Rowing.

So all that stuff that I said I loved about rowing? Yeah I still hate it, but this time I hate it even more. On Saturday after, our race in Poland, signals the end of my first year as an actual serious rower. This means the training sucks even more, and the competition is even stronger than before.

I didn’t really expect much going into this year, as I have only been rowing less than a year, and I knew I would be up against guys that are taller, stronger and older in rowing years than me. However the year in general didn’t go to bad.

Well that was a lie, pretty much everything that could of gone wrong. Went wrong. Broken boats, (and other stuff..). Cancelled races, and loads, and loads. And loads. of injuries. By far the most horrible part of the year was the winter. Most people called it ‘The Winter Grind” (I’ll go more into that on my next post) But once that was over the sun came out and everything got a bit better. I say a bit because rowing in the searing heat twice a day wasn’t ideal. So English of me I know.

Besides the negatives there were one or two positives….we had some great races, great wins and great personal bests on testing days, just one final weekend together then we can pretend to say we’ll stay in touch. But in reality go out of our ways to avoid each other next year.

So off we venture to Poland for our last race of the year. Exciting stuff, and a once in a lifetime opportunity. So far leading up to this race nothing major has gone wrong, so here’s fingers crossed that we keep this lucky patch going, at least so much so that we get back to Lincoln alive. Just imagine. Eight stressed out alcohol and sleep deprived guys walking the streets of Poland who are all sick of each other  walking the streets of Poland. I wonder what could go wrong.

Things I find annoying when I tell people that I row.

Rowing is a pretty fun sport, but there are times when people who don’t row, ask annoying questions or assume things about the sport, that really grinds my gears. There’s quite a few so you might want to take a seat for this one. (Pun intended)

“Oh right you row? You must have massive arms then” This is probably the worst of all. Although it looks like we all are aggressively pulling with our arms when we race, all of the power generated is through the legs. Every time I try and correct someone about this they look at me like I’ve just murdered their kids. So sadly no, we can’t go to gym everyday like those lads with snapbacks, and do bicep curls all day to make us better in the boat, all about the legs and being very. Very fit. If we did just pull with our arms, then the boat would be going pretty damn slow.

“Oh you’re well posh if you row” I mean yeah, the boats are pretty expensive, but I don’t see myself buying a new boat anytime soon. Hence why you join a boat club. It’s like saying to a basketball player “Oh basketball is so expensive because you have to buy the net and the ball and the court and everything”

“I’ve been on the rowing machine a few times in the gym, and it seems pretty easy and boring” YOU’RE DOING IT WRONG. I’m pretty sure everyone that has taken up rowing seriously has felt like passing out, crying, or throwing up while on the rowing machine, at least once. Basically, most workouts on the rowing machine suck, mostly because you’re pushing so hard to get the best time. If you’re legs aren’t hurting after a workout on it, then you’re doing it wrong.

Why I row

If you ever have a friend that rows, then you’ll probably think they’re absolutely nuts. Waking up four nights a week at 5:30am, training twice a day. Pushing yourself in training so much that you throw up.

Not really selling the sport well am I? Rowing is a weird sport, because no, I don’t like it when my legs are in pain and my heart rate is hitting 200 bpm, it’s not fun getting up in the morning.   

But nothing is more rewarding than crossing that finish line first before your opposition.

One of the best things about the sport is that you’re going backwards, so in a race if you’re beating your opposition, you can see where they are when you’re winning and they can’t see where you are. There’s no feeling like it. But because of that it means that it really sucks when you get absolutely smashed by a much better crew. Winning is pretty cool, but there are other reasons why I enjoy it as well.

Training is always fun, when you’re one of the best and you finish first out of your crew mates, it spurs you on to keep training so you stay at the top.

What I’m saying is, rowing is just a big ego boost, although training sucks, you feel better after it. I’ve been doing the sport for a while now, and although I’m at the boathouse 24/7, it never gets boring. The training is tough, long, annoying, and pretty much everything else horrible. But it does stop me from being bored, and keeps me fit. Even though at times I feel like quitting, there’s just something that keeps me from doing so.

So why do I row, well I don’t really know. I don’t even remember why I started, but I’m glad I did.