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Dictionary - Updated
Terminology 2009
Air Stroke - A rower error where the oar's blade
is not completely in the water.
This results in a complete lack of
power and a lot of splashing
Anchor - A rower who slows a crew
down. Like towing an anchor
behind the boat
Backsplash - The water thrown back
towards the bow by the oar's blade as
it enters the water during a catch.
A proper catch should throw a small
amount of water
Blade - The part of an oar that goes into the
water.
Blister - Small, fluid-filled
bump often found on rowers' hands
after a vigorous practice
Body
Angle - The amount of forward pivot of a rower's torso stemming from the hips during
the recovery for a proper catch
position.
Bow - front of the boat, since
both end are pointy it's the end with
the small ball on the tip
Bow
Pair - The pair of sweep rowers in
bow of the boat. This would be
seats 1 and 2 in an eight or a four.
The bow pair has the most effect on
the set of the boat.
Catch - The moment the blade enters
the water and initiates the drive of
each stroke.
Check - The reverse momentum
resulting from the crews body weight
moving toward stern during the
recovery. Check is unavoidable but can be minimized through proper technique for
optimal speed.
Cover - The distance between the
2-seat's puddle on one stroke and the
stroke seats's puddle on the following
stroke. The greater the
distance, the more speed the crew has.
Also called spacing.
Cox or Coxswain - The person
who steers and calls out commands
to the rowers (typcially a under 130Ibs
and hence many are women)
Cox box - A microphone system
used by the cox that plugs into a
speaker system in the boat
Crab - When an oar blade enters
the water at an angle, instead of
perpendicularly, it can get caught
under the surface. The oar handle
drives into the stomach and has the
potential to throw a rower out of
the boat entirely! Even if not that
disastrous, "catching a crab" will
certainly drastically interrupt the
flow of the boat through the water.
Occurs from a blade work error where a
rower is unable to properly remove
their oar from the water. A crab
can slow down or even stop the boat.
In extreme cases, a crab can eject the
rower from the shell.
Digging - Rower error when the
blade of the oar goes deeper in the
water than it should, slowing the boat
down.
Double - A two-person, four-oared skull
Drive - The part of the stroke
when the blade is in the water, this
is the high-exertion part.
Portion of the stroke that propels the
boat through the water. The
drive starts at the catch and ends
with the release. The main power
from the drive is generated by the
rower's legs pushing off the
footstretchers.
Engine Room - The rowers in the
middle of the boat. For an
eight, these would be seats 6,5,4, and
3. Generally the largest and
most powerful rowers of the boat.
Erg - Torture device, aka Concept
II rowing machine. Used in training,
causes severe exhaustion
Feathering - When the blades
are brought out of the water, then
should all move horizontally at the
same height, just above the water.
The rower is "skying" if the hands
are dropped too low before the catch,
causing the oar blade to rise before
it drops into the water. Proper feathering
is always difficult, but becomes extremely
challenging in choppy water. The act
of rotating the oar at the finish so
that the oar's blade is parallel to
the water during recovery. The
opposite of the squared position.
Finish - The point at which the blade exits the
water. The end of the drive
when the rower removes the oar from
the water and then feathers.
Also called the release.
Front stop - Refers to the stern
ending of the track a rower's seat
slides on. The wheels of the
seat should almost reach the
frontstops at the catch of each
stroke.
Gate - The bar across the oarlock
that keeps the oar in place.
Gunwale - The sides of the boat
Hatchet blade - An oar whose
blade is, oddly enough, shaped like
a hatchet. Most popular blades because
they have a greater surface area
Head race - 5000 meter (3.2
mile) race, so-called because it runs
from the "head" of the river
Eight - An ninet-person, eight-oared
sweep boat (We row this at SHS)
Falling in - Occupational hazard
for novice scullers or winning coxwains
Four - A four-person, four-oared
sweep boat (We row this at SHS)
Keel - The bottom of the boat
Launch - The powerboat used
by coaches to stay alongside a rowing
shell during practices
Lay
Back - The amount of reverse pivot
of a rower's torso stemming from the
hips during the second half of the
drive for a proper finish position.
