The world went digital last year and rowing clubs pivoted. We moved online, virtual and row-from-home.
Let’s not lose the momentum. Now is the time to take full advantage of digital tools to run your rowing club – from collecting membership dues to crew lineups; from boat allocations to regatta availability, there are valuable tools to help you run the club which you need to know about.
Shortcut your learning about tools which will
You will meet
After attending this webinar you will
Book a ticket for this live online for this webinar
Ticket price $19
Monday 22nd November 2021 (London GMT 8 pm; New York EST 3 pm; San Francisco PST 12 pm; Sydney 7 am 23rd Nov)
We are recording the webinar. Your ticket gives lifetime access to the recording and rigging charts.
Choose a rowing camp that suits your needs | Faster Masters Rowing Radio
01:00 This Past Week - what we do to advocate for masters rowing.
Doing race debriefs after a big event helps to decide future priorities.
how to get set up properly in the boat - adjustments to make.
Going faster by not slowing down.
08:00 Developing new speed - improve what you already have.
Improve the quality - makes rowing more fun.
10:00 Do the basics really well.
Are you getting your blades off the water?
Rowing harder and maintain technique.
Rowing harder in difficult conditions.
Rowers have to maintain the same quality under conditions of fatigue and pressure.
You can always do drills stationary, even if you are tired.
A change is as good as a rest.
Reasons to go on camp.
Training - get a good block of hard work done.
New challenges - a new coach, new lineup, longer distance,
Crew Selections - get your lineups right for racing
Fitness - get fitter and stronger
17:50 Sweep or Sculling camp?
Single scull or team boats?
How much do you want to spend $$ and How much time away do you want?
Consider the time split between rowing and tourism - you can bring your non-rowing partner who can do wine tasting, another sport, cycling, walking.
Look at your local area - can you camp locally?
Or a weekend camp at your own club? Row twice on Saturday and Sunday.
22:00 Find a camp and find a rowing coach at the rowing directory
You will learn a lot from a new coaching voice - their focus can be revealing.
How they teach is important when making your choice. What is the coach's outlook?
26:00 Go on camp as part of your race preparation - book in a few days or a week ahead of a big regatta.
Camp as a retreat
Camp as travel
Camp for competition
29:00 Fine boats versus restricted boats versus clinker boats.
Pausing at the finish technique - Faster Masters Rowing Radio - the podcast for masters rowers. Tips, advice and discussion from Marlene Royle and Rebecca Caroe.
It's become fashionable for crews to pause at the finish of the stroke with handles close to the body - more in sweep than sculling. Why do this? Is it effective?
Support this show with a donation
01:30 This Past Week - what we do to advocate for masters rowing.
HOCR results and congratulations to our winners
10:00 Ask Me Anything - Marlene and Rebecca answer your questions. Doing 2 races in one day.
How much time do you have in between races?
Dry clothes, eat immediately, hydrate and fuel.
Rest if you can.
Zone out in your car and listen to music or read. Set an alarm.
Plan any changes to your race plan for race #2
Take a snack in the boat in a plastic bag.
I don't coach this but it's not necessarily wrong.
Look at the athletes and crew you have - what works for them?
Drew Ginn had a quicker recovery and high skills for catch timing when he started doing the paused finish.
20:30 Focus on the follow through position. Finish the cycle at arms/body away.
Be aware of a 1x versus a crew boat and can you all do this technique?
28:00 Simultaneous versus sequential drive.
Try both and video yourself before deciding.
Get the drive time to 0.8 seconds.
There is a lot of room to do legs, back and arms
Stay effective - don't reach too far or lay back too much
Racing starts - you may want simultaneous for more power.
33:00 Opening the knees at the catch.
Is this flexibility, structural in your hip socket and femur?
Look at your foot stretcher and heel to top of seat measurement - match your erg.
Angle of the foot stretcher
Take a nerf ball or water bottle or buy an elastic and hold between your legs as you row as a reminder.
Glute medius may need muscle strengthening
Check the shoe position width in the boat compared to the erg.
Leg to back connection to make stroke power in rowing
- Faster Masters Rowing Radio - the podcast for masters rowers. Tips, advice and discussion from Marlene Royle and Rebecca Caroe.
Support this show with a donation
https://fastermastersrowing.com/podcast
02:15 This Past Week - what we do to advocate for masters rowing. Rigging inaccuracies around the pins.
