Tag: novice

Coxing Novice Q&A

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Tips on teaching new coxswains? So far I’m trying to let them make as many decisions by themselves (i.e pick a side to touch if we want to turn & if its wrong they can just change rather than telling them) & explaining why we do specific calls, but beyond that I’m not quite sure what to say to them. I don’t want to be too demanding but I want them to be really confident moving the boat too!

With regards to picking a side to touch, you should be telling them which way to push the strings if you want to go one way or the other because it’s a huge waste of time if they have to constantly keep adjusting their point because they went the wrong way. It’s never “just” changing, there’s a lot that goes into it. Steering as a novice can be hard and trying to process how to fix it, especially if no one’s told you what to do in the first place, is a recipe for disaster or at the very least, a really irritated and overwhelmed coxswain. This isn’t to say that you should be holding their hand and telling them what to do every step of the way every time you’re out on the water, but you do need to thoroughly go over everything with them before you go out and then once you’re out, remind them every so often for the first week or so if you notice they’re doing the opposite of what they should be doing. Letting them make and learn from their mistakes is fine but they need that initial bit of instruction to go off of.

I’d suggest writing the basics down, photocopying it, and then distributing it to them to read before the season starts. How to get the boat on and off the water, how to steer, the calls you use, etc., that way they can start to learn the stuff before they get on the water. I find it’s better to get acquainted with that kind of stuff before you have to use it vs. trying to learn it as you do it. Give them small tasks to do that lets them test the leadership waters – run warmups, supervise a certain 8+ being loaded onto the trailer, etc. so they can get comfortable leading groups of people. Observe them and then tell them what they did well and what they can do better on next time – i.e. speak louder, give specific people specific tasks, be more confident when giving instructions (no stuttering or stammering), etc.

Something that’s also important is to explain their role in the boat and on the team. I don’t mean the “you’re the short person that yells and tells people what to do” version, I mean the “as the leader of the crew, the rowers rely on you for technical feedback and encouragement, the coaches rely on you to be the ‘middle man’ between them and the rowers, and the team relies on you to be a leader who is able to delegate, foster cooperation, and be a ‘jack of all trades’ to do whatever is needed to ensure the team’s success” version. If they know right off the bat that these are the expectations of them by their coaches and teammates they can start to “buy in” to the position a little bit faster than if they just went through the motions of making calls, telling people what to do, and being loud.

I would caution though that unless you’re a coach or a varsity coxswain, try to avoid telling the novice coxswains what to do. From observation and reading a lot of the emails and messages I get, novice coxswains tend to find it confrontational, intimidating, and not helpful when rowers start telling them what to do. When you’re on the water, the only person who should be talking to the coxswain is the stroke (and coach, obviously) and even then, the stroke needs to issue restraint and not butt in too much.

Coxing High School Novice Q&A Teammates & Coaches

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This is my second season on my team and although I rowed in the fall, I was drafted to cox this spring by my coach. The novice girls had widely out-shined the novice boys (beating their times twice in the fall) and that was exacerbated by the loss of everyone but their bow four and five seat. Five seat quickly became a sculler, and a walk-on became our other coxswain. She’s super friendly and I love her to death, but her steering and calls need improvement. I’ve busted my ass to become what the varsity and head coxswains have called “the best novice cox on the team”, and have medaled with my girls four at every single regatta this season, even though the four is usually an afterthought. The other coxswain had not medaled yet, and has crashed several times. However, she got to take out the boys in our BRAND NEW Vespoli bowloader, while the girls are relegated to a slightly old stern loader.

Due to her being a sophomore, I was sent with the boys to states and had a week to practice in our other bowloader, while our head got the new one. I worked to keep the boys in check, and was not afraid to be frank with them, also being professional and focused in the boat. In a week, they went from placing 8/16 to second at states. She was with the novice girls, and screwed up their start which resulted in them not making finals, and had at least three people say something along the lines of “I wondered what would have happened if you…” We got back to practice today, and she was allowed to take out the boys in our brand new bowloader while I was sent with the girls. I love my girls and we had a great practice but I had three out of the four boys say they wanted me back in the boat and my bow pair ask me to specifically not do things she had done. I just feel like ALL my hard work with the boys is being ignored and I’m probably being ridiculous but it just feels so unfair to me because I worked so damn hard to help them get that medal. Sorry if this was long, I guess I just wanted some coaching input on why this decision was possibly made. Thanks for reading, I needed to vent.

