Tag: qotd

Coxing Q&A Rowing

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Hi…I’m a rower, coming to you for a little bit of advice on something from a cox’s perspective. I’m in a squad of women and at the moment we tend to swap in and out of boats a lot. My question is, would you – as a cox – rather have a set crew you are working with from very early on in a season or do you mind the idea of continual ‘scratch’ crews? I just don’t feel it gives me as a rower a chance to develop effectively and I wanted to see what a coxswain’s feelings on it would be.

Easy – I’d much rather prefer have a set crew.

When I was in high school, we got on the water in February. We were like the freaking post office … rain, wind, sleet, or snow, we were on the water the second week of February like clockwork. From the time we got on the water until mid-March, novices learned how to row, varsity worked on technique, and lineups were tweaked. The second week of March, lineups were set for the season (which ended the last weekend in May). If changes were made, it was one person switching out on a Monday and by Wednesday it was decided whether or not that person would stay in the boat for the regatta. Friday was always our travel day and we raced on Saturday and Sunday so lineups had to be set on Thursday in order for us to be able to do get a practice piece in before we left.

From my perspective, I would hate constantly switching crews because:

I, as a coxswain, wouldn’t be able to get a good sense of the boat tendencies if different people were always switching in and out

The boat would be unable to develop any sort of chemistry

The rowers wouldn’t be able to focus on technique if they were being switched in and out of boats and/or consistently following a different stroke

I agree with you in that it doesn’t give the rower an adequate opportunity to develop their skills. It’s the same for coxswains … they can’t develop their skills either for the same reasons.

It’s frustrating, but maybe your coach has a plan – talk to them and see what it is. Ask if this is going to be a normal thing, the constant switching, or if the boats will ever be 100% set. Explain why you don’t think it’s helping you develop properly and ask if they have any advice on how you can improve while you’re in the midst of all these rower/boat transitions.

Coxing Q&A Teammates & Coaches

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I started rowing about a year and a half ago, but I’m 4’11 so my coach had me cox 4-5 months after I had started rowing and instantly fell in love. I’m a varsity coxswain, but I always have trouble finding my voice during races. I’m not terribly confident because some of the girls in my boat criticize me, but it’s never constructive it’s really rude, but I stumble over my words and end up repeating myself. Do you have any tips on how I could improve my calls?

How many is “some”? Is it one, two, five … ? Regardless of how many people it is, you should talk to your coach and tell him/her what’s going on. Explain that constructive criticism is fine but that isn’t what you’re getting.

Something I’ve found is that when rowers start being rude like that, they don’t trust their coxswain for whatever reason, legitimate or not. If you haven’t yet, try talking to them before you talk with your coach. Tell them that their criticism isn’t helping because it comes off as being hostile and ask if you’ve done something in particular to make them not trust you as their coxswain. It might be awkward at first but as the leader of the boat it’s your responsibility to be assertive and figure out what the deal is. They also need to keep their feedback to themselves until you get OFF the water. Until then it just ends up being a distraction. You’ve got to work on not being nervous and not letting those few rowers get to you. Listen to what they say, eliminate the bitchiness, and see if you can see what they’re trying to convey. If they’re just being rude, ignore them.

As you become more confident in your abilities, your calls will come to you. When you make a call, be aggressive, assertive, concise, and direct. Don’t waver or let your voice give away that you don’t totally trust what you’re saying.

Something I always recommend to coxswains who are looking to improve their calls is to listen to the recordings of other coxswains. It can be helpful to hear what other people say so that you can then borrow, adapt, and modify their calls to fit your crew. Hearing the different tones of voice that other coxswains use can also help you find the most effective way to say things to your crew. Here is a list of coxswain recordings I’ve found online that should help with this.

Talk to your rowers, talk to your coach, work on your confidence, and you will be FINE. Don’t let your rowers walk all over you. Chances are that you haven’t done anything wrong, those few rowers have just sensed “weakness” and pounced on it. That’s just some people’s personality. When you’re in the boat though, you’re in charge and you should be the only one talking.

High School Novice Q&A Rowing

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So I know you mostly get questions from coxswains but do ya think you could riddle me this? I’m a high school rower (started last winter) so technically I’m still a novice but since the beginning of summer I’ve been rowing varsity. I absolutely love the sport but I sometimes feel a bit intimidated by the fact that I’m constantly racing girls older than me! I’m only 15 and most of the girls I race & row with are getting ready to head off to college! Any advice on how to face the competition?

