A warm November

It's really hard not to be out on the water when it looks like this. Just two days ago. Mid 60s, level low and water flat. I know that I'll be wishing for these kind of conditions sometime in March, when the river looks more like a whitewater rapids course. Instead, I sent the boys out for a run.

Am I cruel? No, not yet. The Central Biathalon is coming up in a week, and the guys need to be ready for a long run, so off they went, with much groaning. We're not the Central cross-country team, but the running does them some good. Runs like this build mental toughness in ways my shouting can't.

Now, fellows, we need to talk about timing and concentration, just a little......














I'm not putting these shots up here to embarrass anyone or put down my own crew. I just want to make a point. Concentration is very important in rowing. I've said before that a crew is like the offensive line in a football game. They have to practice together in order to be successful. However, unlike football, a crew must do everything in unison, all the time. The concentration level required is very high.

This is a very dusty, old cliche, but it's true: "Practice doesn't make perfect. Perfect practice makes perfect." --V. Lombardi.

Concentration isn't something that can just be turned on when the time comes in a race. It has to be practiced. Every day, every stroke, every lift, every stretch. So, let's lock this timing and concentration down.

A good day

I've been looking forward to this sight. Two freshman 8s for Central on the water. Though this was our last day on the water for the fall, I'll be referring to today throughout the winter. Successful crews have competition at practice. Successful crews have lots of novices to keep the momentum of past years moving forward.

As we start winter training, I'm in a very hopeful mood. I see the makings of a good class of guys. They get along well and pull hard. As can be seen in this photo and the others I've uploaded to the album, there are technical issues aplenty to correct. Somehow, that is comforting to me. If there was a lack of courage or belief in themselves, I would be concerned. If they were apathetic about practice or didn't enjoy the sport, I'd be concerned. If they didn't pull hard, I'd be angry. Endurance, pain tolerance and technical issues can be improved.

As Ron White once said, "You can't fix stupid." I'll extend that remark to "You can't fix yellow." These boys are smart and have courage. That's a great place to start the winter.

Categories: Rowing, Photo, CC, Teamwork

Crank Calls 2

Thanks fellas, but I don't need a pizza tonight.

Categories: Misc

Cold Weather Rowing

We're on the water this week, and the weather is looking good for the next few days. I'm sort of concerned about this; I would prefer colder temperatures. Why? The boys need the "seasoning" of rowing in cold weather.

It's really simple. People in general and teenage boys in particular don't learn when they are told something. If I tell somebody that it is very cold outside and they need a coat, they'll pull a jacket out of the closet. If they stick their head out the door and get a facefull of sleet, they'll pull out the winter parka with cloves and a hat.

Thus and so, the guys need a really cold, nasty practice. With wind, a little rain and some rough water. Those conditions will come during the spring racing season, and they need to have the equipment to deal with rowing in wintry hell. More importantly, they need the attitude to row in bad conditions. Rowing in the nasty cold takes a special mindset. You have to say to yourself, yep its cold. But they're colder. They don't want to be out here, but I just want to beat them, so let's race. Crews that pull hard and lower on the rating will win in nasty water. Plus, it doesn't hurt to have the right boat.

Pittsburgh crews must row in bad conditions because the weather doesn't get nice around here until mid May. Here's a football analogy: who is happier on Christmas Eve, when it's 33 degrees and the sleet is slanting down in Cleveland, the Browns or the Tampa Bay Bucs? The Browns may stink this year (and the Bucs may not be much better), but I'm picking the team that spends more time in nasty conditions.

So, after all those links, here's a few that our readers might be able to use. Parents, here is a great list of Christmas ideas.