I get the frustration. Have you tried talking to your coaches? They’d be able to give you actual insight into the situation vs. my speculation. It’s worth doing if you haven’t already. It’s possible that they don’t realize how irritating this situation is for you so it’s not even something they’re thinking about (which isn’t an uncommon thing with coaches and coxswains). I wouldn’t bring up the boys saying they wanted you back or the other coxswain messing up the start (because it’s never just one person’s fault, although I understand what you mean) but instead focus solely on what you’ve done since joining the team, what you’ve accomplished, why you think you’re the best coxswain for that boat, etc. State your case.

I can’t really say why your coach(es) would put a coxswain with a history of crashing into a brand new boat but if I had to venture a guess I would say that they’re hoping the responsibility of coxing the new boat would force her to pay more attention to her steering and make better decisions while she’s out on the water. Trial by fire, almost. It really bugs me when coaches do that though rather than just teaching the coxswains what to do and how to do it properly.

Have you talked to this other coxswain and offered to help her? Like, give her tips on steering or things to say when she’s in the boat? You obviously don’t have to give up all your secrets but if you see she’s taking the guys out again, tell her that saying _____ really helped when you were doing this drill or when you were halfway through a piece and then explain why it worked. What helped you when you were first learning to steer? Help her out and give her some advice on how to not hit things (without being sarcastic, which can be tough in situations like this…). Part of being a good/great coxswain is sucking it up when you really don’t want to and helping the other coxswains, even the ones who might be coxing the boat you want/deserve. It shows a certain level of maturity that everyone will appreciate for different reasons.

If after talking to your coaches they end up keeping her in that boat, say OK and let it go. Focus on making the boat you’re in the fastest boat on the water. Being bitter over a coxswain who is not as good as the boat she’s coxing (sorry, I don’t know any other way to say it) getting that spot over you does absolutely nothing for anyone – trust me, I’ve tried it. Be proud of your accomplishment in being part of the 4+ that got 2nd place at States but if you end up having to cox another boat, commit yourself to them. Even though you’re not outright saying you want to be with the guys, it can be obvious through your body language or you hanging out with them before/after practice that you’d rather be with them and the boat you’re currently with is your second choice. Try to help her out though and give her pointers if you see she’s having trouble. Ask her how practice was, how that last piece went, etc. You’re still teammates and the overall success of the team requires everyone working together to get better.

Coxing High School Novice Q&A Racing

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Hi, I am a exchange student and I joined our crew team. Since I am pretty small I am a coxswain. I am now moved up into our first boat but I never know what to say during a race. The problem is I am not a native speaker and so I have even more problems to make good/clear calls. Do you have any tips for Nationals (YES we qualified) and Stotesbury?

Do you have a race plan? If you have a race plan that you can go off of, that tends to make it easier to come up with calls vs. not having one and doing everything completely on the fly. It allows you to have a “skeleton” to go off of for about 50% of the race and then the other 50% you fill in as you go based on what you’re seeing happen around you. Below is a hybrid of some of mine:

Starting 5 (pry, 1/2, 3/4, lengthen, full) + high 20 + settle 10 (5, 6, 7, let’s lengthen in 3, 2, 1, lengthen boom).

10 at 500m (what it’s for is based on what I see…it could be to push a crew back, to walk, or just for ourselves, so I’d call it to push our puddles back, to feel the acceleration, etc.)

Related: One of the varsity rowers told me about a certain race move/call-10 for pairs? Like having all 8 take a 10, but emphasis for specific pairs. I’m not sure how to call that, can you help me out?

3 + 20 at the 1000m (3 to build into a 20 at the 1000m. No change in stroke rate, just building the power on the first 3.)

5 at 750m to regain composure and shift our focus to the last 1/3 of the race.

15 at 600m to make one final move on the field, either to walk or walk away.

10 at 400m, final 3 building into the sprint (1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, shift up to our sprint (7), over three (8), two (9), and one (10)…sit up and go)

Related: When do you call power 10s, both on the erg and the water?

Last 250-300m is an all out sprint, driving for the line

10 in the last 100ish meters to charge the line, get the bow ball ahead if necessary, etc.

As far as calls go, talk to your rowers and ask the what they want to hear. I tend to ask them to tell me one technical and one motivational thing they want me to call and then I’ll write that down and try to work it in somehow over the course of the race. They are your best resource though for figuring out things to say because you want to make calls that resonate with them.