That’s great that you’re rowing varsity if you’ve only been rowing for less than a year. If anything, the girls that you’re racing should be intimidated by you since you’re most likely 2-3 years younger than them. You’ve clearly done the work and proven to your coaches that you can handle the responsibility of being a varsity rower so own it.

Be a leader in your boat. Don’t assume that just because you’re younger than everyone else that that is the persona you need to take on. Speak up, offer your opinion (when the time is appropriate), get everyone started on stretches if your coaches/coxswains aren’t around, and be coachable. Always offer to take oars down, wash the boat, etc. ACT like the varsity teammate you are instead of trying to hide in the background because you’re intimidated by the other girls. Whether or not they let it on, the girls that are graduating are going to worry just a little bit about what the state of the team will be when they leave. If you start proving yourself as a strong leader and good teammate now, not only will you gain so much respect from them, the other rowers on the team, and your coaches, but you will offer them reassurance that the team will THRIVE in your hands. This will result in them embracing you as a teammate rather than just acknowledging your existence in the boat.

When you’re racing, don’t worry about those other crews. If you’ve done everything you need to do to prepare, you’re going to be looking at their backs going down the course, not the other way around. You never know, there might be novice rowers in those varsity boats too. Hold your head high, keep your chin up, and maintain that look of determination in your eyes. If you do that, they will be just as intimidated by you as you are of them right now. It’s all about attitude. What have you observed about the girls on your team and the teams you race? What does their body language convey, both on and off the water? What’s their rowing like? Emulate that!! When you’re on the water, FOCUS. Concentrate on working to perfect everything you do during practice each day. Be able to pick out two to three things that got better by the end of practice. Push yourself. Don’t settle for anything. Always strive for MORE. The only thing you should be intimidated by is the expectations you have set for yourself. If you’re not intimidated by your goals and expectations, you haven’t set the bar high enough.

Coxing Novice Q&A

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Hi, I’m a novice coxswain for a Girls Novice 8. We have competition in less than a week, and our boat is a mess. Catching and finishing in time is a major problem, as well as motivation. My priority really is motivation but we don’t have access to a Cox-Box until the day of competition, and are currently rowing on a boat with no steering; so all turns are pretty much manual. In less than two weeks we have Head of the Hooch and we can barely operate! Any feedback or advice would be helpful.

Why are you even on the water? Being in a boat with no steering not only sounds completely pointless but more importantly, incredibly unsafe. Add in the fact that you don’t have a cox box and then it becomes really unsafe.

Are you having problems motivating them because of the situation you’re in with the boat or are you having trouble because they’re just not that into rowing? If it’s because of the boat, there’s not much you can do other than remind them that (hopefully) this is only a temporary situation and that they’ve just got to make do with what they’ve got. Tell them that instead of focusing on how much the boat sucks, focus on themselves. Think about THEIR strokes, THEIR body position, THEIR timing, THEIR technique, etc. Channel the frustration into something productive. If you’re having problems motivating them because they’re not that into the sport, that’s tough. Rowing is one of those sports where the motivation has to inherent otherwise external motivation isn’t going to have an effect.

Remember, you are NOT their cheerleader. Motivating them is, in my opinion, about 2% of the role of coxswains. It’s miniscule. You’re there to give them feedback, to tell them what they’re doing right, what they’re doing wrong, how to improve, what needs to change, who needs to change it, where you’re at in the race, what the other crews are doing, what they need to do to hold off the other crews or walk on the crews ahead of them, etc. Being motivating doesn’t mean that you’re sugarcoating things or stroking their egos either – it means being brutally honest, no matter how much they might not want to hear what you’re saying, in the hopes that what you say lights a fire under their ass and gives them the push they need to do what needs to be done.

Coxing Q&A

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My rowers told me after practice today that I should focus on the tone of my voice and not be so “intense” during our practices. I don’t really know how to fix that actually. Like I don’t think I am so “intense” but rather just firm and trying to be concise with the command I give out. They said that they really like how I cox during a race piece because my intensity level fits the circumstances. But they also said that if I cox in a similar tone to race pieces, they can’t take me seriously during the races. But my problem when I first started coxing was not being firm enough and getting complaints about how I should be more direct on my commands. Now when I am, my rowers say this. I don’t really know what is the happy medium. Like I listen to coxing recordings and I feel like I am doing fairly similar tones.

I understand exactly what your rowers are saying but I can also see where it can be confusing to you. Think about hearing someone say the same word over and over again … just incessantly repeating it until it doesn’t sound like a word anymore. That’s kind of what is happening with you right now. You’re keeping the intensity in your voice ALL the time and when it comes time for you to actually USE that intensity, the rowers don’t hear it because they’re so used to hearing it during practice. Does that make sense?