Missing Water - A rower error
where the rower begins the leg drive
before the catch has completed.
Oarlock - A pivoting frame
that connects the oar to the boat
Outrigger – the brace
along the side of the boat that supports
the oarlock.
Paddle - Rowing lightly. This is a good command
Pair - A two-person, two-oared
sweep boat.
Port - The left side of the
boat, facing forward. But remember
rowers sit backwards, the cox is the
only one facing forward
Pressure - How hard you're
rowing, expressed as a percentage
of how hard you can row. One might
row 100% in a sprint race, 80% in
a longer race and 50% on the paddle
Puddles - The disturbances in the
water made by the blade during each
stroke.
Quad - A four-person, eight-oared
scull
Rate: How many strokes per
minute you're taking. 20 is low while
30 is high. Olympians may row at a
40. (Remember, harder doesn't mean
faster, it's possible to row at 100%
at an 18 stroke rating)
Ratio - The relationship between
the time taken between the drive and
recovery portions of the stroke.
A good ratio will have about twice as
much time taken during the recovery as the drive.
Recovery: The part of the stroke
when the blade is out of the water,
and the rower is getting in position
to take the next stroke. The recovery
is considerably slower than the drive.
The portion of the stroke after the
rower releases the oar from the water
and returns to the catch position.
Regatta – Any competitive rowing event.
Release - The end of the drive
when the rower removes the oar from
the water and then feathers.
Also called the finish.
Rigger - The triangular (usually) framework that
supports the oarlock about 2' from
the boat
Rudder - Small (often hand-size)
pivoting fin mounted under the keel
that steers the boat.
Run
- The distance the shell moves during
one stroke. This can be seen by
looking at the distance between the
puddles made by the same oar.
Rush
- A rower error where the rower
moves toward the stern during the
recovery before the rest of the crew.
This increases the amount of check
during each stroke.
Scull - A boat in which each
rower has two oars, OR the oars used
in one of these boats.
Seat
Race - A coach's tool for
comparing two rowers. Two boats
race against each other once.
One rower from each boat switches positions and the two boats race again.
Relative performance in the two races
is used to compare the abilities of
the two rowers.
Set - The balance and feel
of the boat. The most efficient boats
are balanced evenly over the center
line and remain so throughout the
strokes. If rowers are not aligned
properly, or a rower swings off center
as part of his or her motion during
a stroke, or if rowers on one side
of the boat are pulling with more
or less force than the other side,
the set of the boat can be altered,
introducing drag into its motion. An
unset boat will lean to either port or
starboard.
Settle - Refers to a down shift in
stroke rate after the start of a
sprint race. Crews use the
settle to get to their base stroke
rating they will row the body of the
race.
Shell - Any sweep or scull rowing boat
Shooting Slide - A rower's error
when the rower's legs drive the seat
toward bow without bringing the load
of the water with them through the
torso and shoulders.
Single - A one-person, two-oared
boat
Skeg - A small, immobile fin
projecting from the keel, to help
a boat stay upright and go straighter.
Skying - A rower error where the
rower drops their hands just prior to
the catch. This causes the blade
to move higher off the water and will
disrupt the set of the shell.
Spacing - The distance between the
2-seat's puddle on one stroke and the
stroke seat's puddle on the following
stroke. The greater the
distance, the more speed the crew has.
Also called cover.
Split - The amount of time it
would take a rower or crew to complete
500 meters at their current pace.
This can be applied to both a crew on
the water or a person on an erg.
Spoon blade - An older, symmetric
blade style. A traditional
looking oar
Square - The act of rotating the
oar prior to the catch so that the
blade is perpendicular to the water.
The opposite of the feathered
position.
