Open Water Rowing

[PaulG]

A few photos from the race. Me on the beach:



Getting ready:



Crossing the finish line:



My winning hardware:

[tgf1]

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Paul, congrats on another successful otw adventure Looks like a nice day for rowing. Any estimate of pace/spm? As one who only ergs would ask.

[Bob S.]

Paul, congrats on another successful otw adventure Looks like a nice day for rowing. Any estimate of pace/spm? As one who only ergs would ask.

Except under ideal conditions, i.e. flat water, no wind, pace and rate don't have the same significance OTW as they do OTE. They get adjusted to meet the conditions and I think that a lot of it is a result of subconscious action by the rower. For example, with a direct headwind, the stroke is raised to help counteract getting pushed backwards by the wind and vice versa with a tail wind. Actually what is usually changed is the drive/recovery ratio. The rate goes up in a headwind because the recovery time is reduced to minimize momentum loss. With a tail wind a longer recovery lets you get more run for each stroke, taking better advantage of the push from the wind.

If the wind is several degrees off a direct headwind, it is necessary to pull harder with the leeward oar to keep from veering off course. Off center tailwinds create a similar but reverse pattern. The stern will slew to the lee and extra pull with the windward oar is needed to compensate. With the apparent wind square on amidships, the boat will tend to drift off course sideways, so that it is necessary to head just a bit to the windward to keep on course.

All of the wind effects depend on the design of the boat. The lower the profile of the boat, the less effect there is from the wind. Boats designed for rough water generally have a high profile compared to a flat water racing shell because the higher freeboard provides more stability even though it makes for a bigger wind effect.

Since pace is the inverse of speed, it depends on which speed is meant, speed through the water (which can be measured with a speed coach) or speed over the bottom (which can be measured with a GPS unit). Flat water gives the rower a chance to work at optimum pace. With rough seas, energy is lost fighting the waves and having to raise the blades higher to clear the wave tops. Optimum pace is unattainable on rough water. It is rare to have smooth water and no wind in open water races and the conditions vary along most courses and with time as well.

Clearly there is a whopping difference between OTW and OTE rowing. The exercise is similar, but the execution is like night and day.

Bob S., beached OTW rower.

[PaulG]

Yes. What Bob said.

I would estimate my rating as being the low 20s. But it varied a lot as I adapted to local conditions and looked over my shoulder to navigate. Bob is right that pace and rate will vary depending on local conditions. Going with the current I try to take long, strong strokes at a lower rate as the motion of the water relative to the hull is slow. Going into the current you have to pick up the rate and be very fast at the catch as the water is moving under your hull very quickly. I tend to shorten my stroke and keep the oars moving me forward as much as possible when going into a strong current.

A recent training row brought this home. After rowing with a strong ebb tide on the Merrimack River from Haverhill down to Merrimacport I turned around and headed back upriver into the strong current. I was barely making headway relative to the riverbank as the water flowed quickly under my hull. As I approached the Rocks Village Bridge I decided for unknown reasons (now) to go under a somewhat small passage area between two abutments. I was crawling my way upriver trying to keep the bow pointed directly into the current. if you get slightly off center you risk getting turned and swept downriver. As I approached the bridge there was a powerboat on a mooring yawing wildly in the current. Of course as soon as I approached it, the boat turned into me and I missed a stroke. Quickly, my natural reaction was to get the oars back in the water as fast as possible and with several quick short strokes I got away from the powerboat and past the bridge. As Bob said, you react unconsciously to the conditions.

[Bob S.]

Yeah - currents as well. I had forgotten about that. Most of my scullinging has been on waters which have had only minimal tidal flow, so I haven't had to fight the kind of thing that Paul described. The Long Beach Rowing Association dock is on a corner where a flood control channel joins an arm of Alamitos Bay. Most of the time, the main current is a very moderate tidal flow. Once in while, when there has been a heavy rainfall in the area drained by that channel, there is a heavy outflow in the channel. That combined with an outgoing tide creates a fair flow past the dock. It makes landing a bit trickier than usual, but it has very little effect on rowing on the Bay itself. There is a noticeable difference if you row up and down the channel, but it is not a big problem.

