Reliability in Rowing

On the water, measuring consistency is difficult. It is no secret that coaches need to trust that their rowers, during any given workout or drill, are applying power consistently every stroke. The more evident it is to a coach that you are doing this, the more reliable you become as a rower.

This is important to understand as high school athletes because it factors a lot into boatings. Many coaches include erg scores, along with attendance, technique, teamwork, or motivation, as part of their boating determination. This is true for Niskayuna's varsity boy rowers. But it is also true that the top 8 erg scores don't always make the 1st varsity boat. Why?

Think back to consistency. The consistent rower, for any given erg piece, will keep his splits within a very tight range (maybe 3 seconds). The inconsistent rower, for the same erg piece, will produce splits over a broad range (maybe 30 seconds). If they both finish at the same time, all things considered, then the first rower is the reliable rower. He is more reliable because the coach can trust his performance on the erg and, thus, the water.

A coach may sacrifice a few seconds to put the more reliable rower in a boat. Reliability relates to consistency (as mentioned above), coachability, and focus. A reliable rower can be taught power and, more importantly, when that power must be applied. Always remember that your work in the boat must also be even and consistent with the 7 other rowers. Therefore, reliability is paramount to a boat's improvement. Although it is hard to measure reliability, because that is a coach's trust, it is easy to measure consistency.

Consistency in Training

Imagine two rowers on ergs. Each rower is able to pull a 1:50 average split for a 2k time of 7:20. Rower 1 keeps his split around 1:49-1:52 for the entire piece; every 400 meters he will pull a power 10 at a 1:45 that will bring his average right down to where he needs it. Rower 2 begins his piece at a 1:42 for the first 200 meters; after this great start settles around 1:57 and at times breaks 2:00; thankfully, rower 2 finds a burst of energy in the last 100 meters and pulls a split of 1:35 to average around 1:50.

Accordingly, the "range" of rower 1's split is 3 seconds +/- and the "range" of rower 2's split is around 25 seconds +/-. In this scenario, even though rower 2 was pulling some more impressive splits (at times), rower 1 would be considered the "more consistent" rower. Why is this important? Two reasons:

1. Rower 1 will be able to improve on his erg score much faster than rower 2. Because rower 2's splits are all over the board, it is impossible to improve on one part of the 2k piece without possibly affecting the other parts. For instance, rower 2 may try and strengthen the middle of his piece to stay under 2:00; however, by doing this he is more likely to sacrifice energy on the sprint. Bye-bye 1:35. Therefore, his improvement will be minimal. Rower 1, on the other hand, by rowing a more consistent piece with intermittent power 10s, will find it easier to improve his overall split. Because of the small range rower 1 is maintaining (+/- 3 seconds), any small difference (positively or negatively) in his piece will have a bigger impact. Rower 2 (with a +/- 25 second range) will never really know how his improvement made a difference.
2. Most importantly, the more consistent rower is more valuable on the water. When a coach puts a consistent rower in a boat, he knows exactly what he is getting. Just like on the erg, this rower is much more easy to train and improve. However, the more inconsistent a rower is, the less reliable he is to the coach. Coaches will wonder, is he pulling hard now? will he give up? can he maintain this to the end? There are too many variables that will concern a coach.

What can you do as a rower? Short answer: be more consistent. When you row, try and reduce the range of your splits. ALWAYS SQUEEZE THE RANGE OF YOUR SPLITS TO WITHIN JUST A FEW SECONDS. Of course, power 10s, starts, and sprints are a bit different...but I think you understand.

Lightweight World Record 2k

The following video from the 2008 CRASH B Championships is very short. It features the middle-section of a world record 2k by lightweight Danish rower Henrik Stephansen. He finished with a time of 6:02.2 ( 1:30.5 split).



Courtesy of YouTube

Rowing 3x2000 Meters

The challenge in operating a dryland training program with rowers whose skills and abilities vary so much is ensuring that everybody is improving while nobody feels left behind. Accordingly, Niskayuna's rowers train based on a 3 x 2000 meter erg test. From this test, an average split is calculated and it is around this value that most practices are measured. After a few weeks, the 3x2k test is repeated and a new split (if faster) becomes the new measuring stick.

There is nothing easy about this test; it requires the rower to plan ahead more than usual. Rowers must take into consideration their physical strength and endurance, their rate of recovery, and their strategic approach. For the latest 3x2k test, the rowers were asked to give their feedback. Their responses are below. This blog post will continue to be updated as more rowers respond. Enjoy.

