THE BASICS - ROWING 101
Rowing is the ultimate team sport. Rowing demands the complete focus and dedication of a team to move the boat uniformly down the racecourse. Every rower in the boat plays a crucial role in allowing the boat to reach its full potential. Athletes learn teamwork, communication, leadership, and responsibility while staying focused on the team’s goal.
Did You Know?
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Modern rowing competitions are older than Columbus discovering America. Lord Mayor’s Water Procession began in renaissance England in 1454.
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The sport of rowing made it to the Americas in the 1700s, where the first recorded race was held in New York in 1756.
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The first rowing club in the U.S. was the Detroit Boat Club, founded in 1839.
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Rowing was the first intercollegiate sport in the United States. The first rowing race was between Harvard and Yale in 1852.
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Grand Rapids has a long history with the sport. The Grand Rapids Boat and Canoe Club (originally called the Owashtanong Club), organized in 1886 by John Homiller, a furniture manufacturer.
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From 1920 until 1956, the USA won the gold medal in the men's eight at every Olympic Games.
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Physiologically, rowers are superb examples of physical conditioning. Cross-country skiers and long-distance speed skaters are comparable in terms of the physical demands the sport places on the athletes.​
Types of Rowing
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There are two types of rowing: Sweep and Sculling.
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In Sweep, the predominant variety in high school competition, each rower holds one oar, which alternates from their seats out each side of the boat. Rowers are therefore at times referred to by their side: Port or Starboard. Most rowers all begin in a sweep boat.
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Sculling is done with two smaller oars in smaller boats with one, two, or four rowers. Sculling is offered for more experienced rowers and encouraged during summer months on more of a recreational basis.​​​
The Rowing Athlete
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FHC Rowing classifications for both Men and Women’s teams are as follows:
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Novice
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Varsity
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Light Weight*
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Open Class
*Typically, Light Weight Women are 130 lbs. and under while Light Weight Men are 150 lbs. and under.​​​​​
Rowing looks graceful, elegant and sometimes effortless when it’s done well. Don’t be fooled. Rowers haven’t been called the world’s most physically fit athletes for nothing. Physiologists claim that rowing a 2,000-meter race – equivalent to 1.25 miles – is equal to playing back-to-back basketball games. A rowing race demands virtually everything a human being can physically bring to an athletic competition – aerobic ability, technical talent, exceptional mental discipline, ability to utilize oxygen efficiently and in huge amounts, balance, pain tolerance, and the ability to continue to work when the body is demanding that you stop.​​​​​​​
​The Rowing Coxwain (coxie)
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The non-rower who controls the boat direction. May be either in the stern or the bow depending on the boat. A coxswain can be male or female regardless of boat class. In high school rowing, eight (8) and four (4) person boats always have a coxswain while pairs (2) often do not.
The two primary requirements for a coxswain are:
1) must be small
2) must be loud. ​
​​A coxswain also needs to be able to motivate a crew, especially in the last 500 meters of a race when the rowers are exhausted. A coxswains’ main function is to keep the boat moving straight because if it can’t stay in the lane, it will get disqualified. This is done by making minor corrections to the rudder. Working with the stroke (the rower closest to the stern), the coxswain executes race strategy.​
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Want to Learn More?
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Check out the pages about rowing and you'll be ready to play rowing Bingo! ​​