Gordon Williams is our very first medalist training on the Faster Masters programme. He won Mens F 1x at Lake Ruataniwha in New Zealand's South Island during September, beating a long-time winner into second place just before the line.
Gordon Williams M F1x Gold Medalist using Faster Masters Training Program
Truth be told I rowed like a lumberjack for the last 15-20 strokes - no finesse at all. Carolyn Steele said to me after that the last 15-20 were “very ugly but seemed to be effective” LOL.
Bruce nearly caught me. I need to learn to keep my cool for that last 150m. Start & middle were well judged and no different to how we always try to race. Stayed close to the front 3 guys though intentionally marginally behind them until 250. Concentrated on staying at that 250 (rate 32 SPM) pace through to 600. Then just pushed for 250 by increasing leg drive and maintaining stroke rate at 31-32 SPM. Panicked through lack of oxygen going to my brain at 850 and started sprinting up to 37 SPM just before the line. Silly really given that I know from rowing the “Chris 500” at the lake, that I should stay at 32 and just lengthen as long as possible, pause longer on the back and force the leg drive harder. But I didn’t do that and should have. I know it cost me at least 1sec elapsed time and that would have been “free speed”.
From a training perspective it was all about practising to be ready to accept the pain and just keep going without quitting or letting that pain take over. You have to do the programmed “hard” work pieces on the water in training if you expect to be prepared and mentally strong enough to stay upright in the boat and sprinting at the end.
[Gordon's double and pairs partner is Chris Brake - he likes to do a flat out race at the end of early morning outings on the last 500 meters to the boating dock - Gordon calls this the Chris 500.]
For me the best training preparation I did was the “Chris 500” when “racing” alongside the 4X and racing against Chris and Martha in their 2X. I know we cannot do that every outing of course! - But probably once per week - someone in the Swans (Gordon's club) is equally crazy enough to want to race me home to the pontoon.
Congratulations to Gordon - you're in OUR record books forever.
Gordon Williams used the Faster Masters Individual Training Program to prepare for this regatta.
A view from the boat park to the finish line at Lake Ruataniwha
Gordon sent us these photos of the lake where the event was held - look it up - Lake Ruataniwha in Twizel. Seriously beautiful lake with its own back-story. It is part of a hydro-electric scheme and the engineer building it realised that it could easily be a rowing lake with some small depth modifications and straightening the bank out. So Max Smith ordered the changes and after they were done, he told his bosses that they had made a great recreational rowing race course.
He got fired for his pains.
And rowers in New Zealand got a wonderful race course in the middle of the South Island.
Lake Ruataniwha 2019 Masters Nationals
You may be wondering what is Faster Masters? Let me answer by telling you a story. Grab a comfy seat and a drink because this will take you 5 minutes to read.
Rebecca and Marlene are your coaches were both competitive younger rowers and (eventually) reached the end of their careers and wondered what to do next.
Marlene had won major titles in sculling and sweep rowing including a US National Championship, a Collegiate National Championship, and a Head of the Charles title. In 2000, she set two world records on the Concept2 Indoor Rower; Rebecca was a multiple Henley Womens medalist and Henley Royal Regatta finalist with a string of medals in UK head races, National Championships and a Boat Race win.
After deciding to quit, both were at a loss about what to do next. Was there a place in rowing for older athletes with a bit of coaching experience?
We noticed in every rowing club there is a committed group of older athletes who enjoy training together; they turn up regularly; they get given old boats to use and after training they huddle in the club room drinking tea and clearly having a good time chatting together.
Everyone ignores them.
Nobody knows or cares that they were once the youthful heroes of the club training all hours and winning medals. Once in a while a newcomer is added to the group – someone who moved to the area, a visitor from overseas or a beginner who is starting off in the sport. They quickly become embedded in the group and make friends.
The group gets no coach allocated to advance their skill; they do boat maintenance as they use older shells and oars cast aside by other training groups. And yet …… they have the same commitment and drive to succeed, to gain skill to move a shell with ease, becoming fit, strong and worthy competitors in rowing races.
Rebecca was asked by David Hudson and Andy Ripley to coach the masters group at Tideway Scullers School, her London UK club. This was a revelation. The group were the most attentive students, striving to effect technique changes, hungry for more drills and more insights to make their boat go fast. And as they trained with a common focus and a common purpose they got faster, stronger and that season they won medals, lots of them.
Marlene took a different path – becoming a coach and starting Royle Row training camps and coaching.
But before the internet, few of these masters could find each other and learn together or share experiences. They met occasionally at the Head of the Charles or the FISA Masters Regatta but dispersed afterwards back to their clubs. The group was global but isolated, motivated but un-focused, and unable to progress.
Mike Davenport, the author of the Nuts and Bolts Guide to Rigging and Jimmy Joy, host of the Joy of Sculling Conference were both guests on Rebecca’s RowingChat podcast. Behind the scenes, both gave invaluable advice on how to share coaching advice from a distance, how to bring groups together for a few days to progress rowing skills; how to write clear explanations allowing the reader to coach themselves.
And this motivated both Marlene and Rebecca to continue coaching and to start sharing their knowledge online. Rebecca started writing for an audience of Masters on the Rowperfect blog; Marlene penned articles for Rowing News and gained new club clients who bought her training programs.
The snowball started to roll.
Rebecca invited Marlene to be a guest on RowingChat in January 2016 and that episode became one of the most downloaded ever. They continued chatting offline and decided to launch an advisory self-coaching program called Faster Masters Gold. It is 8 detailed ebooks covering drills, technique adaptations as you age, developing stroke power and racing 1k. The globally popular Facebook group, Masters Rowing International was formed and it continues to grow (>6,000 members) as masters find a community with aligned interests ready to answer each others’ questions and share advice. (Do join and invite your rowing friends.)
These early successes encouraged Rebecca and Marlene to continue to discuss the challenges faced by masters athletes. We found ways to overcome the isolation; to demonstrate smart ways for more people to really enjoy rowing and to make strong progress towards goals -Â despite clubs who do not support and encourage masters.
Today, Faster Masters Rowing helps athletes with a framework for their training and an online community to support the trials of training, injury, setbacks and to celebrate progress towards success.
Join our community and get our exclusive Faster Masters Rowing Magazine, packed with tips, techniques, and inspiring stories. Includes four new articles monthly.