07:00 The Caught Short Kit for female athletes who menstruate - Help yourself to pads and tampons. Can you make one for your club?
The power of the legs has to be connected to the oar handle.
Leg drive must directly move the oar handle.
If you drive and don't move the handle = shooting the slide.
If you move the handle and don't move the legs = no power
Feel Pressure on your hands and feet - check for yourself.
Often described as the hardest part of the rowing stroke to train.
14:00 How does the kinetic chain link? This is how you are connected together. The biomechanics of how the body moves and flexes.
The levers of bones connect through the joints.
Ligaments connect bones to bones.
Tendons connect muscles to bones.
There are 2 types of kinetic chain in exercise sport
The open kinetic chain - where the limb is free and not fixed to an object
The closed kinetic chain - where the limb is connected to the ground or something firm
18:00 Rowing is a closed kinetic chain you are working off the oar handle, foot plate and the oar in the water.
- as you drive off the catch it's the quads that activate first and as your heels go down you will add in your glutes.
Gluteal amnesia - it can be hard to activate the glutes as we age.
Strong glutes support your lower back.
23:40 Train your glutes by practicing isometrically. Squeeze them when standing, driving, sitting. To load your body weight in the boat you have got to use your glutes.
Be aware of them being strong and activated as you row.
- keep pressure on the foot stretcher in the last third of the leg drive.
Glute bridges
Side squats
Fire Hydrants (this is funny.... check out the comments on the video at this point)
Hungarian split squats
Use exercise bands
Lunges
When the blade is loaded - notice if this varies.
Feel the blade is or is not stable in the water.
Handle pressure stays continuous and horizontal through the stroke.
If the body comes in too early you can lift the handle and the blade goes deep as a consequence.
Exaggeration exercises - try swinging the back early or later.
Make the back swing more dynamic
Arms and body only rowing to isolate the swing.
Check your force curve on the erg.
Back swing adds length to your stroke.
Mark Wilson and Jim Dietz share insider tips for how to line up your boat at EVERY turn, EVERY bridge, EVERY dock including the warm up, Chute and start line for the Head of the Charles Regatta Steering Guide - for scullers (1x, 2x).
Mark and Jim run All American Rowing Camp. You can buy their in person coaching on the Charles River .
Faster Masters sells training programs for head racing - scroll down for more detail.
01:30 If you are coming to race for the first time and don't know the course, this will help you.
03:50 Be 100% on the day. You need this... to all line up when you race. Only the weather is variable!
05:30 The warm up line - Mark and Jim recommend you boat from the Falls launch area and row the whole 4,700 meters course down to the start including the Basin. This is the way to steer the right line through the warm up.
Time yourself through the warm up from Falls to the start the day before.
It is narrow at Elliot Bridge - stay close to the bank. Listen to marshals.
This area is the most busy in the whole warm up.
08:50 the Buoys are not permanently on the bottom of the river. They can move. So check them out during your warm up.
10:00 Know the race number and event ahead of yours.
11:30 Powerhouse stretch is a good place for a warm up burst of 10 or 20 strokes.
13:40 If the Basin is blowing - time your arrival to minimise time waiting.
Line up with even or odd number crews.
16:50 The Chute and Start line. Start your speed coach earlier than teh line
18:30 Video of the Start under the Boston University Bridge
20:00 Mile 1 - The green buoys by Magazine Beach - how to steer this
21:30 Powerhouse stretch - look out for a wind change as you pass Riverside. And come into the stretch decide early if you are going for the Centre or Cambridge arch based on traffic from other boats.
22:30 Mile 2 - The most tricky part is going into Weeks footbridge. If you took the Cambridge arch, the turn is more gentle here.
Look to port coming into Weeks the buoy line is gradual. Look every 3rd stroke.
Stay as close as you can.
Make a sharp turn by sowing down into the bridge.
It's a narrow bridge you can turn under the bridge.
Do a pressure 20 coming out of weeks - don't be surprised.
30:00 Anderson Bridge is the start of your fatigue. The wind may change here. Be aware.
Weeks to Anderson - going in look on your left for the bridge abutment.
The turn at Anderson is as steep as Weeks. Look for the White Condominium after Anderson heading towards Cambridge.
32:30 The blue line is the turn line - it's gradual.
Look to your right - oars on the buoys - as close as you can.
Look every 3rd stroke.
