The ‘ Rhecon ’

Rowing / Sculling System

Updated: 17/05/2017Recently added: Early layback - February 2015 Constant heel contact - December 2014 Effect of early layback - January 2017 Legs, arms finish together - June 2017

Graham Cawood Cell: 021 298 8513Email: Graham.Cawood@xtra.co.nz

Yes! The boat is fastest during the recovery.

Contents. Page.Special features of the Rhecon sculling system : 2The stroke – in brief. 10

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The stroke – in depth. 13General discussion. 34

The ‘RHECON’ Sculling system.Special features:

1. Work : Recovery time ratio nearly 1:1 - always.a. This is the normal racing ratio- watch any expert.b. Doing it always helps it become automatic.c. It has a rhythmic,economical, pendulum effect.d. It is probably the most efficient ratio when done at race rate.e. Trains a fast, smooth, catch and release.

2. Early layback. Get your shoulders behind your hips at the catch, by pivoting above the hips as the blade enters.

a. Reduces the load on the back during the work.b. Gives a longer leg drive.c. Layback is the natural pulling posture.d. Later leg use makes it unnecessary to hold the legs down at the

release.

3. Back remains comfortably bent always. Relaxed!a. Saves energy by not straightening the back.b. Curving the whole back prevents excess flexing of the vulnerable

lower back.c. It’s what the experts do.d. Longer ‘reach’ with shoulders over the knees.e. Pivot at or above the hips, not by straightening the back.

4. Blade is feathered while, not after, it leaves the water, followed by a quick ‘away’.

a. Benefit from the ‘Pelota’ effect. (see more on this later). Feathering actually drives the boat.

b. Blade can be lifted less, therefore gate height can be lower. Less work for the lower back.

c. Pull on blade right up to the extraction/feather.

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5. Breathing: Two breaths per stroke - always. Breath out for the ‘catch’, and the ‘release’.

a. Compressed stomach at the ‘catch’ forces the diaphragm up, and prevents inhalation.

b. Entrained breathing more rhythmic.c. Two small breaths are probably more economical than one deep

breath.

6.Blade squared only at the instant of the catch- The ‘FLIP’ type catch?a. Less wind and wave drag on a feathered blade.b. Lighter grip.

7. Rate near your racing rate always.a. It will become natural.b. The fast rate helps ‘rebounding’ from the catch and release, thus reusing and saving energy.

8. A 3– part work stroke. Part 1: From catch to about 45’: Blade gets to depth and moves

forward, and outwards, to air–free water. Rotating above the hips at the catch moves the shoulders behind the hips for an early layback. Heels down!

The seat moves closer to the feet during this rotation. Work builds. Part 2: Arms comfortably straight as the blade is pulled to drive the

boat. The legs straighten. Spoon deepest when square. Part 3: The shoulders pull the elbows back, and thus the handles.

Work reduces. Lift the spoon to the feather and release.

9. Use ‘rebound’, from body compression, and some muscle preload, to accelerate from the catch. No pausing !!

a. Rebounding is a way of reusing energy. b. Preloading muscles (Plyometrics) improves the efficiency of muscle

use. 10. Rig gates as low as possible – about 125mm average seat to gate

base. a. Less load on the back.

b. Boat less likely to tip. c. Less vertical load on the boat at catch and release. d. Easier to pull spoon deep.

11. Spread knees to touch inside of arms during recovery. a. Assists balance. b. Allows more reach.

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12. Arms with relaxed elbow bend (10’ -15’) during the recovery. Only straightening at the moment of the catch.

a. Energy saved in not straightening the arms (blade momentum helps to straighten them for the catch).

b. Separates blade and body movement at the catch. c. A very quick catch taken by the arms gets early pressure on the

spoon – a good, long ‘reach’. 14. Use a steering mirror attached to a cap or hat (not a rigger). a. Safety! b. Turning your head to steer breaks the rhythm, upsets balance, and

might hurt your back. c. Puts YOU in control !

15. Blade depth about 100mm when square to the boat. a. Reduces ‘slip’ of the spoon. b. Produces a calmer, more efficient puddle.16. Heels in constant contact. Stretcher, at the toes, about 45’ as usual.

Add a block perhaps 25mm under the heel ( high heels!) a. Energy not wasted using calf muscles. b. An earlier push on the heels. c. Better feeling of balance through heel and toe contact. d. Unaltered 45’ toe maintains a good angle for pushing.17. Pull right up to and while feathering the blade.

a. Decelerates you for the release, which: b. Allows abdominal muscles to be used for breathing. c. Takes advantage of the full length of the stroke. d. Reduces the effect of the blade moving across the gate. e. Feathering drives the boat. 18. Adjust the gate width to the minimum needed for the blade to rotate.

a. reduces the hammering felt as the blade moves from the front to the back of the gate.

19. Use heart rate monitor . a. An easily available measure of work. b. Puts YOU in control 20. Don’t force the legs down at the release, or hold them down. a. Encourage a controlled rebound. (quick hands away) b Saves energy. 21. Fit towelling gloves to the blade handles. Wet them before setting out. a. Improves grip, especially in rough water. Reduces forearm strain. b. Gives the handle a roughness, and you a better sense of the

position of the spoon – if it is square or has moved after hitting a wave perhaps.

c. Not the same as you wearing gloves. d. May help reduce blisters on the hands.

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22. Hands – one above, not in front, of the other – both ways. Touching as they pass to give you ‘feel’.

a. Reduces yawing due to uneven pull on blades. b. Hands in contact assists balance. 23. Hold the blade with the fingers,just ahead of , not in,the palm. The

thumb touches the bottom of the handle,usually at the end. This contact gives you a reference as to blade position.

24. Pull on your heels, not the toes, in the recovery. At high rates you may need to pull on the toes a little.

25. Weights and stretching not essential. a. Time spent working individual rowing muscles with weights would

be better spent exercising them all – sculling. b. Stretching apparently only has a short term effect – about 5

minutes. Better a good warm up, and warm down, while sculling or erging.

26 Use Fartleks ( random high / low work) , not interval ( high / no work). a. Interval training plants the ‘rest or relax’ seed (unless done only over

race distance). b. Fartlek ( nonstop sculling) promotes rhythm and toughness. 27. Relax airway, especially while exhaling. Silent breathing! a. Improved ventilation volume. b. Cheaper ( energy) breathing. 28. Elbows away from body at release – about 90’ between forearms. a. Movement of shoulder blades unnecessary. b. Better thumb pressure on the end of the blade. c. Open armpit for cooling. d. Elbow pulls horizontally, rather than downwards,(wash-out). 29. Train (scull) all year – every day. Possibly crosstrain off-season -

cycle, run, swim, ski - long distance, cardio stuff ! It becomes a part of your life, not a choice. 30. Race often. Practice your race plan. 31. Diet: Feed the Need not the Greed. Drink when thirsty. 32. Lubricate the gates, oar buttons and seat friction bearings regularly. Wetting them with water as you set out works well. 33. Vary recovery time by adjusting blade speed in the middle of the

recovery, not at the ends - no pausing! 34. Don’t do crew exercises such as part-crew sculling, square blading,

delaying during the stroke etc. Scull continuously - no stopping. 35. Back to Basics. Aim at simplicity – clothing, food, equipment. 36. Warm up and warm down !!! Do them immediately before and after

the work. 37. Good foundations - of safety and boat handling.

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38. Wear shoes (crocs) to launch the boat, then carry them in the boat in case you disembark elsewhere.

a. Prevents foot damage from shells or rocks. 39. Avoid ‘buying’ fitness with the latest gadget or gear. 40. Suffer wise deprivation, to learn toughness.

Sculling: The complete sport.

This essay started out simply as a description of a style of sculling. As it grew I realised that the style was quite different from anything I have read or seen, so I decided it should have a name – the RHECON (RHythmic, ECONomical) style – or in newspeak – the RHECON SYSTEM! And it has grown to involve far more than just the technicalities of the sculling stroke. I’m told that my presentation is unusual – outside the box ? Without academic or other qualification my thoughts roam freely. There is always a ‘Why ?’. While the presently coached systems work, they could always work better.

Our body is the only one we can ever have. We won it in the ‘lottery of life’ – right egg, right place, right time ! We are stuck with it for life,, and barring a few cosmetic changes, we can`t alter its structure. We can, however, affect its condition and achievements by the way we use, train and maintain it. Our choice !!! And in this beautiful country of ours we are free to choose from excellent care, to downright abuse. Lifestyle, diet, and exercise form the ‘TRIANGLE of life.’ They are complementary, and together can lead to health and fitness – of mind and body. The idea threading through this system is one of ‘back to basics’. Of not being controlled by modern pressures and temptations which can obscure what really matters – the ‘animal’ you. It is all about optimising, and often discovering, YOU. And in so doing gaining huge satisfaction! For all our fancy lifestyles we are no more than intelligent – and often clever – primates, with bodies more suited to quadruped posture. Unfortunately it is now possible to live without using most of our physical abilities, and our bodies suffer as a result. We were designed to exercise, and that exercise helps keep us healthy. So most of us need to exercise beyond that needed in daily life!!! Sculling offers a low impact, safe, and measurable form of exercise for both males and females, of all ages and abilities – including the disabled.It exercises more muscles than all sports except, I think, cross-country skiing and mountain climbing. It can be done with similar effect both on the water and in the gym, and suits both team players and loners.

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However there are certain body movements for which sculling does not exercise the necessary muscles.1. Walking, or any situation using standing posture.2. Any exercise with the arms above the shoulders.

Be a Winner ! There is a pervasive belief that winning only involves races – preferably at an ever higher level. Does this imply that those who don’t win races are losers ? I know that we use boats specifically designed as ‘racing’ boats, but they can happily be used as fun, exercise boats – the complexity of sculling making it challenging. The unique benefits that sculling offers can help you achieve a great life. Making this choice makes you a winner, at any level. You are a winner - in choosing not to join the obese, idle, smoking, drugging, drunken , undisciplined losers !

You are a winner if you choose ‘to do the best YOU can’.

I consider myself to be very lucky to have been introduced to sculling – at University in South Africa - and to now have it as both a sport and a job. I have never won a race of any consequence. However, when the sweat flows daily I am – a winner, and I don’t care if being proud of me is considered a sin by some people!

Acknowledgement.Before going on I’d better admit that this work probably contains some ideas that could be attributed to others – without credit. My apologies.(There is a small credits section at the back)Meanwhile I give permission for anyone to use anything from this work if they wish – it was born, and has grown, with no plan for fame or fortune. Enjoy ! Question!

Introduction - Sculling . We humans are about the weakest and slowest of creatures for our size, with bodies designed for our quadruped origins. We generate more heat than motion, and are bearers of all manner of baggage. So it is important that we don’t waste any of our meagre strength and energy. All sculling and rowing boats permitted to race under FISA rules are, by definition, ‘Displacement’ boats, with certain design limitations. Water is moved aside to allow passage of the hull, and then moves back, without breaking contact with the hull as it passes. The boat cannot ‘fly’ or ‘plane’. Work required to move it increases exponentially, as

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shown in the drawing.

We go on the water with limited energy. This has to be used for three things:1. Keeping our metabolism going.2. Oscillating our body, blades and boat .On the erg, my heart rate increases by about 30 just moving back and forth 30 times a minute. - And using what’s left for: 3. Overcoming the drag of water and air, to drive the boat.

Much of the Rhecon system is aimed at minimising energy used for the first two, so that more is available for the third. Competitive Sculling grew from what was merely a job – taking people to and from ships. The faster boat got more work! It then somehow became an elitist sport (perhaps because of the cost of racing boats), and a tradition of elitist style developed. We still see this in some of our coaching.(Straight arms and back- relic of the ‘officer’ class – what!).It is interesting that top scullers often have styles that differ from those that are popularly coached.1. Many use bent arms at the catch, and a bent back throughout.2. They use a 1:1 ratio of work to recovery. Yet we are trained to lengthen the recovery to ‘let the boat run’ at 2:1 or more.3. They entrain 2 breaths per stroke.These athletes seem to know something that we obstinately ignore. Or they simply do what they know works, and are so good at it that coaches don’t dare interfere.Is there a scientific or logical basis for some of the coached sculling styles?I have not yet found any worthwhile description of the stroke. Bald statements of the process are made, but neither the exact means of achievement, nor the reasoning for this action, is there. And it is usually couched in words that I can only describe as ‘bull… baffling brains’.

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Important subjects, such as breathing techniques, are usually ignored.

Good athletes all make it look easy. They manage to time the application of their effort so well. Some of us are naturally better at this, but we can all benefit from:1. Thinking about what we are trying or told to do.2. Learn by watching or talking to good athletes. (They may not know what makes them so good). 3. Lots of purposeful practice.4. Use video to study style – yours and others. 5. Being, and optimising, YOU.

The basic technique of sculling is easy. The better you get, the more the small things will matter. A 1% improvement, or saving, can mean 20m in a race. And many races are decided by much less than this. Constantly looking for these small improvements should make your outings interesting, if sometimes frustrating, but above all – FUN!Just getting in a boat and sculling for hours with your mind in neutral must be crushingly boring, and seems pointless. Even a brilliant style, and the best equipment, won’t be enough if you have not made every effort to optimise your fitness and strength – of mind and body! The ‘hard yard!!’

I am not an accomplished athlete - can’t spout statistics or famous names. Perhaps my only claim to fame might be my having used an armed single scull, in Rhodesia, during the 1970s (Luckily I never needed to fire the gun – a .45 WW1 revolver! ). I have built about 150 boats, singles, doubles and fours. My business now involves repairing rackets, outriggers, kayaks and rowing boats. I have been frustrated by obvious or suspected errors observed in some coaching or opinion, and am steadily developing the Rhecon system, hopefully avoiding these errors. I erg 35 minutes every day- having recently stopped sculling for medical(bypass) and safety reasons. 30 minutes at about 2.08, then 5 minutes of 10 secs less each minute, then about 15 minutes walking round cooling down.

Although the stroke is divided into 4 mechanical ‘events’ in its description, it should be a smoothly flowing ‘process’ in its execution. It should be graceful, economical , rhythmic and without pause. Will the Rhecon system lead to faster sculling? I think so, but await someone with talent and a competitive drive to prove it. I am only certain the present system can be improved. No one - even a world champion - is perfect!My test of the ‘Rhecon system’ has been to use it. If, over several months, something is comfortable, apparently beneficial, and spontaneous, it is considered proven. The result is that my prognostic scores during our club’s fortnightly winter 6k races were very satisfying. Much of the system, such as the double breath each stroke, bent arms, quick

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catch,early layback, and your 1:1 natural rating, can be practiced on the ‘erg’.I have assumed that you have some knowledge of scull-speak. If not I hope it will become clear without pedantic explanation.Any changes you make to your technique should be continued for perhaps a couple of months before becoming a fixed part of your style, or not. Even a simple change will take time for your body to get used to, and for any genuine benefits to be seen.

Have fun!

The result of all this should be ‘ smooth, rhythmic, quiet, economical, - and fast.’

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The Rhecon Stroke – in brief.

1. The Catch: As your relaxed (bent back and arms) body stops against your knees the momentum of the feathered blades straightens your arms. Square the blades as this happens , and at full stretch of the arms lift your hands to place the spoons in the water. Your arms rebound and bend slightly, and the spoons quickly accelerate to relative water speed, and enter the water. The water is ‘caught’, and the spoons submerged, by the time this is complete. Your upper body rotates as the blades enter the water, turning about a point just below your ribs(not your hips!), so your seat gets even closer to your feet. Your body then rebounds ,without pause.You have exhaled as you came up to the catch.2. The Work : The arms are relaxed and comfortably bent, with the spoons ‘locked’ in the water after the catch. In Part 1 your upper body rotates to its fully laidback position, and rebounds , partly reusing energy stored by stopping against the knees. The blades knife forward due to boat speed, away from air drawn in as they entered the water, and get to their working depth. During this part the blades move from the catch to about 45’. Heel and toe are in continuous contact with the stretcher(raised shoe heel!). From the ‘feel’ of the catch you will know whether you can safely apply full power. In Part 2 With the knees and hips opening you increase the pull on, and depth of, the blade to a maximum when it is square. Your arms are relaxed and nearly straight – simply acting as a connection between the laidback shoulders and blade. This continues until the legs are about 2/3 down. In Part 3 the knees continue dropping, and the arms now bend, maintaining the pull on the blade, and gradually dropping the handle so as to lift the spoon, until the hands are near the ribs. This bending of the arms is done mostly by the shoulders, in effect pulling the elbows back and away so as to finally have about 90’ between the forearms. Pull on the blade until it is being feathered as it leaves the water, to get the benefit of what I call the ‘PELOTA ’ Effect (see the section on this later) Feathering starts as the top of the spoon reaches the surface. Your legs finally stop dropping as the blade is feathered, and immediately rebound. Do not hold the legs down, or pause!

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Unfortunately the back does have to work over the whole stroke, so all we can do is to try to reduce its load, or load time. Hence the early layback, low gate height, letting it curve comfortably, and increasing the rating.It’s interesting that a weightlifter, despite having a reasonable time to do a lift, prefers to do it in a sort of jerk. Not the way you would do a lift with a hoist, which does not tire as we do.The blades are about 100mm deep in the middle of the stroke. Start lifting them to the surface as your hands near your ribs- in the last ¼ of the stroke. Take a complete breath during the work, exhaling for the ‘release’. You may find it comfortable to delay inhaling until nearly midstroke. While lifting the heels at the end of the stroke to extend the effective length of the slide is possible, it would be expensive. I would not recommend doing it.

3 .The Release. The blades are rising, and still being pulled as they near the surface. When your hands approach your ribs, and the spoons break the surface, feather them - while they are partly submerged and still being pulled. Control the feather – don’t ‘flick’ it! The spoon should ride smoothly clear of the water as it is fully feathered – or it could ‘stick’ due to the wall attraction effect. Your legs finally straighten as the blade is feathered and leaves the water, and immediately rebound. Water should be pushed back while feathering , but NOT lifted !! The whole release is a circular motion. It should be smooth, and not jerk the boat.This type of feather – the ‘Pelota effect’ – will allow a few degrees more of the stroke to be effective in driving the boat than the release of the unfeathered blade. The Rhecon feather during the release gives useful speed to the bottom of the spoon even as the shaft stops. 4 The RECOVERY - Relax!!! The spoon is just off the water, fully feathered, and immediately moved towards the bow, primarily to clear your rebounding knees. Don’t pause . Your back is comfortably bent.Your arms have nearly straightened , quickly, to move the blades beyond your knees. No attempt is made to fully straighten your arms. Gradually rotate your torso at the hips. Your knees started lifting just as the blades were extracted, by rebounding. You may have to control this rebound a little to allow the hands to pass, but even so you should get some advantage, especially at high rating, and by getting the blades ‘away’ quickly.You accelerate up the slide by pulling on the stretcher. Even with your layback there should still be some weight on the stretcher. Using this, relax your ankle and pull against the heel rather than against the toe strap. Check that the tendons atop the ankle are

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relaxed. You accelerate comfortably up the tracks for about ½ of the length. Knees are apart and touched lightly by the arms in passing. Once your body and blades have sufficient speed let them coast until you stop against your knees. Relax! Your body compresses onto your knees, and the moving blades pull your arms straight for the ‘catch’. You also activate muscles you will use moving away from the catch to help decelerate you into the catch. This plyometric effect should make the subsequent pull on the blades stronger. Grip the blade very lightly, especially in calm water. Time to complete the ‘recovery’ is the same as for the ‘work’- about 1 second..Take a complete breath during the recovery, exhaling for the catch.RELAX!!

DISCUSSION A more in-depth look at the Rhecon stroke.

The catch.You are approaching frontstops where you have to stop yourself and the blades, and then accelerate both to relative water speed almost instantaneously. Traditionally scullers are taught to have the arms straight during the recovery.However, this means that at frontstops your upper body is going to have to do a sudden change in direction with the blades. This sudden change involves high deceleration and acceleration rates, and a considerable jerk. And because the arms are at about 45’ to the boat this initial movement will be about 50% greater than if they were in line with the boat. The Rhecon style requires the arms alone to make this sudden change, while the rest of your body makes a more gradual change. This catch is very quiet, with little jerk.(Visit the later section on ‘Deceleration’ for more on this.)So! When the blade is in the air coming up to frontstops the arms should be comfortably bent and relaxed, say about 10 degrees at the elbow. The flat on the blade sleeve should be resting on the bottom of the gate. Your relaxed body , back bent, comes towards your knees and your upper torso stops against them , using compression and a little muscle preload to decelerate. Your hips continue moving towards your heels, in effect giving you an early layback. At the same time the momentum of the moving blades pulls the arms straight. Square the blades as this happens, and at the moment of furthest reach drop them into the water. The re-bend of your arms accelerates the spoon very quickly to near the relative water speed so there should be little splash on

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entry, and little loss of reach.Assisted by gravity, a very quick insertion of the spoon is possible, followed by early, effective work.‘Relative’ water speed definition: The part of boat speed square to the spoon. Equal to boat speed when the blade is square to the boat, and zero when the blade is in line with the boat.Visit the later section on ‘Reach’ for a discussion of the benefits of a long reach, and a diagram of ‘relative’ water speed.

Straight arms are seldom used in daily life, and use energy to achieve and maintain. With the RHECON system they are only straight at the instant of the catch, and without direct energy input from you. Thereafter they are nearly straight, but relaxed, as pressure is put on the blade. The spoon must be fully square as it enters the water or you will ‘miss water’, and have an unstable blade – likely to dive or spin. As the spoon enters the water your arm will be rebounding from being pulled straight, helping to accelerate the blade to relative water speed. Meanwhile your upper body, which has compressed to a stop against your knees, rotates above the hips to the laid back position, and rebounds to catch up with the ‘caught’ blade.

Rotate about hips. No! Rotate above hips. Yes!

Rotating above the hips uses less energy than about the hips, and is quicker. This speed is necessary so that you quickly get in the laid back position for the coming movement of the legs. With the hips now closer to the feet, the leg push will be longer.Your legs have compressed against the stretcher and also rebound.This general rebounding of the body is making use of the momentum gained by accelerating from backstops. It means that you won’t have to use much new energy to get you moving. The rebound will be most effective if it happens at your comfortable, racing rate. Little of this Rhecon catch works well at a slow rating!You will probably find that your arms will not bend ,after the catch , as much as they did before. This is because as soon as the water is ‘caught’ the arms will be loaded. Don’t

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try to bend them more. Whatever is comfortable. At least you are not using energy to keep them straight.

Note the dotted line above representing the gradual reversal of your torso, as against the pointed line representing the rapid blade reversal. The spoon should be just underwater when your body has caught up with your arms and you begin pulling in earnest. The depth of the spoon can increase slightly with the load. So the greatest depth should be when the blade is square to the boat - about 100mm underwater. As you approach front-stops it is not necessary to use energy to decelerate. You will inevitably stop against your knees. Your thighs force your stomach upwards, returning your diaphragm to its relaxed position, and emptying your lungs. The sprung position at the catch is difficult to achieve slowly – TRY IT, but easy if you use the momentum gained sliding to frontstops. Just as it is a difficult position to achieve, it is also difficult to hold. Therefore as soon as you have compressed onto your knees you will ‘rebound’ and your chest will move away from your knees. No pause! Very little new energy used !However, since you are going to be working the legs and torso after the catch you will probably use some Plyometric preload of the involved muscles just before the catch.

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This Plyometric - visit ‘preloading muscles’ – effect is again most efficient at a high rate.You must of course hold the blade handle properly so as to do the squaring efficiently and get the blade quickly into the water.So the initial work of making a good ‘Rhecon’ catch is done by the arms and shoulders, and the ‘jerk’ of the catch is absorbed by the arms.The work builds once you have rebounded from the catch, opened a bit, and are in a stronger position.The energy your legs used to accelerate you from the release is partly reused in accelerating you from the catch.This ‘catch’ is intended to use minimum energy, so when doing it RELAX. Just ‘let it happen’. Your arms and back should be COMFORTABLY BENT, and your ankles naturally compressed – heels still in contact with the stretcher. Consciously let your body come onto your knees, and let your arms be stretched by the blade. Take care not to lift the spoon any higher than necessary (skying) just before you drop/place it into the water. The catch is so quick that you might still be squaring the blade as it enters the water - but better not! It’s not a great problem so long as you can ‘feel’ through your hands that it is square before you pull. Lifting the blade to square it before the drop causes a downward force on the gate, any inequality could cause the boat to tip. As your hands pass your knees you will have more room to gradually lift the blade a little in preparation for squaring it. This gradual lifting will be smoother than a sudden lift later .Rigging the gates as low as possible might help prevent ‘skying’.

Tip: Do your hands sweat when you’re working hard, and make the grips slippery? Use towelling covers for the grips, and these work best when wet.

On the erg I find that the bent arm catch lets me ‘catch up’ with the flywheel about 100mm further than if using the straight arm catch. And my Rhecon reach is such that the handle gets to about 50mm from the chain box. In a boat this long reach gives me the time needed to subconsciously confirm a good catch before pulling. Watching others on the erg I have noticed a gap of up to 200mm between the furthest reach, and getting tension on the chain. And delayed catches are often seen in boats.

I use the Rhecon catch always, but sometimes with a shorter reach if I’m being lazy. There is a definite good feeling of the quick lock on the water or the chain when a long reach and fast catch is achieved - and a couple of seconds split time improvement.

Discussion: The work.The pull on the blade increases with depth.

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Part 1: Light work starts when the arms bend and accelerate the blade from the catch. The spoon ‘locks’ onto the water, and knifes forward and down, into air-free water. The blade rotates about 10’ at the pin during this stage. Your body rebounds and ‘gathers itself for the strain’. Your heels should be in contact with the stretcher.Your upper body has rotated to the laid back position.Signals are sent from your hands that the blades have connected well with the water and can safely be pulled. The movement of the blade away from the air drawn into the water as it entered is similar to the forward movement of a good swimmer’s hand after entry. Pulling on a blade or hand in aerated water results in a poor lock on the water, and ‘slip’. The interesting thing is that little ‘new’ effort is needed to initially accelerate from the catch. Perhaps half of the final speed is achieved simply by rebounding. No pausing!!

Part 2: The heavy work starts, with the upper body already ahead of your hips. The arms remain nearly straight, so that the greatest force on the blade, which is applied when it is square to the boat, is done with the body in a very strong position.The maximum depth of the blade should be about 100 mm – certainly deep enough that there is little surface disturbance. The gate angle should be adjusted so that the desired depth is automatically achieved, without vertical pressure on the handle.

All this work must be controlled so that:a. No part of the legs/ back/ shoulders/ arms chain is strained.c. You can achieve a bell-shaped force graph.d. The stroke is long, strong, and graceful.Early rotation of the body reduces the load on the back. Or allows the legs to push harder for the same back load.

In Part 3 the arm and shoulder muscles take up the strain . They started their work with the arms almost straight, simply connecting shoulders and handle. Now the shoulders pull the upper arm down and away from the body, so that the forearm pulls the handle downwards, lifting the spoon towards the surface.The angle between the forearms at the release should be about 90’. This is a strong and comfortable position, and requires little movement of the shoulder blades. The spoon will be gradually raised from its deepest when square,to be at the surface for the feathered release. Pulling on the blade adds momentum to the combined mass of you and the boat. The speed of the centre of gravity of you and the boat is fastest near the end of the work stroke. The boat itself is fastest during the recovery due to you pulling on the stretcher,and moving towards the stern ! Tip: If the boat constantly veers to one side check that the blade on that side is not

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working at less depth. It could then be ‘slipping’ more than the other.

The work should be smoothly increased to a maximum when the blades are square to the boat, then smoothly reduced as the blades are lifted and the arms bend just before the release. A work/ time graph would resemble a ‘bell’.

I have said that you don’t need to use much energy to start your legs and hips opening. They will begin opening , and accelerate your body, simply by rebounding from their sprung position. Now, when you do pull the energy will be used to drive the boat rather than just accelerate your body.The main requirement is that the rebound/work sequence is smooth and comfortable. The experts manage to do so, and the resulting stroke looks effortless and graceful. As you came towards frontstops it was your stomach coming up against the legs, and the knees closing, that decelerated you ( Plus a bit of plyometric work). To get a good reach you relax, allow your shoulders to stretch over your knees, and your arms to be pulled straight.Now that your upper body has stopped, and the blade is entering the water, your shoulders rebound from your knees. While they move forwards the seat continues toward the stretcher, allowing your upper body to rotate to a laid back position. The important factor in the ‘catch’ is that it is the ‘rebounding’ of the closed body that gets you moving in the opposite direction. This will be most successful when you are rating at near racing rate.I recommend that you should always scull at this rate, or at least the recovery should be at this rate. If you want to do less work then don’t pull so hard. Your overall rate will then drop slightly because the blades are spending more time in the water. Your work: recovery time ratio should always be about 1:1. I saw a video of a top sculler who started dropping his hands when 30% , time wise, of the stroke remained, to be at the recovery height by the time he changed direction. I suspect that his spoon had been running fairly deep so that even with this early lift he still had a good grip on the water. The extraction did not seem to bounce the boat and there was a small puddle. It would be interesting to find out when he stopped pulling on the blade. His in/out ratio was 1/1. The gradual lift of the deep-running spoon softened the ‘down and away’ typically coached (more in sweep rowing – dunno why!). The water above the deep spoon in mid stroke was quiet.

