Blog posts tagged with 'Rowing'

One of the things I like scratch that.. Love about the sport of rowing, is the community of rowing. This I have been reminded of twice in recent times, the first instance has been when I put a call out to fellow rowers in Seattle, to see if anyone would allow me to sit in a shell, whilst travelling away from home. I was overwhellemed by the response.

Not only did i get responses from coaches, and athletes in the city I was travelling to, I was contacted by some of the biggest names in rowing, and given contact details of people they knew in the city I was travelling to.

At first this doesn't seem out of the ordinary, but it struck me that there is not that many sports or hobbies that you could do this with.  I thought about it, and realised that it isn't like you could just rock up at a Football club, and go 'Ahh guys can i train with you 2 days this week'.

The second was one day when i was travelling to work on the train, and I was wearing one of my rowing shirts - you know the ones we all have them, the ones we have bought/been given over the years for the various clubs, organisatins, etc. When a complete stranger started to talk to me, asking if i rowed sweep or scull, which club i was at etc, i sat there and instantly made a new friend, he was a tourist from overseas, who had recognised me as a rower by my shirt, so he decided to have a chat. Again this struck me that not many sports could claim to have the same community spirit where two strangers would happily chat, based off of a shirt.

After a recent trip interstate, I finally decided to bite the bullet and to get back behind the oar.

This came with a bit of a push from some people that i apparently call friends. not only did I decide to take a handle up again, but I dived into the deep end and competed at a state championships (yes it may have been masters but it still had the words State and Championship in the title). So what did this mean? well after a 14 year absence from sitting into a boat straight to a state titles race, and when i say straight I mean straight, twoo weeks of training and I wouldn't call it intense, and in that 2 weeks there was the Easter holidays where I went away with my family and didn't train, so I was feeling confident. No I am not joking, I had great confidence in myself (without any backing), for the first time I had selfbeleif... I was sure I could do this, and play with the big boys.... Oh how I was wrong, I was not comfortable in the boat, My foot stretchers wern't positioned correctly, I was rowing short, my finishes were really bad, and 100meters into the race I was drained and ready to give it all in.

Thankfully I didn't and I crossed the line in 3rd place.... (yes there may have only been 3 in the race, but that is beside the point). I re-aquainted with several old friends at the regatta, and have continued to take a handle up several mornings a week, This time with a crew who have an aim, They have a coach, a regular boat, and several short term goals set on where they as a crew wish to go.  This has rekindled several of my own aspirations which had been given up for dead many years ago, but for the first time in a long time, I seem to have attained a purpose and a means to reach that purpose, will I reach it? who knows only time can tell.

But the one thing i do know, is no matter what has happened, no matter what your reasons were for stopping, no matter how long it has been, go down to a local club, and ask to go out in a boat some days. Yes you may have to eat some humble pie and be re-taught basic technique, but at least remember that as a a rower you have achieved more by stepping into a boat then anyone who doesn't have the courage to even do that.

So draw on that strength that was there, and I'll seer you on the water one morning.