(Zack) Today's 3x2k erg piece was extremely challenging. Out of all three pieces the first was the easiest. I cruised right through with a consistent split and didn't sprint at the end. Without the sprint at the end I wasn't so tired, and knew I had enough energy to do the next piece. The second 2k was a lot worse than the first. I felt pretty good through the first 1000m, but when I got to the 900m mark I hit a wall. At the end of the piece I finished a couple tenths of a second faster, but I was a lot more tired than I was after the first piece. On the final 2k I pulled a second higher than my average split for the previous 2ks. I held that until the 1000m mark and then I dropped it back down to the average split of my other pieces. Then at the end of my final piece I sprinted at the 200m and finish with a average split a whole second below my two previous ones. I think that cooling down after everyone of my pieces helped a lot. After each piece I rowed about 150m really slow and with a really high split. This cool down helped me recover by getting my breathing under control after the piece.

(Eli) This workout is brutal because you cannot go your fastest on the first piece and have no energy for the second; but at the same time if you achieve a low split on the first, then you must balance the other two. Going into the pieces you must be physically and psychologically prepared. Physically, you need to know your boundaries and strength in order to be efficient while on the erg. Psychologically, you need to know that at some point on the second piece you will hit a wall, a boundary that will prohibit you from going faster. It is necessary to know this in your mind beforehand so that when you meet this “wall” you have a game plan and the mental sense to smash through it. Personally, I felt pain about a quarter ways through the second piece. It is right after a successful first piece that you realize there is 2 more to go and your morale is drained. The one thing I learned from doing these pieces is persevere no matter what. My second time was a lot slower than my first, but after 750 meters on the third, something clicked. The barrier was broken and ignoring the pain I finished the piece a second under my previous average split.

(Andrew) The 3X2k workout is one of the most important workouts we do. It sets the bar for workouts to come, and as we do them shows our progress from the last time we did them. My basic strategy for all three was to come up with a split that I would hold consistently. I found this strategy possible for the entire first one because I was not tired yet, I was well stretched and warmed up. Going into the second piece I had the same sort of plan, but at exactly 850 meters into it I hit a wall. This was a wall that I had to overcome by re-evaluating my strategy. My new plan was to hold the rest of the piece at a 1:47 or under which was two seconds higher than my original plan. At the end of both my first and second pieces I did not sprint, I held the same rating (if not slower) and held a split just under where the average had been. After I got off the erg on the first two pieces I was not completely dead, just sore mostly in my quads and of course I was sweating like crazy. Going into the third piece I hit the same sort of wall that I hit about half way through the second before I even started the piece. I was sitting on the erg getting ready to pull the last piece and all of the physical exhaustion suddenly hit me. I was not able to recover from this exhaustion until almost halfway through the last piece, and when I did recover I believe that those last 1000 meters of the last piece were my favorite meters out of all 6000 pulled. On the final 250m I sprinted, it was one of those all out, kya type of sprints. It felt good. I find this work out to be one of the most painful we do, but I felt great after it. My fastest was the first (the easiest) my second was the slowest (the hardest) and the last was the second fastest (my favorite).

Rowing in College: Preparation

Most of the team is beginning to investigate college and determine whether or not rowing is going to be part of the collegiate experience. For some, rowing may be very important: getting recruited to a top rowing school might be a high priority. For others, rowing in college would be fun but not necessary: perhaps a club team would be better. Whatever the case, selecting the right school comes down to knowing your interests, researching the schools, and planning your approach.

Row or no row, college is about academics first. Do not lose sight of the fact that college admissions, though interested in well-rounded individuals, want to ensure that your intellectual interests match their profile. Just be careful that crew doesn't muddy your college decision-making process. It should be part of your determination, but not all.

If you are highly interested in rowing in college, then here are a few suggestions to get you started:

1. Create a rowing resume. This doesn't need to be fancy, but it should include your best 2k time, your best 6k time, what side you row (port/starboard/both), what disciplines you row (sweep/scull/both), your height and weight, camps you've attended, regattas in which you've participated, and competitive highlights (1st at Empires, 3rd at States, 15th at CRASH Bs, etc.).
2. Develop a contact list. From the list of schools in which you are interested, make a spreadsheet that has the contact information of the rowing coaches: name, phone number, email, fax, etc. You may be referencing this a lot, particularly if you want to be recruited.
3. Schedule visits to the school. It will be very helpful to schedule school visits when the team is practicing that way part of your visit can be on the water. If you are in a launch with a coach you can get a lot of one-on-one time. This spring would be a great time to visit schools (whether a junior or sophomore).
4. Inform your coach of your plans. Say, for instance, you are going to visit a school and speak with a coach. It might be in your best interest to have your current coach contact that college coach first and let them know a little about you beforehand. You have a much better chance getting recruited when more people can reference your skills and abilities.
5. Don't let your academics slip. While you are planning for your future remember that you are still a student.