I’ve had mixed advice on whether it’s worth learning to river row before rowing an ocean. Some people said there’s no point because it’s so different to ocean rowing, and then others tell me to definitely learn because although it is different, there are still so many similarities.
I always planned on learning to row. The Army Rowing Club hold Learn to Row Courses over the summer months which allow for a complete novice to go to the Army Boat House and spend a week learning to row. All I needed to do was get some time off work to attend a course, Summer 19 was the initial plan, but an overseas deployment got in the way. Then Summer 20 became the plan, but Covid put a stop to that. Which then brings us to Spring 21. The Army Boat House still isn’t open and no dates have been released for courses to recommence. Queue the panic of “I still haven’t learnt to row, I need to learn to row, ahhhhhh”, so I decided it was time to take things into my own hands and get out there and learn to row.
I’m incredibly lucky to live in Windsor which is home to Eton Excelsior Rowing Club (EERC). Their website describes the club as “a welcoming, medium-size rowing club located on a beautiful section of the river Thames”. I can now confirm they are definitely friendly and the stretch of water they row on is picturesque (especially when the sun is shining). The EERC Team Captain and Club Coach, Rachel Smillie helped prepare Rob Hamilton (Atlantic Titan) for TWAC 20 so who better to get me out on the water and teach me what I need to know.
The journey begins.
I’ve done quite a lot of kayaking and canoeing in the Army and we normally start with talking through techniques and carrying out some dry drills, not with Rachel. Within ten minutes of being at the boat house I was set up in a sculling boat (with floats on) and being pushed out onto the River Thames, I was definitely pushed in at the deep end… The Thames on a sunny day is a pretty busy place, full of people enjoying being out in the sun and on this day, me in a rowing boat not having a clue what I’m doing.
Lesson number one, setting up the boat and getting onto the river. Selecting a boat, getting it out of the boathouse, setting the foot positions, getting it onto the water, setting the oars up and then how to get into the boat without falling in.
Next, how “traffic” on the river works. It’s pretty similar to a road, keep left and the faster boat goes around the slower one if they want to overtake. I was probably going to be the slowest thing on the water so all I had to do was stay left.
And just like that I’ve made it onto the water… next it was time to learn to move.
Luckily for me, the hundreds of hours I’ve spent on the Erg (rowing machine) did carry over when it came to the co-ordination of my arms and legs. The movement is exactly the same as being on an Erg, which made it one less thing that I had to worry about. But as easy as I found the arm and leg movements, the wrist and hand movements were a completely different matter.
On the erg, your hands just hold onto the handle, but on the water, your wrist and hands have to turn the blade to allow them to clear the water. This sounds really, really easy, take the oar out of the water, turn it 90°, turn it 90° and place the blade back in the water. The oars are even shaped to work with the gates so you can feel and hear when the blade has turned 90°, sounds easy enough… but it really isn’t. Your wrists shouldn’t move very much and the blade should move using the fingers, my movement came completely from the wrists which is something I definitely need to work on. The fingers should be nice and loose to allow the movement, mine were gripping the oar as tightly as possible!
I spend a lot of time on the Erg training at set stroke rates and concentrating on my rhythm ensuring it’s smooth and controlled throughout the stroke. This luckily crossed over onto the water and I found once the arms, legs and wrists/hands were moving, the rhythm came easily.
And we’re moving.
The final thing to think about was where I’m going, keeping left and not bumping into anyone or anything. I found that as long as all I had to think about was the rowing part, I was fine. The moment I looked to see where I was going or tried to focus on anything else, suddenly I couldn’t do anything. Luckily, I had Rachel on a boat next to me keeping an eye on where I was going and directing me around the curves in the river.
This all sounds really simple in principle but putting it all together was everything but. Yes, I was able to move up and down the river, but efficiency is key and I definitely wasn’t efficient. The next week, my session involved me being part of a 4-person boat, I clung on desperately throughout the entire session just trying not to mess up or slow the boat down. It was definitely a steep learning curve, but everyone that knows me knows I thrive on being challenged.
It’s safe to say I loved my first river rowing experience and it’s now become one of the highlights of my weekend. I wish I hadn’t waited so long to learn and now I’m completely hooked, but I still have a long way to go. You don’t learn a skill in a day and there’s lots to master before getting in the boat as a team in December but I’ve taken the first step and the only way is up.
Laura Barrigan, Force Atlantic Media Lead.