While you’re coxing communicating firmly and concisely is key but you can do that while talking in a conversational voice. How do you talk to the rowers (or anyone) when you’re not in a boat? Just … normally, right? When you’re calling drills or short pieces, use THAT voice. You can still make the calls short and staccato without raising your voice or making your voice deeper. Not only do you sound more natural but you also sound more confident. Sometimes intensity, especially if it’s an all-the-time thing can be mistaken by the rowers (and your coach) as being nervous or lacking confidence. It can also piss the rowers off and make them think you’re on some tiny tyrant rampage in which your goal is to assert your dominance over them. The speakers in the boat depersonalize your voice, so you’ve really got to work to let the rowers know you’re not a robot. If something awesome happens in the boat – it FINALLY sets up, they get a little more jump, whatever – get EXCITED for a stroke and then immediately bring your voice back down.That change from calm to intense will give them a little kick and keep them “awake”, so to speak.

As your crew starts to increase the intensity of the workout, you should start to increase the intensity of your voice. Build into it together. You want your voice to always be aggressive, but that aggressiveness doesn’t necessarily need to correlate to the volume of your voice. Think like when your parents get really angry at you … like the kind of angry where their voice is really stern but really quiet. That general idea is kinda what you’re going for.

High School Q&A Training & Nutrition

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Hi I’m a sophomore in high school and this is my second season rowing (I’ve rowed all fall and part of summer but also rowed last fall but couldn’t row in the  last spring due to an illness). I’ve fallen completely in love with rowing and my ultimate goal is to race at the Head of the Charles my senior year. My team is quite large with four varsity girls 8s and I’m on the novice team right now. Next year and my senior year I’ll be on the varsity team. My team only sends the top varsity girls 8 to the HOCR and even though it is so far away, do you think it is possible for me to meet that category even though I will have only had three years of rowing experience? Does my not rowing most of freshman year put me at a dramatic disadvantage, even though I plan to row every season until then (most people on my team don’t do summer)? Thanks!!

Given the fact that you’ve already rowed for two fall seasons plus the summer and have two fall seasons ahead of you, I think you have plenty of time to work towards making the top 8+. Missing that one season is not going to hurt you – did you know most Olympians didn’t start rowing until college? That’s FOUR YEARS of experience they missed out on and look how many of them are carrying around medals right now. If you put in the effort, which it sounds like you’re willing to do, that one season off is not even going to be noticeable.

Your dedication is evident so that makes you look pretty favorable to your coach because he/she knows that you’re willing to do the work without them telling you to. What is the “top 8+” based on? Erg scores? Seat racing? If you don’t know, I would find out. My guess is that erg scores will play a role, as will seat racing.

Here’s a few other suggestions…

Spend as much time on the water as you can during the fall, spring, and summer. Optional workouts? Go. I guarantee your competition (the other girls on your team and the crews you’ll be racing against) aren’t wasting any opportunities, so neither should you.

Work on your 5k/6k erg times. What are the times/splits that the girls in the top 8+ this year have? That should give you a good idea of what your coach is looking for. Don’t try and take 45 seconds off your time right off the bat either – the longer you do something, the less time that’s going to come off so you won’t be able to drop a ton of seconds like you did when you first started erging. Don’t be discouraged by that, just keep in mind the splits your coach is looking for and work towards them.

Set goals for yourself – short term goals (for the week), medium goals (for the month), and long term goals (for the season). Write them down and put them somewhere where you’ll see them frequently so you can remind yourself of what you’ve gotta do.

Get in the gym if you can, at least 2-3x per week. The only way you’re going to be stronger on the erg and more importantly, on the water, is if you build up your muscles. Legs, back, and arms all contribute to overall power, but having a strong core really helps your technique and to prevent injuries so don’t forget to work that too. Make sure you know how to properly perform any exercises you do before you do them in order to avoid injury, as well as knowing how much weight you can handle. In the fall you should focus more on endurance, meaning low weights, high reps.

Make sure you give yourself rest days so that your body can recover. You’re tearing muscles when you exercise and they need those off days in order to repair, adapt, and get stronger.

Cross train. Swim, bike, or run for at least 30 minutes 1-2x a week. This helps improve your cardio and prevents your body from getting bored.

On top of all that, talk to your coach after practice and spend some time asking him what he thinks you need to do over the next two seasons to eventually make it in that top 8+. Ask him where he thinks you can make some improvements and then ACTIVELY work to make those changes happen. Being coachable will work wonders for getting you what you want. Don’t get complacent either. It’s easy to forget about your goals when they’re something that’s far in the future. Take breaks every now and then and give yourself time to relax, but when it’s time to train, focus and do the work.