How a collegiate coxswain earned her crew’s respect

College Coxing High School How To Novice Teammates & Coaches

How a collegiate coxswain earned her crew’s respect

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After yesterday’s post on respect went up, I got an email yesterday from a coxswain that I wanted to share. I think most of can say “yup, been there…” and relate to what she’s saying. She brings up a lot of excellent points so I hope everyone is able to take something away from reading this and apply it to your own situation.

Related: RESPECT

“Here’s my story on how I gained respect on my team.

I rowed three sprint seasons at an all-girls’ high school prior to becoming a coxswain in college.  When I joined the team, they were so short on coxswains that they bumped me right up to varsity – in the men’s boat.  Now, I realize that my coxing style is definitely one that works best with men’s teams, but when I joined the team, I was a shy first-year student trying to adjust to life in college who only had experience with women’s rowing and sprint races, and who had clocked in only a few hours in the coxswain’s seat previously.  I was terrified, and although I like to think I didn’t show my nervousness to an extreme degree in the boat, I certainly did not sound sure of myself, and that led to a bumpy season with regards to team dynamics.

Later on in the season, we had a really bad race.  The crank that turned my rudder had corroded to a point at which it would not even turn the rudder to port slightly.  Pair that with steering that still was at a novice level, and you get a race that left us all, including myself, even more unsure of my abilities as a coxswain (I won’t go into details – but it was hairy).

That was when I talked to my coach, who told me to meet with my stroke seat to come up with a game plan and a list of goals; my coach’s logic was that if you have one of the rowers on your side, the rest are more likely to follow suit, especially if it’s the stroke seat who naturally assumes a leadership role in the boat.  There, he told me something that has stuck with me.  This particular comment only applies to my situation, but the general sentiment, I think, applies to all crews.  My stroke seat didn’t mince words, looked me straight in the eye, and said:

“We are a boat of eight big, cocky guys who all think we’re better than everyone.  We’re bigger than you, stronger than you, older than you, and we don’t give a shit that you rowed longer than most of us have.  So we’re not going to give you respect; you have to take it from us.”

Let me first say that the guys I coxed that season are not the brand of asshole that you would think after reading that comment. And obviously it wasn’t meant to be – nor was it taken as – an enumeration of my flaws. It was just a glimpse into the mind of a college men’s crew.  But it was exactly what I needed.I don’t think I’m exaggerating when I say that within a week of having that conversation with my stroke seat, my coxing did a total one-eighty turn.  I started as a timid little freshman and ended as a coxswain who would kick her crew’s ass and push them to their limits. And, more importantly, I finally understood something really important about coxing that I think all novice coxswains have to realize, one way or another: you have to know who you’re coxing.  It’s obvious, and you say that on your blog all the time, but that was when I learned it, and it made all the difference in learning how to deserve and earn the respect I wanted.

In my case, I had to (for lack of a better term) sack the fuck up and be willing to get a little mean, because I was coxing men who respond best to (constructive, not over-the-top) aggressiveness and a no-bullshit coxing style.  In cases like yours, it might be figuring out how to bridge the age-gap, if a coxswain is much younger than his or her crew.  In all cases, it’s a matter of being flexible and letting WHO you’re coxing inform you HOW to cox them.  For me, I gained respect by yanking it away from them and claiming it as my own, making it absolutely clear that I am not to be messed with.  For someone else, it might be totally different.  But the underlying principle is the same no matter what: respect has to be earned, not just given, not because “ree-rah I have the microphone so what I say goes” and not because of some divine right thereto.”

Image via // NBC Olympics

Coxing Novice Q&A Racing Teammates & Coaches

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Today my coach posted the line ups for our race this weekend. I am racing in the 2V8+. It is a pretty good boat, but we have a novice coxswain. She has coxed for us before, but she often crashes into other boats and in the last race she called a power 10 for the muffins at the food tent! We have tried to give her suggestions for what we want to hear, but she just doesn’t listen. Is there any respectful way to ask my coach if we can have another coxswain?

