Technical Drills - coaching videos

Squared Blades

Rowing at a low rate, and initially at low power, do not feather the blades at the finish of the stroke. When you get to the finish of the stroke, push your hands down, raising the blades out of the water. Push your hands away from your body smartly, keeping outward pressure (using your thumbs) on the oar.

This drill will help with these issues:
1. increase your sensitivity to a clean finish and exit of blade from water.
2. assist you in maintaining keel, or balance of the boat, throughout the recovery.

If the boat begins to go off keel listing to one side or the other, the edge of the blade will annoyingly scrape the water. With your thumb and fingertips push a little harder on the left side if the left side of the boat begins to rise. This little extra bit of outward pressure on your left thumb will push the boat back toward balance, being on keel. If the boat goes off keel the other way - the port side rising - push a little harder with the thumb and fingetips on that side to push the boat back into balance.

In video, notice how Mike keeps his body on centerline of the shell. When he goes a bit off keel, he uses the sculls - which function the same way that a balance beam functions for a tightrope walker - to bring the boat back into balance.

Also note that on some strokes, especially on his port side (nearest to camera) that he "cheats" a little. When the squared blade smacks the water, he allows it to fall partly toward feather, so that it skims across the top of the water, rather than skewing the boat to that side. Its okay, this is only practice. Row a half a mile with squared blades, then go to your regular stroke, and notice how much more gracefully you and the boat move.