The legs:Most coaches seem to consider the leg drive to be the most effective part of the stroke, However, any force created by the legs has to be supported by the back in transferring it to the shoulders, arms and blade. In the extreme the back loses, and you ‘bum - rush’. I saw one top sculler who had a slight ‘bum-rush’ at the start of the drive, but then recovered to a nearly vertical posture until the legs straightened. Then he leaned a little back as the arms pulled. Guess it was comfortable.

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The force that can be transmitted by the legs increases as they straighten and is assisted by their weight falling. The angular opening at the knees changes in relation to the distance travelled on the slide . So the initial thrust from the legs is fairly weak, involving a lot of travel up the slide for a small opening of the knees. Luckily this initial weaker thrust from the legs is offset by your rebounding after the catch, and happens when you don’t want much force anyway. When the knees are nearly straight a big angular opening of the knees results in only a small travel on the slide – very strong. So lay off the leg work as they flatten because the force they can transmit will easily exceed the normal +/- 50kg pull, using no more than their weight and momentum. And Don’t straighten them ! , even if the boat will allow it. The mechanics of finally straightening, and locking, requires a lot of muscle effort. This applies to legs and arms and back.Watch the thighs of someone on the erg. Thigh movement is smooth until the last moment , and then the thigh bulges excessively. with the final straightening. What for? And even worse if they have straightened the leg early(before the release), and are pausing there.The leg length gained with this effort is negligible, especially if the leg is over-straightened, or ‘locked’. 1. Energy is used to finally straighten the leg, - to little advantage.2. The weight of a fully straightened leg will be about 50mm lower than necessary, contributing to more bounce in the boat.

So drop the legs until the upper thigh is horizontal and about in line with the top of the shoe. This should still give plenty of room to move the hands forward after the release.What stops your legs from slamming down? The muscles straightening your legs are not

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capable of stopping them, even if they are relaxed. You have 3 options.1. Use other muscles to slow the descent - those that will later lift the knees2. Let them fall onto the boat.

3. Pulling on the blade with the arms will slow the descent. This won’t happen if you ‘wash out’ , or stop pulling too early.

You may find that you will be unable to fully straighten the leg in a boat, because your calf meets the boat. In stopping against the boat your leg becomes loaded, and will spring upwards. This won’t block the handles if it happens at the end of the stroke, and the hands are moved forward quickly - no pausing at the release!!On the erg, however, there is usually nothing to stop the leg straightening. I like to ease the knees down on the erg to a boat-like level rather than bring them right down. There is apparently a cross-bar you can buy and fit to the erg to simulate the set up of a boat, and prevent your knees dropping.To assist in balancing the boat your legs should not move from their normal vertical path, especially when something like a blade hitting a wave upsets the boat. They and your body should almost become a part of the boat. A boat of say 17kg plus 80kg is a lot more stable than a 17kg boat alone. It has more ‘inertia’. I like to open my knees a little as I come forward so that my arms touch them. It gives the knees, and arms, a point of reference, and stops the legs reacting to the boat tipping.(see the section on ‘balance’)Your ‘quads’ and ‘abs’ have the job of pulling your torso back from its laid-back position at the release. A curved back will allow you to keep the heavy upper body more upright, thereby reducing this work. You can also use the last pull by the shoulders up to the release to stop your upper body and even start it on the return journey. Some people get painful knees after sculling. One possible cause is the knees following an uncomfortable path, perhaps due to your feet being at the wrong angle. Rower’s can often be identified by the scars on their calves. These were particularly evident with the old style boats which had the seat runners close together. Modern boats usually have the runners more widely spaced, so there is more room between them for the calves. The Feet. The stretcher sits at an angle of about 44’, particularly under the balls of the feet. This will give a comfortable horizontal push on the feet. To keep the heels in contact, even at the catch, a block of sufficient thickness should be placed beneath the heels. Mine is 15mm thick.Why not just adjust the angle of the stretcher to perhaps 35’? Because then the feet would tend to move up and down the stretcher during the stroke, possibly leading to blisters near the toes. About 44’ has been found to be the most comfortable.

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Should we push first on the toes, then the heels? Whatever is comfortable, and I suspect you will always push with both. I would suggest that you aim at using the heels for the heavy work, and the toes more for ‘feeling’, with less push. This is more natural - with the ankle nearer the heel.The feet should also be at an angle – not parallel. 1. To prevent knee pain. 2. To give stomach muscles room at the catch.

3. To touch the inside of the arms with the spread knees during the recovery – helps with balance.

Apparently it is physiologically better to flex the legs over angled feet .Most people tend to walk with feet angled outwards.It is interesting that most everyday shoes have raised heels.

The Arms and Hands The arms are strongest, in tension, when they are nearly straight. They then act as a simple connection between the hands and shoulders.When you pull with and are bending your arms, this is what you should be doing:1. Your elbow is being drawn backwards by the shoulders only.2. Your forearm is simply connecting your elbow to the blade. Your biceps and triceps should have little to do, except at the catch or release, if your rigging is keeping the blade at the correct depth. Ideally you want to be able to pull the blade with fingers only – with no up, down, or rotating force required.To assist with this, and probably reduce the load on the fingers, the thumb touches the bottom of the handle and helps the fingers to know the rotational position of the blade.If there is no slip between fingers and sleeve, or sleeve and blade, it is not necessary to grip the handle tightly during the work. The fingers do, however, need to hold the shape

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of the handle to provide sufficient contact area to spread the load. The skin tends to be pulled towards the fingertips as you pull, particularly as you lighten the grip. Putting energy into curling the fingers round the sleeve will reduce skin movement, and perhaps calluses or blisters. The drawing shows calluses on my hands forming where the skin has bunched at a finger joint. Most are small – only three on one hand and one on the other being trimmed occasionally.

Calluses on my left hand fingers- the three bottom ones being the biggest.Having said this I have forgotten to trim the three major calluses for perhaps 6 months. Strangely they seem to have reached a certain size and stopped growing. Perhaps they have grown enough to serve a purpose in the daily 1000+ strokes.

Tip: Wipe your fingers with methylated spirits to toughen the skin and reduce blisters.

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Your arms remain nearly straight until your legs are about 2/3 down. Delaying arm movement as long as possible will reduce the bending time, and reduce the energy used(see the section on ‘’human peculiarities’). Because your shoulders are above the handle you will tend to pull it up, and the spoon down. We counteract this by making the spoon ‘oversquare’ so that the water lifts it, and the handle is forced down.Adjust the angle of the spoon so that all these forces combine to keep it at the right depth without you having to exert any uncomfortable up or down force on the handle- about 4’.For most of the stroke your forearm will be less than square to the blade, and you will automatically be pulling the button against the gate. However during the final part of the stroke you can easily pull the two apart unless:

1. You consciously apply pressure with the thumb on the end of the blade, or2. You hold the elbows away from your body so that your lower arm is less than

square to the blade. As your arms bend the elbow drops, and if it drops below the level of the handle you could easily pull the spoon out of the water. This might account in part for the wasteful habit of ‘washing out’. So move the elbows comfortably away from the body as they bend. Perhaps our shoulders are stronger when the arms are away from the body? Certainly we don’t do press-ups with our arms tucked into our sides. Your shoulder blades should not move together if you do this right. Elbows away from your sides also assists with cooling.

. The work continues until the blades have been feathered as they leave the water, with your hands near and below your ribs. There will be about 90’ between forearms.

1. You make the most use of the length of the stroke.2. Pulling on the blade serves to decelerate your body. If you stop pulling early you

will have to activate leg and stomach muscles to stop you, and to control your legs as they fall. If you feel your feet pulling away from the stretcher before the work stroke finishes it means your body is decelerating against your shoes rather than through your shoulders and against the gate.

I know! Pulling against the shoes will in fact accelerate the boat.(As it does during the ‘recovery’ to its fastest speed!). Correct ! But it is not accelerating you AND the boat.

Your hands will overlap by about 180mm in mid stroke. One should be above the other, with the fingernails of the upper hand touching the knuckles of the lower hand.The blade should continue for about 1/3 of the stroke ( the middle bit) at full depth – 100mm. If the spoon consistently rides too high or low you might have to alter the angle of the gate. A good indicator of a shallow blade is the sound of air being sucked in behind the spoon, or surface water being disturbed.Only during the last part of the stroke, when your arms are bending, should you drop the hands and start bringing the spoon towards the surface. This should be a smooth, controlled process. It will make the traditional jerky ‘tap-down’ unnecessary. This final part of the ‘pull’ can make an important contribution to the speed of the boat, but don’t overdo the work just before the release. The contribution to speed is probably more to do with preparing for and affecting a clean release which doesn’t check the

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boat, rather than actually adding to momentum. The spoon is being drawn increasingly lengthwise through the water , and the angle of the spoon is moving away from square to the boat. Work is becoming inefficient, and also results in a big puddle.If you have spare steam, use it in the middle of the stroke.

You can see the effect of the three sections of the ‘pull’ by test rowing each separately. A. The catch to square. B. About 20 degrees on either side of square. C. From square to the boat until the point of release.Apart from anything else, if you have gone to all the effort of setting up the blade for the ‘pull’, you might as well make the most of it.

The Back While the leg and arm muscles are loaded for part of the work in a stroke, the back is loaded for the whole stroke. Letting your back curve naturally for the whole stroke, makes sense.

1. At the catch it will allow your shoulders to reach further over your knees for a good reach.

2. At the release it will allow your heavy upper torso to lean back less, while still providing clearance for the blade handles in your lap.

3. No energy is used in straightening the back.4. The experts do it!

Straightening your back involves loading the back muscles, and the spine. And this is before you add the load from pulling on the blade.

Lower back injuries are apparently the most common injuries suffered by rowers. In questioning a coach about his reasons for coaching a straight back he noted this fact primarily.However, I remember something heard long ago – ‘Get into the correct weightlifting posture FULLY , or not at all.’ Getting half way there is no good! And it is not easy to get into that ‘correct’ posture in the sculling stroke. I wouldn’t be surprised if the usual incomplete posture is responsible for many injuries.In weightlifting it is a concentrated manoeuvre, generally done prior to one lift. The feet and knees are at least shoulder width apart , allowing core muscles to go between the thighs, and for stability.Not so easy in a boat!Sculling is not weightlifting!!!So how do we reduce the load on the back, particularly the lower back, or help it prepare for the coming load ?

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1. Get the heavy upper body behind the hips early.2. Pull the blades as low as possible – just enough to clear thighs on the recovery.3. Open the knees for the catch so that they nearly touch the spread arms. 4. Use a mirror to avoid twisting the spine.5. Adopt a SMOOTH style, with no jerky movements.6. Do millions of strokes !!!7. Pivot at or above the hips, not by bending the spine.8. Don’t try to straighten your back

While sculling has oft-repeated movements to which our bodies become accustomed, there are some movements which are seldom used, and are often eccentric.1. Lifting a boat overhead from the side, particularly from a floating jetty.2. Entering or leaving a boat from a floating jetty.3. Carrying a big boat with a crew, and being suddenly loaded with most of its weight - usually to one side.Are these unaccustomed movements responsible for back damage?

To correct the above:1. Ensure that the crew work together. When loading from the water bounce the boat

immediately before lifting. On land get upright posture before lifting, and try to reduce twist. Crew on both sides if possible.

2. ? Perhaps a physio could suggest the best way to do this.3. Use 2 groups of crew rather than an even spread. Try to get similar heights in each

group.

Another eccentric load on the back occurs when you turn your head to look ahead. This happens about every 5th stroke. Using a hat – mounted mirror avoids this.

Incidentally you may hear the argument that moving pressure on the stretcher from the ball of the foot to the heel will increase the load on the back. Although the vertical distance from heel to hand increases, the height from hip to hand – that involving the back - is the same. So the load on the back should not change.The main but unlikely consequence of pushing low on the feet would be lifting off the seat. This would most easily happen at the catch, but you would have to be exerting a lot of pull on the blades to make this happen.

If you are having to lean back excessively to get the blade handles alongside your ribs you may have to adjust the rigging.(increase the span or move your feet bow-wards.)

Your shoulders should move a little behind your hips in part 1 of the stroke. This will get them in a good position to pull the blade to the ribs, and do the release.

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Leaning too far at the ‘release’.Any excess layback will simply have to be recovered – using energy. It is a matter of comfort, and balancing the pros and cons.Pro: 1. Having the shoulders behind your hips eases the load on the back, especially if it is done early. 2.The release seems tidier, perhaps indicating better blade control with hands forward of the shoulders.

Con: 1. Energy used for extra upper body movement. 2. Doesn’t increase length of stroke much, since the blade handle is just above hip level. 3. The pulsing of the boat, both horizontally and vertically, will increase.Some scullers are seen to jerk the head forwards at the end of the stroke, particularly when tired. It is usually accompanied by pulling the hands down, washing the spoon out of the water. Not considered good! Much present day coaching calls for a straight back. As with the arms a straight back is unusual, at least when you are sitting, and especially in the crouched catch position. If you believe that the loads involved in rowing (only about 50 kg) are heavy enough to damage a curved back then the straight back theory is valid. Psst! It isn’t !! I suspect you have more chance of damaging your back if you don’t let it curve, but also fail to get it into its full load-bearing position. I don’t think I’ve seen pictures of any top sculler with a straight back. Most, in fact, seem positively hunched, with the back simply connecting the hips and shoulders.So! Let your back relax and curve comfortably. Don’t waste energy straightening it. Do the pivoting above the hips at the catch, and do it always! After 100000....... strokes your body will have adjusted to accommodate this heretical action, and be strong!If you can get your upper body weight behind the hips early it will reduce the load on the back by perhaps 10+%.(Note how you lean back in tug-o-war and other pulling action.) At least try to do it before the heavy work in the middle of the stroke. The ‘rebound’ should help. Take the ‘catch’ with arms and shoulders.I was taken to task recently by a maths expert who said my including upper body weight into the load on the back was incorrect because it is downwards, while the rowing load is horizontal. Correct – but both loads are involved as turning moments about the hips

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( force x distance from the hip). Clockwise moments( blade load + any upper body leaning forward) and anticlockwise moments(upper body leaning back). And any turning moment about the hips involves the fragile lower back muscles!

The effect of leaning back The effect of leaning back

Keep the blade handles as low as possible because this also reduces the moment of the force on the back.Herein might be something to watch if you are doing both water and erg work. The erg ‘release’ does not require the hands to move downwards. In order to increase the stroke

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length ergers often draw the hands to the chest, with plenty of lean back. They rely on the tension of the erg chain to assist in the recovery from the lean back – something not available in a boat. Perhaps some ergers use the long finish to compensate for a short reach. My own ‘catch’ on the erg gets tension on the chain about 50 mm from the gate. Many taller people I see only getting tension about 200mm from the gate.

Tip. A long catch and short finish is better than the reverse – in a boat.

Blade handles as low as possible.

The Head.I think you should keep your head as steady as you can throughout the stroke. Relative to your back it would be a little up at the catch, and down at the release. Your view of the horizon should be smooth. With a mirror you need turn sideways only a little, and move the eyes down. Adjust the mirror so that no vertical head movement is needed.Those with long hair need to restrain it so that the inevitable breeze won’t blow it into your eyes.

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Discussion: The release.

Down – and away

A good release should be quiet, with blades being feathered as they leave the water, and no ‘checking’ of the boat. I find it the most difficult part of the stroke, but very satisfying when done right. Tip: Deep spoon = clean release.Here is something I have found: If I am getting lazy and not burying the spoon enough during the stroke, the release seems to be messy. Perhaps the more positive vertical movement required for a deep spoon helps to clear it more cleanly. Let’s look at the speed of the blade, relative to the water, as it leaves the water.

1. Lifting a vertical, unfeathered blade: The whole blade must leave the water, and be travelling at the speed of the water, if you don’t want to ‘check’ the boat. There will then be a short time after leaving the water during which the blade is decelerated and stopped before being started on the recovery.Effect: More vertical hand movement at the release. Less working ‘reach’ at the release. Causes the noisy (Rhythmic ? ) feathering above the water.

2. Feathering the blade while it leaves the water: The feathering begins when the spoon top leaves the water. The lower part of the spoon in effect continues moving faster than the water , driving and lifting less and less water as it turns. The shaft will have nearly stopped when the lower edge of the spoon is still in the water, being feathered, and pushing water away ( The pelota effect)

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Effect: Less vertical hand movement at the release. Longer effective ‘reach’.

Typically type 1 is seen in sweep rowing, and type 2 in sculling – dunno why !

The hands finish the work while moving into your lap as you feather. Therein lies a difference with erging, in which there is no blade release. Ergers tend to keep the hands horizontal, finishing the stroke at breast height. This gives a longer stroke – perhaps to compensate for their short catch. But a boat stroke ends with the hands low on the torso, and brings the benefits of excess body lean into question. Moving the head and shoulders back isn’t going to change the position of the hands much. It does, however, allow for a longer straight arm pull.There is also the popular opinion that a short release is beneficial – releasing before the hands reach the body. The last part of a stroke tends simply to churn water, so rather remove the blade and ensure a long catch?If you try to stop the blade in fast travelling water you will have a problem. But if you feather the blade as you stop it and drop the handle you should be able to lift it without pressure on the back of the spoon – which would check the boat. The actual amount you lift the blade shaft is quite small if you feather as it leaves the water – useful considering the lift is done against gravity.The blade is lifted over about 20 degrees of arc – from its greatest depth when square to the boat.

There will be very little vertical force on the rigger during the first lift of the blade. It will gradually increase as more of the blade leaves the water. Feathering in the water to drive the boat will also create a downward force on the rigger, especially if water is lifted

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rather than pushed.

So at the instant your hands reach your ribs and the top of the spoon breaks the water surface you feather it, and stop pulling. Control the feather! It is not a sudden movement, but should assist the spoon to ‘slide’ out of the water. Water must be pushed back, not lifted. Done properly you should not feel or hear any hammering from the gate. It is interesting that many big boat crews seem to purposely ‘hammer’ at the release. I can only think that it assists rhythm –but pity the boat!.A lot of the hammering at the release is caused by the blade moving rapidly across the gate. Adjusting the gate to allow a minimum clearance for the blade as it rotates, together with a controlled feather, can reduce this ! I get more gate noise at the catch than at the release – perhaps due to the rapid squaring of the blade in my ‘flip’ catch.Once clear of the water the feathering is complete , and the flat of the sleeve is on the bottom of the gate . Then the shoulders immediately start accelerating the blades towards the ‘catch’. Do not rush, or jerk, this ‘away’ movement, but also do not delay it. Smooth acceleration is needed to use the least energy! Your grip on the handle can then be relaxed. Arms by your sides, or out? In a boat your elbows should be away from your body at the release, with about 90’ between forearms. The arms seem stronger like that ( press-ups!! ), and you will be helping to keep the gate and button together. Although the erg has a straight pull I think you should do the same thing at the release. This will assist cooling, and make movement of the shoulder blades unnecessary. Feathering: Don’t ‘Flick’ it.Although the feathering must be quick, it should be controlled, and in sequence with the water.1. Too slow, and the water can push the stopped spoon, slowing the boat.2. Too fast , and you will lift water upwards, rather than pushing it away. Or: The spoon will flatten onto the water and then be held there by the ‘wall attraction effect’. This effect can be demonstrated by holding the back of a tablespoon in the flow of water from a tap. The water follows the curve of the spoon. Similarly, if the tip of the sculling spoon is above the lowest point in contact with the water, water can be ‘sucked’ up the spoon, and the spoon held down. This perhaps happens less with the cleaver blades which have little curvature, and in rough water. Or: You could also get caught with the whole spoon feathered and underwater.

You should ‘feel’ the spoon sliding out of the water while pushing water backwards, but not lifting it.Excessively quick feathering will cause a hammering (tapping) sound and feel from the gate. The reason is that , because of the shape of the mating surfaces of blade and gate, turning the blade involves irregular motion. The blade is lifted and then drops onto the

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bottom of the gate.

As the blade feathers

This is particularly noticeable with rowers who remove the blade from the water square, then feather it fully in a ‘flick’. Hell of a noise, and hell on the riggers as well!Probably assisted by the following:

The blade will move from the front to the back of the gate during the release and the catch. If this is done suddenly it will ‘hammer’ the gate, and the boat. Two things can cause this at the ‘release’.1. Stopping in the water, which then moves the blade backwards.2. The ‘away’ is too forceful.So get the timing right, and be gentle.

At the release our arms are bent with the hands a little forward of our shoulders. It is a

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strange action, unlike any in our normal lives, to push the hands away from you .The erg doesn’t help since the chain is under tension. Your arms get pulled rather than you having to push. Either you have to do a lot of water work, or devise some gym mechanism to strengthen the muscles used in this operation. Press-ups?However: “The best sculling training is – sculling!” It is the beginning bit, just at the ‘release’, that can be hard because you have to accelerate the blade. Unfortunately we haven’t ‘sprung’ into this position so we cannot take advantage of a ‘rebound’.Having said that, we can ‘preload’ the muscles needed for some effort, just as we bend our legs before leaping, or take a backswing before a golf or racket shot.. Perhaps we could do this with the ‘away’ muscles?Take it gently!While getting a positive ‘away’, try not to rush it or it will become both jerky and tiring. Slow acceleration started as soon as possible will be better. Sometimes we’re a bit idle with the ’down’ , and one result might be the spoon slapping back onto the water. Normally you want your lower arm to be about square to the blade so that the button is not pulled away from the gate. The centrifugal force of the moving blade -both ways - should help keep it in contact with the gate. Again better at high rating.We would like to get the blades moving ‘away’ quickly because we can’t raise the knees much until the blades are past. So when the feather and lift from the water is complete the arms are straightened enough to get blade quickly past the knees, then left a little bent for the return to the next catch. Hopefully all this happens quickly enough to benefit from some ‘bounce’ of the knees.In a satisfactory release there is no hammering, no bouncing of the riggers, no ’checking’ of the boat, and a small puddle. It seems best under the following circumstances.1. Pull until you have feathered and lifted the blade.2. Perhaps 10’ layback and hands near the ribs, and dropping. 3. Don’t flick the feather. Water must be pushed backwards, but not lifted.4. Start feathering when the top of the spoon reaches the surface. 5. The initial ‘away’ is a quick arm movement . No Pause!!!6. Having the blade deep at mid-stroke, then moving upwards for the release, helps to take it clear of the water, and seems to give a tidier release.7. The main difficulty seems to be the maximum depth of the spoon. If different on each side they may not surface together – and so on. At the greater depth they are sort of in ‘limbo’, with no point of reference, like the water surface, to help . Needs concentration, good rigging, and lots of practice!8. Use a fairly high rating always - about 30 .

Sweep oarsmen are taught to ‘tap down’ at the release. Why?

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Discussion: The Recovery.The spoon has been lifted from the water after the ‘work’ stroke, and started on its way towards the bow in preparation for the next ‘catch’. Ideally the spoon should be fully feathered and a little above the water, with your hands just above your thighs. As they cross, the hands should be in the same position as they were during the ‘work’ - one(usually the left) directly above the other. The shoulders have accelerated the blades from the release – ‘down gently and away’ – and the arms can continue to straighten until they are almost, but not completely, straight. Your back stays bent comfortably throughout the recovery, pivoting about the hips .Your upper body should pivot gradually forward as soon as the work of accelerating the blade, and clearing your knees, is complete. No jerky movement is wanted. It is not necessary to pivot fully during the slide because you are going to flop, a little, onto your knees for the catch. This ‘flop’ will absorb energy that would otherwise ‘pitch’ the boat. So you only really need to recover from the laid back to the vertical position while sliding.Although we can’t do much to alter the amount the boat pulses as our weight moves back and forth, we can try to make it less jerky. This involves minimum rates of acceleration and deceleration. Judge this by the force you exert on the stretcher, making it as low as possible.In a car we try to judge our braking to reach the required speed and distance at an even and comfortable deceleration rate. We could, of course, do it in a series of jerks.

How do we alter the time of the recovery? The two most important parts of the recovery are it’s beginning and end. The beginning needs to always be fast to allow the knees to start rising. The end, at the catch, needs to be fast to make the most of the reach, straightening the arms etc. So!. Slow the recovery by altering the swing of the blade in the middle.The commonest mistake made in slowing the recovery is to pause at the ends.

General Discussion . In alphabetical order. Page numbers not included because they would be ever changing as I edit.

Acclimatising BreathingAeration(spoon) Bum rushing.Ageing. Carrying the boat.Back pain. Catching a crab.Back to basics. Choking.Balance ClothingBalance(learning). Coaching

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Beginners. Coaching(remote).Blade length. Coach boat wake.Blade spoon shape. Coaching beginners.Boat construction. Coach boat safety. Boatmanship. Consequences.Body fat. Control(being in) Boredom. Comfort.Cooling during exercise. Layback Cooling after exercise. Leaderless test.Core strength. LifestyleCorrections. LiftCoxes. Listening to your body.Cramps. Lubrication.Cross training. Maintenance.Cycling. Mirror(steering).Deceleration/acceleration at the catch. Mirror.Depression. Motivation. Deprivation. Mud.Diet. Muscle strength.Discipline Pace.Drag. Pelota effect.Early Layback. Pendulum. Eating and exercise. Polish or sand hull?Efficiency.Erg. Practice.Exercise Plyometrics.Excuses. PuddleRe- embarking. Pulling on stretchers.Fartlek. Push.Feathering. Push or pull?Feeling(the square etc) Racing.Fingernails. Rating(natural). Foot-plates. Reach.Gearing. Relax. Good outing. Resonant rating.Grips. Rhythm.Gym. Rigging.Hair. Rough water.Heart rate monitor. RudderHolding the blade. Safety.Handles crossing. Seat. Sore backside.Heel straps. Shoes.Hot / humid day. Short cuts.

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Human peculiarities. Stress.Hydration. Style(or technique). Injuries. Sweat.Isometric muscle use. Time in/out.Keel Tired.Toes or heels? Washing out Toughing up. Weights(adding for a race).Towing a boat. Weight (of boat).Trailer. Push/pull. Winterising the boat.Training Work-when during the stroke?Turning. A little about me.Warming upWarming down

So far we have detailed the performance of the Rhecon stroke. Some technical things need more discussion, such as the Pelota effect, or Rigging. There are also many other subjects which , although not directly involved in the stroke, are nevertheless in support of the holistic Rhecon system. It is analogous to the decoration and occupation that turns a house into a home. It is the ‘Lifestyle’ that is the vital third part of the triangle of life.

Acclimatising.Travelling athletes commonly acclimatise for major competitions, allowing about two weeks for the job. This is usually to adjust to weather conditions and altitude.It is also worthwhile adjusting for the time of the competition. We tend to be least active in the mornings, and best at about 6pm. Find out the time of your races, and use the preceding few weeks to train at that time. Take note of the eating and drinking requirements for these race times.I have emphasised that your RHECON style sculling should be done at near full rate, if not full pressure – always. It has to become automatic, especially when you are exhausted or under pressure. Doing this constantly is in fact ‘acclimatising’ your body to that routine.

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The only race I entered was a 7km race held at our club, fortnightly, throughout winter.It takes place at 8 am on a Sunday morning. My training is therefore done in the mornings – all year round - and involves a similar distance at the same rating.

Aeration. When the blade is pulled a pressure is created on the water - positive in front, and negative behind. Air bubbles drawn in at the catch will respond to this by expanding or contracting, or new air can be drawn in from the surface if the spoon is too shallow. In both cases the spoon moves in the water to accommodate these changes, and effectively ‘slips’. This is ‘Aeration’.Not to be confused with ‘Cavitation’, in which a submerged spoon is pulled so hard that it creates a vacuum on one side. This is unlikely when sculling because a pull of about 1 tonne would be needed. Air will always be drawn in at the catch, probably in proportion to the splash. However if you achieved a long reach this air would be left behind when the spoon knifed forward.Use a long reach, and a deep blade to reduce aeration.

Ageing.Happens to all of us! And we will get slower! The problem , especially for men, is to admit it, and adjust their work output.Controlled aerobic exercise might prolong your life. And low-impact exercise will reduce injuries.‘Use it, or lose it! Sculling !!! Excessively hard exercise can shorten life. Perhaps go for long distance races at a lesser pace. Ensure good warm up, and cool down. Listen to your body. Aerobic rather than anaerobic exercise. You are a winner simply by taking part.A major killer is blocked arteries, coronary or otherwise. Regular aerobic exercise can promote ‘angiogenesis’ – the growth of new capillaries to bypass those becoming clogged. Exercise and sweat , every day, year round! Be proud of YOU ! When we are young we like to be the ‘hare’. Getting older we should remember how the ‘tortoise’ progressed. It’s not surprising that so many older athletes do marathons.

