Continuing on the premise that handling crewshells on land is at least as complex (often more so) than on water, we move to where the rubber really meets the road... more
Some years ago -- very tentatively -- I went out on what I thought was a limb and affirmed that the first stroke of the settle was probably the most important stroke of the race. more
With ice forming on the rivers and lakes (apologies for the northern hemisphere centrism), long dark months off the water can force certain entirely-explainable, yet disconcerting (to the civilian), adaptations and behaviors to get us through to spring. more
Despite turning the Mediterranean into "their sea," neither the Roman Republic nor Empire put a high priority on naval power, except for brief crises periods requiring the hurried building of a fleet. more
The 24-hour focus of being a lightweight rower ingrains a special intensity. The number 155 dominates their lives; it is literally stitched into much of their rowing clothing. more
Never share water bottles. As tight-knit a unit as a crew is, it's all too easy for a bug to decimate a boat during an important week of practice or just before a major race, and sharing water bottles -- no matter what the temptation -- increases the risk. more
Your rowers may have been barely awake before, but eyes begin to open on that one, as the lengths of rope on the boathouse floor begin to convince them that maybe -- just maybe -- they heard you right the first time. more
The coxswain's role during indoor training season can be an ambiguous one, especially going through it the first season as the ergs rev up like jet turbines and any small objects nearby get sucked into the intake. more
Despite the comment above, it is indeed possible for coxswains of bowloaders to be the same kind of diagnostic coxswains as when they can see their rowers and oars in a sternloader. more
Summer is the season of pick-up boats, of oars strapped to the roof of the car, of borrowed boats, and of rowing with the people you want to row with. more
So, your crew has just been given a brand new shell; it sits gleaming on the rack in your boathouse, and the donor has given you total latitude in what to name it. more
The most awesome rudderless landing story that I know of comes from Baylor School, in Tennessee, where a friend of mine coached and initiated their rowing program. more