Here is a screen shot of a GoogleEarth view of the intersection. It is about as big as the forum will allow (128 kb is the stated limit). The clubhouse is on the upper corner. The dock can be seen as a small strip of brown sticking out from that corner. The broad channel is part of Alamitos Bay and the upper end of it, going off to the left is what is left of the Marine Stadium which was dredged and built for the 1932 Olympics in Los Angeles. The channel coming in from the right is a flood control channel. The other two arms loop around and meet, enclosing Naples Island, the lowest corner of the intersection. It is about 4 km around the island and a typical workout is 1-5 "islands." The main hazards are the occasionally heavy traffic and numerous docks and buoys that seem to jump out in front of you when you least expect them. Yeah, we all knew where they were, but it was still easy to slip up. A strict harbor patrol held the wake problem down a bit, but there were still occasional violators to contend with.

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Bob S.

[PaulG]

I'm on the beach too for awhile. Last weekend I was completing an 8 mile row and decided to do a series of power 10s. It felt good at the time but power 10s are not a good idea in a heavy boat. The extra load put my back out and now I have to rest it. There are no more competitions nearby until September as far as I can tell.

Paul

[PaulG]

The Blackburn Challenge was held on July 20th and the first to cross the line was a quad manned by Besser, Bayley, Hovey, and Zosuls who finished the 20+ mile open water around Cape Ann Massachusetts in 2:23:08. Photographs of the race can be found at
http://www.flickr.com/photos/wingsandwa ... 766231655/
I’m pretty sure the winners are the four guys and a boat you see on the first page in in photos DSC5414 to 5422. Anyone know these guys are and what type of boat they are rowing in? From the pictures it sure looks like they have rowed together. Their winning time was 2:23:08. Second place overall and close behind at 2:25:32 was Dorian Wolter in an Epic V14 high performance sea kayak. I find it amazing that he beat the rest of the multi sliding seat boats. He’s in photos DSC 5824-5829. Third place in 2:29:07 was captured by Coyne and Bohrer in a Maas double. They are in photos DSC 6130-6149.
Weather conditions were close to ideal and if anything, were too hot. Someday I will try this race. People who have done it say the key is pacing. Go slow enough and you will finish.

[PaulG]

Saturday brought the last spasm of summer so we assembled on the strand for the Slocum River Challenge starting at Demarest Lloyd State Park in South Dartmouth Mass. This is a 2-mile race sponsored by the Lloyd Center for the Environment, an organization worth your environmental donation dollar. http://lloydcenter.org/. This is the third time I have entered this well organized race and it is among my favorite. The Slocum River estuary is stunningly beautiful and Demarest Lloyd State Park is among Massachusetts’ hidden treasures. At low tide acres of sand flats are exposed making it a great place for kids to explore.

The race started just upriver from the state park near the Lloyd center. It was a 2-mile loop course, up and back, with one set of buoys delineating the course. You leave the buoys to the port side of boat coming and going. I had entered this race twice before and by now had a strategy. The first time I had neither skill nor a plan and floundered about. The second time I had a plan but not the skill to execute it. This time I was ready. The race course is roughly “C” shaped with the concave side of the C headed upriver and the convex side downriver. The plan was to come close to the first buoys headed upriver and then row in a straight across the concave side of the C for the turnaround point. On the way back down I wanted to hug the buoys on the convex side. All the way along the race I enjoyed the scenery with rock outcroppings and salt marsh vegetation.

The boats went off at 30 second intervals so there were no scenes of mayhem at the start for the NASCAR fans. I got a good rolling start past the race committee boat that marked both the start and finish line. As I started I had a couple goals: I wanted to beat my previous times and see if I could close the gap between me and the skinny sliding seat boats. I decided to row as if I were after the course record, whatever that was. My plan went fairly well, but I might have strayed little too far away from the buoys on the way up because I approached the turnaround point at a shallow angle and may have rowed a longer distance than necessary. It could have been for the better as I did not have to make a sharp almost 180 degree turn for the turnaround, so I really don’t know. On the way back I hugged the buoys on the convex side of the C but did not seem to be gaining on the skinny boats. All the way along the race I was getting good pressure on the stretchers that I hoped was translating into pressure on the oars and faster speed. I only remember on bad stroke which is a huge improvement for me. After the last buoy I took a beeline for the race committee boat and finished so close to it that I clipped the anchor line with my port oar just as I crossed the line. My navigation has really improved and I was tired so I knew I put an effort in.