Back : Pain!

When we lift something, or pull on a blade, the only back muscles which actually do the work are those behind, and close to, the spine. The rest of the core muscles provide stability. And while leg and arm muscles can work for part of the pull while rowing, the lower back muscles have to work for the whole pull. The work needed by the lower back muscles depends on the distance of the load from the hips. If you could arrange that the lift was in line with the spine, then the force on the spine itself would equal the load- as with a wheelbarrow. Unfortunately not possible

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while rowing.In rowing your spine has several loads.1. A static load – the weight of your upper body. 2.The load equal to the back muscle force required to pull the blade. This force depends on the height of the handles above the seat, as well as how hard you pull. 3. Spine straightening. This involves the back muscles pulling on the spine before it is otherwise loaded.4.Occasional eccentric loads when lifting boats, embarking, etc.5.The force needed to hold your upper body up. Increased if you lean forward, and reduced if you layback for main pull on the blade.

More back pain comes with the erg, perhaps due to: 1. Pulling higher, to get a longer pull.2. In the recovery you are pulled forward on the erg by the chain bungee. In effect your pull on the chain never stops on the erg. No relaxing of the back. The opposite in a boat.

Posture.This much used word is mainly used in reference to the back. Coaches requiring you to ‘sit tall’, and ‘straighten the back’. This usually results in the upper back straightening while the lower ,less visible back, curves even more. All good scullers seem to have evenly curved backs, so that no part is excessively, or uncomfortably curved. We were not designed, particularly our spines, for our sitting or standing posture.

The main danger to the spine is eccentric load, in which one side is compressed more than the other. In the extreme the cartilage can fail. Think of it this way. If you want to pop a sealed plastic bag, perhaps bubblewrap, it is easier if you squeeze from one side, rather than in the middle.

Remember these ways to reduce back loads:1. Early layback.2. Even curvature of the spine.3. LOW handle height.4. Steering mirror.5. Careful eccentric loading - such as boat lifting.

The geometry of our core skeleton and musculature points to our quadruped beginnings. The frontal muscles were then useful for abdominal support between our front and back legs. There was little requirement for the movements we now use when lifting while standing on 2 legs. If we could have the spine in front it would be much better.

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You often see blades very deep immediately after the catch, with the rower’s arms nearly horizontal. This moves the pull further from the hips and can almost double the load on the lower back. My measurement of hip to shoulder vs hip to elbow is about 2:1. Try sitting and pulling on a load at various hand heights - from shoulder to lap. You should easily feel the different load on you lower back.Interestingly world class swimmers draw the hands not in an arm length arc past the body, but in a line close to the body. They can swim in about 500mm of water. Presumably this is similar to a low rig in a boat - keeping the pull as near the hips as possible.

Back to Basics.The theme running through the Rhecon system is stressing the ‘simple you’ in everything. What do we really need to achieve our goals –on the water or in life generally? Is that bigger, more expensive house, car, or lifestyle going to give you and yours a better life? Or is it all just a veneer, mainly to impress others? We have become so immersed in our material lives that we almost forget our animal selves. And we seldom achieve or even know our physical peak. Ask anyone who has been on an Outward Bound course. Using discipline, hard exercise, and comfort stress, you can experience the ‘WOW’ of achievement. Your own, personal, achievement ! Resist the temptation to ‘buy’ fitness or performance with the latest outfit or gadget. The psycho boost from such things may give temporary improvement. But real achievement comes only from within you.

My own efforts in this direction include:1. No ‘sports’drinks. Only tap water, or chocolate milk.2. No sports clothes. I work and scull in shorts and short sleeve shirt – all year.3. Used a boat I made – still good 30,000ks later.4. Minimum 7ks every day – no stopping or short cuts.5. Raise a sweat – always.6. A ‘Need’ diet. ( occasional greed – Nando’s)7. My winter wear ? As in ‘2’, with a fleece jacket.8. No Cosmetics9. The smallest car in the family.

Any achievement is MINE, and I bet(hope ?) I don’t look my age !

Another slant on the ‘back to basics’ theme:I used to trout fish regularly in the Pungwe river on the eastern border of Zimbabwe – before moving to NZ in 2001. While there are several types of trout fishing, and many different rods, lines and lures, I had but one set. This allowed dry fly fishing, and I had

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only one model of fly –home- made with 2 brown cockerel feathers wound on a No. 10 hook, trimmed to about 20mm diameter. It was easy to see, and would catch lots of fish if offered carefully. I usually needed 2 of these flies each day as they fell apart over time. No excuses !!The river is a fun mix of pools, rapids and falls, with varied, light vegetation. Within 10 ks of anything from a campsite to a 5star casino – and usually all 20ks of the river and tributaries is yours alone, except for groups of wilderbeest, porcupine, kudu, secretary birds etc – heaven!!! And NO sand flies, giardia, or rubbish !!Other sportsmen/adventurers are following the ‘back to basics’ path, and many of the top goals have been reached by conventional means. Like climbing Everest without oxygen . A recent article in Time magazine stated that while America had 3% of the world’s kids, they had 40% of the toys. Only about 25% of households could use their garage space for the car. Most were full of excess goods. The average household had 29 pairs of shoes.

Balance . Perhaps the single most desirable thing to achieve in sculling is balance. It is very uncomfortable to scull in an unbalanced boat, and also difficult to do any meaningful work.Let’s assume that the boat and blades are sitting evenly before you embark.Once you get in the balance will depend on two things:

a. Is the boat rigged properly?b. Your technique.

Let’s look at the stroke in 2 parts –with blades in the water, and with blades out.Out: During this part of the stroke, taking about 1 second, you are swinging the feathered blade in the air from the ‘release’ to be ready for the next ‘catch’. The boat should be rigged to have the handles as low as possible, about 125mm – fingers just clearing the thighs during the early recovery with feathered blades, in heavy water. You will find that keeping the rig low reduces the amount the boat can tip, so improves balance. The rotating blades have considerable momentum as a result of their weight and speed, and this could affect balance if there is any irregularity in the movement of the blades on each side of the boat .There will of course be differences, not least because the hands cross – one above the other. It doesn’t matter so long as these differences are always the same. You learn gradually to compensate automatically. The Rhecon system asks that the blades be feathered as they leave the water. The water surface will affect the blades as they leave the water but the feathered spoons

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riding just above the wave tops help to balance the boat, even in rough water. This can’t happen if you lift squared blades. This early feather needs lots of practice since it is easy for the blades to extract unevenly.The way you move up the slide also affects balance. Your weight, at perhaps 80kg is considerably more than that of the boat – about 15kg for a scull. Any uneven force on the seat, or leaning to one side, or uneven movement of the legs has an exaggerated effect on the boat, causing it to tip. If you could lock your spine to the boat so that you and boat moved sideways together it would greatly increase the inertia of the boat, and slow any tipping. While this is not possible in our boats you can use the core muscles to stabilise your torso, while you concentrate on not moving your legs from side to side. Touching your knees on the inside of your arms during the recovery helps. What happens during the slide to front-stops has an effect on the following work stroke. If things go wrong your catch may be short (not enough reach), and you could lose a lot of the work you should have been putting into the water.All the preparation for the next stroke – the ‘THINK’ if you like, is done while coming up the slide.I find that if I am heading against the waves, and wind, I tend to reduce the speed of the recovery, and reach less. Short, sharp strokes ! The slower recovery will make wave strikes less violent. Being able to see what’s coming in the mirror also helps. Better to have a short stroke than none at all. Whatever style you adopt needs to be practiced at racing pace so that it becomes automatic. Even if you practice using light work, the recovery needs to be at racing pace because that is where the next stroke is made ,or lost. The forces involved depend on speed, so it’s not much use practicing and racing at different speeds.I’ve said that things should be done together on both sides of the boat. One problem arises with the hands crossing. One hand will be above the other, which means that unequal forces will be exerted on the gates - leading to imbalance. However we learn to exert some unconscious pressure elsewhere to correct the problem. We adapt! The important thing is to adopt a style which becomes habitual, and is not constantly changing. The nicest rowing is when every stroke can be the same, uninterrupted by hitting waves with the blades, or waves and currents moving the hull.

In: CRUNCH TIME! This is where the real work is done. You’ve done the ‘Think’, now you get rewarded, or not! This part of the stroke also takes less than one second, with the spoons sinking to 100mm underwater in midstroke, and you pulling on the handles so as to increase the momentum of you and boat. Assuming various suitable adjustments have been made to the boat, and you are rowing fairly well, the forces on the spoon will stabilise the boat.If the blades are continuously at different depths, or the wrong depth , adjustments to the

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boat (gate angle?) might be necessary . There should be no excuse for imbalance occurring as the blade is being pulled. You might notice the stern twitching from side to side, because you are pulling unevenly. The pull on both blades should be the same, for all parts of the stroke. Hands cross one above the other, not one in front! Tip: Puddles should be the same, and small.

Is the empty boat sitting level in the water?When you put the boat in the water it should remain upright, and nearly level, with no correcting force either way. Make sure everything is symmetrical for this test, especially the gates. If it is heavily unbalanced you may have to fit weights to one of the gate pins. You should arrange that all blades have the same overall and inboard length , and weight. Beware any water within a blade!Otherwise they should be identical in pairs, which will allow for different blade settings to be used by each sculler in a multiple boat.

Weight and centre of gravity of blades. Location of button.

Balance with a crew in the boat.With the empty boat as balanced as possible the crew can embark. The principles of

flotation use two factors to determine whether a boat will float upright. The Centre of gravity , and the centre of Pressure. The latter occurs only when a boat is put in the water, and is the imaginary point in the boat through which the pressure of the water outside the hull acts.

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Centre of Gravity and Centre of Pressure.

When the centre of pressure is above or outside the centre of gravity, the boat is stable. The greater the distance between the two, the greater the stability. Hence the care that shipmasters take to see that heavy cargo is placed at the bottom. And also the danger of ice building up on the upperworks of a ship. Without a crew the rowing boats, particularly the bigger ones, may be stable. But add the crew, and the centre of gravity is so high that they become unstable.Coastal rowing boats are wider, and stable even with a crew.

The ‘8’ tipping. Smaller boat tipping.

It is only the blades, and their interaction with the water, that keep the narrow boats upright. The skill of the crew is now what will give the boat enough balance to make rowing successful, and fun.An interesting example of the effect of raising the centre of gravity is experienced when getting into a boat. One foot is either placed at track level, or on the keel. Placing your foot on the keel – in the bottom of the boat - gives the boat great stability, whereas

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placing it higher up at seat level and above the centre of pressure, makes it unstable.Once you start the boat moving it is a different sort of balance that is required. You’ve now got forces exerted on each side of the boat by the moving blades and water. If these are not exactly the same the boat will tip, or pitch, or yaw. The tendency is for the crew to shift their knees,shoulders or backsides to try to correct a tip. However the best way to keep the boat steady for the duration of the recovery – I second only – is to move evenly up the slide without any body lean to the side, and without flapping the legs about. Use the sideways inertia of your body to keep the boat level- exerting even pressure to both sides of the seat. A crew should become as one – doing everything absolutely together.Herein lies another reason for a swift – 1 second – recovery. A boat will inevitably tip with blades off the water , but it will take time. Give it that time and it will happen. So practice a rapid, smooth recovery, and don’t give it that time !

Body lean:Your body probably weighs about 5 times as much as the boat. So a movement by the body one way could cause a much larger movement of the boat the other way. During the recovery you have lost the main stabilising influence on the boat – the action of the water on the spoons. Given enough time the boat will usually tip if the spoons are off the water. However the recovery lasts only 1 second, and that is all the time you need to keep the boat level.(It’s worth repeating! ) You must ensure that the forces applied to the boat as you move up the slide are even on each side, or at least always the same.There are various exercises done in rowing training to try to ensure good balance, such as slow movement up the slide, pausing as the blades are square, and others. I must disagree with these exercises because they are likely to teach the wrong reaction to imbalance. The reason is that we are trying to balance a moving boat, not a static boat, or blades, or oarsman.Let’s look at this in more detail:1. Reaction to continuous imbalance? Correct this by sitting or leaning to the other side , using your off centre weight for balance. Or change the rig. Don’t move sideways during the stroke.2. Reaction to leaning during the recovery? If you lean to one side the boat will tip the other way . Action and reaction!

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SO! If the boat tips to the left, put pressure on the right side of the seat which will push the knees or torso or both the other way – the same as the direction of the tip. Yes! I know! In the long run leaning to the same side as the tip will make it worse. But we are not interested in the long term effects. The whole recovery will be over in one second. So! Lean into the direction of tip to correct it. However, having said this I would recommend something different. DO NOTHING !! Don’t lean at all. You will find that if you have made a good ‘release’ and got the handle “DOWN AND AWAY” you should at least start the recovery well balanced. I find that concentrating on being well-balanced, and then arranging that I don’t move the knees abnormally or consciously react to imbalance, I generally have a well-balanced recovery. When sculling try this:1. Arranging that the knees lightly touch the inside of the arms as you approach front-stops. A similar arrangement can be made in a sweep boat. Don’t use the knees to correct lean, which was probably caused by the knees flapping around anyway. Giving the knees a ‘reference point’ – the inside of the arms, will help control them.2. Look straight ahead and concentrate on balance. One of the worst things for throwing the boat off balance is the blade hitting a wave – especially a blade that is not fully feathered. Train yourself to react to this by dropping the handle as the spoon lifts – let the blade and your arms absorb the shock rather than the boat. The momentum generated by a swinging blade is considerable, and if there is any difference in blade work across the boat there will be imbalance. A disciplined boat will have the crew copying stroke precisely.

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I recently watched a 15 year old boy sit in a single scull for about 2 minutes with blade handles on the gunwales, and spoons about 1 metre above the water. If I tried that...........! I suppose there is a similarity between a rower and a tight-rope walker - using the inertia of the blades or the pole to slow the imbalance and allow time for correction.

Balance learning. Use high rating with short strokes to instal the feel of good balance. Stroke length, with blades reaching greater and less stable angles, can then be increased. I think this might be a better technique than part crew rowing, or slow rating.

Beginners Beginners are generally put into the older, heavier boats in a club. Often these boats are heavy, badly rigged, or worn out . The first outings can sometimes be enough to drive the prospective rower to other more satisfying sports. The supposed better stability of the heavy boat is used as the excuse for treating beginners thus, and if the beginner is an older person there may be some merit in this( if they don’t keel over just getting the thing to the water.) However young people have very quick reactions, and can quickly cope with an unstable boat like a single.Put them in a good single scull , a few metres out ,on a tether, and get them to practice blade work and boat handling. Reentry drill ? ( building good foundations ! ) . Initial untethered strokes are short , but at high rate – the blade nearly square to the boat to achieve comfortable balance ( Upstream is safest ! ). Gradually increase stroke length, work, and distance until they are fully mobile. The advantage of using a single is that the sculler can progress at his own pace, and is solely responsible for his performance.The problem of safety seems to be one reason for putting beginners into bigger boats . Also the cost. It is assumed to cost more per seat in a single than a bigger boat. Not so! ( This is my sales pitch!)Assuming that all scullers are competent swimmers, arrange that each scull has a lifejacket aboard (even if not worn as I do). Have perhaps one coach boat for 8 singles, keep them all within a reasonable area, and not alone. Use mirrors, and work to a plan. Discipline from the start! Incidentally , how many experienced oarsmen do you see heading out alone, with no life jackets or any other safety devices, and in faulty boats (no bowball). Luckily accidents are few. One day!!! I recently repaired a double scull whose saxboard adjacent to a stretcher had been pierced by a quad without a bowball. Half a metre further back and a sculler would also have been pierced. Mirrors were not being used. A good bad example ?And please tell beginners, and all rowers, to keep within the marked or obvious channel, especially at low tide. Rocks and shells always win !!

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Blade length.As spoons have been getting bigger, blades have been getting shorter – about 2700 mm for a sculling blade. Assuming a constant distance moved by the athlete’s hands, a shorter blade with similar gearing and therefore a shorter inboard, will sweep a greater angle. If the boat speed and inboard remain unchanged, but the outboard is shortened, the arc length in the water, and the time of the stroke will be reduced. This shortening of the duration of the work is probably the reason it is popular, and effective – we prefer short, hard work, and cannot easily hold a load. Since the time of the stroke is reduced it becomes more important to get a good quick catch and release.

Blade spoon shape.The shape of the spoon has changed radically over the last century. The long thin ‘toothpick’ became shorter and wider as the ‘Macon’ spoon, both with the shaft located along the central axis. Then came the ‘cleaver’ style with a squarer spoon, and the shaft positioned above the axis.

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The shorter spoon means more efficient grip on the water. Why? As the blade is pulled the spoon rotates, the outside moves further than the inside, water is churned, and the spoon ‘slips’. You can see the effect of a long spoon by observing the shaft of a deep – running blade. The shaft is being pulled forward through the water as the spoon locks. There will probably be an ideal ratio of spoon length to width, balancing the need for a good grip, less churning, and easy squaring . I suspect a nearly square spoon will result.Dreher suggested an ideal length/width ratio of 1.618:1 .

Curved or flat? Modern spoons are fairly flat, and one of the reasons may be to do

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with the amount the spoon knifes forward immediately after the catch. A flat spoon will move further forward, placing the spoon ahead before the work is applied.

However this might be offset by the ‘PELOTA’ effect (See the ‘Pelota’ section.) of the spoon at the end of the stroke, this can give an extra bit of boat speed. The curved spoon will also get a better ‘lock’ on the water, and less slip.

Boat Construction.Modern boats are usually made of carbon, and occasionally glass or Kevlar.Features of these three materials are as follows:

1.Carbon. This consists of carbon atoms connected together very strongly, giving a fibre that stretches very little under load. This is useful for making a stiff item, as in boats, blades, rackets, fishing rods and planes). It conducts electricity, and this can lead to corrosion when in contact with metals. It is black in colour.

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This picture of Carbon may not be technically correct. It does however demonstrate an early manufacturing process which involved removing, with heat, other elements from a carbon chain. The strongly bonded carbon chain leads to the great stiffness of carbon mouldings.

2. Glass. Molten glass, similar to that used in windows, is pulled at high speed from a small hole to give a fine thread about 1/100 mm thick. Several hundred of these are grouped to form thicker threads which are woven into cloth or chopped and laid into ‘chopped strand mat’. It is much cheaper than carbon, does not conduct electricity, and is transparent.

3. Kevlar. A chemical ‘aramid’ fibre of similar ultimate strength to the other materials, but with the ability to stretch under load. This is a vital factor in its use in bullet and knife proof clothing. It resists cutting and sanding, making it harder to use than the other materials, and will not give a very stiff boat. I use only a few threads in my boats - to hold the cross bearers under the tracks. It is dull yellow in colour.

Strength of these three materials: In terms of tensile strength the strongest is apparently carbon, then kevlar, then glass, although the difference does not seem to be great. The most important features are rather cost, stretch under load, conductivity, weight, colour, etc. A Kevlar boat will take a pounding, but not have the stiffness of a carbon boat.

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The slight ‘give’ of a Kevlar structure while a load dissipates, in effect reduces the load. Its rather like the effect of an airbag in a car crash. Even the small movement of your body allowed by the bag when the car stops suddenly can reduce the impact – the deceleration - to the point of reasonable safety. You can hold a bullet with a bit of paper, but not if it arrives at speed from a gun. The ‘give’ of the Kevlar vest dissipates the momentum of the bullet. A hammer won’t drive a nail unless it arrives at speed, on a hard surface.

Glass is denser, resulting in heavier mouldings. It does not behave as a metal so avoids some corrosion, and electrical conduction problems (lightning!)

These materials are used for construction, and decoration. The visual effect of a carbon cloth, perhaps with some Kevlar interwoven, can be stunning. They are sold in four forms, with many weight and weave variations:

All these materials are used by wetting them with a resin, forming them –usually in a mould – and allowing the resin to harden, often assisted by heating.

Some mouldings are prepared using ‘pre-preg’ materials, which have been filled with dry resin. This then liquefies when the material is heated. It allows complex or large mouldings to be prepared without worrying about resin curing too early.

There are several types of resin commonly used.1. Polyester and Vinylester . The former is the common ‘ fibreglass’ resin, with the vinyl form being stronger, more resilient , and expensive. They are not generally used for racing boats because they shrink considerably on curing. This can distort thin mouldings, especially nearly flat surfaces.

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They give off lots of styrene fumes which I don’t want, as I work at home with nearby neighbours.2. Epoxy. Shrinks very little on curing, and gives off negligible vapour. Can be used in ‘pre-preg’ material which is activated by heat.

There are two types of product which depend on the form of material – cloth, or chopped strand - that you use.1. Lamination. This consists of several layers of woven or unidirectional cloth. The smooth surface of these materials prevents a good bond between layers. This can result in the layers separating under load – delamination. Adding a layer of loose material ,like glass tissue, between cloth layers can help. Otherwise add finely chopped fibre to the resin.2. Moulding. When chopped strand mat,or loose chopped material is used, successive layers merge to form a homogeneous ‘moulding’ which will not delaminate. The problem is that the chopped strands absorb a lot more resin than woven cloth because the fibres are not constrained in the weave.

There are several types of lamination or moulding in common use.1. Thin skin. Wetted material is laid on the prepared mould to form a single layer. This can be done using brushes, rollers, or squeegees. My bigger mouldings are made using a squeegee only. Small mouldings use a 3mm roller(wooden stick). The small size prevents loose fibres sticking to the roller.The wet moulding can be covered with suitable plastic sheeting and excess resin and air removed by suction or pressure.If the mould is double sided the resin can be sucked into pre-laid material ( Infusion). 2. Sandwich construction. A thin layer of cloth is placed on the mould. A layer of foam , synthetic honeycomb, or other core material between 2 and 10mm thick is then applied, followed by another thin layer of cloth. A sandwich gives local stiffness to a moulding, but is fragile, easily dented or torn, and can delaminate if the core breaks. It is said that it allows a lighter hull, although minimum weights of rowing boats were already achieved using ‘thin skin’. I do not think it adds to overall boat stiffness.

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Moulds for brush or squeegee lay-up can be simple since they don’t have to withstand pressure or temperature. They can be made of almost any material, which is treated with wax to prevent the resin sticking. My boat mould is fibreglass, reinforced by a steel frame.

Heat resistant boats. Boats being transported on vehicles are usually tied on with rope or strapping. This is usually tight, and is often deeply coloured. A problem which can occur with darker straps in sunlight is heat. If the resin in the boat has not been made to resist softening at the sort of temperatures that sunny conditions can reach, the boat might warp.

BoatmanshipA boat that is handled well to and from the water, will probably be handled well on the water.Unfortunately one seldom sees boats handled with style on land. I mention elsewhere a school in Zimbabwe which was an exception, and they were a pleasure to watch, at any time. Is it perhaps ‘uncool’ for school – age kids to be seen to be organised and disciplined? I would like to see a boatmanship competition in which crews are judged on how they launch a boat, embark, perform manoeuvres, disembark, and return the boat to dumps. I like to arrive at our ramp at about ½ speed, inboard blade raised so as not to scrape on the concrete. The inboard foot is dragged overboard to stop the boat. With the other leg out both blades are removed- inboard first- and placed spoon to stern, buttons resting on the rigger. I get out then place the blades in the boat, pick it up, and leave. This is very quick, which is useful when the ramp is crowded. If I was better looking it might even be stylish! Fun also if the ramp is occupied, and using the mirror only you lift the blade over other boats in the approach.

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Launching is quick, with gates open before carrying to the water, and blades again in the boat. Final preparations – shoes etc – are done after leaving the ramp.

I have only 4 whinges about sculling at my club.1. Slow and inconsiderate launch or removal of other boats.2. B..........coach boats, and their wakes. 3. Coaches not insisting on warm-downs after strenuous ergs – and ergers collapsing dramatically, or vomiting!4. Coaches being allowed to complicate sculling with weird or confusing instruction- and not coaching decent boat handling..And one more!! Bad language.I have spent most of my life in a world of either ‘workshop’ or ‘family’ language. The former was in a male only group and was sometimes crude. Nowadays the workshop consists of nearly equal numbers of each sex, and some seem happy with the same rough language. I , however, am embarrassed, especially in female company, with rough language. More so in a ‘çlean’ club or non-workshop setting. Some ergers at a recent 5km test in our gym resorted to very coarse language as the pain set in. The three attendant coaches did nothing. Bad language isn’t clever or tough. It is demeaning and embarrassing.

B ody Fat. This table from the American Council on exercise gives a popular perception of our body fat content. Women: % Men:Essential: 10-12 2-4Athletes: 13-20 5-13Fitness: 21-24 14-17Acceptable: 25-31 18-25Obese: 32+ 26+

Fine ! But how do you measure it? Every time I look it up there is yet another method offered. According to several methods I am 25% ! – with a flat stomach and muscle-contoured features. duh!Well, even if it is 25% who cares. I am proud of what I see in my mirror. I wear the same suit at 68 years of age, that I was given when I was 17 ! We are unique in our bodies. Our skeletons may be ‘heavy or light’ according to our race, and we get our general features from our parents. How we develop after that is our choice.The most important bodyfat is the ‘essential’ above. This our body needs to regulate temperature ( under the skin), cushion and insulate organs and tissues, and as the main

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form of energy storage.It is interesting that our best athletes do not have the features of runway models, or body builders.It appears that the latest preferred measure of fat is round your waist. Bulges in that area indicate excess. Any other is just you!

Boredom.Endless sculling can become a bit of a grind. I use several techniques to maintain interest.1. Erg or scull every day. Just as we don’t get bored having breakfast, or showering, or doing any other routine daily activity, so it just becomes something I do! 2. Vary outings – visit a different part of the river , pick up bottles, race another boat you meet. Fun!3. Practice some part of your technique: the release , clearing water on the recovery etc.4. Don’t think of anything you’d rather be doing. 5. Think Positive!6. Accept that there will always be things, and not only in sculling, that are sometimes boring, but just have to be done.

Breathi ng: Breathing can use between 7 and 16% of your energy! Being close to the heart those muscles involved in breathing will be able to hijack fresh blood which could otherwise have gone to the limbs. Our diaphragm is a muscle which flattens and reduces pressure in the chest, resulting in air being drawn into our lungs. This accounts for about 60% of our lung capacity, and is the ‘easy’ part. The ribs and upper chest can then be expanded to inhale more air – but this uses lots more energy ( per litre) .When you are at frontstops your diaphragm will have difficulty moving downwards into your stomach and expanding your lungs, so you should exhale as you approach front stops.

Take 2 breaths each stroke. One during the work, and one during the recovery, exhaling at ‘catch’ and ‘release’.

At the start of the outing the breaths are of course very light. Later, when you are warmed up, and the breaths are heavier, you will still feel in control of breathing.I suspect that the total energy required to take 2 small breaths is less than to take I big breath . And certainly 2 breaths per stroke allows for a much larger volume than the single breath. You will never use your full lung capacity. We tend to have a preferred tidal peak volume, presumably that which is comfortable and economical. It ranges from 60 to 85% of maximum.

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The only option then is to increase the rate of breathing if we need more oxygen. With entrained breathing this means increasing the stroke rate – something we commonly see towards the end of a race. So breathing could be driving stroke rate?? In a replicated test on the erg I found that for the same split and rating, heart rate for a single breath was 2 more than for a double breath. The test was done at a light 2.04 split, and 28 rating. The difference would be even more as work increases, and breaths deepen.

I said earlier that the back should be comfortably bent always. This might have an adverse effect on breathing since it will restrict the expansion of the abdomen to allow inhalation. However, the frequent shallow breaths at 2/stroke should not need heavy inhalation.I know that it seems daft breathing at such a fast rate when still fresh, but as an integral part of the stroke rhythm it must become habitual.Get into a breathing rhythm, which is repeated throughout a period of work or a race - always.Should we control breathing? Or should we just let it happen to satisfy demand, as with the heart? Because the mechanics of sculling can affect the mechanics of breathing, it would be better if the two could mesh, rather than clash. And if breathing can have a regular rhythm it is better than being irregular.

Mouth or nose breathing?Air passing through the nose is filtered, and humidified, which is especially useful for asthma sufferers. Unfortunately we don’t have the nasal capacity ( as does a horse) to

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breathe the sort of volume required during heavy exercise. My constant 2 breaths per stroke is done through the mouth, even during very light work. Pressure in the lungs: Some people like to purse the lips as they breathe out while exercising, making a sort of whistling noise. While this may add something to the rhythm, it could be inefficient. Pursing your lips restricts the flow of air and pressurises your lungs. The diaphragm will be unable to return to its fully relaxed position thus reducing your available lung capacity. Breathing should be nearly SILENT ! Noise = restriction. In pressurising the lungs you also probably expand the airway – mouth to lung – thereby increasing the volume of ‘dead’ air. I am practicing breathing with a relaxed lower jaw and open mouth.

