rowing boat

Motor cars need annual assessments that they are road worthy and it's good practice to do the same for your rowing boat.

This is a good time to check on things you might repair (cosmetic) or upgrade.

Here's our helpful guide

Checklist for boats

1. Bow ball is not perished and is firmly attached
2. Heel restraints are correct length (pull up heel no higher than horizontal) and strongly attached to the shoe heel which is not perished
3. Hatch covers fit snugly
4. All bolts on footstretcher can be unscrewed
5. All rigger bolts can be unscrewed
6. The oarlock pitch is identical on port and starboard (bow side and stroke side)
7. The oarlock height washers are a snug fit
8. Oarlock sills are not too worn
9. The oarlock pitching inserts (the blue plastic at the top and bottom of the oarlock) are a snug fit and there isn't too much play in the oarlock on the pin
10. The seat wheels are smooth and turn easily
11. The slides are smooth and un-pitted. The wing nuts under the deck holding the slides can be unscrewed 
12. Shoes are not rotting and the closure holds.
13. The spread / span between the pins is what you expect and in sculling boats is symmetrical
14. Any electronics mounted in the boat work correctly
15. Oars are the correct length and inboard and sculling oars are identical
16. Repaint your oars in club colours
17. Check the sleeves and buttons are not worn and losing pitch accuracy.
18. Check oar spoon tips aren't splitting or delaminating

Upgrades to your boat

There are plenty of things you can do to improve your boat and to replace the "consumables" which are things that wear out over time.

Durable boats for club use | Faster Masters Rowing Radio - the podcast for masters rowers. Tips, advice and discussion from Marlene Royle and Rebecca Caroe.

Timestamps

01:00 This Past Week - what we do to advocate for masters rowing.

03:00 September Programs have 3 tracks Time for good quality endurance training.

08:00 What is the normal stroke rate for a 60 year old masters in a single scull for head racing? Maintain the best average speed for the whole race. Work out your efficiency at different rates.

13:00 if your release timing is not together. If you cannot hit the rate - look at this first.

15:30 Look at meters per second as an alternative to 500m splits.

Support this show with a donation.

Most durable rowing boats

19:00 Durable equipment - boats and oars. Why do we want hard wearing boats for rowing? How do you choose boats - we review the spread of athletes in the club group - Height, sex, weight and skill level in rowing and sculling. Our learn to row boat is a coxed quad - wooden inside and with a carbon exterior. After graduating from learn to row we use a flat bottomed quad which is easier to sit and good enough to race in. It is a "forgiving" boat for technique inaccuracies. Hull designs vary - our top quad has a narrower hull - it's harder to sit and weather-cocks into the wind. Good bladework skills are needed to control this boat. We need both beginner boats and racing boats.

23:00 Rowing boats are made from a choice of fibreglass, Carbon and Kevlar, and Wood. Modern boats are a honeycomb sandwich construction. This gives rigidity to the boat. Painting the outside of the boat covers the joins and overlaps in the carbon fabric layers. Gelcoat is the transparent outer layer of protection. The materials it is build in reflect how heavy the boat will be when it's finished.

25:30 Boats have minimum weights allowed for racing by World Rowing FISA. A single scull is 14 kg. Look at the boat builders plate - it has the boat weight as well as the athlete weight (average) it's designed for. Under-weight boats require you to carry extra weights - lead weights added to the foot stretcher.

28:30 Flatter based boats for learn to row are sometimes a little heavier. A single can be 17 kg. Stiffness of rowing boats has increased since wing riggers became popular. They attach using a flange along the length of the boat. This allowed boat builders to remove the internal 'shoulders' for the boat and to redesign the cockpit.

32:00 Buying a boat- consider the prices. Often the hull design is the same but materials differ.

Durable oars

33:45 Composite materials changed our design and manufacture. Skinny oars have extra soft flex. Heavier oars are built with heavier materials. Oars are made from Aluminium, Wood and Carbon fibre.

40:00 Marlene's "Old trick" to give more weight in the hand is to wrap lead tape around the shaft to create weight in the hand. Gives more stability to the oar.

#1 Durability advice

43:00 Boat maintenance is key to durability. More than the construction type. Check your boat regularly - is everything tight? Wash the boats regularly - especially the slide tracks. Boat storage - indoor or outdoor? UV light slowly deteriorates the hall. Cover your boat if stored outdoors.

47:00 Rowing in salt water requires daily washing. We recommend regular strip downs to remove salt residue.