Durham Amateur Rowing Club

Rowing is a sport that very few schools can offer as part of their physical education curriculum. Consequently it is not a sport you are forced to have a go at, but one that you choose to try, perhaps having been tempted by watching crews on the river or by the glamour of television coverage such as the Olympics or University Boat Race. However, once smitten you will find it a very addictive sport.

Rowing is a sport that can be learnt at any age, with competitions taking this into account.  Most junior events start at age 14 with some starting from age 10. Veteran events are handicapped to encourage fair racing across the various age categories. With no official ceiling on age, many veterans are still competing into their seventies and beyond.

Rowing will take a little while to master and as you get more proficient you also become fitter. Rowing uses more major muscle groups than any other sporting activity. The primary effects are in the legs, back and arms and it can really help to tone your body. As all your weight is supported by the boat, there is no jarring of the joints and it is a very safe sport. When you become proficient you can expect to burn 500-600 calories per hour. You’d be hard pressed to find another sport that keeps your entire body fit. There is no impact on the joints, but there is both an endurance and strength building aspect to the stroke and a rowing workout. The common misconception about rowing is that it is pulling with your arms, shoulders and back. In actual fact, it is pushing with your legs — think of a fast squat — then a follow-through with the upper body. A rowing boat or shell has seats on tracks that allow a rower to increase the amount of leg drive, as well as long riggers that increase the mobility of the oars and thus the length of the stroke.

The club will provide you with the equipment and the instruction in order to start rowing. You will need to dress in clothes that will not restrict your movements (eg tracksuit).

As a beginner you will probably row once or twice a week and this may gradually increase. If you wish to row recreationally it doesn't matter how many times, but if you wish to compete in the national competition structure then three training sessions a week is a minimum.

Apart from the obvious health advantages of rowing, our rowing clubs and competitions are in varied often picturesque locations. Rowing offers a whole range of competitive and social activities. It is a sport for all ages with people rowing from 7 to 90.

Today’s rowing boats are made of lightweight carbon fibre. The smallest boat on the water is the single scull, which is only 27-30 feet long, a foot wide and weighs approximately 30 pounds. Eights are the largest boats at 60 feet and weigh in at a little over 200 pounds. Rowers use oars to propel their boats, of which there are two kinds, sweep oars which are a single oar used by one person as in an eight, and sculling oars used as a pair by one person as in a sculling boat. Sweep oars are longer than sculling oars. There are six basic boat configurations. For sweep rowers that hold one long oar in both hands, there are pairs (2s), fours (4s), and eights (8s), and for scullers that hold one oar in each hand, there are singles (1x), doubles (2x), and quads (4x). Sweep rowers may or may not have a coxswain in the bow or stern of their boat. 

The boats are steered either by the coxswain, or by the rower in the bow seat (in boats without a coxswain - called 'coxless' boats).  Cox's use a rudder to steer the boat, which they control using cables that are connected to it. To help keep the boat on course, all boats have a small fin in the stern.

Originally made of wood (some still are), rowing boats are now usually made with layers of carbon fibre, fibreglass and plastic. These boats are extremely lightweight and narrow, allowing the rowers to slice through the water. Each bow is covered by a bow ball - a small round piece of rubber that helps to protect people from serious injury if the boat collides with another.

Each rower has his back to the direction the boat is moving in and power is generated using a blended sequence of the rower's legs, back and arms. Rowers sit on a sliding seat that rolls on wheels along a fixed track called the slide. Feet are tied into shoes which are bolted onto footplates in the boat. Each oar is held in place by riggers, which extend from the saxboard. The rigger holds the gate in which the oar sits.

The gate is carefully set up so that the oar is held in the water with a specific amount of pitch or tilt. This is usually about 5 degrees at the midpoint of the stroke although it does not change through the stroke.

The crew are identified by their position in the boat. The athlete sitting in the bow, the part of the boat that crosses the finish line first, is the bow seat or No. 1 seat. The person in front of the bow is No. 2, then No. 3 and so on. The rower closest to the stern that crosses the finish line last is known as the stroke. The stroke of the boat must be a strong rower with excellent technique, as the stroke is the person who sets the rhythm of the boat for the rest of the rowers.

SPM not MPH. Rowers speak in terms of strokes per minute (SPM), literally the number of strokes the boat completes in a minute’s time. The stroke rate at the start is high – 38-45, and then 'settles' to a race rate typically in the 30s. Crews sprint to the finish, taking the rate up once again. Crews may call for a “Power 10” during the race – a demand for the crew’s most intense 10 strokes.

Teamwork is number one. The athlete trying to stand out in an eight will only make the boat go slower. The crew made up of individuals willing to sacrifice their personal goals for the team will be on the medal stand together. Winning team-mates successfully match their desire, talent and bladework with one another.

If you aren't sure about physically rowing but still wish to race or be part of a crew, then why not consider coxing, especially if you are of a slight build, we would like to hear from you.

To be a coxswain is a special trust, all that power ready to explode on your word, along with the responsibility of ensuring the safety of your crew and other water users.

To rowers, the boat feels at the start as if it takes forever to get up to speed, however in the cox's seat, it is instant, rather like being catapulted forward. On that first three-quarter stroke, when the starter says "Go", the oars explode into action, and the back of that cox's seat kicks you in the back. It is an exhilarating feeling. 