When you’ve given her suggestions in the past on things to say, how have you done it? Have you just kind of thrown out a bunch of ideas all at once or did you write them down and give her the piece of paper? Speaking from personal experience, I know it’s hard to remember what eight different people want you to say when they just word-vomit the ideas out at you. When I realized I wasn’t going to remember anything they said, I went around to each person and had them write down one or two calls that they want/needed to hear and then I’d take the paper out with me and try to incorporate them into practice. If that’s the reason it seems like she’s not listening, I’d try writing stuff down and giving it to her, then seeing where it goes. If she’s not listening just because she doesn’t want to or doesn’t care, that is an issue that you should talk to your coach about.

Being that your race is in two days, I think that, unfortunately, it’s probably too late for your coach to put another coxswain in the boat. I’m not sure how big the regatta is that you’re going to but most require lineups to be submitted a few days ahead of time and to change the lineup the day of requires a lot of work that no one really wants to waste time on. It’s also possible that your coach is putting her in the boat with you so that she can get experience with a crew that actually knows how to row, if that makes sense. Sometimes novice coxswains pick things up faster when they don’t have to also worry about coxing eight people who have no idea what end of the oar goes in the water.

That’s not to say that you still shouldn’t talk to him/her though and explain that when you’ve had her in the past, this is what’s happened, and it makes the boat feel uncomfortable when she’s coxing. Ask if today and tomorrow he can spend some time on and off the water working with her on whatever you/the boat thinks she needs help with. She is a novice, remember, so there are still going to be kinks that need to be worked out but hopefully your coach can get through to her the importance of steering straight, making good and effective calls, etc. I would also grab one of the varsity coxswains and ask them to work with her and give her some pointers.

Coxing High School Q&A Teammates & Coaches

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IDK if you can help with this but I’m a novice coxswain and there is another rower/coxswain on varsity who keeps giving me a lot of crap for things that are out of my control. Like, if I tell my boat to be back at a certain time and they are a little late or if another coxswain makes a mistake and takes my boat’s oars – I get blamed. Like it is my fault that other people messed up. It really just shakes me up and stresses me out before we race. Any advice to get her to stop?

People like this are the kind of people you just have to learn to ignore. I know it can be intimidating as a novice to have a varsity teammate always on your ass like this but the best way to deal with it is to either ignore it or just say “OK thanks, I’ll take care of it” and then walk away. There’s no reason to let it stress you out. At one point or another I think we’ve all had teammates or people we’ve worked on group projects with that are like this. It’s like they’re bored or something and just looking for something to complain about to make it seem like they’re doing or contributing something. I just roll my eyes at them and ignore it because that’s really all the consideration I tend to give to whatever they’re saying.

Something you could do is make an appeal to your boat or the other coxswain who took your oars. Tell your boat that when you say to be back at a certain time, they really need to be back by that time so you can then do whatever you’re going to do – go out on the water, your erg tests, etc. You don’t have a lot of practice time so the time you do have can’t be wasted. When they say (and they will say this, trust me) “we were like, two minutes late, what’s the big deal…”, tell them that you know that and while it might not seem like a big deal to them, things still get said to you about how your boat was late and it gives the impression that they don’t listen to you when they frequently aren’t at the boathouse when you ask them to be there. You don’t have to be mad or angry when you tell them this – just have a conversation and let them know that as their coxswain, teammate, etc. you’d appreciate if they could make an effort going forward to please be at the boathouse when you ask them to be there.

As far as other coxswains taking your oars go, make sure it’s clear before you take the boats out who is supposed to take which oars and which oars go with which boats. If someone accidentally took the set that your boat was supposed to use, whatever, but don’t be afraid to say “hey, I think yesterday you might have grabbed our oars on accident – we’re taking the one with blue tape…” and then leave it at that.

If the varsity rower/coxswain who is giving you problems continues and doesn’t let up, talk to your coach or team captain. Explain the situation, tell them that you’ve talked to your boat about being on time and the other coxswains about making sure you’re all taking out the correct oars, and then get their input and go from there.

Don’t let it stress you out or piss you off. Is it annoying? Yea, absolutely but the less you fuel the fire by responding to what they say or getting upset about it, the less they’ll bother you.

Coxing Q&A Racing Rowing

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I’m a coxswain but since I’m the only available freshman they’re having me row this Sunday. I’m replacing a girl who’s going to a family party. Anyway, I feel like I can’t push as hard and I’m letting the rowers down! I’m so stressed out that I’ll catch a crab or something!