33:30 There is passing going on here....
If you are a slower crew, you know to give way.
Let them pass... Then go back to your shorter line.
35:00 Do your research on the scullers around you. If they are local they will know the course. Follow their puddles.
36:00 The last bridge is Elliot Street.
the Cambridge into Elliot turn is quite sharp.
Know how close you can cut in.
Look at your right and beware the BBN Dock.
There are 3 buoys after.... then row as close to the trees as you can without hitting them.
39:00 The last 60 strokes.
Go straight after the trees.
The Boardwalk on the Boston shore - that's the last 20 strokes.
After the finish line keep paddling - get out of the way for following crews.
It's a privilege to race here - do your home work.
42:00 Practice as often as you can at race speed.
Boats handle differently at race speeds.
Faster Masters Rowing sells training programs for head racing - we have a specific HOCR plan - It's included in the Monthly Subscription programs - Individual, Crew and Club.
How tapering works. Faster Masters Rowing Radio - the podcast for masters rowers. Tips, advice and discussion from Marlene Royle and Rebecca Caroe.
Support this show with a donation
https://fastermastersrowing.com/podcast
Timestamps
01:30 This Past Week - what we do to advocate for masters rowing. We hosted a Rigging webinar.
13:00 Tapering - the purpose of the taper is recovery.
Get to the start line raring to go.
14:55 Super compensation system in your body.
The amount you taper for a 6 day week training program.
7 to 8 days out the training volume reduces to half. The frequency of training does not change.
17:00 Mental preparation for the race
Repair your boat
Sharpening technique - practice what you are good at. Build confidence.
Race Plan
Dinner the night before 6 pm, no social media the night before.
21:00 Pre race Checklist
This episode also covers head race checklists
https://fastermastersrowing.com/planning-your-fall-rowing-season/
Plan for the unexpected to happen
Don't want to have to make decisions in a fluster.
23:00 If you are the person who is always 5 minutes late.....
25:00 Socialise after the event, not before the race.?
Be prepared, specify what you need to be best prepared.
Tools say a lot about a rower. Learn what the pro coach carries in her single and in the coach boat
01:00 This past week - Marlene published an article Winning Head Races in Rowing
https://ludum.com/blog/training-plans/winning-head-races-in-rowing/
07:00 Your first head race - how to get mental and physical confidence.
Test yourself to find the optimal rate.
Try 3 minutes of the race one point in rate higher than you think. Analyse afterwards how you went.
Marlene has a mini bag with
- Top nut wrench
- Small adjustable spanner
- Pusher outer tool for clip height washers
and a bungee cord - 2 feet long.
- Metric and Standard wrench for top nut, 10mm and 8mm
- 3 Screwdrivers - C2, Flat head and Philips head
- Metric and Standard tape measure. 5 meters long
- Sharpie magic marker
- Electrical tape - white - and a pair of scissors.
Enough to get you back to the boathouse safely where a full repair can be done.
26:00 Rebecca's 3 gadgets she loves
- T-bar spanner
- Martinoli nut tool
- CARE pitch gauge
- The wing nut tool (for the slides under the deck)
30:00 Rules for lending tools
Have a deposit - leave me your phone / sunglasses / water bottle.
Efficiency in rowing: Time pressures weigh heavy on most masters rowers. How can we get more efficient with our busy rowing lives? Faster Masters Rowing Radio hosts Rebecca Caroe and Marlene Royle discuss tips and challenges
Support this podcast
https://fastermastersrowing.com/podcast
02:00 New Zealand Masters Rowing Championships rescheduled to 29-31 October.
National Championships will include 500m sprints for masters in 2x (handicapped)
Rigging for Masters Webinar - tickets are on sale
Event is 6 October 2021
https://fastermastersrowing.com/rigging
03:45 Rowing in a double with novices - coaching from 2x
11:00 Efficiency getting to the boathouse
- the night before: Clothes, Weather, Time alarm clock, Driving time, eating for energy, Program, Text your crew to agree bad weather plan.
15:00 Decide in the shed, not in bed
Apps for local wind forecasts
Windy
Windfinder
Wind Guru
17:30 Equipment efficiency
- Have a routine - oars first, then PFDs, then the boat.
Help each other, two people per boat get the oars, two hold the boat (for a 4x or 4)
22:45 Coaching efficiency
Scan the boat to check are the oarlocks in the right direction, are oars in right sides?, Height spacer washers, Do footstretchers need to be changed?
