In case you’re unfamiliar, “Row Like Pigs” is a student-made film about the 2003 Dartmouth men’s team and is considered to be one of the better rowing documentaries out there.
Here are some of my favorite parts:
Chicken vs. pigs, contribution vs. commitment. Took me a minute to get it but when I did … mind blown.
“In reality, it’s pretty simple. You just have to work phenomenally hard, get phenomenally fit, phenomenally tough, and when we race, lay it all out and you’ll do alright. In fact, you can even win it all. It’s that simple.”
“Refuse to be beaten.” (Imagine that as a call in the a bow ball to bow ball race coming into the last 250m…)
Winter training = football camp, works two things: fundamentals of the sport and fitness; great way to explain it.
“At first you’re just like, are you kidding me but then you’re like ‘I can do this! And not only can I do this, but I can do it well.'”
“Bring the assassin out of the closet.” That’d be a great call.
“When it’s time to go, the Dartmouth guys go. They’re not scared, they don’t hesitate, they walk into the valley of the shadow of death and they do not fear evil.” Replace Dartmouth with your team name and “evil” with your competition’s name. Break this out around 1000m in. Good call for toughness, both physical and mental, when they need it during that middle thousand.
“When you feel the splash, when you hear the splash, that’s when you jump.” Anticipate.
“Seat racing’s maybe one of the hardest things about this sport. You go all fall and winter and then you get this one shot after six months to make the boat, you know, and if you don’t, it’s hard to not look back and have regrets and doubt yourself. And also, one week you’re helping your friend through an erg test, you know, he’s your best bud in the world, and then the next week you got switched across the gunnels with him for a seat race. It’s hard to keep emotions out of it. It’s hard to not make it personal. In the end I guess you gotta just make whatever boat you’re on go fast and just train again for next year’s one shot to make it. Making the first boat isn’t everything. You’ll have more opportunities to do it but if you let that shit distract you for too long, you’ll miss the opportunity to just race boats and have fun.”
“I want that fucking bow ball, push them the fuck away. Put them under your footboards and stomp on them.”
48:42, I like the “40 seconds Dartmouth, now GO!” call.
58:27, honestly if you don’t laugh at this just leave.
It’s an hour long so whenever you’ve got free time or you’re getting an extra workout in, put this on.