Whether anyone has told you this or not, no one expects you to go out and pull as hard as the girl you’re switching in for. What they do expect is for you to go out, try your best, and row as hard as you can. You know what to do since you’ve been telling the rowers how to do it while you’re coxing…now’s your chance to do it yourself. Use it as a learning experience. Even though you’re going to be focused on the rowing, take mental notes on your rowing – what seems harder than you expected, what is your technique like, etc. and then remember all of that the next time you go on the water and cox. Use what you learned to help you cox the girls in your boat.

Don’t worry about catching a crab. If it happens, whatever, it’s not the end of the world. Recover as quickly as possible and get right back into it. Watch your timing, make sure the blade is completely square at the catch and finish, and only bury the oar as deep as you need to in order to cover the blade. Don’t stress out either! That takes all the fun out of racing.

Coxing Novice Q&A

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As a novice coxswain, I find it hard to ask for more of the rowers. I feel like I can’t push them other than asking them to stay at their stroke rate. All I say is, “great job,” “beautiful” “catch them” and other things about proving ourselves. How can I remedy this?

This is one of those instances where you just have to do it. There’s nothing else I can say other than get over whatever is holding you back and cox them. Your rowers are expecting you to tell them what their individual technique looks like, what they’re doing well, what they need to fix, what the boat as a whole is doing, how it feels, what’s happening in race situations, giving them general reminders on body positions, catch/finish technique, slide control, etc. and if you’re not doing that, you’re hurting the boat and your chances of improving as a coxswain. “Great job” doesn’t mean much if they didn’t actually do a great job, “beautiful” doesn’t mean anything if their technique is all over the place, and “catch them” is ineffective unless you specifically tell them how to do it.

Related: So, what did you see?

If you don’t know what you should be looking for or what to say that’s fine, but you need to go talk to your coach immediately and figure out what you should be observing when you do your drills, warmups, steady states, etc. and then determine how to translate all of that into effective calls for your boat. If you’re overwhelmed by all the responsibilities, that’s fine to admit too, but you’ve got to know that that will probably mean the coach will take you out of the boat in favor of a coxswain who has it under control and can push the rowers to their full potential. That’s not necessarily a bad thing though – it’ll give you an opportunity to sit back in the launch and observe while talking to your coach and finding out what exactly he sees and wants.

Novice Q&A Rowing Technique

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In a week’s time I have my first (of three) 2km scull and 2km ergo trials. I’m really nervous about the scull because I only just got off floaties (floats that sit under the oar gates for stability) and now every stroke at the finish I’m having a lot of trouble getting my blades out cleanly and together. Like my left is always on time and clean but my right always lags and such gets a bit stuck? How do I combat this?

My guess is that it’s one of two things: one, it might be a timing/coordination thing since you said your left is on time and clean but your right isn’t or two, your set is off and you’re leaning to port, which would explain why the starboard oar comes out clean (plenty of room to tap down vs. no room). Something I’ve noticed with the kids I see going from the stable boats to the less stable racing shells is that they’re afraid to lay back because they’re afraid of becoming more parallel with the boat. Since they don’t lay back, they don’t give themselves any room to tap the blades down which results in them having really sloppy finishes. That, combined with questionable handle heights to begin with, usually results in one or both of the blades getting briefly stuck in the water.

My suggestion would be to work on some release drills. Sit at the finish (laying back, sitting up tall, supported with the core), get your set, and then bob the oars up and down – all you’re doing is tapping down. This is obviously done on the square. Don’t go at a frantic pace but don’t go so slow that you’re losing your set on every stroke. Make sure you’re moving your hands at the same time, pushing the oars into the pins, and maintaining that pressure against the oarlocks. When you’re tapping down, occasionally look out at your oars to see how far you actually need to press down with your hands to release the blades from the water. If the blade isn’t at least an inch or two above the water, tap down more. Make sure you’re releasing them smoothly and not yanking or jerking the handles in and down. Once you’re comfortable with this, move on to the pick drill while continuing to work on the finishes. I’d do this on the square a few times before switching to doing it on the feather. Another drill you could do is work on the delayed feather drill. This one works to ensure that you’re coming out of the water square before feathering your blade (possibly another reason why it’s getting stuck, especially if the boat is offset). When you do this drill, you tap down and go to hands away on the square, then feather between hands away and bodies over, then square up again at 1/2 slide.