Strengthening the diaphragm: The diaphragm is a muscle , and a strong, fit diaphragm will improve air movement and overall performance. One way to strengthen the diaphragm is to restrict the flow of air when inhaling. There is a device on the market for this purpose, with suggested exercise regimes( visit powerbreathe.com). However, I think the diaphragm will be exercised and strengthened sufficiently with a constant double- breath stroke, along with all your other muscles, while rowing.

Holding your breath while pulling. There is a popular argument that you should have full lungs at the catch, and not breathe during the heavy work. Presumably because those muscles involved in breathing , and lung pressure, are also used for core support . This is a technique used by weightlifters. However when we are working hard we need two breaths per stroke, one of which might as well be during the work. If we are, say, pulling on a rope during a tug-of-war, we are certainly able to breathe even though the core muscles might be loaded. In fact our muscles use energy when loaded, regardless of any movement. The muscle force used to breath is probably small compared to the force needed to support the back during work. And your back isn’t going to need much support since it is comfortably bent always. A weightlifter’s posture is hardly normal, and needs considerable effort to achieve and hold. Hence any assistance gained from a held breath. This is not necessary for the smaller loads during sculling.

Bum-rushing: The legs should be straightened over about 3/4 of the work stroke. Your back has assumed a laid-back position from the catch. Your arms are being pulled nearly straight by the legs and back. This is the 2nd phase of the work, as described in the ‘work’ section.

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If your legs straighten too quickly, literally pushing your seat ahead of the rest of your body you are bumrushing!1. You want your upper body weight to be behind your hips when the heavy legwork is applied with the blades square to the boat. If your legs have opened too soon your upper body must still be forward of your hips, and you will load your back excessively , and waste energy.2. Thumping the knees down gives a vertical jerk to the boat . Sure! Knees moving down will always make the boat go up, but at least do it gently.

Carrying the boat. 1. By hand Some singles ( mine) have the seat supports exposed, and these are handy for carrying the boat.Those with enclosed cockpits can be carried on the shoulder in 2 ways. 1. On edge, with the saxboard on the shoulder.2. The right way up. Ensure that the hull of the boat has been reinforced at the point of contact, or you may distort and crack the hull. Our clavicle bone is the main culprit.The safest way of all is to have two people carrying the boat – at the ends, especially if there is much wind.

Doubles/Pairs can also be carried at the ends.Fours and eights are best carried by two teams, one at each end of the cockpit.This allows for uneven ground, with less strain on boat and crew than if carried by an evenly spaced team.

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2.Trailer. The trailer steelwork onto which boats will be placed should :1. Have a flat top, about 50mm wide.2. Have a wood, plastic, rubber or carpet surface.The flat cockpit edges of most modern boats can then be placed on these protected surfaces, and strapped down - not too tight. Singles are awkward in that the cockpit is short, and they are usually loaded so that one end of the cockpit is on one frame, with the other end of the boat on another. This part, however, is fairly fragile, and can be damaged by being strapped to a flat surface. It is better to support this end of the boat between an upper and lower frame – with straps.

Catching a ‘Crab’.

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When you can’t lift the blade from the water at the end of the stroke it continues turning, either moving past the rower, or on occasion sweeping the rower out of the boat.Something has gone wrong at the beginning of the stroke, usually the squaring. The rower , who is often a novice, is confused by the strange motion of the blade, and is unable to react suitably in time. Boats fitted with rigger topstays often have the topstay bent or broken by the ‘crabby’ blade swinging into line with the boat.Rowers should learn to ‘feel’ the blade – that it is correctly angled at the catch. A long reach will give more time for the hands to get this feeling. Rowing with eyes closed helps, otherwise keeping eyes front always.And use Part 1 of the Rhecon stroke to ensure the blade is correctly set before applying full power.

Choking.A problem experienced by many athletes is ‘choking’ ( an Americanism not to do with the airway). This happens when the athlete makes critical errors near the end of an event. Ideally our long training with endless repetitions has trained the brain to automatically control the body in the required fashion.So the athlete must refrain from interfering with the brain’s ‘motor’ control at critical times in a desperate effort to improve performance. The women’s hurdles final at the Athens Olympics is a good example of ‘choking’. Stressing the athlete while race training can teach him to deal with it without affecting the ‘motor’. It is amazing to watch a top golfer sink a long putt on the final critical green, or a tennis player do a risky shot to finish a match. A sculler who doesn’t panic and drive the rating beyond control in the last 500m. Wonderful control !

Clothing. This is discussed under ‘Sweat’.

Coaching.I’m afraid I have little experience of coaching – from either side.Good coaches ( and athletes) are born with their incredible gift, and I envy them. I was once asked to join a team of coaches at a school, to help coach novices. It didn’t take long to discover that I had none of the required skills of communication, patience, or

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commitment. The last straw was at a 2k erg test, when they ignored my requests to warm up and cool down. I figured that if the youngsters weren’t interested, neither was I ! So I resigned. It was a relief for me ( and perhaps for them?) Admitting failure is never easy, especially as I think I have lots of good suggestions to offer scullers.Thinking back on my life I have never found it easy persuading people that they should do what I suggest, and successfully defending my opinions. At least in this essay I can happily opinionate! While I applaud the enthusiasm and dedication of coaches I query what many teach as the technique of sculling, and how they teach it. Either they are coaching a strange technique, or ignoring important points.

1. Wrong: straight back, ratio of work : recovery, slow rating, elbows at release.2. Ignored: Breathing, basic boat handling, warm-up and down.3. Confusing: Instruction to move ‘a’ towards ‘b’ rather than vice versa

Not one coach in our large club coaches a breathing technique!( See ‘Corrections’ below)

Of particular concern are the following coaching techniques. a. Slow rating in training. My argument that the resulting stroke is so unlike the high – rate stroke used in racing that it is of little value finds no takers. Beginners can’t rate high! – rubbish ! b. Rowing with part of a crew idle seems pointless as the stroke is very different due, at least, to the weight redistribution. Presumably this exercise is intended to show the active crew members what the boat feels like when balanced, so they will know what to aim for with all the crew rowing.Rather use short strokes - perhaps only 10’ either side of square- at perhaps 28 rating, to get good balance. Increase stroke length as this improves.c. Not rowing at all – sitting idle in a boat being talked to by a coach – is a waste of valuable water time. Outings should be preplanned, and instruction can be given while moving. Continuous fartlecks are better than stop – start intervals.d. Pausing during the stroke.

I like to surf the web looking at technique opinions. One thing that I dislike is the use of the words ‘correct’ or ‘proper’ in such offerings. Their use tends to prevent change and is a form of arrogance. ‘Common’ or ‘popular’ would better describe a coach’s opinions - and his willingness to consider change. Nothing is beyond improvement.And some instruction is simply impractical. It is difficult to understand that someone would, with a straight face, require that a spoon be placed in the water while still approaching the bow, or that you don’t pull on the stretcher in the recovery.

Inefficient off the water = inefficient on the water.

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We had one ramp for 9 rowing and waka clubs, which became very crowded at times. It was infuriating when those embarking, or otherwise, were unnecessarily slow. Usually due to poor preparation, or plain lack of consideration. Even if there were coaches present nothing improved. A 70m long floating jetty has now been installed, and the ramp is MINE!!!. ( I don’t use the jetty for launching etc. because of my new hip, and a hernia repair.)

I once went out in a double with someone I assumed to have sculled before. After a pleasant and comfortable outing in very difficult water, using high rating, short strokes and little work, I was surprised to learn that my companion had NO previous experience. I would like to think that she found ours an easy rhythm – and the basic sculling stroke is hardly difficult. Perhaps she was also a natural athlete. Try running at slow rating – duh!

While most athletes benefit from some coaching, especially team players, it is possible to excel with little or no coaching. I wouldn’t be surprised if such athletes are also loners generally – sufficient in themselves. Roger Federer is an example.Do experts in other fields have coaches – such as top businessmen, doctors, scientists? They have associates, partners, and p.a.’s, who perhaps support them in a coachlike way. Or has it just become a sports thing? Someone to blame for failure?It seems that good coaching is as much a ‘ mind’ as a ‘style’ thing. An athlete can will himself to his best effort – it’s his choice. And the coach can help nurture that winning psyche.It’s a leadership thing, and the really good coaches are born with it.

He needs to be a role model – not a friend.He’s there for you, but not always with you.He guides you, not drags you. There are of course many female coaches, who are generally coaching women. Since I dislike doing the he/she thing endlessly, kindly read a ‘she’ for a ‘he’ if you want. In the ‘Excuses’ section I talk of coaches becoming a convenient excuse when performance drops. ‘Training’ and ‘coaching’ often become synonymous – “we can’t row without a coach…”. Unfortunately the coach often becomes the carrier of life jackets, and the giver of steering directions. And because he’s there the crew stops thinking, and blindly awaits instruction. In order to seem busy he will be getting them to do sometimes weird and impossible exercises, (Keep accelerating to the end of the stroke ! ) , instead of simply doing lots of sweaty k’s ( my hobbyhorse) with occasional technique changes. If scullers always need a nearby coach holding their hands in training how are they going to race without him ? The schools tend to need lots of coaches because of the legal safety requirements. Or rather they need attendant boats, not necessarily with coaches. Unfortunately school outings without a coach in control often degenerate into a rowdy waste of time. Try

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getting willing parents to accompany boats. I was watching a passing ‘8’ the other day, in which half the crew were idle. What struck me was how the boat was pulsing very little - obvious considering that the ‘boat’ now weighed more than the active ‘crew’. What value in a boat which is artificially stabilised, and has an unnatural motion ? Balance training?If you want to find out if one member of a crew is working effectively, use an erg or a single.

Having said all this about coaching and coaches, I realise that the most important work of our “coaches” is as organisers. Without them who would choose crews,arrange equipment and outings, organise for regattas and so on. Technique coaching would seem to be much less important. The “organising”, I’m sure, is their most valued skill.Nicer to be called a coach than an organiser?

Coaching – remote.Coaching boats are expensive for clubs to buy and run. And their wakes!!!.Herewith some alternatives:1. The drone. New technology offers this relatively cheap method of following a boat, and can offer views from any angle. 2. Boat – mounted cameras transmitting to the shore.3. Centrally located coach, ashore, viewing crews with telescope and communicating individually. 4. Train the crews to be independant – not with a coach or expensive technology always there. Hard work, not fancy gear, wins races!

What if the coach boat is necessary for safety purposes, especially with schools? Then have only one safety boat, not necessarily with a coach aboard, instead of one for two that now accompany a school outing. Equip school rowing boats with emergency buttons to alert the rescue boat. Outings can be held close to one centrally located rescue boat. Our club has three visible 1km runs. And practice!!!

Coach boat wake . There is one good use for the coach boat wake!I saw 3 boats passing the club the other day. 1. A single scull.2. A coach boat.3. A waka – surfing on the coach boat wake! Cool!!

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Coaching BeginnersUse the erg to learn the basics of the stroke (and breathing), and crew rhythm.In a crew boat : Use an experienced stroke and cox. Learn boat handling and manoeuvring first, perhaps with a tethered boat . Don’t forget re-embarking drills. When off the tether, and accompanied by a coach boat, rate about 28 with short, light , 1:1 strokes . No part – crew rowing since this creates an artificial situation and simply delays their learning balance and rhythm. Start with light work and short strokes, then gradually increase both.In a single: Use the same tethered then free technique as for the bigger boat.Incorporate the Rhecon system from the start.

Coach – boat safety.From a near mishap years ago I would recommend ruling that no one stands in a moving coach boat. Even intended course changes can lead to instability, perhaps because the actions are unpracticed, and boats don’t behave like bikes or cars. The steering wheel is usually positioned for a seated driver – and is too low when standing. Best also to keep some distance from the boat being coached. Always attach the motor kill lanyard firmly to your clothing.

Consequences.I’d like to instal a couple of my life beliefs:1. Your lifestyle is usually your choice. You and yours must live with the consequences.2. Treat others the way you would like to be treated.3. None of your choices affect you alone.

In the end the choices, and consequences, are yours!!

I so admire those in the services – teachers, medical, fire, care, police – who often have to deal professionally with some very low, abusive, or evil people. Beyond me!And our ‘consequences’ don’t seem to do much correcting – 80% recidivism !

Control (being in …)As in life generally you cannot concentrate on things if you don’t feel in control, so it is with sculling. While you can probably arrange that you are physically in control of your sculling, other things may be worrying you.Without that feeling of control, your comfort, rhythm, and performance, are affected. Herewith a few ideas to keep you in control.

1. Avoid addictive pastimes( apart from sculling of course). To stop a bad habit replace it with a good one(Sculling!).

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2. Avoid debt. Beware credit cards. (ours is in credit ! )3. Sort out family and social relationships. Life is short. Ride the waves.4. Get fit in mind and body. 5. Be proud of YOU ! You are unique – warts and all! Mirror ?!6. Set reachable- but challenging - goals. You are a winner every time you do

your best - at any level – in sport, and in life generally. 7. Sort out your real values: Wealth, possessions, family, job, etc ? 8. Think positive. Half full ! 9. Choose one or more mentors – people who inspire you, even if not with open

friendship.

Comfort.Feeling comfortable in the boat will help you to feel in control, and allow you to work efficiently. The physical part – rigging, condition of moving parts, shoes and so on should be checked before setting out. And don’t skimp on keeping them all in good condition. Nothing worse than a seat trying to move on a corroded track, or feet in rotting and broken shoes. And don’t forget the blades – length adjusting screws tight, sleeve and collar not loose or broken.Good mental preparation, with you organised and in control, will then complete the requirements for a comfortable outing. Don’t forget your personal preparation – clothing, sunscreen, food and water, sleep. Be in CONTROL !!!

Cooling during exercise.“As pants the heart for cooling breeze,When heated in the race “. ( With apologies to Handel, and all good Christians).

About 75% of our energy becomes heat during exercise. Unfortunately our bodies can only absorb a little of this heat in raising our temperature no more than 3’ . The rest we must lose - most efficiently by the evaporation of sweat – against your skin.(Sweat loses about 500 times more heat by evaporation than by dripping). This requires the movement of air, which is not saturated with water vapour, past your skin. The closer the better.Our bodies will also divert up to 20% of blood flow to the skin to try to remove heat if necessary.

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Help the process thus:1. Wear light coloured, skin tight clothing. Modern materials are very thin,

transferring sweat to the surface to be evaporated rather than simply being wetted by it.

2. Don’t wear a hat which will restrict scalp cooling.3. Move the elbows away from the body at the release.4. Remove body hair. (Getting serious now!) 5. Don’t be afraid to sweat. It’s cool!

See the section on ‘Sweat’.

Cooling down after exercise. (The Warm – down ! ).Heavy exercise, especially anaerobic exercise above about 80%, can concentrate lactic acid in the muscles which, if left, can lead to cramps. A gradual reduction of work over about 15 minutes will help reduce these levels. It will also slowly redirect the blood flow round the body from being in support of the working parts. Stopping suddenly can result in pooling of blood in the extremities, and a shortage to the head, leading to giddiness and nausea. Heart rate may drop fast, but it takes time to reorganise blood flow and reduce temperature. Cooling your body to its normal temperature, perhaps only a 2’ difference, is probably what takes the longest to happen. Our bodies are not very good conductors of heat - unlike metals - so losing heat is slow. Similarly trying to warm up, when cold and entering a warm room, can take about 10 minutes.The warm - down will allow you time to relax. Use it! After an Erg session I reduce work over 5 minutes, maintaining breathing pattern and rating, then walk around for a further 10. And have a generous drink of water. No stretching! Most references recommend a much longer warm – down than this , usually 30 minutes or more. Since most athletes I have observed seem content to just stop immediately after exercise, is even 5 minutes too much to ask – for YOUR benefit. Be nice to that body that has just worked for you!

‘Core Strength.’This phrase comes readily to the lips of scullers nowadays, and whole exercise sessions are devoted to its improvement. Core muscles, other than those behind the spine, have little to do with the power in rowing. Instead they assist in body and boat balance, and a little in the recovery. The ‘RHECON’ system contends that the normal high number of sculling or erging strokes will exercise those muscles adequately, if it happens at about 30 rating, and 1:1 work : recovery time, etc. A satisfactory ‘six-pack’ should result, fellas!!!

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Corrections:In reading about rowing, and listening to coaches and other people, there are several oft-repeated statements that I consider incorrect or confusing.1: ‘Accelerate to the release’ Accelerate means to increase speed, and in moving up the slide we have to not only accelerate, but decelerate. The rate at which each happens should give a smooth, not jerky, stroke. This is also true of the recovery. The boat itself continues to accelerate for about 1/3 of the recovery.2: ‘ The In/Out ratio of a stroke is 2:1 , or even 3:1’. The ratio during a race is nearly 1:1, and it seems pointless to practice anything else – ever. 3. ‘Blades enter the water when still swinging forwards’ Duh!!4. ‘Let the boat run under you to get to the catch( don’t pull on the shoes). Impossible! Your movement to the catch, and the boat moving under you, is the result of you pulling on the foot stretcher. The idea is to make this pull gentle and smooth. ? I know that the tracks have a slight slope – about 10mm – but this is not enough to give you free passage, especially at the required speed. It is interesting that while accelerating up the slide the boat speed increases to its maximum.5. ‘ Any talk of an air pocket behind the spoon’ There should be no air behind the submerged spoon. Air entrained as the blade

entered should have been left behind as the spoon knifed forward, and before full power was applied. If the spoon is at a decent depth no further air should be drawn in, and the water above the spoon should be nearly flat, and quiet.

6. ‘Don’t stop at the catch and release! .’ Impossible! Fact is that at both ends you have to stop horizontal movement in

order to reverse. You can, however , make each reversal soft, taking the catch with the arms, and feathering as the spoon leaves the water.

The word needed is ‘pause’ rather than ‘stop’. Now the instruction makes good sense.

7. Work the legs only ....! Any effort of the legs, will require nearly equal effort from the back, shoulders and arms. Just because they aren’t flexing doesn’t mean they aren’t using energy. Muscles and bone structure from the feet to the hands work together, in balance, to transmit the required force to the blade, and with desired body movement. Muscles work and use energy when loaded, whether moving or not.

8. Oblong path of the hands (and the spoon). Impossible! In fact the path is sort of mushroom shaped – almost flat on the bottom ( recovery), and with a nearly central dome shape during the work. The main reason for this shape is that it is not possible to perform vertical hand movements instantaneously. It takes time and work to lift and drop the blade – less of both at the catch with the help of gravity!

9. Instruction to move boat past water not water past boat, or knees to chest not chest to knees, or vice versa , I think?

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10. Transferring weight to the feet. Meaningless!11. Legs or other parts doing the work. The legs may be the only things moving, but

other parts are working just as hard even if not moving. Replace the word ‘work’ with ‘move’.

Scullers are usually too polite, or unwilling to appear dim, to query some point the coach

makes. When I have done so I may get a reply that leaves me even more confused. I don’t like to upset them by pushing too much, and just tend to do my own thing in the club. We usually try to avoid confrontation.

Coxes. Light or small people tend to become coxes. But are they capable of giving the leadership required ? Perhaps the ‘leaderless test’ ( see later) could be used to see if the required qualities are there.

The overall speed of a boat will be affected by the speed variation during the stroke. This variation happens mainly due to the weight difference between the crew and the boat. In a single we have a 14kg boat with a sculler of perhaps 70kg.

I have seen several calculations that say the ideal weight for a single is about 20kg. More surface drag, but less speed variation.

A cox, if he sits rigidly still, becomes part of the boat weight, and can improve overall speed. Perhaps an 80kg cox in an 8 would help more than the popular 50kg cox?

Cramps.These seem to strike at odd times, and not necessarily during exercise.Little appears to be known of the cause. Unaccustomed exercise may attract more cramps than your regular exercise.Salt lost in sweat should be replaced, especially during exercise lasting more than 4 hours, using a ‘sports drink’ rather than water.. If you sweat so much salt that you get dried grains in the eyes and trails of dry salt on the skin and clothes you should get a medical opinion. Don’t skimp on salt in your normal diet, especially if your body asks for it. After a workout a proper warm-down should help prevent cramps.

Cross trainingEndless sculling can be numbing, especially after the pressure of the race season. Doing another form of exercise during the off season, although not using exactly the

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rowing muscles, can be very useful. Better than doing nothing!1. Maintain or improve cardio fitness.2. Refresh you mentally.3. Lets you have fun.

The exercise should always be ‘endurance’, at perhaps 70% max Heart rate. It has been shown that maintaining fitness in the ‘off’’ season will probably result in a higher performance during the season – you will be starting serious training at a higher level.It’s probably a good idea to vary the cross training – don’t only cycle.

Cycling. Apparently road cycling is the most dangerous of sports. Largely due to the carelessness of the cyclist, if not the fault. No rear view mirror, driver’s licence, bike licence , w.o.f., lights, high vis. or protective clothes. They often use ear plug music devices, ride two or more abreast, and forget that everything on the road is bigger than them. Entitlement???I was once following a cement truck which had pulled out to overtake 2 cyclists riding side by side. The inner cyclist eventually noticed the truck nearly beside her, got a fright, swerved, and failed to get her foot from the pedal pin in time to correct her wobble. She fell towards the truck. How the truck, which was so close that the driver didn’t see her fall, didn’t flatten her I do not know. I stopped, avoiding an apple which she dropped as she fell. “But St. Peter, I was in the right!”. The view from a bike is much better than from a car. Can the car driver see you? Don’t assume others know what you are going to do next.

Deceleration and acceleration at the catch,Whatever you do, there is going to be the pulsing movement of the boat during the stroke. But if you can soften this movement you will reduce other effects, such as pitching of the bow and stern. Just as in a car you can stop gently with steady deceleration, or irregularly with a squeal of tyres, so in a boat you can adjust your deceleration and acceleration to be gentle-or jerky. See the earlier section on the ‘catch’.At the release the horizontal upper body movement will be fairly gentle, but the vertical movement of the heavy legs will cause bounce of the boat. At the catch most of your body is moving horizontally, directly affecting boat speed. There is also the need to stop the blades, then accelerate them very quickly to relative water speed – as they enter. While I suppose you could decelerate fairly slowly to the catch, the following acceleration needs to be vigorous, the more so if your reach is limited. Taking the catch with your arms reduces the violence of the catch.Relative movement of boat, blades and you involves a transfer of energy, mostly as momentum. Converting some of this energy to the ‘potential’ sort, as in a spring, can

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soften the momentum changes. The use of Plyometrics and body compression ‘spring’ are an essential feature of the RHECON system.Rapid acceleration of your whole body via stiff arms will jerk and pitch the boat considerably. By bending your arms slightly you can absorb this acceleration, allowing your heavy body to achieve a more controlled change of direction.

Depression.I’d like to write something brilliant here, but instead will simply give some longstanding views of this condition. I went through several bouts of depression- wanting to hide in a dark corner, and not minding if life ended. Luckily I emerged unscathed, and perhaps stronger – without professional help.1. Although past events may be the basis of a depression, I don’t believe they should be visited, except perhaps very briefly. They happened – water under the bridge. 2. If you choose not to suffer, then changes need to be made. Your ‘Life triangle’ is probably in need of reinforcing. And don’t just concentrate on one part – say - diet. 3. Depression loves inactivity and poor self esteem. Activity and measureable achievement can boost self esteem and oust depression. Set reachable goals, both in effort and time . a. measureable exercise - daily. b. stop bad habits, by the hour or day.

I credit my ruthless daily sculling or erging for helping me lead a contented life, almost free of depression. I may not always enjoy the outing, and usually find the erg taxing, but doing either relentlessly makes me feel very good. I read that American ex-servicemen, particularly those with PTSD, are benefiting from informal gatherings to socialise, and do community work involving physical work(exercise).

Deprivation.I believe that going outside your comfort zone – with care – is beneficial. Stressing your mind and body teaches you to deal with it.This can involve diet, exercise, and in fact life in general. It is part of ‘back to basics’, and ‘excuses’. It is amazing how satisfactory life can be without many of the supposedly ‘essential’ things. Is this what those entering religious orders find with their chosen ‘poverty’? It teaches the ‘tough’ in the saying - ‘ When the going gets tough, the tough keep going’, and it has little to do with your physique, physical strength, or wealth. You will also appreciate your comfort zone more.

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Diet. ‘Feed the need, not the greed’. Yes! That’s it !!!

If you can be disciplined enough to do this, you can eat any food. I once lived in a cottage on the edge of a field occupied by a herd of cattle. In the centre of the field was a trailer fitted with 10 trays filled with a variety of mineral - loaded cattle foods. The cattle were being used to find the mineral lacking in that field - that being the one in the food they preferred and needed. The cattle weren’t subject to all our advertising, taste and habit pressures, which can so easily lead to the ‘greed’. With a little practice, and self discipline, it is not difficult to feed the ‘need’. Listen to your body.You will never see an overweight wild creature, because they invariably ‘Eat to live – not live to eat’.It’s OK to succumb, occasionally, to a ‘greed’ feed, perhaps as a reward for a week’s exercising.I must stress the Exercise, because the two(three) – Diet and Exercise (and lifestyle) – are inseparable.Oh ! And chuck out all the 40,000 diet books that are apparently in circulation.

Discipline .

I watched a group of school boys taking an ‘octo’ to the water one Sunday. No one seemed to be in charge. A lot of chatter somehow saw the boat onto the water. At one point the boat was on its side with bow-side riggers resting in the mud. Eventually, with the blades all over the place, the crew embarked – in their own time. VERY unimpressive. Their rowing wasn’t up to much either! The only good thing was that the riggers, which I had made, survived!I was reminded of another School, - Arundel girl’s school in Zimbabwe. They took pride in all aspects of their rowing. They even devised ‘tricks’ for starting or finishing an outing – standing in the boat, ‘tossing’ the blades and so on. Everything done with precision, and pride. Their rowing was equally impressive. Their coaches, Suzanne and Ian Hunter (now at Inverness Rowing club in Scotland), otherwise cattle farmers, seemed to have enough energy to power several countries. They had very strict standards in all aspects of rowing, tempered with a good deal of fun. They earned (not demanded) an incredible respect from the girls. It was a constant source of wonder to watch them in action. They are both active rowers. I wonder if this is a prerequisite for a ‘good’ coach – to be an

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active rower. Certainly difficult to ‘lead from the front’ if you aren’t.A healthy self esteem is vital for a contented lifestyle. And self discipline is a very good way of developing a strong self esteem. Sort out your life so that YOU feel in control. If you can’t succeed without the latest, greatest, or most expensive things, or perhaps drugs or alcohol, then they, not you, are in control. There is no easy way to fitness – body or soul. It is interesting that Presidents Bush and Putin both had vigorous daily exercise routines, making time for it despite the pressure of leading their vast nations. Obama is also a keen sportsman- his wife an active athlete. The whole Rhecon system emphasises a general disciplined approach to life, of which one part is your sculling.

Drag. (Resistance to movement)Several things combine to counter our efforts in propelling the boat.

1. Hull drag. To do with the wetted surface area, and cross sectional area of the boat. Not a lot you can do except keep the hull smooth, and probably polished.

2. Wind drag. There will generally be some wind, and your passage through it will be resisted. Flapping clothing or hair won’t help. A bent back will offer a lower profile.

The blade swinging during the recovery will be travelling much faster than the boat, and will cause a considerable wind drag when squared. Don’t square early! 3. Bounce drag. This is the loss from the boat bouncing, pitching, or yawing. 4. Pulse drag. Due to the weight difference between boat and crew, which allows the speed to vary expensively during the stroke. Unfortunately in rowing the boat motion is irregular, as the crew moves on the slide. We can reduce the violence, if not the amount , of this motion by making our acceleration and deceleration as smooth as possible. Yawing will be reduced if you pull evenly on both sides. Watch the stern for twitching. Pitching can be reduced by keeping the catch and release gentle, and not leaning either way too far. Bounce happens with too much vertical movement of your body and the blade at catch and release. Also if you drop your knees violently, like when you bum-rush.

Tip: Use putty to stick a glass with some water in it to the boat in front of you, as a ‘jerk’ indicator. Try to calm the water.

4.Turning. This creates turbulence, and wastes energy. Try to change course gradually

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– a few degrees each stroke. A mirror will help you plan your most economical course.Try to think, as you scull, of making your whole stroke as smooth as possible. It will also be efficient.

5.Moving water ! In moving a boat you have to part the water to allow you through. The less the cross – sectional area of the boat, the less water needs to be moved. In a 2k race a single will move about 48 tonnes of water aside. Granted you will get some benefit from the water pushing on the tapered stern of the boat. It is interesting that a thin( smaller cross-section) hull , despite having a greater wetted area, will probably have less total drag. Multi-hulled boats!!!A vertically thin hull, like a surfboard, relies on planing rather than displacement for speed.