Stern – back of the boat
Stern Pair -
The pair of sweep rowers in the stern
of the boat. This would be seats
7 and 8 in an eight or seats 3 and 4
in a four. The stern pair is
responsible for setting the rating and
rhythm for the rest of the crew.
Stretcher - Where the rower's feet go. The stretcher
consists of two inclined footrests
which hold the rower's shoes. The
shoes are bolted into the footrests.
Stroke - The rearmost rower in any boat but a
single, who sets the rate for all
rowers in the boat
Sugaring - Rowing which looks good
from a distance but in reality the
rower is not putting any work down on
the oar.
Sweep - Opposite of scull,
each rower has 1 oar
Swing - The inexpressible "feel"
of a boat that is moving together
as a single unit. The feeling
in the boat when all rowers are
driving and finishing their strokes
together.
Uni or Unisuit – one piece
uniform for crew
Washing Out - A rower error
when an oar comes out of the water
during the drive and creates surface
wash. This results in a
reduction in speed and can disrupt the
set of the boat.
Way
enough - (sounds like wain off)
Stop!! Often the next words you'll
hear after failing to respond to "heads
up"
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The two seasons of Crew
There are two types of
races: Head races, and Sprints.
Head races are usually held in the Fall
and sprints in the Spring. Sprints are
1500 meters for high school and 2000 meters
for college. In sprints, boats race directly
against each other in lanes on a marked
straight or nearly straight course. In
larger regattas, there will usually be
qualifying rounds, then petite finals
for non-qualifying boats and grand finals
for the top finishers in the qualifying
rounds. Qualification is by placement,
not by time, i.e. a second place boat
in one heat will qualify before a fourth
place boat in another, even if the fourth
place boat had a better time. Head races
are longer, usually 2.5 to 3.5 miles,
and are times events. Boats start off
typically at 15 second intervals and all
race the same course, often with many
turns, following the course of the river.
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Spectator Protocol /
Etiquette
Encouraging and cheering
the team before, during and after the
race is very important. The race itself can
be viewed from several different vantage
points and it is important to remember
that, unlike other sports, there is no
stadium, gym or bleachers. Some regattas provide
seating, but more often than not, it is
best to bring your own chair.
For fall races on Quinsigamond
the finish is at the DRC, and spring races
finish down at Regatta point (Rt 9 bridge). When you arrive at an
away race, please look for the blue canopy
with the gold letters: “Shrewsbury Crew”. Please introduce yourself…the
parents of the veteran rowers will be
very happy to see you.
PLEASE
NOTE: The area near the dock
is often crowded with boats and crews,
and is potentially dangerous due to the
movement of equipment. We recommend that you
keep a safe distance from the dock as
you congratulate our teams as they leave
the water. (see "heads up" below)
Crew
- "Crew" means rowing team, so don't
inquire about the crew "team" since the
word "team" is redundant. The nine people--a
crew-- when placed in a shell are called
a "boat". One does not refer to an empty
shell as a "boat".
"Heads
up" - An eight is 58 feet long, so
it takes a lot of room to maneuver it.
If you hear "heads up" someone is trying
to move a boat in your vicinity, and you
are expected to get out of the way.
PAY ATTENTION when walking around
crews launching or coming off the water.
Regatta
- Any rowing event involving competition.
Any race is a regatta, however, large
or small. Races are never called "meets"
or "games" and rowers do not "play crew".
A popular crew slogan is "Athletes row.
Others play games".
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What does a Coxswain do?
This pretty much sums
it up....Sarah Sherman coxing the boys
varsity eight 2003 NEIRA Champs, Phillips
Andover Academy
Click
here for Sarah's
call (4.85 megs)
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Advice for first
time crew parents
As
a parent, being involved with rowing can
be a challenging experience. We hope that the information
and advice contained in this handbook
will help make this an enjoyable experience
for you as well as your child.