I watched my wife compete in the touring kayak class and we headed back to the beach and loaded up the car for the short trip to the Lloyd Center for lunch and the awards. Before I started I knew that I was the only competitor in my division (Masters, Open Water Class 1) so I was going to win. My early registration must have frightened everyone else off, that’s the only possible explanation. As my name was called out for winning my class the race director paused and added “That’s also a course record for that class”. Well that was a surprise to me so now I have to go back next year to defend my record.

I'll post a link to pictures once the Lloyd Center has them up.

In two weeks I'll be in the Plymouth Bay Race and will post an account if there is enough interest.

[mikvan52]

Watch out, Paul...
If you advertise your record, we'll come gunning for you!

(ps: great job!)

[PaulG]

Not so fast kiddo....or at least I may not have been so fast. The official results do not indicate that I set a new course record like the race director said. However, the same person, final time, and date is listed as course records for both the Class 1 and Class 3 open water shells. Unless he was in two boats at the same time, I don't quite see how that could be and I asked the race people to research the old records.

Regardless of all that, the final results and some great pictures of a beautiful September day of rowing on the Slocum River estuary are found below. Scroll almost all the way to the bottom for the pictures.



Paul G

http://lloydcenter.org/lloyd-center-regatta/

[PaulG]

Ancient oracles were consulted and crumbling manuscripts were unearthed, but it did turn out that I set a course record in the Slocum River Regatta for Men's Masters Class 1 open waer shells. Good thing the previous record holder had some penalty time assessed against him. Tomorrow I start training seriously to defend my record next year.

On Oct 5 I was in the Plymouth Bay "Row for the Rock", but again was the only person in my class. I might have to take up golf. If there are any pictures I will post a link if people like to see rowers in various open water dories, whaleboats and pilot gigs.

The Head of the Wier will be held on Nov 2 and that usually gets a good turnout.

Paul

[PaulG]

Saturday morning I was on the water by 8:30 with the intention of rowing 12 miles on the tidal portion of the Merrimack River from Haverhill down to Newburyport. This was no whim; I planned to take advantage of an ebb tide all the way down. The weather was cool with almost no wind. The tide changed shortly after I started from slack high to ebb and I fairly quickly made it down to the newly refurbished Rocks Village Bridge that crosses the river from the Haverhill-Merrimac line to West Newbury. The passage under the bridge was uneventful and soon I was past Merrimacport and closing in on Amesbury and past the Lowell Boat Shop who earlier hosted an open water race. Along the way I passed within 40 ft of a bald eagle sitting on a branch eating breakfast. The eagle never looked up and I continued downriver to the Whittier Bridge (Rte 95). Now bridges are usually constructed at narrow points in the river to minimize costs (except the Tappan Zee Bridge which was located by Governor Dewey to be beyond the jurisdiction of Robert A. Moses). At narrow points of the river, current speed increases which is something I hadn’t completely factored in. I had to dodge construction barges, bridge abutments and oncoming boat traffic as I passed under the Whittier and Chain Bridges. Then things got really interesting as I shot downriver like a greased watermelon seed. The river narrowed further and the current increased. To keep any resemblance of steering ability I had to keep the boat speed faster than the current speed. As boats, moorings, and navigation markers approached I felt like I was skiing backwards through a slalom course although I would have had more control on skis. Seriously that may have been the fastest that boat ever moved as I aimed my way downhill making course corrections every 15-20 m at a stroke. Eventually the river widened, current slowed and I made my way to the boat ramp. Next time I turn around at the Whittier Bridge and head back upriver. That will be a 20 mile row if I ever make it and it might be easier on me than the last two miles to Newburyport. Bridges are among the many reasons I will never row at HOCR. Good luck to those that do.

[fishbust1]

Been enjoying reading of your adventures Paul.
I guess I live on the wrong side of the Sound. We do not have all those fun races here. It is all me rowing in the Bay on the south shore of Long Island. Not another rowing shell to be seen anywhere. When people see my boat on my truck they ask me if it is a kayak. There are a few school clubs on the north shore, was a member of one for a year until I bought my own boat, an old Small Craft to start out with, got a really good deal on it and a year later actually sold it for much more and paid a bunch towards a new shell for me. These days I row my Wintech's, have a 21 (5 yrs) and now a 24 as of last week. Love it. I row OTW as much as possible on weekends in Spring and Fall, work a whole lot during summer. Winter is for the C2 erg and also weekdays.