College Ergs Q&A Recruiting Rowing

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What is a good collegiate lightweight women’s 2k if you want to get recruited?

I don’t know much about women’s times outside of the generally advertised times coaches look for. If you’re trying to get recruited the top programs tend to look for times that are sub-7:40, otherwise sub-7:50 will probably get you some looks. Outside of that, if you’re just looking at general times it’d probably be best to ask your coach since they’d probably have a better idea of what a good goal would be to shoot for.

Ergs Novice Q&A Rowing Training & Nutrition

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I’m freaking out about novice tryouts. I’ve never done a 5k before and I heard we have to do one!! What should I do to prepare?

In the fall, you will do LOTS of steady state workouts – they’re part of the training for head race season but also a good way to test your overall endurance. It’s hard to prepare yourself to do well on a 5k if you only start prepping a week or two ahead of time so keep that in mind.

My suggestion is that once your coaches have taught you how to row with proper technique, just get on the erg. Start off doing a 5k piece as a baseline to see what your time is with NO preparation ahead of time. Use that number to work off of. Throughout the next 4-5 days, do some pieces that work on your endurance. Also do some core workouts and make sure you put in a rest day or two. Don’t burn yourself out before the season gets started.

Long pieces like 5ks are a totally different animal than your standard 2k. They require intense mental preparation and the ability to pace oneself. It’s easy to fly and die with any erg test but especially with 5ks. Once you hit about 4000m, you’re gonna start hitting that wall and think “I cannot physically do this anymore”. The body of long races and pieces like this are where rowers are made though – they show how mentally tough you are. Can you push yourself past that wall or are you going to let it beat you? That last 1500, start to slowly bring up the rate. Get ready to sprint. Push that split down a little bit more with each stroke. When you get to 500m left, let loose. Everything you got left goes into that 500. Find your rhythm and sustain it. Don’t back off. A 1:55 split hurts just as much as a 1:57 – the only difference is that you’re done sooner.

Novice Q&A Racing Rowing

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I’m a novice rower and I’m racing in my 1st head race this weekend, any tips? I’m freaking out!

Don’t freak out … that’s tip #1.

Get some sleep

It is CRUCIAL that you get an adequate amount of sleep the night before your race. You can’t expect to be prepared to row your hardest if you only get 3-4 hours of sleep. Aim for at least eight.

Eat a good breakfast

If your race is in the morning, this can be tricky because you want to give your body enough fuel but you also don’t want to eat too much too soon before your race. If you eat a big meal too close to race time, all the blood that should be going to your muscles will instead be going to your stomach to help digest all that food. 2-3 hours before race time eat a small meal, such as a bowl of oatmeal, a slice of toast, a handful of strawberries, and some OJ. If you can’t eat that far ahead, try to eat something like a bagel and cream cheese an hour or two beforehand. Make sure you’re drinking plenty of water too.

Relax

Save your energy. Don’t be walking around a lot before your race. An hour or so before you’re supposed to meet at your boat, find a quiet spot near your trailer/tent and just chill. Throw in some headphones and relax.

Check your seat

Are your shoes tied in? Are the nuts and bolts on your rigger tightened? What about the seat tracks? Are they clean? (If not, the seat won’t slide smoothly and you can jump the tracks). Your coach or coxswain will go through and do a once over before the boat launches, but if you’ve already looked at your seat and know something needs adjusted, it will get done that much faster.

Remember your technique

The more tired you get, the better your technique needs to be. The more tired you get, the more focused you need to become. That’s when injuries happen, when rowers start rowing with poor technique. When you feel like slouching, sit up a little taller. When you feel like hunching over, push your shoulders back. One of my favorite things to tell my 8+ is to not let your brain defeat your body. Your body is capable of SO much more than we think it is and you are hardly ever as tired as you think you are.

Let your coxswain do her thing

Head races are for coxswains. It’s basically like Mario Kart come to life. It’s going to be hectic, crowded, frantic, confusing, and at times a total clusterfuck. If she knows the cardinal rule of coxing (don’t let ‘em see you sweat), you won’t know when she’s freaking because the eight in front of her isn’t yielding or because she’s totally confused by the warm-up area and the horde of boats clogging the traffic lane. Don’t try and tell her what to do or how to do her job. When you’re done racing, make sure you tell her she did a good job too and you appreciate her getting you from point A to point B.

Good luck!