One final important thing that you’re going to need to work on is finding your balance and keeping the hands level throughout the entirety of the stroke. You don’t necessarily need to be balancing the oars off the water at any point other than the release just yet but the boat itself needs to be level. A couple weeks ago I heard some of the pre-elite scullers on the Charles being coached and something their coach said might help – I’m not sure if it actually works so scullers out there, feel free to correct me. He said that a “foolproof” way of keeping your boat set is to always have the knuckles of your right hand touching your left wrist. I didn’t hear the explanation but from thinking about it my assumption is that it would help you to keep your hands together and work on the timing to ensure they’re moving together.

Rowing Blisters 101

Ergs Novice Rowing Technique Training & Nutrition

Rowing Blisters 101

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Blisters suck — this we can all agree on. What most rowers and coxswains don’t know are the specifics of how and why they form, how to treat them, and how to prevent them.

One of my former coaches used to tell us that there was nothing more character-building in rowing than the blisters you get. A lot of the time you’re encouraged to just deal with them because they’re inevitable but a point in time comes when you have to stop just dealing with it and start taking the proper steps to protect the ones you already have and prevent more from occurring. Do not be careless when it comes to your blisters. There are few things more eye-roll inducing than rowers (novices) who are like “look at my hands, they’re completely torn to shreds, clearly this makes me the most badass rower ever!” Just … no.

What are they and how do you get them?

There are two kinds of blisters – your regular, run of the mill blisters and blood blisters. Regular blisters are pockets of fluid in between the upper layers of your skin. They’re most often caused by friction, which in rowing could be from overuse, having too tight of a grip, etc. The other kind of blister is a blood blister. These kinds form when blood vessels near the surface of your skin are damaged but the skin itself isn’t broken. There are two main causes for blood blisters. One is consistently rubbing the skin back and forth on or against something. The other, and more common cause, is the skin being pinched together (say, for example, when you’re rowing and suddenly the boat goes offset to one side and you smash your pinky in between the oar handle and the gunnel).

Related: Are you only supposed to get blisters on your inside hand? I have one on my outside hand on my fingers which has never happened before. I also have a tendency to over grip and feather w/ my outside hand. Would that have anything to do with it?

To pop or not to pop

There’s a lot of opinions out there on what you should do if you get a blister. Pop it, leave it alone, drain it, rip the skin off, sob quietly in the corner of the boathouse because your significant other will never want to hold your hand ever again, etc. I’m firmly in the camp of “leave it alone” if and when possible. As long as the blister isn’t having any kind of impact on your rowing you should aim to just let it be so as to avoid getting an infection in the open wound. This is one of those moments where you need to know the difference between pain and discomfort. Don’t deliberately mess with the blister if you don’t have to. If you develop a blister that has filled with fluid and is painful or disrupting your rowing though, you’ll want to drain it.

How to drain and clean your blisters

Before you do anything, wash your hands. It’s probably going to hurt but you never know what microbial nuisances might be lurking on your skin. Antimicrobial soap + warm water + at least 30 seconds per hand = acceptable. When you clean your blisters, especially the really bloody ones, try to avoid using peroxide if possible. Betadine is a better antibacterial alternative because it’s not as harsh on your skin and doesn’t hurt nearly as bad as peroxide does. Peroxide gets the job done quite well and there’s even some cool (read: gross) foaming action that happens with the really bad blisters but that being said, it hurts like a bitch.

As a pre-step to draining the blister you need to sterilize the needle or pin you plan on using. Don’t skip this step. It takes like, two minutes to do. You can sterilize whatever you plan on using by running it over a flame until it’s red hot and then letting it soak in peroxide for a few minutes.

When you’re ready to drain the blister, you’ll want to drain it from the side, not the middle as I’ve tried to illustrate below. To avoid creating a hole that would allow the skin to be easily ripped off it’s often suggested that you poke it with the needle from the top edge near your fingers. Keep the needle as close to your skin as possible.

Once the blister starts releasing the fluid, try not to let it run all over your hands. At the same time you’re poking it with the needle, hold a cotton ball or tissue on the blister so that the fluid can be immediately soaked up. Press gently with the pad of your finger to get the liquid out. Make sure that you’re actually pressing in the direction of the hole you just made too and do this until the blister is completely flat.

