Ranger's training thread

[Byron Drachman]

June 11, 2008: I now do fine on the water. --snip--The 60s OTW 1Ks at the Nationals are usually won at about 2:00 pace. I will race a new elite 1x (not my tub of a Peinert) in the Nationals when I am 60.

July 16, 2008: My future is indeed with OTW rowing. It's a blast. I'll especially enjoy traveling around to different OTW racing venues, as I enjoyed traveling around to the different racing venues as a marathon runner and road racer.

April 22, 2009: I have been doing dedicated and focused OTW rowing for five years. --snip-- I am now ready to race OTW.

Feb 7, 2011: I will be racing--both OTErg in the winter and OTW in the spring, summer, and fall--for the rest of my life.

: When's the first fall head race you are definitely going to sign up for (as promised a scant few weeks ago)? Or, do you want to remain a perpetual novice?

Hi Mike,

Our hero still has two days to do a late registration for the Masters Nationals, a regatta he has been talking about for a couple of years. I imagine it will be another virtual row.

Some head races not too far from AA are HOTC (Cuyahoga, Cleveland), the Frogtown Races (Toledo), and the Grand River Challenge (Grand Rapids.) The HOTC is advertised as a challenging course, but that will not be a problem for our hero. After all,

October 18, 2010: Steering is a no-brainer, folks. You just have to practice it a little--and that's that. --snip--For someone like me, steering can be learned in a few days/weeks.

[aharmer]

According to _Rowing Faster_, 60s lwts should only be able to dead lift and squat 150 lbs.

That's a ridiculously low amount.

Even if you are a geezer, any rower who is _that_ weak is doing the wrong sport.

Try bingo.

You might be better at it.

ranger

And you would know because you squat and dead lift so often. Stick to commenting on exercises you know like that one where you make love to your living room carpet.

By the way, anybody that is within a month of a FM at 1:46/24 is probably doing that pace and rate for at least 5k occasionally right? Give us a little appetizer for the big event by posting a 5k at 1:46/24 this week.

[ranger]

Our hero still has two days to do a late registration for the Masters Nationals, a regatta he has been talking about for a couple of years.

No, I haven't been talking about Masters Nationals for a couple of years with any frequency or seriousness.

I have indeed talked about entering the Head of the Charles when I was 60, and I would row there this fall if race officials would let me.

I applied for an entry but was unsuccessful.

I can't do anything more than that.

I'll try again next year.

ranger

[ranger]

And you would know because you squat and dead lift so often.

No need to lift weights, if you are a 60s lwt pulling 13 SPI who can meet Olympic standards for strength relative to weight.

Waste of time and energy.

Just row.

I now get a full 135 kgF of peak force on my stroke, the entire vertical lift of the PM4 screen, just pulling naturally.

I am rowing well for a lightweight of any age.

ranger

[atklein90]

And you would know because you squat and dead lift so often.

No need to lift weights, if you are a 60s lwt pulling 13 SPI who can meet Olympic standards for strength relative to weight.

Waste of time and energy.

Just row.

I now get a full 135 kgF of peak force on my stroke, the entire vertical lift of the PM4 screen, just pulling naturally.

I am rowing well for a lightweight of any age.

ranger

I haven't checked in here for a while, but I can see you are still an idiot, and still are not rowing or erging. Loser.

[mikvan52]

I would row there (the HOCR)this fall if race officials would let me.

If I were an official at the HOCR and heard there was this guy who can't/doesn't steer or finish any OTW race, would I want him in one of the most challenging courses, steering-wise, there is in the US.. ??

Get a grip.

I've given up hope on you Rich. You're never going to race on the water.

and I doubt that you'll ever go to Crash-Bs again...

[Byron Drachman]

No, I haven't been talking about Masters Nationals for a couple of years with any frequency or seriousness. I have indeed talked about entering the Head of the Charles when I was 60, and I would row there this fall if race officials would let me. I applied for an entry but was unsuccessful. I can't do anything more than that. I'll try again next year.

June 2, 2008: OTW yesterday, I was holding 2:05 @ 24 spm.
I am delighted with that.
At one point, I was doing 1:58 @ 24 spm.
That is _very_ good rowing for someone approaching 60 years old.
At the US OTW nationals, among 60-year olds, the 1K is won at about 2:00 pace.

June 11, 2008: I now do fine on the water.
2:00 @ 26 spm
No swimming at all.
Lots of work still to do on lots of things.
But I am happy with my progress.
The 60s OTW 1Ks at the Nationals are usually won at about 2:00 pace.
I will race a new elite 1x (not my tub of a Peinert) in the Nationals when I am 60.

March 14, 2010: I am going to stay a stable 160 lbs. this summer so that I can kick Mike VB's butt OTW in my 1x at the Nationals.

July 1, 2010: --snip-- I will be ready for Nationals and the Head of the Charles next year. I will do some head races this fall.

Assuming it is true that you did enter the lottery but did not win an entry, tradition has it that you will be accepted next year. The other head races I mentioned do not use a lottery system so you can attend any of those if you choose to. Our club is planning on doing the Frogtown Races and the Grand River Challenge. Will you be home eating hotdogs? Don't spill mustard on your tie.

[Citroen]

This morning so far, 15K OTErg, just before dawn.

Sun is coming up.

Time to get out OTW.



ranger

So I estimate that the sun has been risen an hour at least, so in your land does the sunrise at 02.32?

Roy, you're wrong.