As the parent of an athlete on SHS Crew,
oftentimes, you will:
Travel
for over an hour to attend a race…
Position
yourself along the water’s edge…
Try
to guess if the boat you see in the distance
is your son’s/daughter’s boat coming toward
you…
When
you finally realize that it is their boat,
there is a frenzy of cheering as they
quickly row by you….
And
then….. it’s over
Although it
may seem that your involvement is marginal,
the effect of your presence on the morale
of the team is beyond measure.
Knowing that mom/dad/friends are
on the shoreline is one of the greatest
motivators that the team has.
And, always
remember the first rule of watching a
crew race…BRING BINOCULARS!
We also encourage
the photographically gifted amongst you
to take as many pictures as you can to
submit them for display on the website. In that way, parents
that cannot attend a race can still see
what happened.
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Helping your rower
Rowing
is a very demanding sport both in
terms of your child’s time commitment
and in terms of the physical demand
that it places on your child.
During the season your child
will burn 1500+ calories a day, so
it is important that the athlete eats
regularly (no skipping breakfast)
and appropriately (protein, carbs
& veggies).
The importance of rest and
nutrition is obvious, but just as
important is the extra encouragement
and patience that your child will
need to help him/her get through the
season. Refer to
www.myfoodpyramid.gov for a
complete nutritional guideline.
Girls in particular need calcium so be
sure to drink plenty of milk every
day. All kids need water bottles
with their names on them to keep in
the boat.
<top>
Helping the team
Many students report that one of
the most attractive aspects of rowing
is that there are no “stars” on which
all the attention is focused. More than any other
sport, a crew is selfless and represents
the essence of “teamwork.”
So, as often as you cheer for
your child, it is also very helpful
to cheer for the team.
In addition, like any school system,
the need for equipment and supplies
always outweighs the school’s resources. So, participation by
parents in any and all aspects of
fund raising is crucial to the success
of the team.
Get involved with the Friends
of Shrewsbury Crew, where there are
many volunteer opportunities.
Overall, parental involvement is
the anchor that stabilizes the team
and it is also the rudder that helps
to steer the team to overcome challenges
and remain successful.
New for 2009 - 2010: Race Day Food
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Information & Expectations
* Practices: Normally we
practice on Monday through Friday,
3-6pm, except that on Fridays we will
end at 5:30pm. After-crew
pick-up in the boat ramp outside the
DRC should be at 6pm, unless we finish
our work early. Please do not
plan on pick-up any later than 6pm.
Please check the schedule for those
possibilities (usually in the spring
season instead of the fall season).
* Weekends: Weekend crew
time is reserved for races. We
do not ordinarily practice on a
weekend, unless there is a problem
with weekday practice. Weekends
with no scheduled races are for
faamily time. Usually there is
no morning practice unless there is a
prom or major event that would
precipitate that. We will let
you know as needed. *
Appointments/other commitments: It
is expected that all doctor and
dentist appointments (unless,
obviously, an emergency), jobs, music
lessons and commitments, dance
classes, and other extracurricular
activities will be scheduled outside
of our 3-6pm practice time. If
you cannot schedule outside of our
time, please choose one activity or
the other, not both. We cannot
have the flow of people away from our
program that we had this spring.
