MEASUREMENTS OF AN EIGHT-OARED RACING-BOAT.
For purposes of convenience, I have taken the following measurements from a boat built by Rough for Leander, in 189r. In that year she carried a very heavy crew, who won the Grand Challenge Cup at Henley in record time. She repeated her Grand Challenge victory in 1892 and 1893, with crews very differently constituted from the first one : ft. ins.
(i) Length over all . . . . . . 6o 3 (2) Beam amidships, under gunwale . . . i i i (3) Depth „ fl 7) . . . 1 1 F ft. ins.
(4) Height of thwarts above skin of boat . . o (5) » seats . . 0 91* (6) » rowlock sills above seat . . . o 6i (7) » heels above skin of boat . . . o if (8) Position of front edge of slide in relation to rowing-pin when well forward . . . level (9) Length of movement of slide . . • • I 4 (to) Distance from rowing-pin, measured horizon tally and at right angles to boat, to centre of seat . . . . . . . . 2 7 (ii) Distance from wood of one thole-pin to wood of the other . . ..... 0 41 This boat, like nearly all English Eights, was " side-seated," i.e. the centre of the seat, instead of being over the kelson, was set away from it, and from the outrigger. Bow's and stroke's seats were
2i ins. from centre, No. 5's 32 ins. Nearly all Fours and Pairs in England are now centre-seated, as are Eights in America. Of course, with centre seating, assuming that you want the same leverage, you require a longer outrigger. Otherwise, the only difference between the two systems would seem to be that with centre-seating you naturally align the bodies better.
Since 1891 boat-builders have somewhat in creased the length of the boats they build, and it is not uncommon now to find boats with a measurement of 63 feet and a few inches over all. The boat whose measurements I have given had, if I remember rightly, a slightly wider beam at No. 3 stretcher than she had amidships. I have noticed, and my experience in this respect confirms that of Mr. W. B. Woodgate, though it is entirely opposed to the Rev. A. T. Shadwell's theories, that a boat with a full beam somewhere between No. 4 and No. 3 is always a fast one. A boat should never dip her head, but should always maintain it free.