The most basic thing you have to do as a cox is steer the boat. Sadly this is all some coxes do, and seem to be expected to do by their crew and coaches – worse still, some coxes often do this one thing badly as well. Yes you must be able to steer a straight line in the wind on a race course, and a clever race line on a Head Race course, but as a cox you must be able to do much more than that. The cox is the only person who can co-ordinate, attacking plays, defensive action, and corrective techniques. You are the only person who can have a direct impact on the motivation of the crew and also the de-motivation of the crew. 

If you have one rule when you get into a boat, then that should be to make it go at least 1 length faster than it already was. This does not happen overnight and the higher the level of the crew the harder it will be, because the margin available for improvement is less than that of a more novice crew.

The rowing season is basically all year, unlike other sports, which can be either summer or winter sports. In rowing there are generally three cycles of competition which can overlap each other.

From September to April the ‘Head Races’ take place. These races can be held over any distance from 1,800 to 5,500 metres and are ‘processional’ races with crews setting off at predetermined gaps and being timed over the course.

April to September is the ‘Regatta’ season, whereby crews race side by side on either rivers or up to six lane courses over distances of between 750 and 2,000 metres.

There are also ‘Sprint’ races usually over 500 metres, and the other extreme, the ‘Boston Marathon’ which is approximately 32 miles long.

To learn to row at Durham, the next step is to contact us through our contacts details on this site or come down to our clubhouse, where the club captain will introduce you to the novice/beginners section and arrange for you to be taught by a coach. You will need to prove that you can swim 100 metres before you are allowed to go on the water.

As a new member you will be required to fill in a membership form and pay the relevant subscription. You will also be expected to make a point of turning up on time, which is extremely important, as unlike land based team sports, a crew cannot boat unless all are present. The onus is on individuals to inform their coach in advance if they are unable to attend.

You will need to wear loose clothing such as a T shirt and tracksuit and most importantly always bring a kit bag with a complete change of clothing and a towel with you for every outing just in case you happen to be unfortunate enough to fall in the river.

Rowing Clubs are all amateur clubs run by an elected committee which is re-elected every year to run the club on behalf of the members, and consequently all the members are deemed to be responsible for helping to fund-raise, repair, coach etc, so don’t be surprised if you are asked to help out, as unlike a professional gym, the club at the end of the day will only be as good as the sum efforts and teamwork of its members.

Rowing is a very technical sport, and you can expect to have to learn not only a whole new vocabulary of terms and expressions, but also techniques, ranging from simply lifting a boat off a shelf and how to get into one on the water, through to the movements of the body; the oar; how to balance the boat and eventually racing.

Great! Rowing is a superb all-round sport - fun; challenging; sociable; and good exercise. And the river here at Durham is a great place to be during weekends and evenings.

Before you turn up … It is important to get in touch with us first, so that you can be sure of a good welcome. Contact details can be found via the Contact Us link.

Our regular training times at the Club are Saturday and Sunday mornings, and weekday evenings during British Summer Time - but we race during some weekends, away from Durham, so if you don't check, you might be met by an empty clubhouse!

We currently try to accommodate all who wish to learn to row as they approach us, however ideally whenever possible we prefer to start beginners in small groups. No-one is ever turned away!

 Before starting to row, you must: 

• certify or demonstrate that you can swim 100 metres (four lengths of a typical swimming pool) wearing light clothes

• certify that you have no medical condition that precludes heavy exercise

• join the club as an introductory member

Please complete a Membership Application Form and return it to the club secretary.

Rowing Terms

Oar
A lever used to propel and steer a boat through water, consisting of a long shaft of wood or carbon fibre with a blade at one end.

Oarsman
A rower.

Outside hand
The rower's hand furthest from the oarlock.

Port
The left side of a boat when facing the bow.

Power 10
A series of 10 strokes where a crew supplies additional power to advance on another crew.

Puddle
A whirl left in the water from the blade slipping as the rower pulls.

Racing start
The first 20 or 40 strokes of a race, usually at a higher cadence than those for the rest of the race because shorter strokes usually are needed to overcome the boats inertia.

Rating
The number of strokes a crew rows per minute.

Recovery
The part of the rowing action between the release and the catch in which an oar is positioned for the next stroke.

Regatta
A boat race.

Rib
A U-shaped piece of fabricated wood, aluminium or carbon fibre that supports the hull by fitting inside the shell between the keel and the gunwale.

Rigger
A framework attached to the shell and used to support the oarlock; also called an 'outrigger'.

Rudder
A device under the boat used to steer it.

Run
The distance a boat travels during one stroke.

Shell
A rowing boat.

Single
A sculling boat for one rower.

Sleeve
The plastic jacket on the shaft of the oar upon which is mounted a button, used to secure the blade to the oarlock.

Square
To rotate the blade of an oar so it is at a right-angle to the surface of the water.

Starboard
The right side of a boat when facing the bow.

Stern
The back part of a boat.

Stroke 
1. A complete rowing motion, made up of a catch, drive, finish, release, feather and recovery.

2. The rower nearest the stern who sets the rhythm and rate for the crew.

Sweep-oar rowing
Rowing with one oar held by both hands.

Wash out
To bring the blade out of the water during the drive and before the finish, causing a loss of power.