Early layback.I happened upon a website comparing the rowing styles of Karl Adams and the GDR in the later 1900’s. Google ‘Comparison of GDR and Adams rowing style’ to see this article.A drawing showed the relative positions of rowers during the stroke, and interestingly the Adams rower lay back at the catch. The catch was taken with less forward lean, and the knees tighter, for the same reach. Seat travel, and leg drive, was therefore longer in the stroke. Did the layback happen with rotation at the hips, or higher up as in the Rhecon style? Adams , despite being a non-rower, was a very successful coach, and among other things introduced the ‘fartlek’.

Herewith a drawing of the Rhecon stroke.

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The catch at ‘1’, layback between ‘1’and ‘2’. Seat moves forward more as torso pivots above the hips.

On a lighter note: While playing in our fenced playground, our 21 month old granddaughter started pulling on the fence rails. Without any instruction she naturally assumed a straight, laid back posture!!!Problems with early layback?Lifting off the seat at the beginning of the stroke can happen. The mechanics of pulling on the blade or chain when bodyweight is near the feet makes this possible. Pulling near shoulder height, or with excess force,or pushing on the heels too soon, assists the lift. Early layback can also assist since in effect you are moving your bodyweight nearer the feet then it would be while leaning forward.To reduce the lift possibility you should use a long reach. That will reduce the force (acceleration) needed to achieve blade speed in the middle of the stroke. This will also save energy

Eating and Exercise.We should not eat much for 2 hours, or drink for ½ hour, before heavy exercise. And it

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is not necessary to drink during a short workout of perhaps an hour and a half. And then water will do. A longer sweat calls for replacement of salts by using a suitable ‘sports’ drink, and regular sips.This assumes a normally healthy eating regime, and good hydration. As an athlete, burning lots of energy at regular sessions, eating almost anything in moderation is OK. If you can separate ‘need’, from ‘greed’ , you will probably end up with high carb, medium protein and low fat diet. It may take some practice and discipline to get the ‘need from greed’ bit right. Tantalising adverts, and endless tasty foods don’t make it easy. Your most valuable tool as an athlete is – A Mirror ! A full length mirror in your bedroom so you can get a good look at your unclothed body. Since that body is both looked after by you, and used by you – are you happy with what you see? Assuming you have a ‘normal’ idea of the ‘ideal’ physique, how are you doing with that body in the mirror? To get a good idea of what a well kept body should look like cast an eye over any good rowing athletes( NOT a runway model or a bodybuilder!). Best do the mirror bit just before bed. While looking at the physical you give a thought to your general performance during the day. Any attitude or behaviour giving satisfaction, or concern. Something to sleep on!Aim at being proud of what you see, and YOU generally. You will sleep better, and probably live longer! And you will be a better example for, and carer of, those close to you.You are one of 7 billion.You are one in 7 billion!

Remember : Healthy bodies need some fat – not less than 14% for women, and 7% for men. If you want to lose fat then go for an early morning sweat on an empty tum, and don’t eat for an hour after you finish to get rid of more fat. Unfortunately we can’t choose which part of the body to defat(short of liposuction) and it seems that the sides of the abdomen are the hardest to reduce. Luckily rowing exercises most parts of our bodies and we seem to achieve a pleasing physique with time.

Efficiency.As we get older we need to use our remaining energy as efficiently as possible, hence several of the techniques suggested in the Rhecon style.1. Relaxed, bent arms and back. 2. Early layback.3. Low gate height.

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4. Pull on heel, not toes, in the recovery.5. 2 breaths per stroke.6. Steering mirror.7. 1:1 , no pause, 25+ spm stroke.8. Finish hands and legs together . Legs rebound - not held down.9. Heel blocks, for constant heel contact.10. NO pausing.

The Erg!An excellent machine for bad weather sculling, fitness testing, or demonstrating and practicing technique. Or if you haven’t enough time for a water session. While there are all sorts of readings available on the meter, I would suggest the following:1. Use the Split time to measure work - it relates directly to the boat. Both instant and average figures are available.2. Work to a chosen strokes per minute, not less than about 24.3. Total time.4. Use the same comfortable footplate and damper setting always.

There are several major differences between erg and boat work.1. The pull on the erg is always direct, unlike the angular travel of the blade handle. Not much you can do about the catch, but you can get a similar 90’ between the forearms at the release. I think it is more efficient to do this, even if you could pull straight.2. The tension on the chain means that you are assisted up the slide, whereas in a boat you have to do all the work of accelerating you and the blade after the release. Lift the front of the erg if you want to better exercise hamstrings and abs. 3. Since you don’t have to overcome the inertia of the blades on the erg you might be capable of a higher stroke rate. For erg racing explore this possibility, because it could lead to better scores.4.. The normal erg can’t train boat type balance, but it is still necessary to keep your body comfortably balanced , feeling it on the seat.5. It is not necessary on the erg to bring the hands down to your lap for the release. You can extend the stroke significantly by pulling even to shoulder height.6. You don’t have to steer. So you don’t lose rhythm every 5 or so strokes by turning your head.

The use of ergs on sliders is said to better simulate the action of a boat. I don’t know if there is any difference in energy used to slide back and forth, since in both cases you going one way means something else goes the other – be it the fan of the erg or the planet. Otherwise just accept that the erg is not a boat! Performance will finally depend on how fit ,strong,and technically good you are.

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Generally erg and water times will be similar. The final test for performance in a boat, however, is in a boat! You might consider a different grip to practice sweep rowing, or sculling. Sculling uses all the fingers on the handle, and the thumb on the end. Whereas the outer hand in rowing has the little finger on the end.

I use a setting of 6.5 on the fan, rate at 26, for 30 minutes, using 2 breaths per stroke and an average split of about 2.05. 3 footplate holes are visible .This gives me a workout similar to that in a boat. ( Plus 5 mins warm down!)I believe the erg (or a boat) gives me a near perfect workout, exercising most muscles, with little danger of injury. I don’t think weights, stretching, running, or other gym tricks are necessary for better sculling or exercise. They may help relieve boredom, and are more sociable than single sculling. I would like to recommend the erg as a recovery tool after illness. In my case after a heart attack, a hip replacement, and a 5x bypass. The erg offers several advantages over other exercises.1. Any level of work is possible.2. The work is measureable.3. It is kind to muscles and joints – no pummelling!4. It is safe – you can’t fall far. I started erging less than 3 weeks after the bypass, and after 11 weeks have dropped the 30 minute split from 3.05 to 2.10.

Erg problems? 1. Apparently the fact that your legs are not prevented from snapping down to overstraight at the release can lead to lower back problems. There is a device on the market ( Rowergo.Brace) for attaching to the erg ahead of the seat, to stop the legs as in a boat. 2. There are apparently more lower back problems with the erg than with boats. I can only think that this is due to the constant pull necessary on the erg, whereas the recovery in a boat gives the back muscles some rest.

Exercise. By my definition this is ‘An activity lasting 30 plus minutes that has you sweating’. No sweat = no exercise ! It consists of 3 inseparable parts; Warm up, Work, Warm down If your exercise is aimed at supporting your sculling, then sculling is your best exercise. Your body adapts to support this exercise VERY, VERY, slowly – over many thousands of hours and ks. Therefore make use of every minute you have at the gym or on the water, to scull, (and sweat ! ). Sitting in a boat and not sculling is pointless.Gentle activity gives little benefit to an athlete –although an otherwise idle person will benefit from ANY physical activity that raises the heart rate.Sensible exercise and longevity are linked. I saw a figure of 2 hours of life for each hour

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of exercise. And this is particularly important through middle age, as we gradually decline. It can slow the onset of things like dementia and parkinsons, and even some cancers..Keep it simple, keep it up ! But!! Don’t overdo the exercise. Listen to your body.

Excuses.It is easy, and convenient, to find outside excuses for failure. With our affluence we tend to look to money to solve our problems – it being a lot easier than the hard grind. We ‘need’ a new boat, new ‘ clothing’, more ‘energy’ foods, and expensive gyms. We even talk ‘tough’ to ease the guilt of being idle: ‘Punch’ a computer, ‘swing’ into a garage, ‘play’ poker, ‘hit’ the showers , ‘hit me’ with a phone call, ‘kick back’ (relax), drink a ‘shot’ of liquor, ‘run’ a test.....The brain, apart from being the ‘boss’, is fertile ground for ‘excuses’ , such as being ‘tired, cold, hot, thirsty, uncomfortable, needing a rest’. Being ‘tough’ means not allowing these excuses to take root in your mind – ready to flourish when the going gets tough.The Rhecon system requires that you exercise EVERY day. It then becomes simply another part of a normal day – like breakfast. No options!I’d like to add another ‘excuse’ – the poor coach. We often see coaches getting blamed for a failure to perform , in all sports. While there are undoubtedly good and bad coaches, the real test is whether the athlete has what it takes. The coach cannot be in your boat to hold your hand or feed your ego. And I think he should not be there following you constantly while training. Who is in control of You ? – him, or You ?

Apart from pure accidents, most failure will be due to: 1. Poor preparation and planning.2. Unrealistic goals.3. The opposition was better.

Losing a race is not failure – unless you failed to do your best !!!

I remember an old saying: “It matters not who won or lost, but how you played the game”. This is the last line of a poem - Alumnus football - written by American sportswriter Grantland Rice in the 1920’s.

The cause of both success and failure is YOU!

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Falling out - re-embarkingIf you fall out of your boat: A. Make sure all crew members have surfaced, and are responsive. B. Stay with the boat. Secure blades, seats etc. Keep calm. C. Get out of the water, preferably back in the boat - a.s.p. You lose heat about 40 times faster in water than in still air. If possible get to a shallow enough spot to allow a normal embarkation. Getting in from the water requires agility, and it is easy to damage the boat. The Single: Flatten both blades, and hold the handles together, with one hand, on the gunwale or rigger. With the nearer blade flat on the water (upside down would be better), and the free hand at backstop, lever yourself up so you are lying on your tummy across the boat. If possible make another lift and rotate your body so that you are sitting on the tracks. Otherwise swing your legs across so you are lying lengthways on the boat. Get both blades flat on the water as soon as possible. Try to press only on the edge of the deck, where it meets the hull, or on the tracks. If you have a bottle or cushion handy place it under the upside down flattened spoon of the blade on your side of the boat. This might prevent that spoon being forced under when you attempt to get in. Best not to tie it on because it will be difficult to remove it. Kayakers apparently have a float with a sleeve that fits loosely over the end of the paddle to assist reembarkation. In a bigger boat you could embark one at a time, with the others supporting the boat. Visit ‘Safety’ and ‘Mud’.

Fartlek (Swedish word Fart = speed, Lek = fun.)Interval training involves planned periods of varying effort, including rest periods.Fartlek training has random intervals of varying effort, without rest periods. Use Heart rate to gauge effort . The emphasis is in the ‘fun’ bit. – whatever you feel like. General opinion seems to be that the fartlek is better for you than intervals.

Feathering.It would be easy, when feathering the blade as it leaves the water, for the water to do the feathering. If you slow the blade when the shaft reaches the surface, the water will push the bit of the spoon still submerged until it flattens ( is feathered). Not good !!You must purposely do the turning of the handle at the right moment to feather the spoon and drive water backwards. (See ‘The Pelota effect’)Do it wrong, and you will feel the boat jerk.

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Feeling.1.the square.Normally you just have to hope that the blade is properly squared before you start pulling – you can’t see it. You assume that the gate and sleeve are properly seated. But if you have achieved a good long reach you will have time to feel the blade is square before you need to start pulling hard.The handle is usually round, so you can’t feel if it is wrong. One advantage of putting a towelling sleeve on my handles is that the rough towelling becomes a sort of indicator, and I can feel instantly if things aren’t right. This is helped by the thumb touching the bottom of the handle and feeling its position. Kayakers make one handle on the paddle egg-shaped for the same reason. Lubricating the gate, sleeve and button will help ( I use engine oil). If you do this, do it always, because the turning blade now feels different, and needs getting used to.2. The knees.Touching the inside of your arms with you knees on both the recovery and the work helps prevent your knees wobbling sideways. The closer you can get a fixed or constant reference for something seeking balance the better.In the same vein I use a ‘touch’ technique when welding, Either touch the working arm to a fixed item nearby, or use the other hand to gently touch both a fixed item and the working arm. Even a slight touch can be amazingly steadying.

3. The seat.If you want to see how much feeling you get from the seat try rowing with a thick cushion. I tried once with an inflated cushion - wierd!4. The hands.As the hands cross when the blades pass square you want a light touch between them. Usually it is left directly over right, and the rigging will ensure a level boat if this happens. Not only will it help tipping balance, but also ensure equal angular travel rates of the blades. Unequal rates can make the boat yaw.5. Heels.Constant contact on the stretcher with the whole foot gives you a good feel of the boat, as well as a lighter load on the calves.

Fingernails.Keep them very short, otherwise you can scratch your thighs and the top of the lower

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hand during sculling.

Footplate.This is usually set with the ball of the foot at about 45’ to the horizontal. The overall angle will be less if you include the near 20mm raised heel of the Rhecon style, but should still should still ‘feel’ the same.Rather like women’s high heel shoes, with the front of the foot still horizontal. There are various forms of footplate:1. On the Erg: A strap over the toes, and a sprung heelcup,which is adjustable for foot size.2. A fitted shoe: Adjustable only in height relative to the seat3. Straps for toe and heel, both adjustable.4. A removable shoe suitable for normal use otherwise.

Fitted shoes that flex in use tend to fail quite rapidly. Water, sweat and flexing are unkind to shoe materials. Removable shoes, or strapping, allow personal shoes to be used, which can be washed and dried. Modern sports shoes seem to comprise a very complex mix of leather, cloth and mesh. Very pretty, but perhaps losing sight of their purpose. The mesh tends to fail quickly, and the leather doesn’t help cooling, and is not easy to clean or dry. In my scull I use cheap(1/6 the price) laced canvas shoes bolted in. Two large stainless washers welded together and with central bolts are used in each shoe. The washers sit inside the shoe, and welding them together prevents the bolts turning when tightening the outside nuts. The shoes last about one year. I use the same shoes, but the slip-on variety, for daily use.

Gearing. The ratio of the outboard to the inboard length of the blade. Assuming the same travel of the handle:

1. High gearing (less inboard) gives a greater arc of the stroke, and a heavier and longer pull. There is also more work needed to swing the blade.

2. low gearing gives the opposite.

Probably allowing for our preference for short work cycles there is a tendency nowadays to opt for low gearing, often reducing overall and outboard length. Not something to play with too much. Make one or two adjustments, after extensive testing, if you like. Don’t let it become another excuse !

Instant gearing change.Moving your hand on the blade handle will allow you to make instant changes to the gearing.

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1. Rough water or negative wind: Hands on end of blade.2. Calm water or positive wind: Hands about 50mm in from the end.

A good outing (For me!)All my daily water outings were done at between 27 and 30 rating. The ‘in / out’ ratio was near 1:1. My heart rate rose to about 140 –probably limited by ‘beta blockers’ which are part of my daily heart medication.All outings were followed immediately by at least 5 minutes of cooling down to a heart rate of about 90.Following recent angina problems, and the decision to halt water rowing, it’s all erg! Erg sessions are for 30 minutes at about 2.15 minutes split, followed by 5 minutes erg warmdown and about 10 minutes walk around. The rule was, and is, that work is only allowed to stop at the appointed time or at the ramp. No loafing. OK to ease the work a bit, but rating has to continue. Any work on technique happens at full rate. Rating and breathing are maintained even when spinning the boat. Every day! I used to use a heart rate monitor occasionally, but now prefer to simply ‘feel’ if I’m pushing it a bit much. Sculling is a ‘Complete’ Exercise, so why do anything else? Why do I do it?1. To try to heal a dicky ticker, and because it makes me feel good.In 2003 I had a small heart attack, and was motivated to get fitter, and to grow new heart arteries to bypass a blocked one. Previously I played tennis and squash or sculled occasionally, but not as often or as hard as I thought. On leaving hospital I started sculling or erging in earnest, but to begin with couldn’t get a heart rate above 97 without pain. I was probably overdoing the erg sessions eventually (170 heart rate), and in 2006 had another small attack. An angiogram showed that a previously partially blocked coronary artery was now completely blocked. However the bit of heart normally fed by this artery was now being fed by several new arteries. So perhaps 3 years of daily workout achieved something – in developing this new blood supply. Angiogenesis !I also realise that one day I might end up in hospital again. If so I do not want to imagine seeing contempt in the eyes of those helping me – for someone who didn’t look after himself. It would be VERY embarrassing !!I soon found out ! In 2011 it was found that my right hip joint needed replacing. One month later it was replaced, and 3 weeks after that I was back on the erg for daily 30 minute sessions. 7 weeks after the operation my split time was back to its previous level, as was joint flexibility. The hardest thing was not being allowed on the water. That changed after the 3 month checkup, and I was back in my boat. Happiness !!!!!Then I had a hernia operation – overdid lifting at work – and was back on the erg after 2 days, and the water after 2 weeks. 2. The daily 8 km outings were good preparation for the only races I entered – the fortnightly 7km winter races held by my club.

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3. To persuade, by example rather than argument, several friends to lose weight, and to exercise.

Grips (blade handles)I,ve mentioned elsewhere that I used towelling gloves on my blade grips.They are made from old towelling, sewn into a tube closed at one end. The tube is loose on the handle, and easily drawn on and off. It is about 150mm long.It is not necessary to tie it onto the grip.I dip the gloved handles into the water as I’m putting the blades in the gates, and the wet glove doesn’t move on the rubber grip.They are removed after each outing and washed in fresh water – being wet with sea water and sweat.Having mentioned cold fingers I was recently lent a pair of Pogies. These fingerless gloves have a side entrance for the handle. More of a hand cover than a glove. I felt insecure wearing them – unable to rapidly separate hand and blade. Perhaps better for use in the sweep boats.

Gym.A few years ago I was persuaded to participate in a twice weekly gym circuit organised by the women’s coach. This involved light weights and a 45 minute series of general exercises. Heart rate was more erratic than when sculling, and not as high. I don’t know if it helped my sculling , but simply doing a fairly energetic exercise was good. Its main attraction was that it was social, after endless lonely scull outings, and fun trying to keep up with the much younger other participants. They were very tolerant.My daily sculling exercises muscles more than 1000 times. During the gym session we did each exercise a total of 90 times, in three sets of 30. This gym group eventually disbanded, and the next group was much more serious, doing things like one arm press-ups. Few of the participants – even the strong youngsters- could complete all the exercises. Reachable goals ?! The complexity of much gym equipment, and the terminology that goes with it, lends itself to the ‘excuse’ category. “Not enough ‘core’, ‘lumbar’, etc “.If you want to train for sculling , then scull or erg. Keep it simple !

The weights involved in gym exercises are usually greater than those involved in sculling. You are building muscle way beyond what is needed. It is the fitness of a muscle, not it’s size, that is important!The best sculling is the cheapest , in energy used. The question is: Is a bigger muscle cheaper? Just looking at the physique of top scullers I would say no!

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Gym exercises which work muscles other than those used in sculling might be useful, for the arms above the shoulders.

Hair:I once accompanied a woman on a sculling outing who was regularly rubbing her face on her shoulder as she sculled. When asked, she said she was having trouble with her hair across her face and in her eyes, especially when she started sweating. And when she turned to check steering her long hair – mostly in a pony tail - sometimes swept into her face with the wind. I did offer the scissors that I normally carried in the boat .It is worth considering your hair style if you are an athlete. Either keep it suitably short, or effectively restrained. Your clothing is most effective in cooling if it is in contact with your skin. Hair on the back or chest !!!!Incidentally you need to be careful that sweaty hair isn’t rubbing, perhaps on your neck, as it can cause irritation. There are lots of really cute short hair styles for girls, - I always liked the ‘Julie Andrews’ style.I had recently been annoyed by something getting in my eyes occasionally. Eventually I resorted to trimming my eyebrows, which contained some hairs easily long enough to reach my eyes – perhaps moved there by contact with my glasses. Result – much less trouble.

Heart rate monitor.Relatively cheap, and fully portable, the monitor gives you a continuous reading of heart

rate, and takes the guesswork out of exercising.

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Rest heart rate(R) about 50 if you are fit.Max. Rate (M) you can find out after a flat-out 90 second erg (warm up well first). Or use the dodgy formula ‘220 – age’.Aerobic threshold is about ‘R + .65(M-R)Anaerobic threshold is about R + .9(M-R)Below the aerobic threshold is purely aerobic – high endurance using slow twitch muscles. Between the two thresholds is a mix, with reduced endurance, using both fast and slow twitch muscles. Working above the anaerobic threshold is only possible for a few seconds, using fast twitch muscles.However: I don’t get overly fussed about heart rate. Whatever I feel like on the day. If pain starts I’m happy to reduce the work. Its more important to ‘listen’ to my body, than to relentlessly follow some heart rate.Heart rate can become another ‘excuse’!I found that doing a couple of days light sculling before a 7 k race allowed me to tolerate an unusually high heart rate during the race.

Holding the blade . If you pull on a blade that is not fully established at the correct depth in the water there will be unusual pressure on the top and bottom of the spoon. This can be so large that the blade could rotate unless you grip it hard enough. Normally it is not necessary to grip the handle at all when pulling! I know we do grip it a bit, but if the spoon is properly established in the water there will be no tendency to spin(explained below with pictures). Going too deep will not have much of a detrimental effect, but if the top of the spoon is out of the water there will be little pressure on the top half of it, and it will be unstable. So! You can either grip the blade more tightly, or you can stop pulling. Neither is good sculling. If you are getting forearm pain you are probably gripping the handle too much. Check that:

1. The blade is correctly rigged – about 4 degrees oversquare – and is running at the correct depth(about 100mm when square to the boat).

2. Your fingers aren’t slipping on the handle3. The rubber grip is not slipping on the blade.4. The diameter is about 33mm. The Concept 2 website will give more

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detail on handle size.Then practice using fingers only to pull, with the thumb lightly pushing on the end of the blade. When you feather, the handle will move towards the tips of your fingers. Grip the handle only when you need to square or feather, and lightly during the recovery , and then you only need to move the thumb to the side of the handle. Don’t move the handle to the palm of your hand. If the flat on the sleeve of the feathered blade is sitting on the bottom of the gate you will not need to grip the handle much. If the handle is too small you will have to grip harder to control the squaring and feathering. Too big and you could spin the blade using only the fingers. 33 – 35mm seems normal for a sculling blade.

If you draw a line along the shaft of the blade to the end of the spoon you will see that there is, in the ‘Cleaver’ spoon, a greater area below than on top, when square. So there should be more force on the bottom, and a tendency to spin. However this is counteracted by the turning effect you give the blade by pulling with the fingers on the top of the handle. You don’t actually GRIP the handle when pulling. Your thumb is on the end, and four fingers do the pulling. The two tendencies to spin the blade are normally cancelled.

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Spinning effect cancelled handle diameter

A squared blade is much more likely to be upset by hitting a wave than a feathered blade. This is another reason for not squaring the blade until just before it enters the water.You will be able to grip a feathered blade less – which is kinder to the forearm, and saves energy..

Handles crossing:The left hand fingertips should touch the top of the first joint of the right hand as they cross. The lower hand sort of ‘locks’ up into the palm of the top hand. The boat should be level as the hands cross. The gate height is adjusted to make this so – usually about 15mm higher on one side..Do the same thing for both the ‘work’ and the ‘recovery’.Tip. Keep fingernails very short.

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Left over right! I said earlier that it is useful for the hands to have a ‘point of reference’ when sweeping over the thighs. It is also better that the hand to make contact with the point of reference should be the dominant hand – the right for most of us. I used to wonder how I could row straight with one arm stronger than the other. In fact one hand is also bigger than the other. Then I realised that the pull on the blade is not done by the arms much, but by the shoulders, back and legs. The arms, particularly the lower arm, simply connect the elbow to the hand. They do have some work, of course, in feathering the blade, and stopping the fingers straightening as they pull on the handle.

Heel straps . These are compulsory in boats used at regattas, and wise safety features anyway since they efficiently release your heels ,particularly if you fall out. Note that each heel must be separately secured. The heels must not be looped together so that as one rises the other falls. The local requirement is that the heel mustn’t rise more than 70mm. However,I would recommend allowing only perhaps 40mm. Even less if you are using raised heels,which means your heels are in constant contact I was once involved in trying to get an unconscious sculler into a coach boat, but was unable to do so because his feet were stuck in the shoes. Luckily another nearby sculler came to the rescue. We had to do CPR in the boat back to shore, and this continued 30 k’s to hospital. Luckily it was successful - LUCKILY !! Turns out this fellow had been eating badly and bingeing for several days. Upon racing his electrolytes were so abnormal that his body closed down.

A hot and humid day :Two things result from exercise – about 55% heat +45% motion!! The motion we hope involves the boat. The heat we have to get rid of, either by sweat and evaporation, or by radiating it. All these are affected by the prevailing weather, and are less efficient as temperature and humidity increase, or wind decreases. Our bodies will then arrange for up to 20% of our blood to be diverted to the skin to assist cooling. What can we do?

1. Ensure you are well hydrated. Load up with as much water as you can comfortably swallow about half an hour before exercise. Sweat loss can also cause heart rate increase –working harder to pump blood which is getting thicker as it loses plasma.

2. Drink small amounts regularly if exercising for more than an hour. 3. Wear ‘cool’ clothes, particularly those that are skin-hugging. Don’t wear dark clothes.4. Towelling grips on the blades absorb sweat and allow a lighter – less

sweaty – grip.5. Move your elbows away from your sides at the release to allow air to cool

the armpits.

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Human peculiarity.We need to reduce the ‘cost’ of each stroke so that more energy can be used for propelling the boat. The ‘cost’ is the energy used to perform all movements of body, boat and blades which don’t directly drive the boat. Certain human peculiarities can affect this ‘cost’.1. Holding a load: We are uncomfortable holding a load for a long time. A long, light, pull seems more tiring than a short, heavy, one. Note how weightlifters do their thing in a series of jerks. We prefer brief, heavy work! Herein lies an argument for high rating, and low gearing.Even the 1 second of the normal stroke in the water can seem excessive, and we adjust the ‘gearing’ accordingly. When we get tired the tendency is to shorten the stroke – to work for less time. It is better to shorten the release rather than the catch. 2. Energy transfer: We’re not always efficient at converting energy from one form to another, such as kinetic into potential – though we do this better at the catch than the release. At the Catch the knees and hips are compressed and become ‘loaded’ with the kinetic energy given to your body when it accelerated from backstops. Not only is the ‘spring’ loaded, but the raised knees have gained ‘potential’ energy by being lifted. This ‘spring and potential’ energy becomes ‘kinetic’ again when your body rebounds from the catch.What about the release? Is the loading of your leg ‘spring’ at the catch also available at the release? Yes- a bit! If you pull on the blade right up to the release you will also be slowing the fall of your knees so that you won’t have to use other muscles. Your legs are straightening but will not do so fully without more work by your thighs. Or rather they will not become straight and hold that position without more work! Watch the thighs of an erger. However they can straighten and immediately start bending again with little work. The problem with this is that they could meet your hands holding the released blade. You could shorten the release so that the hands do not reach your ribs, or do a very quick turnaround of the hands to clear your knees. Then you can make use of knee bounce, although you will have to control the rising knees. You can give more clearance to the knees by keeping your hands as high as possible, with feathered blades near the water. Another energy transfer happens when the blades straighten your arms at the catch. They – the arms - become ‘loaded’, and immediately rebound . This whole ‘energy exchange’ will be most effective if done at your ‘natural’ rating.3. Positive thoughts can improve your performance without you doing any more work. Weird ! 4. Adaptive body. The ability of the body to change so as to better perform a task is the

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foundation of training. It is a slow process . Sculling involves the use of more muscles than most other endurance sports, and the only way to adapt all these muscles to sculling is ..... to Scull ! I don’t see how gym type exercises, with limited repetitions, can help much. I was told recently of a girl boxer – about 15 yrs old – whose daily training included 1000 situps. Wow!! And I then realised that my own daily exercise involved a similar number of repetitions. Guess the boxers have it figured – only one way to toughen your frontal area.