Once you’ve got the blister(s) drained you should put some Neosporin on them but keep them uncovered to give them an opportunity to dry out. NewSkin is another option but that seems to be a fairly hit or miss choice with most rowers. Some swear by it, others hate it. One thing that I’ve heard of people doing is rubbing Neosporin on a piece of sewing thread, putting it on a needle, and pulling it through the blister. Usually this is done before draining it but I don’t see why it wouldn’t be effective post-draining too. Doing this allows the medicine to get inside the blister and helps to prevent infections.

I’ve also heard about rowers using tea bags to help dry out and harden the blisters (via the tannic acid) – has anyone tried this? What have your experiences been? Another option is filling a bowl with epsom salts and warm water and allowing the salts to dissolve before soaking your hands for 20-30 minutes. This will help to dry out the blisters and keep them clean. Conveniently this process also allows you the time to catch up on all those TV shows you never actually have time to watch.

Related: Do you know any secret remedies for blisters? It’s the first week of winter conditioning and after only two practices I have killer blisters on my hands and ankles that I never got last year until later, and not as bad. I’m wondering if I’m doing something wrong with my form or something, although I’m not quite sure that could be the problem.

How to protect your hands

If you’ve already got blisters the next step is learning how to protect them while you’re practicing. Tape, band-aids, etc. are going to be your best friends if – if – you use them properly. Before anyone suggests it let’s get this out of the way right now: gloves = NO. You can’t get a good grip on the oar (yes, even with golfer’s or batter’s gloves) and your hands sweat inside them so much that you end up with way more blisters than when you started. You’re going to be tempted to ask your coach or coxswain if you can wear gloves but I’m here to save you from that embarrassment. Just don’t do it.

If you have blisters on your fingers, I recommend the knuckle band-aids since their little wing-like things allow them to stay more securely on your fingers. An additional option on top of – not instead of – the band-aids is to get those rubber finger protectors and slide one of those on. The rowers I’ve seen do it say that it holds the band-aid in place better so they don’t have to worry about it sliding around. If for whatever reason the blister starts bleeding, by having it in the protector you’ll avoid getting blood, bacteria, and who knows what else on your handle (and transferring whatever is on your handle into your open wound).

The issue that most rowers have is taping up the blisters on your palms and right below your fingers. If you just wrap the tape in a circle, about 1/3 of the way through your warmup you’ll notice that it’s starting to bunch up and expose your blisters to the elements. My recommendation is to wrap your hands similarly to how boxers wrap theirs. Obviously the tape wouldn’t need to be nearly as thick and if the blisters are only at the top of your palms you don’t need to wrap all the way down to your wrists but having the tape secured around your fingers though will ensure that it stays in place and you won’t have to worry about it.

Below is a video that you can use for reference. The loop that goes around your thumb (or whatever finger you choose) is what really secures your tape in place.

If you have a lot of blisters, buy your own tape and band-aids. Your coxswain is not a walking first aid dispensary. Anything that’s waterproof and flexible will be good since it’ll move with you and not restrict your movement.

You should be changing your tape and band-aids before and after every practice too because a) you need to clean your hands and get all the grunge off of them and b) the tape is going to be disgusting, rolled up on itself, and not effective at protecting your skin anymore.

How to prevent blisters.

Getting blisters as a rower is inevitable — it’s going to happen. You can limit the severity of them though simply by rowing with proper technique. Understand the difference between “relaxed grip” and “no grip” — “loose” does not literally mean loose as in flimsy, it means a happy medium between a death grip and no grip.

Avoid the death grip on the handle and instead keep the hands relaxed. On the recovery you should be able to freely wiggle your fingers while still maintaining control of the handle. You’ll know if you’re doing the death grip if your forearms and wrists are really sore and you’ve got hands that like they were rubbed on a cheese grater for a few hours.

Keep the towels that you use to wipe down your boats, oars, etc. clean too. At the beginning of the year it’s worth having everyone on the team donate an old rag or two to the team to use that way you’ve got an abundant supply. Also make sure the oar handles are being cleaned regularly too, especially if you’ve bled on them or had blisters open up during practice.

Know when a blister has festered into something more serious – and then get your ass to a doctor

MRSA. Sepsis. Cellulitis. Leptospirosis.

All of these are some of the potential consequences of bacteria coming in contact with your open wounds. All have been suffered from by rowers at some point or another. A prominent case that I remember reading about three or four years ago was the death of Andy Holmes, a several-time Olympian and gold-medalist from the UK, who died of leptospirosis after coming in contact with contaminated water. This resulted in British Rowing posting a notice on it’s website to rowers to remind them that good hygiene and proper care of blisters and track bites are crucial steps in not developing an infection, especially one that elevates to the severity that Holmes’ did.

