Is biggest fear you have doing a rowing race for the first time? How to prepare, what to expect and the aftermath.
Timestamps
00:45 Fear is real
First races and how you can help your crew mates facing their first race. As adults it’s unusual to get into a situation we’ve never seen before. Children are different.
Kim Mulvey wrote to us saying “I’m not ready to race.”
The first race fear is mostly about the unknown. You feel out of control and it triggers the flight-or-fight response. Practice in training The way to overcome this is to get familiar with the situations you’ll encounter in a race.
One way to do this is to practice in training.
- Do workouts in the crew lineup you will race in.
- Know your seat number, which are your oars?
- Know where you adjust your foot stretcher to.
03:15 Practice the racing distance find a simulation as close as possible – how long is it and how intense will it be? Practice being alongside another crew as you race.
Discuss the race plan within your crew – how to approach the stages of the race. Coxing your first race podcast episode will also help you understand what to expect.
Have a checklist for the race day and the night before. Rowing Regatta Checklist article explains the different elements of the list.
05:00 Do a race
The things which help you feel most ready for racing are practicing ahead of time and actually doing a race. Once you’ve done one race you know what to expect next time.
Stories of first races are fantastic. How the unexpected came about and what they did after it happened. Learn by hearing from your crew mates.
Read Rowing against the Current – Barry Strauss What you experience is unique to you, but you’ll have a lot in common with everyone else’s first race.
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