Hydration. Good hydration is of course essential, especially in lengthy exercise. However I think we often overdo it nowadays, with constant sipping from bottles. Drinking has become an ‘excuse’, akin to ‘I feel tired, or sore’, or whatever. Rowing outings will seldom be long enough to exhaust water taken on before the start. This may not be the case if cooling is inefficient, due perhaps to high heat or humidity, or bad clothing ( black and loose). Your body will then resort to losing liquid sweat in an effort to cool. In the section on ‘sweat’ I discuss the problem of hydration control – of preventing either excess or insufficient hydration. Both can cause serious problems in the extreme. The thing is that we don’t sweat pure water. It contains, amongst other things, sodium salt, which needs to be maintained at a comfortable level in the body. So if a sweaty outing is going to run for say 3+ hours you will need to hydrate with a drink suitably laced with salt. For normal outings of up to 1.5 hours just take a cup or two of water about 30 minutes before starting. Assuming a normally good hydration level you shouldn’t need to drink more during the outing.Drinking should be in response to thirst. I also believe that sensible deprivation – not to the point of illness – is a good thing. Good discipline, and teaches our bodies to survive such conditions. I never took water in the boat, my longest outing being 1 1/2 hours or 15ks, and I usually had only a cup of coffee before setting out each day at dawn.

Injuries.The following are some common rowing injuries, and suggestions for preventing them.1. Knees.

a. Adjust the angle of the shoes – heels together , toes apart ? – to prevent twisting the leg as the knees open and close.b. Declerate your body for the release by pulling on the blade and feathering as the blade leaves the water. This will keep pressure on the knee, requiring it to be pushed down, rather than simply fall. This apparently prevents misplacement of the knee cap. c. High rate, with plyometrics and rebound at the catch, should reduce knee load.

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2. Lower back. a. Take the shock load of the catch with the arms, not the back or legs. b. Early layback will use upper body weight to reduce the load on the back.3. Wrists. a. Use fingers, not wrist, when feathering. b. Use wet towelling gloves on the blade handles to improve grip.4. Neck. Use a mirror for steering.

Isometric muscle use.

Muscles are normally used in three types of work:1.Concentric: As in lifting a load – the muscle shortens.2. Eccentric: As in lowering the load – the muscle lengthens .3. Isometric: The muscle is loaded, but doesn’t move the load.We can hold and lower a bigger load than we can lift.

If we were machines we could arrange that a static load required no energy, by tying a rope or something. We humans can only do this without external tools by ‘locking’ or relaxing our skeleton so as to load only the bones and tendons(if you can get into a suitable position). Muscles use energy when loaded, irrespective of the type of load. In sculling we would like to use energy only for moving the boat. 1. Straightening the back. While there is some muscle movement in doing this, there will also be a time when the back is simply being supported.Better to relax the back always. It won’t fold under sculling loads.2. The arms , during the first 2 parts of the work, are simply connecting the handle to the shoulder. The elbow should be relaxed , and will adopt a nearly straight position under load. 3. During the recovery the arms should be relaxed, and slightly bent, requiring little muscle effort . Holding them straight requires isometric muscle effort.4. Ankles: Having arranged that these always stay in contact with the stretcher, the load on the calf muscles will be minimal.5. The legs , if straightened quickly during the work, will need to be held down isometrically. Straightening them gradually so as to finish at the same time as the hands will avoid this. In fact the final straightening will probably be largely done by the weight of the legs falling, working against the pull of the arms. In a boat the legs usually make contact with the frame holding the tracks, and cannot fully straighten, unlike on the erg.

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Keel All racing boats have a keel to help them travel in a straight line. Normally this is a flat plate, mounted near the stern. How does it work? a. As the boat yaws, pressure of the water on the sides of the keel reduces movement.b. The drag of the plate acts like a sea anchor, holding the stern back, and the boat straight. The drag also slows the boat.Presumably the effect of the keel increases with size, but so does the drag. You want it big enough to achieve stability, but not to inflict excess drag. If the keel were given an aerofoil shape it would have less linear drag than the normal flat plate. Perhaps the drag requirement is the reason for even the most expensive boats having flat plate keels.

If the rudder is some distance from the keel a little plate just ahead of it would prevent things being caught between the rudder and hull, as shown below.

Placing the rudder at the end of the hull will allow it to be smaller, and retractable - lift from the water when not being used, or when hitting something. Some kayaks do this, particularly those used in flat water.

Layback - The effects. The early layback – at the catch – should have several advantages. 1. Less work on the lower back – about 15%. 2. A longer leg drive since the seat is about 80mm closer to the feet.In a test on the erg I found little difference in the reach achieved with the early layback.

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I’ve suggested elsewhere that excess layback in a boat should be avoided because:1. You have then to recover from the lean.2. Boat speed oscillation increases with upper body movement.

On the erg, where you can have the finish as high as you like, you might get advantage from more layback – except that it has to be recovered which might be tiring at high rating.However - On the plus side:Assuming you pull the blades to your lap, more layback will reduce the angle and length of the armpull. Since the arms are probably your weakest muscles, a shorter pull will probably be better. And some very successful crews have lots of layback ( USA women’s 8 in Rio).

Incidentally, the variation in boat speed during a stroke can add about 4% to the water drag, and layback adds to this variation.

It is commonly stated that the legs do most of the work.Kleshnev: legs: 46.4% back: 30.9% arms: 22.7%Snyder: 37.5 33.7 28.4.Based on performance.

My calcs. on distance moved - on the erg - by each part: With 10’ layback: 43 15 42 (100 total) 30’ 43 25 38 (104 total)

In a boat the legs are coached to move while the blades are at their furthest from square, and inefficient. Perhaps a good reason to layback just after the catch, then use the legs when the blade is nearer square.

L eaderless Test . A quick way to find out various skills of a group. Set the group of perhaps 5 people a task – maybe to move items across a “chasm”, or move a tricky load. No instructions are given or leader assigned. See what happens. Who leads, plans, works, loafs, etc.

Lifestyle. This, along with exercise and diet, form the ‘Triangle of Life’. Healthy diet and exercise are fairly obvious, but what of lifestyle? I’ll describe it as being ‘The ‘You’ that other people see’. A unique ‘you’. So what is a ‘good’ lifestyle to complement good exercise and diet ? There are both voluntary and involuntary parts to our lifestyle;Involuntary: Abiding by community laws and customs. Accepting our individuality,

abilities, and limits.

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Voluntary: How you care for yourself – including addictions, morals, sleep, relaxation. How you fit in with others – neighbours, workmates, clubmates. Your family, spouse, kids.

While many lifestyle choices simply define us, and can be as ‘good’ as other people’s different choices, there are some that are generally ‘bad’- such as excess drink, drugs, gambling, overwork, and of course neglecting diet or exercise. Are possessions binding us, perhaps into debt ? Are we forever looking for the ‘quick fix’?I read recently that in one year, in America, USD 5 billion more was spent on food supplements than on gym membership. The US has 4% of the world’s kids, and buys 40% of the world’s toys.A good lifestyle accepts, supports, enjoys, optimises and uses the animal you !It can be a selfish thing. If you see others in what you think is a bad lifestyle, you may have to simply say “It’s your funeral ! “ Not easy - particularly if it involves your family. You may simply have to back off, and be satisfied to be setting a better lifestyle example. The book ‘Atlas shrugged’, by Ayn Rand, is worth a read in this regard.

Lift. When a flattish surface moves through water different pressures can be created on each side.This results in the surface being drawn, or ‘lifted’, in the direction of the lower pressure. If the surface has an aerofoil shape,with a longer surface on one side,there will be more ‘lift’ - to that side.The lift created by the thin spoon will be relatively small. Would ‘lift’ be an advantage? Perhaps anything that made the spoon move further forward during the first part of the stroke – before work is applied - would be good. A flat spoon, lengthways, would travel further forward, but have less lift, than the normal curved spoon. It would probably have less ‘lock’ on the water, and slip more.Look at the section on ‘keels’ for more on ‘lift’.

Listening to your body . For all the gadgetry we have nowadays the best judge of our health needs is still within us. We are not alone in this among animals. Even lesser beasts will seek out certain foods or conditions to satisfy a particular need.If you sensibly feel the need to drink, or have salt or food, go for it. ‘Sensibly’ because you don’t want to be eating much within 2 hours of heavy exercise. “Feed the need, not the greed”. Listen also to your body when it isn’t feeling great. We all have our ups and downs. Perhaps use a ‘down’ day for a more technical outing –working on some point of your style. Resist the temptation to loaf, or to overdo it.Listen for any abnormal signs. It’s not easy to admit that some pain could perhaps be a

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dodgy ticker with all that that entails.Men, particularly, are so concerned with their macho image that they tend to ignore signs - go into denial.As a sportsman you will probably be always nursing some ache, and you don’t want to panic. I find that most ‘aches’ last for a few weeks then shift to some other spot.

Lubrication . Although the sleeve on the blade, and the gate, are both plastic, there can be considerable friction between the two. This can make for unnecessary force needed to feather the blade, and also block your feeling of the spoon. Apply a little OIL to the mating surfaces at the gate to solve this problem, but be careful not to get dirt into the oil or you will have a good grinding paste. Clean old oil off regularly with turps. While you are at it you might as well see that all the bolts are well oiled, and wing nuts moving freely. If there are no washers under the nuts you could make very nice plastic washers from old milk cartons. Don’t forget to oil the thole pin. Also oil the seat axles or bearings. The tracks are circular in section, as are the mating edges of the wheels. Therefore there will be points on the wheels that are rubbing on the tracks as the seat moves. Oiling the track, or even wetting it will reduce the resulting friction and the energy needed to move the seat. If there are places where different metals are in contact, such as with stainless steel bolts holding aluminium riggers, apply silicone and use plastic washers to minimise the galvanic reaction between the two. In this regard treat Carbon as a metal.

Tip: Every few months check that the mating faces of blade and gate are fitting neatly when the blade is square. If not change one or both.

MaintenanceAs with any equipment ‘Prevention is better than cure’.Regular maintenance checks on the boats can only improve your rowing. I once observed 2 boats involved in ‘seat’ racing. One was always well behind the other. It turned out that that boat had 3 of its Martinoli type gates missing their adjusting plates, and the screws were protruding to catch the blade! The button was broken on another blade, so it kept catching in the gate! The sad thing here was that the crew of schoolboys was so bored that they didn’t do or say anything. A waste of time all round! Back on shore it only took 10 minutes to fix the problem!A little oil, a little checking rigging, a little maintenance - only takes a little time, but makes a BIG difference.Gates, tracks and seats do wear. A worn gate may not maintain the desired blade angle. Worn seats and tracks can have increased friction, be corrugated, and even seize up or

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break.

Mirror.(Steering)Using a mirror in all coxless boat is common sense. In fact even in coxed boats it would be wise, since Bow is more likely to see things like logs than a cox.It makes following a course, especially in a ‘head’ or a crowded waterway much more efficient. It reduces accidents, and allows you to concentrate on sculling. It gives YOU control.It is, however, bad for my business, which is fixing boats.Embarrassingly I still seem to occasionally hit things despite using a mirror. This is usually due to being ‘clever’- getting too close to things , forgetting the tide, being distracted by more interesting goings-on, or having deep thoughts.With a mirror you need only move your head and eyes a little off centre.When racing in a laned course the mirror will be useful at the start, to ensure you are lined up properly. Once you are perhaps 100m down the course you can use the lane markers to steer.I use a 40mm wide by 20mm deep mirror mounted about 50mm from my right eye. It is placed just below horizontal vision, so I look down to use it. Seeing a bit of me in the extreme left, then the bowball, gives perspective to the view with little head movement. It is mounted on the brim of a flat-brimmed bush hat. Strangely enough I find that I need to wet the part of the hat holding the mirror. This increases the inertia of that part, and reduces the slight movement that would otherwise occur and disturb the view.Using a mirror takes getting used to, but I would not like to row without it. I make and sell them.Some mirrors are attached to glasses, and do not need the rower to wear a hat. The disadvantages of this are: 1. Reflection off the sun is more likely. 2. Rain will wet the mirror, and distort the view.I find fog tends to settle on the mirror, so I don’t venture out in such conditions.The 40mm width of my mirrors gives a useful wide view ahead – more than the commonly sold round mirrors.

Mirror. Dr. Phil opens his programs with something like : “ I want you to feel excited about your life”. I ( that’s me) want YOU to be excited about - YOU ! In the privacy of your bedroom take a look at yourself in a full length mirror. Does what you see make you feel good? Are you looking after and using your body well, and with respect, so that it can help you achieve your goals? Are there areas that need improvement, such as adjusting body fat , posture, or behaviour? It will give you a

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valuable psychological boost to be proud of what you see. Boost the self-esteem !Perhaps this is why gyms tend to be well mirrored.It is also useful to have a friend or two who are prepared to give you some homely advice if needed. It is easy to stray from the best path without some independent opinion. If not from a friend, then from your coach.

MotivationI suppose it’s a personal thing. Here’s what gets and keeps me going.For the day: The good feeling I get when I’ve completed my outing – even if I may not have felt 100%. I have not failed in my daily ‘looking after me’ task.

And for always:To keep setting a good, silent, example for people I cannot otherwise convince to do likewise. Being proud of what I see in my mirror. I don’t want to be embarrassed if I end up in hospital and think that I see contempt in the eyes of those helping me.

I hate failing. Probably accounts for my avoiding all sprint regattas- where I’d probably get thrashed. Set reachable goals – my goals – not dependant on others !

It is understandable that our vision of rowing excellence is centred on world and Olympic champions. But this standard is way above that achievable by the vast majority of us scullers, and cannot serve as a realistic goal in our motivation.While there are some who almost from birth know their life path, most of us need to experience a varied life to find our strengths- and equally important- our weaknesses. Hopefully this happens at school or college. Not much use setting distant goals when you haven’t even figured if you are talented in that occupation.Progress is generally satisfying if the goals are reachable in performance, and also in a reasonable time. This is particularly important with young people. For preschoolers this ‘time’ is measured in minutes. It is easy to lose even a teenager’s interest with distant or seemingly unreachable goals.Perhaps ‘To be the best that we can be’ would be a good general motivation, not only of our sculling but of our lives generally. Why? Because it will make you FEEL GOOD. It is inevitable that there will be difficult days . Such is all of life.These should be treated as opportunities for putting in the extra effort needed to overcome the problems, and not to be defeated by them. Endless ‘easy’ days would be boring, and lack challenge. ‘ A problem is an opportunity for change and improvement.’

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In adversity, bad crews tend to look outwards - at coaches, the weather, and other ‘excuses’, rather than inwards – at themselves.

Getting bored with the frequent reference to ‘excuses’ ? The fact is that without the right guidance coming from your ‘head’ office you can’t expect much from your body, however strong and fit it might be. True in any business, and true for YOU !I must admit that I used to get depressed on occasion, sometimes frighteningly so. Just wanted to get in a little ball in a dark, quiet corner. But not recently, and I feel it is largely due to my life as described in this book. A fairly simple life, with little stress. It does help to remember how lucky I and my family have been, and how our lives could otherwise have turned out. Enough of that !

It is interesting that wealth and material achievement are little measure of personal quality. Fitness, strong morals, good parenthood and a happy, contented life are there for most of us – if we choose, and work at it ! And if Sculling can usefully form a part of that life , that’s good enough motivation. Mud . Of particular danger, especially in a tideway, is running aground- on a falling tide. Usually you will get warning of shallow water when the blades contact mud , in which case head for deeper water immediately. If you have hit quickly shelving mud you will do better to reverse off it – the way you came. If you get stuck on the mud – unable to row off:

1. Carefully check the solidity of the surrounding mud, with one leg.2. If it appears solid get out but keep leaning over the boat so it will support you if

the mud softens. 3. Do not get more than knee deep in mud as more could prevent movement.. 4. DO NOT LEAVE THE BOAT !!! ( unless it sinks)5. If all safe options fail you may simply have to wait with the boat until the tide

turns. Losing the boat.Should the boat be damaged in running aground, or perhaps have broken in hitting something, and it sinks, take out the oars and keep them with you. They will provide buoyancy, especially if you encounter mud. Most carbon blades have a small hole in the shaft near the handle, to shed water or heat - produced pressure. When needing the blade for buoyancy hold it towards the spoon to keep the hole above the water.Lie on the mud, distributing your weight widely. Either:1. Roll slowly to good ground.2.Place the blade ahead of you at right angles, and pull yourself slowly up to it. Then move it forward again, and so on. Do not attempt to walk in deep mud. The suction on a

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deeply sunken leg can make it very difficult to remove.The emphasis is on doing movements slowly, trying not to overly disturb the mud. Mud , or sand can be thixotropic , becoming liquid when shaken ( Christchurch liquefaction)Visit www.Thesurvivalexpert.co.uk. Search ‘How to get out of mud bog’.

Muscle strength.A muscle is weakest when contracting. It can hold more without moving, and is strongest when extending. Not important information, except that if it were not so we might suffer instability, and collapse.

Music for sculling.Ever since people started rowing in crew boats they have found benefit in providing music ,or at least a beat. Roman galleys had drummers, as do modern dragon boats. Armies and sports teams are also inspired by suitable music. It seems there are 2 things needed from music:1. Rhythm. The beat should set the rating. Ideally this should be able to change as required. If it is simply a beat this should be easy. Not so if the beat is also an existing tune . You would then need a library of tunes arranged for their rating. There are apps available to achieve this.2. Inspiration. A tune or a beat to inspire us to greater achievements. Unfortunately the crew might respond variously . Not many tunes inspire everyone!Otherwise just get the Cox to tap out a beat into the speaker system, or even onto the boat – with a pencil. (Rowyo.com have a program designed to provide a variable beat, including the possibility of varying the work/recovery ratio (but you don’t want that?). It should be possible to feed this beat into the boat speakers.Sculling itself creates a rhythm, as does the erg. With the noise of the wheels on the tracks, and the blades in the water, and your breathing. The 1:1 work to recovery ratio creates a very pleasing rhythm.I see many crew sweep boats practicing with a loud bang as the blades are feathered, above the water, at the finish. While giving something to the rhythm, it must be hammering the boat. The more gentle ‘ feather – as – it - leaves – the – water ‘ extraction of the sculler may not give such a noisy beat, but is certainly kinder to the boat. It’s rather like marching in the old fashioned nailed boots on a tar road. Great rhythm with a well drilled squad, but not so kind to the feet. The other day I was 15 minutes into my erg session, with no music, when a few other ergers arrived and switched on loud music with random beats. I found that my erging immediately felt less comfortable, and harder.

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Pace . (How hard you work) Working at an even pace is theoretically more efficient than at an erratic pace. There is, however, considerable disagreement about varying the pace in a race. Anything from slow to quick starts are advocated with similar variations within the race. Something to work on in training.I think it is important to discover the even pace you can maintain for the race or outing distance to achieve the planned level of exhaustion. At the start of a race you will probably use very high anaerobic work to get going, but this should change to aerobic work within say 20 strokes. You might also use a burst of anaerobic work in the last minute of the race, but with care, because you will literally run out of steam if you overdo it. A recent Olympic sculling race (women’s double) showed the second placed boat suddenly increase pace dramatically in the last 300 m to close within a boat length of the winners. If they had paced themselves better from the start could they have won? That assumes that the winners had nothing in reserve. Certainly they made no obvious effort to counter the threat, being content to simply cross the line first . Or had they got the pace right – with nothing in reserve? The winner of the Athens Olympic women’s 1x was at the back after a less frenzied start. Settling immediately into a very pleasing long stroke she relentlessly passed the field ( Look on Youtube for this excellent video).You can only find the correct pace for racing by doing the work many times. Many, many times! I would think it is psychologically better to maintain a constant practiced pace, than to ‘relax, or slow’ the pace after a vigorous start. The mere thought of those words is destructive. The race may be 4 x 500m long, but the stress and complication of in effect planning 4 races of 500m could be damaging. Better 1 x 2000 !

The PELOTA effect . Players of the Spanish game of Pelota use a curved basket to throw a ball at incredible speed( the fastest of all ball sports ! ). The forward curve of the basket resembles that of the spoon of a blade at the end of the stroke. Water will be travelling horizontally towards the end of the spoon while it is square. But if the blade is feathered while still in the water, it will then push water towards the bottom edge, which is also towards the stern, thereby driving the boat forwards. Feather fast enough to push water backwards, but without lifting it. Avoid splash!Lifting the blade without this feathered extraction results in the boat jerking, and slowing

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slightly. If done well the feather is actually driving the boat, and stops the jerk !This technique works well with modern cleaver spoons, which have a larger area below the shaft than above. There is still lots of spoon in the water as the shaft reaches the surface.

Look at the Rowing New Zealand ‘basic technique’ wall chart for some excellent pictures of a blade being pulled and extracted.The feathered extraction seems to be common amongst scullers but not sweep rowers. Why? Having said that I was watching a video of Murray and Bond in the London olympics pairs race, and it certainly looks as though they feather in the water. If the experts do it!!!!!

The Pendulum . Scullers, when racing, generally opt for a near 1:1 work: recovery ratio. I suspect that this ratio is the most economical way to oscillate back and forth in the boat, and can be compared to the pendulum. It provides a comfortable ratio of ‘work’ and ‘relax’, in view of our inability to hold a load for long. A pendulum oscillates with little work input so long as it is allowed to do so at its natural frequency. Each sculler will also have a ‘natural’ frequency, which will probably be between 27 and 36 cycles a minute, with a personal range of perhaps 4. Your racing rating is the one at which both rhythm and length can be sustained for the planned length of work. You would rate only a little differently for a 2000 m race and a 7km head , if at all. 1. A higher rating, will tend to utilise ‘slow twitch’ muscles with their easily renewable energy supply. Each stroke puts less work in the water. The better rebound at the high rating should offset the otherwise higher cost.2. A lower rating at the same work will use more ‘fast twitch’ muscles, normally used in anaerobic, intense, exercise, with only slowly renewable energy. Each stroke involves more work in the water. So we can move up and down the slide, rebounding where possible, at our own personal rating, using very little energy, which leaves more to drive the boat.Our sculling style should be such that we don’t disturb our rhythm by, perhaps, pausing anywhere, breathing erratically, or turning to steer. We must also learn to relax and ‘let it happen’. For instance, you will get a better reach by relaxing your muscles and letting your body stop against your knees at your natural rate than by trying to pull yourself forward at a slow rate.Our ‘natural’ rating does vary, with how warmed up we are, how we are feeling, the weather or state of the water. We probably have a comfortable range of + 2. Mine is about 27 to 30 for an 8km outing.

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To polish or sand the hull? There is a common opinion that a boat will go faster with a finely sanded unwaxed hull. I can find no technical support for this, and even Connor of America’s cup fame said he didn’t know if it worked. Recently I wanted to repaint my scull so took the opportunity to experiment. I sanded one side of the boat, polished the other, and then used it, expecting it to veer to the side of greater drag. There was no obvious abnormal movement when the boat was allowed to ‘run’ at speed, and I can only conclude that any difference is very small. The main advantage of the sanded or polished hull is that it requires work to achieve, and more to keep it looking good. Your effort in looking after your equipment will add to your performance.

Practice – makes better(if not perfect) The best way to become better at something is to practice it many, many times. Practice the real thing, not some weird ‘drill’. Even practice the stresses – such as delayed starts, or unpleasant weather. Your mindset can affect an outing or race. Head Office!!

Preloading muscles. PlyometricsLoading a muscle takes time. If we want to push from the catch we can either:1. Arrive at the catch with muscles relaxed, then activate them to push.2. Approach the catch position with those muscles already activated, but acting eccentrically to slow us down. They will then start the push from the catch at an advantage – so long as you haven’t paused at the catch.This pre-activation of muscles is called Plyometrics , and is used in many activities. Examples:1. The backswing of a racket, bat or golf club in preparation for a shot. 2. The knee flexing as it passes the vertical while walking or running. 3. Shot-putt, discus, throwing (not cricket bowling)

The resulting effort is more powerful than if it started without the early muscle activation. And so it can be with sculling. Using leg and back muscles eccentrically to slow you after a fast recovery , followed by a quick catch, will allow a more powerful or economical drive. Perhaps this is another reason for increasing the rating as you tire, or want an extra push. You either shorten the drive, keeping the recovery the same, or speed up the recovery, requiring more deceleration for the catch. Muscles will be activated gradually even before the catch, rather than explosively , and not so powerfully, after the catch. But they will get tired since we cannot hold a load for long – you say. Yes! But hopefully the weaker back muscles will benefit, especially if given an early layback. While the arms and legs can be worked for only part of the stroke, the back has to work throughout the stroke.

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The early layback should be done without pausing the seat. Immediately after the blade is dropped, the seat continues towards the heels while the shoulders move forwards to ‘catch the water’. This deceleration of the body is done by those muscles which will then take up the work towards backstops. No pausing!!This eccentric effect is less likely to happen with a slow recovery. The natural brake due to body compression is enough to stop you without eccentric muscle help at low rates, and at worst you might in fact have to pull yourself to the catch. There seems to be evidence that Plyometric training of muscles – using both eccentric and concentric loading, is a better muscle builder than concentric training alone. The argument for high load training at low ratings is to build muscle. However the low rating does not train the high rate rhythm.And if the high rate, with Plyometrics, promotes good muscle growth, and good race-rate rhythm, so much the better.HIGH RATE! YEAH!!!!!.

The secret of a good plyometric movement is no pause when direction changes. That’s why a tennis player only moves the racket back in time to immediately return forward for the shot.

The Puddle . (Slip)It is common to inspect the puddles to judge the work. But what can you learn from them?It could be that the quietest puddle is made by the most efficient oarsman - or the laziest! One thing is certain: A big puddle indicates a poor ‘lock’ on the water.And lots of ‘slip’! Looking at puddles is only relevant if combined with other data, such as the depth of the spoon and the bend in the blade.The water above the spoon will hardly be disturbed if the blade is about 100mm deep. There will, however be some disturbance along the shaft , but I’d rather see that than a poor lock on the spoon.I mentioned above ‘a little water being moved a lot’. Some references decry this statement, as well as its other half – ‘ or a lot of water a little’. In levering the boat in one direction the blades have to cause something else to move the other way. In the ideal situation the blade would lock without slip in the water, and the solid planet would respond to the boat movement. It would move a negligible distance backwards, while the boat moves a greater distance forwards. However, in reality there is a combination of churned water and planet movement resulting from blade work in one direction, and from drag slowing the boat in reverse.

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A blade pulled at a decent depth should cause only a small rise in the surface of the water above it. Look at the Rowing New Zealand wall chart. Note the curved – highly loaded – blade and the smooth water above it, in mid stroke.

Pulling on the stretcher. During the stroke there are two times when you would pull on the stretcher. 1. Decelerating as you approach the ‘release’. 2. Accelerating towards the stern on the ‘recovery’.

This ‘acceleration’ and ‘deceleration’ is relative to the boat, not the water. Hence the daft situation in which the boat travels fastest during the ‘recovery’. Continue pulling on the blade at the end of the stroke at least hard enough to decelerate you, the momentum being transferred to the boat through the gates rather than your feet. Feel and watch your toes to see that you are not pulling on the shoes. Done properly you should need little thigh effort to straighten your legs. Similarly with your upper bodyweight behind your hips there should be little work for the abs in holding your torso. Your heavy shoulder muscles will be doing the work rather than your abdominals, which are needed to assist breathing, and later to bring your torso back up and over for the catch..

Earlier I said you should make both acceleration and deceleration as gentle as possible. Try to make it gradual, so as not to jerk the boat. Whatever is comfortable, and ‘quiet’!

The fact is that if you want to get from one end of the track to the other you have to accelerate, perhaps go for a bit at constant speed, and then decelerate. So after the

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‘release’ you have to get moving up the slide, and the only way to do this is to pull on the shoes. In so doing you move the boat beneath you, and it achieves its greatest speed. By accelerating gradually over perhaps 2/3 of the recovery the pull will not be violent, and will not unduly tax muscles which don’t normally have much to do( pulling up on your toes.) Jerky movement is expensive!

The Push. That explosive thrust away from the catch, building to a maximum when the blade is square to the boat. Explosive because everything in the ‘push’ is going to happen in less than 1 second at race rating. So how should we train for this explosive effect?1. Slow rating - to allow us to practice a big push without tiring. Danger! Practicing an excessively big push on knee and lower back muscles can be damaging. If doing this exercise on the erg you can view the pressure curve and ensure you are not exceeding a race level of push- tension on the chain. Slow rating, without good rebound or plyometric effect at the catch, can mean higher muscle load to achieve the same effect.

Most dangered muscles in rowing? Knees and lower back.

2. High – near race – rating. With fartlecks. Good for rhythm, rebound and Plyometrics, and kind to lower back and knees.

So! 2 - not 1!

Push or pull?We often need to push or pull a load, be it a shopping trolley, wheelie bin, or a coach boat dolly.On smooth surfaces, with no danger of unexpected stops, either push or pull can be used. Shopping trolley in a store!Loads on uneven surfaces should always be pulled. You can face either way to do so, facing forward being safer. Pulling will help to lift a load over an obstruction, whereas pushing will increase the effect of the obstruction. Allowing your arms to be straight when pulling will make the load more skeletal than muscular.3 weeks after recent heart bypass surgery I returned to daily 30 minute ergs, starting at a 3 minute split. Gradually reducing until 2.30 after 6 weeks. All done with relaxed, almost straight arms finishing at the knees. This is to minimise the use of my pecs, and danger to the rejoining sternum. The erg, with its bungees, requires little ‘push’, and it is this ‘push’ that I am avoiding in everything I do. Haven’t had any complaints from the sternum.