Remind each other - have you checked your footstretcher before you push out into the lake / river
25:00 Training efficiency.
Warming up - how much time do you need?
Know the practice routine warmup.
Rules about when we talk during the outing. Technique discussion and feedback during breaks.
Etiquette is important especially in big boats - 4s and 8s.
29:00 Warming down efficiency
When to start your warm down. Try to include 5 minutes each practice.
Marlene recommends stretching after you get out of the boat.
Rebecca stretches during the debrief after putting the boat away.
Consistency to day to day habits helps.
33:00 Meal preparation efficiency
Make bags of whole foods to take with you.
Always have food in your gym bag or car.
Don't skip refuelling.
Double batch your evening meal - make a large lasagne and freeze half.
Faster Masters Rowing Radio - the podcast for masters rowers. Tips, advice and discussion from Marlene Royle and Rebecca Caroe.
Support this show with a donation
https://fastermastersrowing.com/podcast
02:00 This Past Week We have been discussing future articles with Ed Hewitt at Row2k.
On the newsletter you can join our Advocates group where we share one article a month which you can share with your club group.
- basic boat set up for your private boat and for club boats
- customise your own boat
11:00 Volter Nolte - How to get a longer stroke
Using rigging adjustments for comfort. You will row better if you are comfortable in the rowing boat.
What are your rowing activities that contribute to your rowing practice?
23:00 Coming to practice regularly.
Objective measurements like kms rowed and number of practices you attend.
Compare yourself with your own previous performance. Use video to do the comparison.
26:00 James Loehr's book - Mental Strength for Athletes has the premise - no matter what you want you must have the physical preparation to do it.
When you step into the boat you become the performer.
https://amzn.to/3zniq2w
31:00 The process of acquiring skill in rowing.
What would I think of someone who does this # practices a week, this # kms rowed a week. View the facts objectively.
32:00 What do you want to get out of your rowing?
Outsiders don't really care as much as you do.
The Satisfaction you get is driven by you.
34:00 Your persona at the boat house - it has its own aura and is not the same as a gym.
Faster Masters Rowing Radio - the podcast for masters rowers. Tips, advice and discussion from Marlene Royle and Rebecca Caroe.
Support this show with a donation
https://fastermastersrowing.com/podcast
02:00 This Past Week we launched our Advocacy page - if you want masters rowing articles to go in your club newsletter sign up here
https://fastermastersrowing.com/advocacy
04:00 Rowing Tales call for articles. If you
07:00 Figuring out club integration
- self organising masters and welcoming new members
Welcome lesson includes orientation, boats, oars, racks, carrying boats. How fit are they, co-ordination, allocate to a training group.
13:30 Integrating different technique styles in sweep
- look at the body and stroke lengths. Agree as a crew what to focus on
- set the finish position first - where you adjust to. Measure on the deck 58-60-62 cm behind the pin
- timing the finish first using pause drills. Check the correct hand is doing the right job - squaring, tapping down
- agree a reference point when to square the blade
20:00 In the crew half are tall and half medium height would it make sense to put them bow 4 and stern 4?
- how to spot shoulder lifting.
Watch the shoulders rising at the catch.
Handles also rise up.
Blades going deep at the start of the drive.
Legs - look for knees moving away from the chest or the chest lifting off the knees
24:30 Use the big muscles first
You can only use each muscle group once in a stroke.
26:00 How to correct shoulder lifting
You could be holding tension in the trapezius muscles in the shoulders.
Make a connection between the legs and handle. Hold the lats strong.
27:40 How to teach the legs only rowing drill.
Start with the blade feathered - mime the movement and keep torso still.
Start at the finish and move up the slide to full compression (feathered) in stages.
Move rhythmically doing this feathered.
Then add in the squared blade and keep the body doing the same thing (square blades)
Train the legs to work on their own.
30:00 Norm Graf's image of holding the grapefruit. Try to hold the angle a little longer.
31:30 How to know when to swing?
It depends on keeping the pressure on the blade. Consistent pressure is key.
34:00 Put you hands under your arm and pull your shoulder blades down. You can feel the lats engage.
See more resources - scroll down
n
Join our community and get our exclusive Faster Masters Rowing Magazine, packed with tips, techniques, and inspiring stories. Includes four new articles monthly.
