Sitting in the Boat

Sitting properly in the boat is critical to boat balance and to being able to row well. The boat will tip from side to side if the rowers are not sitting properly or if they are moving around on their seats. Holding the oar properly and controlling blade height and depth relative to the water are equally important to get right early in the season.

Sitting

Sit tall and comfortably upright with your head up, shoulders down and chest out. Sit in the centre of the seat with equal pressure on both sides of your body. Your “bum bones” should be on the front edge of the seat when your legs are bent and on the back edge when your legs are straight. 

Gripping the oar

Many rowers hold the oar handle tightly and place their hands too close together. This will create tension in the upper body and will prohibit any rotation with the oar handle as you approach the catch.

Hold and control the oar with loose hands. The fingers should act like hooks with the handle underneath, rather than having a tight grip. Your hands should about two hand-widths apart. Or, reach your arms straight forward from the shoulders and hold the handle in your fingers without moving the hands closer together. The inside arm should feel about the same as the outside arm.

Hand Heights

For a balanced boat all six oar handles must be at the same height when they are out of the water and being carried forward during the recovery. Critical points to sync your handle heights are at tap out, during the entire recovery and when you unweigh the handle for the catch. The coxswain will watch rowers hands to ensure that all hands are at the same height and that they are moving in a level plane.

Blade Depth

When buried, the blade should be at a consistent depth – just below the surface. The blade should float to the correct depth or it may need to be lifted slightly to ensure it is fully buried. The coxswain will check for blade depth during the stroke to ensure that blades are not going deep at the catch or drive and that they stay buried at the finish.