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Several years ago I managed to tear a shoulder muscle when a steel frame I was pushing on a concrete floor unexpectedly stopped.

Racing. The popular race plan calls for an anaerobic burst from the start, and another at the finish. 500m split times are slower during the middle two sections of a 2000m race. Consider these points:1. The start should consist of gradually lengthening strokes, perhaps 6, until the planned stroke length, rate and rhythm is achieved. Start your breathing rhythm even before the start. Rushing the start can unsettle you, and it is easy to make mistakes.2. Don’t have ‘bursts’ during the race. A constant work load is more efficient – less tiring..3. If you think you can work harder increase rating a little. 4. The race is 1 x 2000m, not 4 x 500m. One goal – not 4!!

Rate only as fast as you can sustain rhythm and length(what you’ve been practicing daily). The thing is to be so good at pacing yourself that you finish the race in the planned state of exhaustion.

Consider two techniques:1. Out on a limb ! In this technique you do a very strong start and first 500m, hoping that on the day you will have the ability to keep it up.2. In control: A less aggressive start with the possibility of increasing speed.While there is advantage to getting out front from the start, there is the stress of staying there, especially if pursued by ever improving opposition.

As with other racing animals your race strategy is an individual thing. Although a constant speed would be more efficient , you may find a varying speed better. If it works.......?Luckily in 2k racing we have a lane which is ours alone.

Meanwhile concentrate on maintaining those important points of style? Better than worrying about how tired you are getting during the race ! 1. Clean catch and finish. Maximum length IN the water. 2. Maximum pull in the middle of stroke. 3. Blade depth. 4. Smooth, relaxed rhythm.

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Beware!!! Choking! See the earlier section on this effect.

Psst! PRACTICE!!!!!!!!

Rating ( Natural) (See also ‘Pendulum’).We each have a natural rating range, unique to our physique and metabolismTo find it get on the erg and do a decent warm up. Then with the resistance set at 5 start working at about 80% max. heart rate. Relax! Get into a comfortable 1:1 rhythm, think about something else, and see what your rating settles at. Perhaps 32+??Mine is 28 to 30.We would also be constantly practicing the double breath system and the other features of our style.For sprint races we need to become comfortable at higher ratings , perhaps 3 above the endurance rating. I believe that our bodies can adapt and become comfortable at this higher rate with enough practice.The trick then is to rig the boat to allow you to be comfortable at your planned speed and rating. Blade inboard (swept angle ), and outboard (duration of stroke ) are important, as are the ‘through the work’ (catch angle ), span (hands at the release), and gate height.The test of your rig will be whether it is still comfortable at full race pace. You work in the boat to achieve 3 things:

1. Increase bloodflow etc. to allow a high work output. 2. Oscillate your body and blades.3. Drive the boat.

The more economical you can make the first two, the less work you’ll need in each stroke for the same speed. But the cost of each oscillation will increase with the rating. It therefore becomes a balancing act, and we must find and become very accustomed to our optimal rating. Generally we should opt for as fast a rate as is comfortable. Fast – not slow !!

I have wondered why so much training happens at low rating, and have decided that it allows high muscle load training. This would not be possible for long periods at high rate. Unfortunately a slow rating is often seen to include a poor technique - including pauses and little reach. See ‘the push’ section above.

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Most coaches I have questioned say that the slow rate is to perfect technique???I feel that it is possible to achieve both the high load training and the rhythm of a high rate, if the rate is perhaps only 3 less than the all out race rate. How can you change the rate without affecting the recovery and catch?Simple! Change the blade speed in the middle of the recovery, not the ends.

The high muscle load aimed for in training presumably needs to be equal to or just a little above that to be used in a race.

The other method of high load training, which can be done at a higher rate, is fartlek(high/low work) training.The thing is to control the training by observing boat speed or erg split times. There will be an optimal rating and boat speed - to be found after many trials.Rate and work are NOT directly related. I can do a split of either 1.50 or 3.00 at the same rate.

The RHECON system uses a rate not far off that used in a race - always. The race style and rhythm is there, and work can be any level. Most training will happen at 75% to 80% max. heart rate. For race training the obvious choice is to race, preferably against another crew. So schedule regular challenges of local crews. This will also allow development of a race plan, and a race mindset. There is really no other way of simulating a race than the real thing.

R each. I’ll define this as the angle of the blade when it is capable of doing useful work – it is at a workable depth. This is not the same as the angle reached above the water, which can be about 20 degrees further in a bad stroke. The smaller the ‘ loss’ between these two ‘reaches’ the better.

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And it happens at both ends of the stroke. Lifting the blade from the water early ( washing out), or stopping work early, are losses of reach occurring at the ‘release’. The ‘RHECON’ release, with the blade pulled to the end, and feathered as it leaves the water, helps reduce this loss.

The ‘Three - part’ stroke.A long reach allows for a definite 3-part stroke. The first part – from the catch to when the blade is about 45’, is used to build to the heavy work to be done as the blade goes through the square. The rebound starts the blade acceleration stern-wards. The spoon achieves its proper depth, the water is ‘caught’, and the spoon has ‘knifed’ forward - away from the air dragged in as it entered - gaining distance. Your body swivels to the layback position.The pull on the blade is building. The second part is from when the blade is moving past 45’, to the start of the arms bending. All rebound energy has been used. The legs open to move the seat and your laidback body up the slide. The arms are simply connecting the blade to the shoulder. The third part. The blade is kept in work as the arms bend, until it is feathered. You are leaning a little back, and the hands are touching the ribs.

Why should we try to get as much ‘reach’, and as little ‘loss’ as we can?

1. Reduces water speed for entry. Blade gets quickly to speed and depth.

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Angle of blade: Percentage of boat speed. 30 14 45 28 60 49

The speed of the water relative to the face of the spoon gets less as the angle of the blade increases (as the reach increases), - until it is nearly zero when the blade is in line with the boat. So, delaying the entry of the blade means it has to be accelerated more to reach relative water speed. It will also take a longer time to reach that speed. ‘Short reach = long entry time.’Or: ‘Long reach = quick entry.

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Long reach Short reach

You can see a sculler’s effective ‘reach’ on the erg – the distance between his maximum reach and the point at which he takes the pressure, and how far this is from the ‘chain guide’ of the erg. 2. Allows settling in time while building the work. It is unsafe to start pulling hard on the blade until you are confident that the spoon is properly established in the water. This eventually becomes a subconscious process, and if we have to lose a few degrees of the stroke getting the blade established it is better to do so when pulling hard would be pointless – when the blade is at its greatest angle from square. 3. More time in the stroke to do effective work.A longer reach will give you more time in the high work area, without changing the acceleration and deceleration of your body.Perhaps you might use a shorter reach in rough water to avoid the very unstable time as the blades approach the boat. No matter. It is important only that you miss as little water as possible, because you will have wasted energy moving your body that extra distance.

4. The fastest scullers have the longest reach! Look at the diagrams below. When the blade enters the water at any angle other than square to the boat, its first movement is along the line of the spoon face. In so doing it actually moves ahead of the point of entry. The greater the angle (reach), the more will be this advance. Similarly during its move away from square towards the release it also

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moves ahead. Not as much, because the release angle is much less than that at the catch. The first diagram shows the movement of the spoon if it is not pulled, and therefore has no slip which would tend to move it backwards. The release is ahead of the catch position.The other diagrams depict spoon movement when the blade is pulled. With a short reach the initial advance as the blade squares is reduced, and the overall advance is probably negative. A long reach can give a positive advance, provided the blade is deep enough to reduce slip.

The blade must get to working depth very quickly , or at least before the real work begins.

Knifing ahead can give you a ‘free’ advance of the blade, as in the third diagram above.So you say: ‘ If the catch benefits from this ‘knifing‘ ahead, what about the release?’ Certainly the same principle applies to the release, as shown in the above diagrams. The effect is much smaller because the blade angle is less than that at the catch. The typical curved face of the spoon churns water badly as the angle at the release increases. Perhaps changing the curvature of the face of the spoon, and its angle to the shaft ( ‘cant’ angle) would help.You can never recover any lost or delayed work. You need to get pressure on the blade to ‘feel’ if it is ready for work. If this is done after a long reach you will not be losing valuable work time. This ‘testing’ time is especially needed in the most unstable boats, -the single scull and the pair.5. A clean (no air) spoon!

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There should be no air on either side of the spoon when it is being pulled. Certainly it should be well below the surface so as to make it difficult for air to be sucked into the low pressure area behind the spoon.There will inevitably be some air drawn into the water when the spoon enters. Less if the spoon has a rounded edge, and is ‘placed’ with minimum sideways speed into the water. Keep the blade as close to the water as possible when squared so as to minimise entry speed. And don’t pull on the blade until the spoon is submerged, and has had time to shed air. A long reach – say to25’, will give you plenty of time before the heavy work starts at about 45’. It is interesting that good swimmers insert their arms almost in line directly ahead, and only start the work after an air-shedding delay. Getting into ‘clean water’ ? Using the knifing ahead free advance?

So what affects our reach ? Our reach in the water cannot be longer than that with the blade above the water. Looking at the diagram under ‘SPAN’ you will see that altering the span 50mm either way of a common 1600mm has negligible effect on the angle of the blade at the catch. In the following drawing we are varying the inboard of the blade, and the position of your shoulder in relation to a line between the pins. Reach can be improved by shortening the inboard, or by moving further ‘ through the work’.

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How do we adjust the distance through the work?1. Move the stretcher , or the tracks.2. Adjust the height of the shoes. 3.Lean more or less over your knees before the layback.

What happens to the angle of extraction of the blade?1. Shortening inboard increases both reach and extraction angle.2. Moving more through the work increases reach, but shortens the extraction.

Relax. (Not in its ‘bad thought’ form) Purposely relax the muscles (but NOT the concentration) during the recovery. Loosen the grip on the blade, which should be fully feathered with the flat on the bottom of the gate until the catch. If the blade hits a wave absorb the shock with your hands. Adopt the least taxing acceleration and cruising pattern over about ¾ of the slide –and then decelerate on your knees. Move your knees apart as you come up the slide to touch the inside of your arms. (Yes! It is all worth repeating). Let your torso flop, and relax your airway to empty your lungs as your diaphragm rises. Smile! Use the break to ‘psyche up’ for the next stroke. I know it sounds daft, but a slow recovery is not necessarily the most relaxed. The recovery accompanying your ‘natural’ rating will be best, and it should last for about 1 second! No pausing at either end !! ( Stop obviously, but don’t pause)

Resonant Rating.Almost everything has at least one natural frequency of vibration. Musical instruments use these to emit vibrations in the audible range. Other things, such as boats, bounce or pitch at frequencies which depend on the weight, water conditions(depth, density, temperature) , and perhaps speed. If you move in the boat at this frequency you cause resonance, and the motion can become much exaggerated, wasting lots of energy. While all boats bounce, the single scull is most likely to pitch. Pitching will also have a natural frequency, but not the same as the bounce frequency. The length, weight, and hull shape will affect the frequencies of the boat. You may have found that a boat seems ‘dead’ at times. Perhaps you have rated at some natural frequency of the boat, and energy is being lost to bounce or pitch rather than to speed. Keen observation might detect excessive boat movement at certain ratings.

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Moving the rig lengthwise in the boat might help. Get an observer to watch how your boat pitches.When next in the bath move your knees at various speeds and observe the waves. At one speed the waves become compounded, whereas at higher or lower speed they can almost disappear.

Rhythm.This is one feature of almost all good athletes, in any sport – a good rhythm (on a good day!). Two recent emails from our athletes competing overseas commented on their having difficulty finding the rhythm. Not something measurable, it seems to be something you either have, or have not, on the day. And to be greatly valued when you do have it ! It is mostly a feeling of being in control. All parts of the stroke are happening at the correct moment. The gears are all meshing nicely, with no sand . There is a ‘flow’ to your sculling.A good rhythm can be worth a second or two drop in split time!Herewith some ideas for achieving a good rhythm.1. Prepare well for outings. Check the boat. Ensure your clothing, monitors, clocks, etc are ready. 2. Have a plan ‘a’. Where you are going, and what work you would like to do.3. Have a plan ‘b’, in case you cannot complete plan ‘a’ because of something you couldn’t foresee, such as a blocked or rough waterway. 4. Always complete a planned piece of work. Never take short cuts. 5. Warm up well , for at least 10 minutes( of course doing your two breaths per stroke). This settles your body into its working condition. This is a prerequisite for a good rhythm. I usually start both water and erg sessions at a slightly reduced rate – about 26 – and increase to 28 or 29 after about 10 minutes, and starting to sweat. 6. Practice your race style- rating, breathing, stroke - constantly. Do practice races, preferably against other crews. Your body will then be accustomed to working like that, and you will feel in control.7. Warm down ,after the work, for at least 10 minutes, until your heart rate and temperature are near normal. 8. Entrain your breathing.

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Rigging the Boat.

Below are common settings for the boat – not bad as a start. You will probably make a few alterations, as you settle down, to achieve a comfortable stroke. The raised heel, allowing constant contact, is new.

’

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Feet spread on stretcher.

A well-rigged boat will be comfortable at your natural rating, and at the planned power output. If there is a club scull that you particularly like using, you could simply copy it’s rig to your private boat.If your rig works for you, but is not within accepted limits – so what! a. Blade length and gearing increase slightly with expected boat speed.b. Hands at the release to be near, but not against, the bottom of the ribs – able to pass if necessary. Adjust the ‘span’ to achieve this.c. Shins become nearly vertical at the catch. Adjust stretcher height.d. Hands will be just clearing the legs at the release, with feathered blade. Adjust the gate:seat height as low as possible.e. For ‘left over right’ rig, set left hand gate about 15 mm above right. Boat should be level as blades cross,f. Blade angle at the ‘Catch’ about 15’ more than at the ‘release’.g. The blades are ‘over-geared’ if the sculler can’t pull a full stroke when tired. Increase the inboard length of the blade and the ‘span’, or decrease outboard length.

In many other sports the equipment is sized to suit the athlete. Sculling, however, tends to have one blade, with some minor adjustments, for all comers. Boats do come in various sizes to suit light or heavy scullers, with the rig being the greatest variable.

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Weight of scullers probably varies from 110kg to 55kg, with even greater power output variation. Blades for small athletes could be much lighter – using the shaft of a typical sculling blade in a rowing blade, for instance. We can, however, make important adjustments to existing rigs to cater for different athletes.Herewith a table showing variations to the blade and the span.(in millimetres) Gearing(ratio inboard: outboard) is the same in each case.

Athlete height: Inboard: Blade o/a length: handle overlap: Span: 1900 905 2880 210 1600 1800 880 2800 190 1570 1700 860 2736 170 1550 1600 840 2673 150 1530

General rigging procedure. 1. Set pins (span) at 1590mm, and ensure they are vertical- both lengthways and sideways.2. Place the gates on the pins and set the height above the seat as 130 average(or whatever you choose), with the left hand 15mm higher than the right. Correct the height by wedging the rigger or changing washers on the gate pin. Measure from the bottom of inside of the gate to the lowest point on top of the seat.3. Check blades are zero pitched . (flat of sleeve, and spoon- 50mm from end - parallel) 4. If so fit 4/4 adjusters to the gates. This will give the spoon an acceptable 4’ oversquare setting since the gates are pitched 4’ in themselves. 5. Set track fronts 50mm ahead of a line between the pins(the work).6. Set shoe height so that the top of the shoe is about level with the top of the seat.

Sight across top of boat to measure gate height ( higher on the left usual.)

Some people have an adjustable parallel frame for measuring gate height above the seat. I just measure and add the two heights in the above picture.

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If blades are not zero pitched assign each one to a rigger, and adjust individually thus:Fit blade into the gate – on the stern side of the pin. Hold it against the pin as though being pulled, at a realistic height. Check the angle of the spoon, 50mm in from the end. (Use a card cut to 4’ off square). Fit adjusters accordingly.

Rigging discussion:What is your best rig? 1.Blades pull at equal depths throughout the stroke.2.Boat and you feel balanced.3.You feel comfortable with even work on both sides.4.Hands as low as possible.5.Comfortable reach at both ends.

The diagram below shows what happens to the angle swept by the blade if you change the span 100mm - almost nothing! And normal adjustment allows only 20mm either way !

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Span variation

On page 125 is a diagram showing the effect on blade angle of varying ‘through the work’ or ‘ínboard’.

The ‘Span’(Pin to pin). The span should be adjusted for sculling comfort, in particular the position of the hands at the release. In emergency the blades should be able to just pass your ribs.

Gate Height: As low as possible !!! I use 130mm average height , with the left hand gate about 15mm above the right. I know that a height of about 170 is commonly used. But you might be pleasantly surprised at the lower height.Test this height by sitting in the boat and squaring the blades when in the finish position. With the squared blades just clear of the water your hands should be touching your thighs. Then go for a paddle and check that you are comfortable clearing the blades at the release, especially in rough water. In the Rhecon style the blades would be nearly fully feathered when leaving the water, thus requiring less height for the handles.The benefits of keeping this height low are:

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1. The boat can’t tip far – so it won’t!2. Handle will be lower for the same spoon depth.3. Less strain on the back.4. Right hand touching your leg gives it a reference point, and eases balance.

Tip: Before adjusting gates on crew boats, check that the thole pins are in line, at the same height, and vertical. There are two types of rigging you might need:

1. For club crews of varying size you need the boat rigged for the heaviest oarsmen and conditions, perhaps 170mm between seat and gate. This might be uncomfortably high for lighter scullers. Bigger clubs have different boats rigged for heavy and light scullers.

2. For select crews in dedicated boats: First get on the water with the crew and cox installed. Get those with blades on one side of the boat to just touch the thighs, not the saxboard, with the blade handle. The spoons should all be at equal depth. If not the gates will have to be altered until correct. Then do the other side. The gates will not be the same height above the seat, but the crew should have the same clearance. This gives you the datum levels to rig from.

Now go for a paddle and see if you could reduce the height of all the gates - together.Ideally you want all blades to ‘catch’ and ‘release’ together. It may be necessary to vary the gearing and blade length of each sculler to achieve this.

Foot height. The Distance ‘D’ below should be as small as is comfortable, because this will reduce the load on the back1. Shoes too high: Shorter reach. 2. Shoes too low : Longer reach, but the possibility of lifting off the seat at high rating. The latter especially so if you tend to pull too hard at the catch. Normally the shoe top is about level with the seat top. The angle of the shins at the catch will vary with foot height, and is usually seen to be nearly vertical.

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Forces to lift off seat Leaning back weight

Tip: Fit stops at the ends of the lower stretcher adjusting rack to prevent the stretcher from coming off altogether while being moved.(holes with split pins work well)

Pitch (The angle of the spoon)The angle of the spoon to the water determines the depth at which it would normally operate when being pulled. Aim at about 100mm underwater when square to the boat, so that air is not sucked down behind the spoon. The normal angle of the spoon is about 4 degrees oversquare.

The right depth for working the blade:1. No air entrained behind the spoon.(Listen for it)2. Minimum disturbance at the surface.

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3. Too deep better than too shallow.( so long as you are not pulling at armpit height)

The effect of blade ‘slip’:1. Equal distance lost in boat travel.2. Energy used to churn water rather than drive boat.

The effect of unequal blade depth: 1. Boat may steer to the shallower blade side because of greater ‘slip’

with that blade.

Angle of the gate pin: For most rowers having the same angle of spoon throughout the stroke is acceptable. However some people deliberately arrange for perhaps more angle to start the stroke, and less at the end, or vice versa. At the beginning of the work stroke you may tend to pull towards the shoulder. So a greater ‘oversquare’ angle would help keep the spoon up. Later as your arms bend and the pull is more horizontal a lesser angle will do. Thole pins leaning outwards would give this effect. Pins leaning backwards would give more pitch at the centre of the stroke. In sculling terminology the oversquare setting of the spoon at 4’ is considered normal. Any more is ‘oversquare’, and any less is ‘undersquare’.Advice! Don’t complicate things too much. Excuses?

Adjusting the gate closing pin.

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Put the blade into the gate, then adjust the lock-nut on the closing pin so that the blade can only just rotate. The reason for closing the gap is to reduce the amount of back and forth travel of the blade as it is squared or feathered. The blade should move from one side of the gate to the other when half squared or feathered, and the force changes from push to pull or vice versa.So keep pulling on the blade to the end of the stroke!

Adjusting the gap on the gate.

. My rig: My scull is rigged with only 125mm average between seat and gate. The left hand blade is 4’, and the right hand 5’. This was not planned but is comfortable. Perhaps because the right hand always pulls below the left, the greater angle counteracts the extra downward force (up on the handle) on the spoon. The left hand gate is 15mm above the right.Recently I fitted a different rigger and accidentally had the height at about 160. This seemed much less stable than the lower rig. Perhaps with a low rig the boat can’t tip as much, therefore feels more stable!

Rough waterThe ‘Recon’ system is well suited to rough water, without rigging changes. Even with my low setting of 125mm gate height I still handle waves that hit the top-mounted rigger. I honestly haven’t figured out why this should be! Obviously there must be enough clearance. Perhaps it’s just that I don’t use it all in calm water, and keep the blade

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feathered until the instant of the catch.

Smooth water. rough water.

Get the hands well down at the release, with the flat of the blade snug on the bottom of the gate when feathered. Lift a little higher at the catch. Be prepared to take the catch short if a blade gets caught on an exceptionally large wave. Then make the work harder to compensate for the short stroke. Ensure your knees touch your arms sometime during the recovery.When the blade is feathered, and resting on the bottom of the gate, the spoon is not parallel to the water. It has a positive angle of perhaps 4’which should help to lift it if it hits the water. You can change the blade gearing while moving according to the water conditions. In calm water move the hands away from the end of the handle perhaps 50mm to increase gearing. In the rough patches pull on the end of the blade.

The mirror will allow you to see what is coming. Not all waves are the same height. Square as late as possible, even as the blade is dropped Going ‘with’ the waves can be fun, with the boat almost surfing. Keep the reach as long as you can, Move the hands up the handle to increase gearing for the high speed. If the waves are so big that they overlap the saxboard they can easily swamp the boat since they are travelling at almost boat speed. Its not so bad when travelling the other way.Going ‘against’ the waves? Try slowing the recovery a bit, and sink the blade more. Try a shorter reach with a harder pull. Reduce gearing by holding the blades right at the

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end. The wind will usually be against you as well so watch the squaring.Generally rough water is hard work. Particularly on the forearms – trying to control the blade when hitting waves. I find waves coming from the side – parallel to the boat - hardest to handle. Choppy waves, with short wavelengths, aren’t too bad, but the longer wavelengths tend to push the boat so far sideways , and for so long, that it, and I, tip. This is, however, a trick to use when amongst very large waves, such as the wake of a big boat. Turn your boat to be parallel to the waves. Get up as much speed as you can just before the waves arrive. The spoons will then give good stability planing over the water when the waves hit.

Oscillating hull in a cross-wave.

Practicing in smooth water will not equip you for rough water.

The Rudder: All boats are fitted with a keel, which is in effect a fixed rudder designed to keep it moving straight. Some are then fitted with a moveable rudder to alter direction. Typically new boats have the moveable one directly behind the keel. And it is usually very small – about 60mm square, even in an ‘8’. The effort required to turn it this rudder is small, even at speed. In bow – coxed boats the friction suffered by the rudder cables between cox and rudder can remove any feeling for the rudder position. It is easy for the cox to unknowingly ‘stall’ the rudder – overturn it – thus adding considerably to the normal drag of the rudder.If I were asked to fit a keel and rudder to a boat I would suggest a rudder only. The turning mechanism would accurately show the cox the angle of turn. At speed, not more than perhaps 10’ turn would be recommended – to prevent a ‘stall’. In large ships about 5% of engine power can be used to offset rudder drag, and modern ships ( some cruise ships) are doing away with rudders. They steer by varying power of the main propellers, or using any of several small electrical steering propellers located

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along the hull. This also removes the need for tugs when manoeuvering in ports.

Safety: I invariably scull alone, and after a few mishaps, now do several things to improve safety.

1. Wear an inflatable life jacket. Tying the two front panels together stops them interfering with the release.

2. Wear a hat with a mirror attached.3. Carry a cell phone, epirb(emergency GPS locator), medication, money and car

keys in a bag hooked ahead of the stretcher..4. Ensure heel straps are intact.5. Leave a note of my destination and expected return time back at base. 6. Wear plastic shoes to and from the water. They float, but should be tied to the

boat. Useful if you have to come ashore unexpectedly – shells and other beach solids can be VERY sharp.

7. Carry a pair of scissors and 5m of thin cord in my sealed box.8. Next step? Practice getting back into the boat ( See ‘Re-embarking’). A pair of

flippers would be useful if it is necessary to swim to shore. If you push the boat a few metres ahead periodically, rather than holding onto it you will be able to use both arms to swim. In this case better move from the rigger to the stern and back as you alternately push the boat and swim, so that it doesn’t get away from you.

Although you don’t want to go overboard about safety (enjoyed that!), you can vastly improve things with just a few preparations.

A club quad flipped recently ( Oh! Yes!) and one of the crew panicked. Luckily a coach boat was nearby and she was hauled aboard. Panic is one of the most serious situations for which lifesavers train. The victim cannot help, and can in fact be dangerous. Perhaps if the crew had trained for a flip she would not have panicked. Reference the scissors I carry: I recently came across a woman in an outrigger canoe which had its rudder tangled with a stray fishing line at a buoy. She couldn’t free the canoe or cut the line , and was impressed with the arrival of a well-prepared sculler. Turns out that a cormorant (shag) had also become tangled in the same line, and surfaced when it was cut. So I ‘saved two birds with one ……..’. Cool!

Learn the navigation rules for the water you are on. And then don’t assume that anyone else either knows the rules, or obeys them. A racing boat is probably the most fragile craft on the water, and being right won’t prevent you getting the worst of any collision. Expect the unexpected! My nearest misses are usually associated with a fast moving tide. I perhaps try to pass too close to a pole, forgetting that the tide is moving me towards it. A 4km/hr tide can move you sideways over 1m/second. Each stroke moves you nearly 9 metres, and you could move 2m sideways on the tide, so it doesn’t take long to get into trouble.

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In a crowded waterway you may need to look in the mirror almost constantly. It is worth giving even a moored boat a wide berth, in case maybe a dinghy appears from behind it. Schools apparently suggest that uncoxed crews check steering every third stroke. You can’t stop or change course very quickly in a scull. Your safest route in a busy waterway will be within the marked channel, obeying the road rules. Outside the channel lurk many dangers such as shallow water , highly abrasive shell beds, and dumped rubbish, which can all make short work of a fragile hull.Unfortunately accidents will happen. Visit ‘ Falling out’ and ‘Mud’ for more. I recently found that FISA now allows the use of shoes with Velcro straps which are not restricted to a 70mm lift. Instead an easily found string is provided to open heel Velcro. I cannot agree with this non-automatic system!!

The Seat - The sore backside ! If you have the secret of how to prevent this PLEASE let me know.I have tried seats with and without holes, thick and thin padding, but still get uncomfortable pain after about 1 hour.One problem may be that for the first time in many years I have lost weight – perhaps there is less fat in the affected area to cushion the ischiums – the bits of pelvis you sit on. I find that pain starts behind the ischium. It may be that the early layback puts pressure towards the back – behind the ischium – for longer than with a later layback.I tried an inflatable cushion. When inflated enough to remove all contact with the seat I felt out of control. Unfortunately the valve was in the wrong place and lesser inflation was uncomfortable. It did show, however, how important the contact between seat and rear is for balance and control. It seems that the pain is greatest around the ‘release’, when leaning back. I tried straightening my back, and although it helped, was very tiring. Perhaps this ties in with the problems one sculler had with rubbed sores about the coccyx. Perhaps she was leaning back too far, and the seat wasn’t sufficiently cut out in the coccyx area. The Rhecon requirement for a relaxed, bent back would exacerbate this problem, although it also calls for limited lean - back.

Shoes: These seem to cause more problems in a boat than anything else.There are three types of ‘shoe’ you can fit:1. normal shoes with lace or Velcro straps: These are most common but they are seldom the right size. Avoid leather and loose weave net cloth in the shoes.2. Toe straps with fixed heel cups: Heel cups need adjustment to keep foot pressure in the right place. The ‘Erg’ system ! Works well but is too bulky to fit a single.3. Toe and heel straps: The lightest and most versatile system, but needs getting used to.

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Short cuts.Some of us fib about our achievements, perhaps to get the admiration of others. And to impress ourselves, even when we know it is a fib. Yes! Most properly done exercise is long, hard and tiring. For some its easier to do a bit only when watched, or simply be in the gym pottering about. Some gym members impress those they tell of their membership, but never actually use it.You know you’ve lied,even if only to yourself.

