can you do other than make a split second decision to either try to get the other crew’s attention and/or drastically alter your course? He was loud, made a good effort to get the coxswain’s attention, got his crew right back into it afterwards, and didn’t appear to have to make any steering adjustments. Saying “way off course, coxswain” is pretty much the tamest thing he could have said in that moment so props to him for not losing it on the other crew. Trust me, as much as you’d probably want to in that situation … don’t. Find the regatta officials afterwards and talk to them or go find the crew’s tent/trailer if you know what team they’re from and let their coach know what happened. It’s not about throwing them under the bus or trying to get them in trouble so don’t use that a reason to not say something later. The only way situations like this are going to be prevented in the future is if people speak up and give the coaches/officials a chance to address with the coxswains where they need to be on the water, either again or simple more effectively this time.