Keep posting your adventures, very good reads. Keep the pics coming too. I can identify most hulls on sight and like seeing them and who is using what and where and in what real life conditions.

- Joe.

[PaulG]

Mr. Fish: Thanks for reading. You may just have to move to New England to take advantage of the open water races.

Do you have any idea what the 4 man boat is in photos DSC5417 and DSC5418 is in the link below?
http://www.flickr.com/photos/wingsandwa ... 766231655/

Those guys won the Blackburn Challenge overall this year.

These are images from last year's Head of the Weir, taken the day before Tropical Strom Sandy. I plan to compete again this Saturday.

[PaulG]

Last Saturday I participated in the achingly beautiful Head of the Weir race on the Weir River estuary between Hingham and Hull Massachusetts. I grew up in Hingham and it was great to come back there for second time (see earlier description of the last year’s race). Wow, has my hometown changed and for the better, at least on the surface. The dairy farms are gone, but the farmhouses have been restored. I digress.

The well-organized race began at the Hingham-Hull line and proceeded north along the Weir River estuary to the wind turbine and old Coast Guard Station at the north tip of Hull at the entrance to Boston Harbor. Before we started, the race director warned us about two choke points, one of which was under a bridge. I have an aversion to rowing under bridges and the race director said this is a fun race and there is no point to forcing the right or way at one of the choke points. Before the start I spoke to several of the competitors in the single sliding seat division and had the pleasure to meet Paul Pugliese who was also in an Echo won his division on the Blackburn Challenge. There was another guy in a custom Van Dusen who was probably going to set a course record given the absolutely flat-ass calm conditions. Last year’s winner in a Peinert Dolphin was also present. This race did not distinguish by class among sliding seat singles so we were all in the same class (or boat). We went off at 30-second intervals with the Van Dusen and Paul P in front of me and Mr. Dolphin behind. I got a good rolling start and took the early bends of the river well. As I approached the bridge with a quick glance over my shoulder I could see that I was overtaking a single kayak. It didn’t take much calculus to realize that with our two different rates I was going to overtake her…under the bridge. With the race director’s words echoing in my head I considered what to do. I had a good rhythm and lots of speed so I let my competitive nature take the lead and I went for the pass under the bridge. Ms. Kayaker held the center and was a little surprised and I don’t think too happy with me as I passed her under the bridge. As I emerged on the other side I spotted a glacial erratic near the bank and directly in my course. Since that boulder had been there since the last ice age, and I just arrived, I did not think it was going to move. I headed back to the center and one spectator shouted out “good course correction” as I moved into Ms. Kayaker’s course. I don’t think she had to slow down but the best thing I could do was get way out of there and apologize later. I’ve learned that open water rowing is no place for the passive and I aggressively increased the pace.

Things were going well and I was overtaking several 22 ft Alden Stars who started earlier. One of the ladies in an Alden Star decided to take off her shirt as I passed revealing an orange tank top underneath. Despite the temporary distraction from Ms. Lorelei I kept to my oars. Mr. Dolphin approached from my stern and overtook me with such ease that he had time to take a picture and then text it to his friends. All I saw after that was his wake and that was only for a little while. We entered the open water of Hull Bay and I stayed close to the Hull Shore to keep out of the wind. A kayaker called out a warning about a floating board and I kept clear.

On this race I have always had a hard time finding the finish line. It is located parallel to the race course and requires a hard right hand turn at the right time. I could hear the horn sounding as people crossed the line but I still could not see the line. I increased my rate for a final sprint and eventually I located the two correct piers and made my turn into land and heard a horn sound. I coasted and then realized it wasn’t for me! A few more hard pulls and then I heard the horn for me. With my heart pounding I decided to make a quick estimation of my heart rate. A 15 second sample indicated that I was up to 160 beats/minute which is equivalent to what I would see after a hard erg workout. More on this later. After the race we had great chowder and chili in the old Coast Guard Station and I met many old and new friends. We watched the beautiful wooden pilot gigs and dories come in. The results were posted later and the guy in the Van Dusen won the race and set a new course record. I came in fourth among the sliding seats but if there had been classes by length I would have come in second to Mr, Pugliese and there is no shame in that. I never did find Ms. Kayaker or Ms. Lorelei which makes me wonder if they ever existed or were they a product of rowing at my anaerobic threshold.