The EXIF data shows:

Code: Select all

Camera Maker: SONY
Camera Model: DSC-N1
Image Date: 2011-08-07 07:01:02 (no TZ)
Focal Length: 23.7mm
Aperture: f/5.4
Exposure Time: 0.0080 s (1/125)
ISO equiv: 64
Exposure Bias: -0.30 EV
Metering Mode: Matrix
Exposure: Landscape Mode
Exposure Mode: Manual
White Balance: Auto
Flash Fired: No (enforced)
Orientation: Normal
Color Space: sRGB
GPS Coordinate: undefined, undefined

Ann Arbor is in Eastern Day time.
Door County is in Central Day time (one hour behind).

So knowing that Ranger doesn't know how to set the clock on his camera that photo was taken at 06:01:02 CDT and posted here about half an hour later.

Don't know how Ranger gets his 20K done on the water in half an hour, but that's a different lie.

[ranger]

As in many things, the most crucial thing about sculling in a 1x is also the craziest.

This craziness is graphed out on p. 122 of _Rowing Faster_, and, of course, can clearly be felt as you scull.

This is the craziness:

The boat accelerates pretty smoothly in the last 3/4 of the drive and this acceleration continues into the first 3/4 of the recovery.

So the boat is going the fastest 3/4 of the way of into the recovery.

Then in the remaining 1/4 of the stroke cycle, divided pretty evenly between (end of the) recovery and (beginning of the) drive, the boat radically slows down.

The velocity of the boat at its fastest and at its slowest is in a ratio of as much as 2-to-1 (e.g., 6 m/s at the fastest compared to 3 m/s at the slowest.

I suspect that skill in sculling has everything to do with this crazy graph.

In the drive, this craziness means that the most crucial thing is to have the oars accelerate evenly through the water in the course of the drive. Keeping a constant velocity is a disaster. This means that the leg drive must be _very_ strong, when the inertia of the slowing boat is highest, and then the back and arms _very_ fast, when the inertia of the boat is the lowest.

The rowing stroke isn't anything like weight-lifting.

It is like a whiplash.

High forces are exerted early by the legs against high resistance and then then these forces permit a quick finish with the back and arms that snaps the tail of the whip and brings the big sting well on into the recovery when the boat reaches its maximal speed.

Then the rower cracks the whip again.

ranger

[NavigationHazard]

As in many things, the most crucial thing about sculling in a 1x is also the craziest.

This craziness is graphed out on p. 122 of _Rowing Faster_, and, of course, can clearly be felt as you scull.

This is the craziness:

The boat accelerates pretty smoothly in the last 3/4 of the drive and this acceleration continues into the first 3/4 of the recovery.

So the boat is going the fastest 3/4 of the way of into the recovery.

Then in the remaining 1/4 of the stroke cycle, divided pretty evenly between (end of the) recovery and (beginning of the) drive, the boat radically slows down.

The velocity of the boat at its fastest and at its slowest is in a ratio of as much as 2-to-1 (e.g., 6 m/s at the fastest compared to 3 m/s at the slowest.

(snip)

ranger

Muppet. Read the graph again, and look at the curve labeled "center of gravity scull and rower." That's the one that counts as far as movement down the course.

[ranger]

look at the curve labeled "center of gravity scull and rower." That's the one that counts as far as movement down the course.

Sure, pragmatically, when you're trying to figure out how to go fast.

But it is the center of gravity of the shell that moves down the course.

That's the speed of the boat.

No?

ranger

[ranger]

Assuming it is true that you did enter the lottery but did not win an entry, tradition has it that you will be accepted next year..

APPLICATION RECEIVED:
Thank you for applying for the Head Of The Charles® Regatta using RONIN Racing! Your application has been received. If your application is accepted, you will be notified by email, and your name will be posted here: HOCR Competitors Draw (http://www.hocr.org/competitors/ScheduleDraw11.asp). Please note: in an effort to conserve resources, the Regatta will no longer be mailing acceptance letters. All communications will be done through email and website updates.

APPLICATION CONFIRMATION NUMBER: 26157797295

ranger

[ranger]

I've given up hope on you Rich.

Sure.

But luckily, you're not me.

I am hard to discourage.

Your low spirits and nay-saying have nothing to do with me.

I'll keep working at it and working at it.

And then, we'll see.

Yes, we'll see.

I look forward to rowing every day.

And every day, I am getting better and better.

On the other hand, I suspect that you are now just getting worse and worse.

Could be a problem.

ranger

[JohnBove]

I've given up hope on you Rich.

Sure.

But luckily, you're not me.

I am hard to discourage.

Your low spirits and nay-saying have nothing to do with me.

I'll keep working at it and working at it.

And then, we'll see.

Yes, we'll see.

I look forward to rowing every day.

And every day, I am getting better and better.

On the other hand, I suspect that you are now just getting worse and worse.

Could be a problem.

ranger

Why don't you pay your debt, you grotesque, you shitbag welsher.

[NavigationHazard]

look at the curve labeled "center of gravity scull and rower." That's the one that counts as far as movement down the course.

Sure, pragmatically, when you're trying to figure out how to go fast.

But it is the center of gravity of the shell that moves down the course.

That's the speed of the boat.

No?

ranger

The center of gravity of the shell moves down the course. The center of gravity of the rower normally moves back and forth in the shell but has net movement down the course. The center of gravity of the system (shell + rower) normally moves down the course such that the rower stays in the boat and they go down the course as an integrated unit as fast as that composite center of gravity can be moved. In the "Rowing Faster" graph that's the "average horizontal velocity" line. The whole point of the section of the book is to try to minimize fluctuations in hull velocity caused by the interaction between the rower's mass on the slide and the boat's mass. I realize that in your personal racing experience the rower's center of gravity starts off inside the shell and is quickly transferred to the outside of the shell. But floating downstream alongside your upside-down boat isn't particularly efficient.