Combined Oarsmanship in Eights

That is the ideal. Let us come down to the actual. I will imagine myself to be coaching an average crew in a racing-ship.

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must first of all assure myself that the boat is properly rigged, and that the men have a fair chance of rowing with comfort. The thole-pins should stand absolutely straight from the sill of the rowlock. If the rowing-pin is bent outwards to wards the water in the slightest degree, the oar will have a tendency to " slice," and a feather under water will be the result. The actual wood of the rowing-pin, however, should be slightly filed away at the bottom, so as to incline a very, very little towards the stern of the boat. Care must be taken also to have a sufficient width between the thole-pins to prevent the oar from locking on the full reach. The rowlock-strings must be taut. They must have a sufficient pressure on the oar to prevent the button being forced out of the rowlock. For these and other details, the table of measure ments given at the end of this chapter should be consulted.

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this crew I will suppose that five of the members have already had experience in light ship rowing. The three others—bow, No. 3, and No. 4—are quite new to the game. I point out to these three, to begin with, the importance of balancing the boat by having their arms rigidly straight as they swing forward, so as to be able, by the slightest amount of give and take from the shoulders, to counteract any tendency to roll, by sitting firmly on their seats, and not shifting about to right or to left, and by keeping their feet well on the stretchers. That done, the words of com mand will come from the cox. "Get ready all " (At this command, the oarsmen divest themselves of all unnecessary clothing.) " Forward all ! " (The oarsmen swing and slide forward to within about two-thirds of the full-reach position, the backs of the blades lying flat upon the water.) " Are you ready ? " (This is merely a call to attention.) " Paddle ! " (At this the blades are turned over square, and immediately grip the water, and the boat starts.) During the progress of this imaginary crew, I propose to invest them indivi dually and collectively with certain faults, and to offer suggestions for their improvement, just as if I were coaching them from the bank or from a steam-launch.

(I) "Stroke, you're tumbling forward over your stretcher. Keep the last part of your swing very slow by balancing against the stretcher with your feet as you swing forward. That's better. You got a beginning twice as hard that time." (2) " Seven, you're feathering under water. Keep pressure on to the very finish of the stroke, and drop your hands a little more, so as to get the oar out square and clean. Use the legs well at the finish." (3) "Six, you're very slow with your hands. Consequently, your body rushes forward to make up for lost time. Shoot the hands away quickly, with a sharp turn of the inside wrist. Then let the body follow slowly." (4) " Five, you slide too soon and fall away from your oar at the finish. Get your shoulders and the whole of your body-weight well on to the beginning, so as to start swinging back before you drive your slide away. At the finish keep your shoulders down and sit up well upon your bones." (5) "Four and three, your blades are coming out of the water long before any of the others.

This is because you are afraid of reaching properly forward. You therefore get your oars in scarcely if at all behind the rigger, and consequently there is not enough resistance to your oar in the water to enable you to hold out the stroke fully to the finish. Swing, and reach well forward, and let your oars strike the beginning at the point to which your reach has brought it. You may splash at first, but with a little confidence you will soon get over that. Three, you're late. As you come forward you press heavily on the handle of your oar, the blade soars up, and is coming down through the air when the rest have struck the water. Keep your hands, especially the inside one, light on the handle of the oar, and let them come up as the body swings forward." (6) " Two, your arms are bending too soon. Try to swing back with perfectly straight arms. Don't imagine that you can row your stroke merely by the power of your arms. Also try and keep your shoulders down at the finish and on the recovery." (7) "Bow, swing back straight. Your body is falling out of the boat at the finish. Use the out side leg and hand more firmly through the stroke, and row the hands a little higher in to the chest ; also arch the inside of the wrist a little more to help you in turning the oar on the feather." So much for individuals. Now for the crew.

(I) "The finish and recovery are not a bit to gether. I can almost hear eight distinct sounds as the oars turn in the rowlocks. Try and lock it up absolutely together. There ought to be a sound like the turning of a key in a well-oiled lock —sharp, single, and definite." is a very important point. On the unison with which the wrists turn and the hands shoot away depends the unison of the next stroke. When once, in coaching, you have locked your crew together on this point, you will greatly decrease the difficulty of the rest of your task.) (2) " Don't let the boat roll down on the bow oars. Stroke side, catch the beginning a little sharper. Bow side, when the roll of the boat begins, do not give in to it by still further lowering your hands. Keep your hands up." (The same instruction applies, mutatis mutandis, when the boat rolls on the stroke oars. Apart from individual eccentricities, a boat is often brought down on the one bank of oars by the fact that the opposite side, or one or two of them, grip the water a little too late.) (3) "You are all of you slow with your hands. Rattle them out sharply, and make your recovery much more lively. Steady now ! don't rush for ward. Keep the swing slow and long. You are all much too short on the swing, and consequently get no length in the water." Watch the bodies in front of you as they move, and mould yourself on their movement." (5) "You have fallen to pieces again. Use your ears as well as your eyes, and listen for the rattle of the oars in the rowlocks. Whenever you fall to pieces, try to rally on that point. Also plant your feet firmly on the stretchers, and use your legs more when the boat rolls." These, I think, are a fair sample of the faults that may be found in almost any crew, and to their eradication coach and oarsmen have patiently to devote themselves.