It’s important for you to pay attention to any changes in the blisters themselves, the skin around the blisters, and most importantly, your overall health. If something looks or feels “off” don’t just suck it up — go to your local 24-hour urgent care facility and get someone to look at you. I know I say this all the time but I really mean it every time I do … better safe than sorry. Know how to separate discomfort or soreness from rowing from the symptoms of something more severe. If something feels off, tell your parent(s), coach(es), sibling(s), teammate(s), etc. so that someone else can keep an eye on you.

I’ve known three different people, two rowers and one coxswain, who developed MRSA as a result of not taking proper care of their blisters. On a scale of one to ten, two were probably at about a “six” with regards to severity and the other was at least a “nine”. That person got really sick and was hospitalized for about a week. This isn’t just stuff we make up to scare you into taking proper care of yourself, which you should be doing already. It can and does happen. Be proactive so it doesn’t happen to you.

Below is a quick rundown of each of the infections I listed above, in addition to their signs and symptoms.

Methicillin-resistant staphylococcus aureus (MRSA)

MRSA is a strain of bacteria that causes infections in the body and tends to be resistant to most commonly used antibiotics. It’s transmitted either through touching someone who already has it on their skin or by touching something (for example, oar handles) that has the bacteria on it. Signs of an infection include the skin around the initial wound being red, swollen, warm to the touch, more painful than normal, and potentially contain pus. Typically skin infections that are related to MRSA are mistaken for spider bites since spider bites look similar. If the infection spreads to the respiratory system, you could develop pneumonia and experience shortness of breath, a fever, chills, or a cough that you don’t otherwise normally have. If you go to the doctor and are given antibiotics, pay attention and see if you are actually getting better. If the infection continues to get worse, you develop a fever or the fever you have gets worse, or there are no signs of improvement after three(ish) days, go back to the doctor.

Sepsis (blood poisoning)

When bacteria enters the blood it’s known as a condition called “bacteremia”. Since the blood is typically sterile, the presence of bacteria is considered abnormal. Previous infections in the body’s organs can spread and lead to sepsis, which itself is a secondary set of symptoms, but it can also occur from bacteria entering through an open wound and being transported throughout the blood. Typically you’ll develop a rapid heart rate, a fever, and extreme chills, in addition to a rash that can appear in the form of skin discoloration or small red dots clustered across the body. Joint pain, disorientation, nausea, decreased blood pressure, vomiting, and clammy skin are additional symptoms you might experience if the infection progresses. At it’s most severe, your blood pressure drops to dangerously low levels which prevents your organs from getting the proper amount of oxygenated blood, leading to septic shock, which can cause (multiple) organ failure and death.

Cellulitis

Cellulitis, which is an infection of the connective tissues, is caused when bacteria (typically staph or strep) enters the body through broken skin (cuts, burns, blisters, etc.) and as it progresses, spreads to the deeper tissues, blood, and/or lymph nodes. The infected area will be warm and tender to the touch, red, and swollen. If it’s progressed to the point where the lymphatic system is involved you may notice that your lymph nodes are swollen and that you have streaking on the skin as the infection travels through the body. If the infection enters the bloodstream you will also most likely develop a fever.

Leptospirosis

This is a common bacterial infection transmitted between animals and humans. Typically we don’t come in contact with too many animals while we’re rowing but we do come in contact with a lot of water that presumably many animals have urinated in (another reason to work on splashing…). When you’re rowing and water from backsplash gets on your hands, legs, etc. that bacteria can enter your system through any open track bites or blisters you might have. Leptospirosis is a two-phase disease that starts with flu-like symptoms (headache, chills, muscle soreness, etc.), jaundice, red eyes, etc. before appearing to resolve itself. There’s a brief period where the person displays no symptoms before the second phase begins. Once that happens you get knocked out with illnesses ranging from meningitis to kidney and liver disease to full on renal failure.

The great thing though is that all of these conditions are preventable by taking proper care of any open blisters, cuts, etc. you have. I hope this helps answer some of your questions on how to handle blisters. If you’ve got a foolproof method that you turn to in dealing with your blisters, please leave it in the comments!

Image via // @petereed

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