I've rowed a ton on my C2, and just got back from sculling camp (first time on the water in 20 years).
The first thing I had to learn on the water was to grab the handle with my fingers instead of a total-hand-death-grip, which is all too easy to do on the erg.
Would there be a way to make a handle that allows feathering so that we could work on keeping the wrist flat on the drive and proper feathering technique. I imagine you would have to have an articulation between the two ends of the handle and the middle (a central piece connected to the chain, and two rotating pieces where you actually grip). Any way to make it "clunk" into the two positions, the way the C2 sleeves clunk into place on the C2 oarlocks?
Feathering handle
Feathering handle
[img]http://www.c2ctc.com/sigs/img1225814673.png[/img]
A lot rowers raise their hands on the drive and lower them on the recovery. Personally much perfer to keep the hands at the same constant level on both the drive and the recovery. Even in college on the old style ergs with the sweep oars, I didn't bother feathering.
I feel trying to mimic the feather is fairly pointless--it is wasted energy and the risk of developing a bad habit is too great without the feedback of the water. Seems like your problem is that you had a death grip on the erg. After sculling camp practice just hanging on with your fingers and keeping your forearm relaxed.
However, it would not be too difficult to design a handle with a multi-position ratchet for the erg so one could feather.
I feel trying to mimic the feather is fairly pointless--it is wasted energy and the risk of developing a bad habit is too great without the feedback of the water. Seems like your problem is that you had a death grip on the erg. After sculling camp practice just hanging on with your fingers and keeping your forearm relaxed.
However, it would not be too difficult to design a handle with a multi-position ratchet for the erg so one could feather.