It is not fair to the others in the
boat when one oarmen has to be "out of
here by 5pm" or comes continuously
late to practice. * Clothing:
All crewmembers need to row in spandex
shorts, socks, and a T-shirt. It
is also suggested that rowers have
sweats, jacket, and raingear
available, due to changing weather
conditions. We row in everything
except thunder and lightening, heavy
rain, or high winds. If called,
indoor practice at the SHS weight room
is from 3-$;30pm if we cannot row
(meet in the Commons ready to work
out). For their first season,
rowers will buy a crew t-shirt, and
after that, they will need to buy a
uni. Everything else offered for
sale is optional, but good for team
spirit. * FOSC: The parents
group usually co-ordinates the uniform
sales, along with other important
activities. Parents should plan
on going to all meetings called by the
Friends of Shrewsbury Crew. The
FOSC is made up of all the parents of
our crewmembers. * Website:
Check our website through the SHS
homepage for important data on our
team, some great results, FOSC,
announcements, and other related
information. * Swim test:
Students need to be able to swim well
because of the danger of drowning if a
boat capsizes, or they fall off the
dock. Obviously, we will do
everything in our power to be
reasonable and prudent, and not put
your child in danger. However,
the possibility still exists, so it is
necessary that they can survive in the
water. We no longer test them at
the DRC; we take your signature as
proof that they are able to perform
the following swim test: back float
for 1 minute, treading water with the
hands above the water for 1 minute,
survival floating (minimal movement in
a face down jelly fish position, with
a gentle push up to get a breath every
10-20 seconds) for 5 minutes, surface
dives and freestyle swimming for 10
minutes non-stop. Rowers need to
be comfortable in the water and not
have to touch bottom - some parts of
our lake are over 100 feet deep. *
Physical conditions: Oarsmen
also need to come to us in top
physical condition to row effectively.
We will be doing a daily run starting
in the fall. Running, up to 3
miles, will be done on the DRC grounds
and in the boat ramp area, unless we
stay at the high school track.
If a rower is unable to run because of
knee problems, daily ergs will be
done. If rowers cannot do
20-minute pieces daily, they should
not be rowing. Stretching and
cali's will also be done daily.
Be aware that all medical problems
have to be in writing and up to date.
Some problems may result in the
inability to participate on the crew
team. It is unsafe for a child
with an injury to row - it is usually
exacerbated by the rowing process.
We need kids in top shape to keep them
safe, and to win against the teams we
are rowing. Be prepared.
* Zero Tolerance for drug &
alcohol use!! *Pasta Parties:
Pasta parties are typically held
the night before a race. The
Boys and Girls Teams each hold their
own separate parties due to the large
number of members per team.
These parties are usually hosted by
one of the Team Captains. These
parties are usually right after
practice. The household that is
hosting the party will provide Pasta,
Meatballs and/or Sauasage and paper
goods. The Captains assign each
class something to bring. Such
as: Seniors - Drinks, Juniors - Salad,
Sophomores - Bread and Freshmen -
Desserts. It is not mandatory to
bring something to the party but very
much appreciated by the hosting
families. ALL rowers are welcome
to attend the Pasta Parties even if
your child is not racing in the race
the following day. This is a
great way for the team to bond and get
"psyched up" before the race. (These
are general guidelines but whoever is
hosting the party can be as creative
as they want in the food choices and
preparations).
Leaders Get There . . . Those who
set the pace for others always get
somewhere themselves . . . Laggards
Never Lead!!
Lake Quinsigamond
Course Maps
* Lake Q Racing Pattern
* Lake Q Distance Map
Handbooks
TheFoSCHandbook.pdf
Links
to past handbooks and archived
newsletters
Winter Tips - Rowers
Edge provides assistance for parents and rowers in the college admissions
process, see their website for tips:
www.rowersedge.com
and some helpful winter tips here
College Recruiting
Meeting
In
the spring
of 2008, a
meeting was held for parents of high school rowers to present information
about how rowing fits into the college admissions process. Many parents
communicated their gratitude for the information since it had never before
been provided to them. As a result we are running the program again.
Please join us on June 17th at 7:30PM to discuss rowing in college and its
impact on the college admissions process. The meeting will be held at 55
Woodlawn Drive, Chestnut Hill (Newton).
In order to succeed with college admissions and find the best rowing program
for your child, we believe that is important to have a clear plan of action,
understand how to navigate the process and carefully manage options without
burning any bridges. We will discuss these issues, review the college
admissions time line and if interested we will provide individual consulting
services focusing on how to manage the process and integrate rowing as a
factor in a successful college search.
Please feel free to contact us
maura@rowersedge.com or
gail@rowersedge.com . We are happy to answer any questions you may have.
We look forward to seeing you at the meeting.
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