Stress.While there is perhaps a place for professional intervention with stress, I would rather see self treatment, involving the diet, exercise and lifestyle triangle. Getting through a trying time yourself will make you stronger and more able to deal with stress in the future.It has been shown that exercise can not only relieve stress, but prevent it. And even short exercise –perhaps a few blows to a boxing bag - can work. Better than these blows being delivered to a spouse or child!Exercising every day , even if stressed or not feeling good, removes the ‘choice’.Continuing or adopting good diet and lifestyle standards will boost self esteem when it is badly needed.And find someone- a friend- who will listen to you, without judgement. Simply talking something through can ease the tension. Our choices are exactly that – Ours!

Style, or technique.Having spent all this time describing the RHECON system, I must now say that I would be quite happy to see someone doing something different, if, for him, it was better.This acknowledges that we are individuals, and capable of surprising, atypical things. I hope that the Rhecon system will offer a better understanding of sculling, so that choices can be made on a foundation of solid reasoning. An effective technique will have several distinguishing points:1. It will result in a comfortable, economical stroke.2. It will be a pleasure to watch. 3. It will be unique to the athlete. 4. It will be fast, and FUN!The two words – style and technique – tend to be interchanged. However, it seems that more correctly ‘technique’ – the details of the stroke – will become part of an overall ‘style’.

Sweat. We sweat to try to cool our heated body.

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Sweat cools you best if it evaporates against your skin! Dripping sweat is 500 times less effective!Only about 25% of our energy produces useful work. The rest ends up as heat. Normally this maintains our bodies at 36-37’C. During heavy exercise this rises to about 39’C as we ‘warm up’. It would rise further, to a dangerous 41’ or more unless we got rid of excess heat. There are several ways of doing this:1. As heated and humidified exhaled breath.2. As evaporated sweat. Needs a good flow of low humidity air.3. Radiation, convection and conduction.If we do not control our body temperature we suffer as follows:1. Loss of useful energy as resources are diverted to try to reduce temperature (blood to the skin).2. Damage to muscles including the heart.3. Heatstroke.Danger!!! 1. When air temperature nears body temperature radiation and convection drops, or may even reverse. You heat up! 2. Evaporation reduces as humidity increases. Beware exercising in these conditions!

Temperature up = Performance down!!!The most important factor in long term temperature control is hydration – replacing liquids lost as sweat or vapour. The feeling of thirst should not be allowed to become extreme. Drink a comfortable amount about 1 hour before exercise, and you shouldn’t need more for 1.5 hours of sweaty exercise.For long exercise of 2 or more hours you will need to replenish the salts lost in sweat.It is all about maintaining comfortable levels of liquid and salts. Your training should also emphasise hydration planning. The main cooling method for us humans is the evaporation of sweat. Simply dripping sweat doesn’t do much! You need to evaporate that sweat against your body, then the heat required to evaporate the sweat will be drawn from your body.Heat to raise water temperature 1 degree. = 1 unitHeat required to evaporate the water = 500+ units.So effective is this cooling that most fridges and air conditioners use it, albeit in a sophisticated form. You may have seen campers hang canvas bags of water in the open. Water seeps through the canvas, evaporates, and cools the water inside. Early fridges consisted of rooms made with charcoal-filled walls. Water dripping from above wets the charcoal, whose great surface area promoted efficient evaporation and cooling. You can buy vests designed to be soaked in water, which gradually evaporates and cools thereafter. Bikers apparently use them, presumably to keep cool within black leather?

Evaporating water needs heat to happen – the latent heat of evaporation. And this heat

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should come from your body.The rate of evaporation of a liquid depends on the humidity of the surrounding air. On a humid day you will tend to become wet with unevaporated sweat, whereas on a dry day sweat evaporates better. Consider these clothing and body types:1. Hairless body vs. hairy body: A Hairy body – say a male with hairy upper body - will not evaporate sweat very effectively. And even if sweat moving along the hairs does evaporate it will be drawing little heat from the skin. The hair serves to trap and slow the movement of air next to the skin. The air becomes saturated with vapour, and impedes further evaporation. The reduced temperature at the clothing can even cause vapour to condense . Sweat on hairless skin still needs the movement of air to evaporate well. At least when it does evaporate it will be drawing heat from the skin. 2. Clothing – or not? While there are possibly places where the no-clothing option is permitted, we are generally ‘decently’ clothed. However, we tend to expose the arms and sometimes shoulders. The question is whether we can evaporate more sweat with or without clothing. One advantage of clothing over skin is that, because of its weave it can have a greater surface area than skin from which to evaporate sweat. The weave of the cloth will look very rugged under a microscope compared to skin. And wet skin is even smoother because the liquid covers the wrinkles. So should we wear long-sleeved, and long-legged, skin-tight clothes? Does an old person’s wrinkled skin cool better than the smooth skin of a youngster?3. Skin-tight or loose clothing? NZ rowing is apparently using ‘Skins’ – a lycra polyester(I think) cloth, with arm and leg cover. Very close fitting – even a little compressive –but Black ?!. Presumably the weave of the cloth provides more surface area than the skin beneath, which should aid evaporation. The close contact between cloth and skin would cause heat to be drawn from the skin. Loose clothing will maintain a high humidity layer next to your skin. Because evaporation is reduced, the temperature of this layer will increase. Liquid sweat will soak the cloth, and any evaporation will draw little heat from the skin. This might be a useful tactic on very cold days when keeping warm is difficult. Wear loose clothes!.I suspect that the clothing fabric could further affect sweat evaporation. Cotton, poly--, Gore-Tex? Long sleeve or short sleeve? And the colour? Will a black, skin-tight cloth be cooler, on a sunny day, than white? I would have thought that white would be cooler, due to reduced external heat absorption., and yet our NZ sports teams mostly wear black – in name and clothing. The fault for this can apparently be given to the touring Rugby team of 1905 – touring Britain for the first time, and sporting black uniform. Perhaps generations of sportsmen have been condemned to excess heat by the NZ love of ‘black ….. ‘ teams.

The mechanics of rowing does not allow for good evaporation of sweat.

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1. Your body offers little frontage to any wind. Worse still in a crew boat.2. The bunched posture during a stroke further reduces airflow.3. Rowing is relatively slow, especially compared to cycling, so wind-chill will be reduced. Wind cools, generally, because it replaces the saturated air next to your body with less saturated air. Without wind , evaporation is reduced as the air next to your body becomes saturated. A runner is at least as fast as a rower, but has full body frontage to the air and much more vigorous movement of arms and legs. In rowing only the back, head and upper arms are fully exposed to the wind. Another reason for keeping your elbows away from your sides is to allow air movement to the armpit, which has a rich array of sweat glands.

Time in / Time out: Rating: A study of some world class scullers (Inverness rowing club website - stroke cycles) showed that their time during the recovery and the work was almost the same. The pendulum effect! Their rating varied from 33 to 38. And yet so many coaches call for ‘letting the boat run’, and for recovery to be 2 or 3 times longer than the work. I see no point in this. It might encourage a short work stroke. So much of the preparation for the work stroke is done during the recovery, and the speed of the sculler and swinging blade has much to do with balance and getting a decent catch. I know that the scullers in the ‘strokecycles’ above were taking part in races, but surely training should try to simulate race conditions? Especially when the 1:1 ratio is so natural, and helps to produce a rhythmic, graceful stroke.So when training at less than race power, reduce the rating slightly with the work , but keep the recovery / work ratio the same. I emphasise that the way you are feeling can affect your rating. It may not be easy to explain, but if pulling harder at a slightly lower rating takes you faster that day, go for it.I rate at 27 – 30, always! And with a 1:1 rhythm.

Tired: This is a ‘bad’ word !The tendency when we get tired is to shorten the stroke, or reduce the work, and increase the rating.This is probably because of our inability to hold a load – for long. We can’t help getting tired, but if we have trained enough at race ratings, and have a realistic race plan, we should be able to remain in control.

Toes or Heels.Should we push against our toes or heels during the work? Both!Pushing on your toes involves more muscles than for the heel, and should be avoided

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when possible. So the main thrust is on the heels, with the toes aiding stability. Our balance in a boat relies on our contact with it, through hands, feet, and rear.Some will say that since your toes are higher in the boat than the heel, you could lift off the seat with a very hard push on the heels immediately after the catch. In a good stroke, however, the catch is not the time for a heavy push.On page 24 the block attached to the bottom of the stretcher- to lift the heel - is shown. It should be high enough so that your heel is not forced to lift at the catch.

.Toughing-up. ‘Good words’! The South African Rugby team for a world cup match did some training in an army- style boot camp. This was much criticised , but as a team – maker you can hardly do better. If a player is willing to commit everything to play for his country, then what of a little mud, hunger and exhaustion. There is not much gives you the same confident feeling as successfully completing such a course. Knowing that YOU can ‘take it’, and that you can rely on your team-mates when the going gets tough. Even if it’s only for your club, or just for yourself, put in the effort.Rowing New Zealand has its elite athletes doing Outward Bound courses – sort of boot camp.Perhaps the main things this training teaches you is the value of self discipline, our ability to overcome deprivation, and the prize of self esteem. I can do it !!!The toughness is holistic, in that a tough mind will be combined with a tough body. They are complementary, and can become your lifestyle.

But you don’t have to go to boot camp to get these benefits.Set goals that are going to test you, but are within reach, and don’t stop until you reach them. Go the hard way just for the hell of it. Get wet or cold, because the eventual hot shower is going to be something else!Forego that take-away, or beer, or lie-in. Use these as rewards for goals achieved rather than excuses for avoiding effort.Be in control. Listen to your body and respect your limits. Don’t overdo the hydration. A 1/4 litre of water before going out should easily see you through a 15k outing. Don’t carry any with you – then you can’t be thinking how nice it would be to have some. If there is no way out you won’t waste time or effort looking for one.This must be why people do seemingly crazy things. They climb Everest without added oxygen, do extreme skiing, walk to the poles, and are for ever trying to go faster, higher, longer- with less equipment. And don’t we envy them! Read ‘The long walk’, and Shackleton’s story for ‘tough’ inspiration.

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Tow-boat.I once needed to tow a coachboat while in my single. Luckily the available rope had about 2m of thick bungie attached. This allowed for the pulsing of the single, and was probably what made the tow successful.

Trailer pushing / pulling.One of the clubs occupying our boatshed has a small step – perhaps 50mm – up into their shed. They commonly push the loaded coach boat trailers up this step. The resulting jerk sometimes dislodges the boat, and causes violent movement of the motor. They ignore my advice to pull rather than push. Another nearby club has a large road trailer with double axles, and forward facing ‘trailing’ arm suspension. So much for the warrant of fitness inspection!!

Training.The Rhecon system of training would be as follows:General:1. Train throughout the year – every day. Build endurance off season, and race practice

in season. Use only slightly lower rating, and fartleks, to build power.2. Do light work for a few days prior to an event.3. Weights, and stretching are not as good as sculling or erging- with measureable performance.4. Train to the level you feel like on that day. Better to reach a lesser target, than to fail to achieve one that is too ambitious (Do not sow the seeds of

failure!)5. Keep a log.6. Set more distant GOALS, such as regattas, and prepare your mind as well as your

body for these events.7. Use the Rhecon system – fast rating, double breaths etc.8. Athletes do best in the sport they train for. Do the hours on the erg or the water!!! The

best training for sculling is – sculling.9.Training ‘easy’ only trains you to race ‘easy’.10.Limit the attendance of the coach. Become self reliant.

And in particular:1. Remove ‘Rest, relax, tired, short cut, thirsty,’ and other bad words from scull-talk.2. Challenge other crews to informal races regularly. Even casual races’ – trying to catch a nearby boat – is useful. Helps build a good race psyche.3. Keep it simple. Complex plans can become an excuse in themselves

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Summarising the general features of a training session as set out under ‘Rhythm’.1. preparation of you and the boat.2. Have a plan ‘A’, and a plan ‘B’, if ‘A’ cannot be used due to unforseen circumstances.3. Warm up, to a sweat, over about 15 minutes.4. Complete the work, taking no short cuts.5. Cool down over at least 10 minutes.

All this is fine for a late teen or adult sculler. But what of younger folk. The temptation is to start specific training from an early age.a. Looking at eventual big money(although probably not in rowing).b. To feed parental ambition.While being introduced to sculling from perhaps 8 years old, serious competitive sculling

should not start until the later teens. Initially the emphasis should be on fun, and boat and group interaction skills. A mix of sports will develop balanced fitness and strength in growing minds and bodies.

And definitely NO sweep racing under 16 ! If the ability is there, full development would take about 10 years. Age about 23! Back to the adults:We need to decide the purpose of our training. The main difference would be the

power(heart rate) used. See the calculation in the Heart rate monitor section above.

1. To improve performance go up to about 85%. This would lead to exhaustion after perhaps 30 minutes. Talking while exercising should be difficult. Partly anaerobic work.

2. To maintain fitness work at about 75% . You could maintain this level for an hour or so. Talking a bit should be comfortable. This is mostly aerobic exercise.

3. To compete. A combination of long aerobic, and short anaerobic workouts is needed . Long endurance work, with regular races. Acclimatise for the conditions and time of the competition.

Your body will try to adapt to the expected level if stressed to near that level in training . Sooner or later you will have to admit that further improvement is unlikely, at least in bodily terms. Especially as you age. Then you’ll probably see if your style can be improved, or the boat, although you should have been doing this from the beginning.

The frustrating thing about training is that improvement can be very, very slow. Your body changes in many ways to cope with the peculiar requirements of sculling, and needs many, many ks on the erg or water to do so.

Things like ‘slow twitch muscle fibres’ take years to develop. The cardiovascular system gradually develops, and the muscular system adapts.

Spend as much time as you can in aerobic training.

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Four things seem critical about training outings.1. They should all result in pleasant, not killing, exhaustion, even if your perception of

‘exhaustion’ is lower when you’re not feeling 100%. If you are in full training the exhaustion should be more comprehensive, but still not killing. Listen to your body.

2. The planned outing must be completed properly ( no short cuts ! ). 3. It should be fun. Find ways to make it fun but still achieve 1 and 2 above. Vary

the work or the route. No fixed pattern is necessary. Just what you feel like doing. Any ‘k’ is a ‘k’ !

4. It should simulate the required discipline. Not much use training for sculling by running!

I only do one kind of outing. It is planned to involve a good sweat for at least 30mins on the erg or 8+ k’s on the water, where a wide range of routes is taken.

The limit of about 35 minutes plus for each daily outing came about because:1. This is an acceptable amount of time out of each day.2. My backside starts getting too sore.3. It trained me for the 7km races we have over winter – the only racing I did.

It is common to have scullers do ‘drills’ , using squared blades, very slow ratings, hesitations, and so on. I often see crews with a few resting while the others perform some routine. All this seems a waste of water time. The crew should be active all the time. You aren’t learning, exercising, or improving anything just sitting there. The idea behind these exercises, and slow rating, seems to be to allow technique development (I think). I am not sure how you are supposed to learn to do something by doing something else? (unless slow rating involves higher power per stroke.)I suppose these exercises, and other gym exercises help to avoid the monotony of endless sculling. The fact is that sculling is a repetitive and monotonous exercise, and you need to train yourself to deal with that. I know it must be difficult to motivate many crews, especially those there under duress – such as a few school kids( not all by any means ) who have to do a sport and choose rowing as the least unpleasant. Perhaps they should choose for themselves to be ‘willing’, or ‘unwilling’. Willing crews would be self-motivated and would be happy to put in the strenuous water hours , and discipline, needed for development. Good luck with the ‘unwilling’!

Most features in a style will only show results after many hours of relevant practice. Having decided to follow the RHECON system it may take months to successfully incorporate all its features – automatically. And this will best happen without any ‘drills’. Rather concentrate on different parts of the style during an outing, while maintaining the rating and the rest of the stroke. Some parts of the stroke are definitely more difficult than others. I find the release to be the most difficult to get right ! Usually I just accept that it isn’t always going to be perfect, and get on with it. There will always be the odd problems while sculling. We must just

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learn to deal with them so as to maintain our performance. Some requirements in the Rhecon style, such as touching legs with arms during the recovery, are aimed at reducing a common sculling problem- imbalance.Better if we can prevent a problem than have to survive it.

Overtraining? When it has stopped being fun !

The more you analyse your style, the more there is to analyse!You will never reach perfection! There will be good days, and bad days!Your expectations rise with your knowledge, and provide a constant interest during outings. A good athlete should never get bored. Frustrated perhaps, but not bored! Think!!!!!

The following bit is a repeat of earlier discussion. Sorry! But it is important. I have been trying to figure why coaches teach scullers to lengthen the recovery – to achieve a 2+ : 1 ratio of work :recovery, and to use a low rating. To achieve say a 1.50 split you can either:1. Traditional: Slow the rate by lengthening the recovery to about 2:1, and work harder . a. You may be doing the same work per stroke as you do in racing. b. You have few of the rhythmic benefits of the faster rate.2. Rhecon: Rate at 1:1 a. The work will be lighter than in racing. b. You are practicing the rhythmic motion of a near - race rating.Or: 3.Rate at 1.2 :1 a. Work will be near that for a race. b. You still have a decent rhythm.SO! Which is better? One feature of rowing is the non linear relationship of speed and effort. Training at 8o% work effort will probably take you to 95% of maximum speed. So increasing work for a race is only going to take the boat a little faster, and not require much increase in rating. Your type 2 training rhythm is going to be very similar to that used in racing! Your body will be well adjusted to operate at that rate. With the type 1 training you are probably going to be able to use the same work in each racing stroke, but you will probably have to halve the recovery time. This imposes a new, unaccustomed rhythm.The RHECON system uses the high rating, near 1:1 style option, and , despite repeatedly looking at the alternatives, I have found no reason to change! At a rate of 26 plus you will be able to blend types 1 and 2. In this regard consider a runner. He always uses the same rate, simply altering his stride to achieve work output and speed. A Sprinter can have a stride of near 3 metres, while

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the marathon runner may be perhaps 1.5 metres.

Turning.1. Course corrections. These would normally involve only small course changes. Make several small changes rather than one big one. This will disturb your rhythm less, and maintain boat speed. In a ruddered boat make a change during the work part of the stroke. Doing it during the recovery can upset the balance.2. 180’ turns. I lean into, gradually square, and force down the inside blade, at full speed. Then pull round on the outside blade, and include a little backing on the inside blade as the speed drops. Pick up the stroke when perhaps 30’ from completing the turn. This can be recovered over about 6 strokes as the speed is increased.

A mirror will allow you to steer accurately into the turn, but be careful of any tide or current, especially if it will take you onto the turning post.

Warming up before exercise. Stretching ?Warm up in the boat if you can, gradually increasing work for about 15minutes. Work hard enough to raise a sweat. This will increase body temperature about 2’, redirect blood flow to working muscles, and psyche you up for the coming session. Your breathing should automatically entrain – out at the ‘catch’ and ‘release’.There seems little advantage to stretching. The effect is apparently temporary(5 minutes), and it doesn’t warm you - not the static variety anyway. A dynamic stretching routine can be used during the warm-up. Rather stretch in the boat by slightly exaggerating your movements.If you are expecting a hard session, or a race, you should have wakened, from sleep, a minimum of 4 hours previously. There is some argument about the benefits of warming up – it is difficult to prove a significant increase in performance, or a reduction in injuries.Conversely there is no disadvantage to warming up, and the fact that most of us ‘feel’ better prepared mentally and physically having done so, makes it worthwhile.It is something those who listen to, and care for their bodies, will do ! It is part of the general preparation for a session, along with proper nutrition and hydration, rest, clothing, and an equipment check. It helps you to feel comfortable, and

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in control !Reminds me of a surgeon vigorously scrubbing, then donning one or two gloves prior to operating. More psyching up than cleaning up?

Warming down after exercise . Your body needs time, after working hard, to return to its normal condition of temperature, blood flow, lactic acid levels and so on. This is best done during a gradual reduction of work for about 10 minutes, and should be done while sculling if possible.Do not suddenly stop work, as this can result in blood pooling in the legs, starving your brain, leading to dizziness and perhaps nausea. Another factor leading to nausea is your having eaten a meal shortly (less than 1 hour ) before exercising. It’s something to do with the failure of the weak sphincter muscle preventing contents from a full stomach moving upwards. During exercise normal digestion rates are reduced, so the stomach remains full.Warming down = looking after your body which has just worked hard for you!

Washing outThe practice of pulling the blade out of the water as it nears the end of the work stroke is known as ‘washing out’. It is usually accompanied by a messy swirl of water.This shortens the stroke, and wastes the work of the bending arms – part 3 of the stroke.Keep the spoon properly submerged till near the end of the stroke, and partly submerged until it is being feathered.In a ‘perfect’ stroke the spoon would be instantaneously lifted from the water when the work stops. In practice this is impossible – it takes time for the spoon to rise nearly 400mm from depth to clear the water(smooth). Especially if you are trained to delay the feather until the spoon is clear of the water. This latter technique seems prevalent amongst sweep oarsmen, and is violent and noisy.Scullers prefer to feather as the spoon lifts from the water, in a controlled, quiet movement. The spoon still takes time to lift, of course, but not as long as a sweep spoon, and is not expected to clear the water squared. Scullers can therefore hold the blade in the water, and working, until nearer the end of the stroke, and should be less inclined to wash out. We talk of the blade ‘locking on’ to the water. But in order to move the boat one way we must move something else,- water(or the planet), the other way. We can either move a little water a lot, and create a great swirl round the spoon(ineffective), or move a lot of

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water a little, with little swirl(effective). Washing out, and not burying the spoon to a decent depth results in a messy puddle, wasted energy, and ‘slip’. Make sure that the blade is properly and quickly submerged so that you can pull on it efficiently.

Weights: Adding weights for racing . If you have to add weight to a boat to bring it up to the minimum, you might as well make it work FOR you. Placing the weight at the gate pin will increase the rotational inertia of the boat, thereby slowing the speed at which it tips, and this will improve balance. Placing weight in the bottom of the boat will have a much smaller effect.It can be argued that weights in the bottom of the boat improve stability. True! But not inertia. It is more important to make the boat tip SLOWLY. It is the rate of roll that we are interested in. By adding weight at the gate we are getting it as far from the centre of rotation as is practical. Think of a dancer or skater who wants to spin. He starts rotating with one leg and both arms stretched out. By then bringing them into his body he spins much faster.The boat only needs to remain balanced for about 1 second. When it starts tipping, which is inevitable, it should do so slowly, so that it has not tipped much by the time the next ‘catch’ happens.

Weight: Of the boat. It can be shown that it is takes less energy to move a boat at an even speed than if the speed varies.

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This is true of the boat over a long distance, and of each stroke. Boat speed varies during the stroke because of the exchange of momentum taking place between boat and sculler, as the sculler moves on the slide. This has to do with the weight difference – say 8okg versus 14kg. And the speed variation would be much greater if the boat wasn’t being slowed by the water. So: If we increase boat weight, what will happen.1. It will have more wetted hull, therefore suffer more ‘drag’.2. Boat speed variation will be less, with less pulsing drag.3. The boat will be more stable.

I saw one calculation which showed that the ideal single scull weight was 25kg for an 8okg sculler! Another suggested that the boat weight should be 25% of the sculler’s weight.Some figures from a world championship regatta showed that winning boats were generally not the lightest. And in ‘True Blue’ heavy blades were used to give greater stability in rough water. Blade weight moves in the opposite direction to the sculler, and in effect adds to the weight of the boat – as against the weight of the sculler. Heavy blades will reduce the movement of the ‘boat + sculler’ centre of gravity, and the pulsing of the boat .

‘Winterising, your boat.

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If boats are not going to be used for some time – usually in winter, it is wise to ‘winterise’ them. In particular the moving parts, and all nuts and bolts, should be cleaned and heavily lubricated. Wash out salt water thoroughly. Use lanolin based oil rather than grease. Often there is contact between stainless steel, aluminium, brass (inside plastic adjusting nuts) and carbon, which causes corrosion, with eventual seizing of the joint. Drain any water and open any hatches. Beware, however, the occasional use of such places by unwelcome visitors – including bats or bees. A bit of coarse cloth as a bung in such holes should prevent an invasion.

Work? When during the stroke?ALL of it! From the moment the spoon is submerged at the catch until it is being feathered, but not all at the same power.You’ve got about 90 degrees of movement of the blade in the water in which to do the most effective work. The spoon will not drop to the working depth immediately at the ‘catch’, perhaps only getting there after 10% of the stroke has gone. This doesn’t matter because the work will be light to start with. Then increase the work and speed of the handle to a maximum as the blade is square to the boat. The work will gradually reduce as the blade moves from square, and your arms bend. It must not stop until the hands are beside the ribs! A hard pull on a shallow blade will cause excess slip, and churned water.The first part of the work is done with the arms nearly straight and knees opening so that they drop and let the hands past. The movement of the legs is needed to continue accelerating the body after rebounding from the catch, as well as pulling on the blade. The maximum speed of the blade is a little after the square. So the legs have a lot to do.However, the legs do not act alone! Any work by the legs has to be transmitted by the back to the upper body, and then to the blade. So , gently does it!. Whatever you do it MUST BE THE SAME ON BOTH SIDES, and most importantly when you are under pressure, or tired. Any imbalance will twitch the boat. When you are tired you must be especially sure that you make the most of your remaining energy. Your technique must not fall apart. Practice having something to concentrate on instead of thinking how tired you are getting. If you find that you simply can’t hold a full length stroke it may be that you need to reduce the gearing. Get more ‘inboard’ on the blade ( and increase the ‘span’) by

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moving your hand to the end of the handle.Sometimes, and particularly in rough water, you may have messed up the catch a bit, and you start work later than you’d like. Put extra work into the blade when near square to compensate for the short stroke. Despite the short ‘catch’ you are very unlikely to have problems completing the stroke. So make the last bit of the stroke really count. Bring the hands right up to the ribs with the spoon still working.We humans are unable to sustain a load, and especially when we tire we seem better at explosive rather than sustained work. So we tend to increase the rating and make each stroke shorter and more explosive, rather than going for more reach. It is interesting that, just as in other animals, we have varied work styles. Slow, or fast, starters, and finishers. The important thing is to know your style and not be panicked into something else. It’s not easy to see the opposition getting a couple of lengths up on you as you gradually follow your work plan. Have Fun!

Congratulations on getting to the end !And Thanks. I hope you have found it interesting, and have food for thought.I would value feedback, even if simply to know that someone has actually read it.

Credits.1. Dr. Andrew Kilding: Auckland University of Technology: Information on breathing.2. Mr. Brett Smith: University of Waikato. Notes on entrained breathing.3. Inverness rowing club and FISA: Strokecycles.4. The www and the vast number of articles visited.5. Dr. Volker Nolte – Notes on ‘the release’.

A little about me.I was born in Kirriemuir ( of the ball fame ) and came to Umtali, in Rhodesia with my parents in 1948. I went to Eagle School, then Falcon College , both boy’s boarding schools, and then to Durban University to study Mechanical Engineering. While failing that I started my interest in Rowing, and boat repair. I then went to Harare Polytechnic, also for mechanical engineering. Perhaps I was bored, or too busy training the drum majorettes, or spending too much time on the non-curricular new science of Fluidics (using fluids to do what electrics does in a computer). Anyway I failed again and started work in an engineering shop learning about welding, lathes etc. When the shop closed I tried for a position on an asbestos mine, but accidentally got a job as a metallurgical

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technician on Rhodesia Chrome Mines. Thereby started 20 years of anything from lab research into platinum and gold extraction, drawing office plant design, workshop plant manufacture, field plant construction, then plant operation. In the later years I decided to build a single scull. The mould for ½ a boat was cut in wood, then moulded in fibreglass (more learning !). Two half boats were then joined to form a complete boat .This became an armed scull, since the war for independence was being fought in Rhodesia.I then married, and between having 3 kids, and eventually moving to Harare for our remaining 15 years in Zimbabwe, built about 125 boats, up to ‘fours’, including riggers, gates, tracks and seats.In 2001 we moved to Auckland and happened to buy a house 2km from Auckland Rowing Club. I started building singles, and was soon involved in boat maintenance. After my first heart problem in 2002 rowing became a daily feature of my pursuit of new heart arteries ( angiogenesis). Recently I had a hip replacement and couldn’t erg for 3 weeks. After a further 3 months of daily 8km on the erg I got back on the water. Flexibility soon came back to where it had been. Recently had bypass surgery(5x), and was back on the erg after 2 1/2 weeks, albeit at only 3.00 split, and without bending arms. Being fit before these ops really, REALLY helps!!!In retrospect I probably benefited from my academic failures. I think, and often operate, outside the box.(dunno where the box is?). ‘Why’ is my favourite word, and there are lots of them in rowing. Cheers!

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