Concept2 Forum

I just finished reading the book "Boy's in the Boat" by Daniel James Brown
1936 USA Olympic Rowing team. A great read!


http://www.danieljamesbrown.com/books/t ... r-yRvIrIdU

Wholeheartedly agree!

I read it last year and enjoyed it so much that with CRASH-Bs approaching I've been reading it again recently to help me get psyched up.


Here is some footage of the Olympic race that was part of the Leni Riefenstal film Olympia (the Eights are from 1:15 to 4:15):

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HunZsKugJmY

I was expecting to read a book about rowing. Instead, I read a wonderful story concerning living during the Great Depression, Nazi Germany in the 1930's, and rowing--including the fascinating people involved with it during that time. The book, one of the best I ever read, taught me a lot about each of those subjects. It was published in June, 2013 and as of today, it's still a best seller--in third place on the New York Times list of nonfiction paperbacks. A book has to be more than just outstanding to have been on the best seller list so for long. This one is.

D. J. Brown lecture schedule for early '16:

http://www.danieljamesbrown.com/parking ... tHPqfA8KrU

From all reports, it seemed like it would be worthwhile for me to read, although my school and coach were obviously the local enemy to overcome in the book. Then I saw that a UC crew support group held a fund raiser with the author, Daniel James Brown, as the major speaker. Turns out that he is actually a Cal grad. I had been reluctant to read it, since the UC/UW rival had been so bitter in my rowing days. Then I spotted it in the small local bookstore and took that as a sign. About a third of the way through it so far and enjoying it very much. Even though the point of view is from the UW side, I find that I can relate to a lot of it. I especially like the quotes from George Pocock. They bring out the beauty of rowing in the big shells. I actually rowed against his son, Stan Pocock, who took over the business. We were both in the 2-seats in the UC/UW dual meet in 1947. Cal had a satisfying come-from-behind-win in that one, but the Huskies were ahead of us at the IRA in Poughkeepsie, UW got third place over Cal's fourth. Note: only the winner, Navy, counted in that one, receiving the huge trophy cup to display for a year. No bronze medal for UW nor Silver for 2nd place Cornell.

It was interesting to read about the weather problems that the UW crew had to face. It meant a lot of workout days lost because it was too rough to go out in the slender shells and UW did not have the indoor facilities that the eastern crews had built to exercise when their waters were frozen over. The development of the erg has completely changed all that. No more lost days when the waves threaten to sink the shells. The use of ergs also is of some help in judging the strength of neophytes. It makes me realize that it has revolutionized collegiate rowing. The erg is far superior to the indoor tanks that the eastern schools had been using.

Bob S.

It's pretty cool to have a resident poster who can provide first hand perspective of times and events most of us can only read about. As a fellow Cal grad, I'm a huge fan of all Cal athletics...kind of bummed out about that fourth place finish though Go Bears!

I gave that book to someone that thought he had a tough childhood.

PBS will have a movie about the "Boy's in the boat" during the Olympics.
http://www.hollywoodreporter.com/live-f ... 936-882387

>>The erg is far superior to the indoor tanks that the eastern schools had been using.
Not necessarily. Ergs are cheaper to acquire, scale and easier to store. They provide instant feedback with every stroke. OTOH, indoor tank is much closer to the real thing. While technical aspect of erging may be no more than 10% of rowing on the water, this may go up to 40-50% in indoor tank (my very rough guesstimate)
Rowing in the tank is more effective to train as a crew (synchronized work performed by blades in the water)
vs. the poor imitation of "rowing" on erg.
Still, both erg and the rowing tank have the same problem, monumental, brain-killing numbness that no amount of artificial distraction (like online racing software) will alleviate.

D J Brown at the Riverfront Center, Wilmington Del. tomorrow evening, April 20, 7PM. Be there or row square!

My daughter, who lives in Port Townsend, WA, took me to the local club's boathouse in early December to see a beautiful red cedar eight up high on the racks in a place of honor. It had "Husky Clipper" written on the bow, and she told me about George Pocock having built it. Didn't register at the time, but then she gave me the book for Christmas. What an amazing piece of history. Check it out if you're ever on the Olympic Peninsula.

Are there any other rowing books worth reading? I just finished Boys in the Boat and am looking for something else to read.

The Boy's in the Boat show played on PBS tonight.
It was pretty good.

Nice surprise to hear from Moch's and Rantz' daughters. (Too bad it wasn't 90 minutes, so the other guys could have some "air time.")

I was impressed by the amount of good quality film they had of the crews in Seattle, so good that it took away some of the long-ago-and-far-away aspect of the book. The modern re-creation footage of the 8 on the water was excellent, and weren't those spectator trains neat!

One of my favorite books ever! Living nearby, it was fun to go to the Conibear Shellhouse on the UW campus. It has been totally rebuilt into a modern structure, but the '36 Olympic boat still hangs from the ceiling: http://www.huskycrew.com/conis11.jpg