Pogies, those hand covers that won't come between the skin and the oar.
Fleece long socks, which I liked better than long tights because they don't bunch up under the knee at the catch.
Under Armour. Man, I wish we had this company when I was rowing. Great stuff. Look over the long tights, and cold weather shirts.
Rain Suits. What do these have to do with rowing? Simple. If an athlete is wet, cold and shivering when they push off the dock, then they are already beaten. A lot of time is spent sitting around dripping tents or walking around in the elements. I've seen hundreds of athletes with great "foul weather" rowing gear in their backpacks arrive at the course with a water "resistant" jacket and jeans. Nothing else. They are soaked to the skin and blue in 30 minutes. How can anyone compete then?
Mustang Suit. Do any rowers need this? No. The team supplies our coxswains with suits. But there is nothing warmer or more comfortable. I love mine. Just putting a shout out to Mustang for a great product.
Waterproof sleeping bag. Expensive? Yep. Am I insisting on this? Not yet. Look around a little. But I'll leave a little thought here. We put up tents for the athletes to rest in and keep out of the weather. Those tents are usually near the water so everyone can watch. Tents near the water are usually on some type of slope, so water will drain through the tent on the ground. People might not be getting rained on, but anyone and anything on the ground will sometimes be sitting in freezing mud, if not flowing water. Think about that when you're taking a sleeping back on a trip to keep warm. Hard to keep warm and dry if the exterior is cloth.

Categories: Rowing

It's ON

THE FOX CHAPEL CREW CLUB HEREBY OFFICALLY CHALLENGES THE CENTRAL CATHOLIC CREW CLUB TO THE 2^ND ANNUAL ALLEGHENY BOAT RACE

FOX CHAPEL VS. CENTRAL CATHOLIC

THE ALLEGHENY BOAT RACE

TO ESTABLISH THE FASTEST HIGH SCHOOL CREW IN WESTERN PENNSYLVANIA

When: THE 4^th OF NOVEMBER 2006 2:30 PM

THE CHALLENGE:

1^ST VARSITY 8+ - 4 MILES

2^ND VARSITY 8+- 3 MILES

3^RD VARSITY 4+ 1.5 MILES

1^ST NOVICE 8+ 1500 METERS

2^ND NOVICE 8+ 1500 METERS

THE STAKES:

TO THE VICTOR: BRAGGING RIGHTS AND THE SHIRTS OFF THE LOSERS’ BACKS

SHOULD YOU CHOOSE TO ACCEPT THIS CHALLENGE, ATTACH A SIGNED COPY OF THIS DOCUMENT TO THE FRONT OF THE FOX CHAPEL CABINET NO LATER THAN OCTOBER 24, 2006

“The strong do what they will; the weak suffer what they must.”

-Thucydides

CAPITANS 06-07 FC CREW

CAPITANS 06-07 CC CREW

Categories: Rowing, Regattas, CC, FC

Mentors, Part II

I don't know when Justin decided he had something special going on in 1996. The group of guys he recruited for that class weren't big "names" in the rowing community. Hans had been on the US Junior National team, and I had been on the selecion list. I don't know how else one recruited rowers back then. Nobody from Yale ever came out and watched me row. Jamie, a former women's coach in Cincinnati then working with the Yale crew, had told Justin about my insane lifting habits. That was it. I have no idea how we were all found.

The personalities couldn't have been more different. Prep school boys, west coast dudes, a lunatic Yankee fan from New York, a Philly kid who acted like a surfer, an uppity Brit and some hick from Kentucky (me). The lightweight team had recruited two coxswains and Justin managed to get Steve to join us. Eight recruits and one perfectionist coxswain. Four different rowing styles.

Justin let us figure each other out before he really started working with us. His hands were full teaching the novice guys how to row, so we were tossed in with the returning varsity members. (Talk about being thrown into the deep end of the pool!) We spent some time together those first few weeks of school, getting to know each other and deciding if we could stand these guys. Steve and I were roomates, so we had to get along. The rest of us would go out once a week or so, and have dinner together every night after practice.

Justin was more of a big brother type. We nicknamed him the "gerbil on crack" (sorry) for his high energy level. He taught us, but with enthusiasm. "You need to really sit up straight, Skuban. You'll get more reach that way, saw real big logs through the water, really make that boat fly." Everyone had a different issue that needed to be fixed. I had been taught to row with my outside thumb on top of the handle, a habit that drove Justin nuts. All of our styles had to be broken back down and brought in line with each other.

I want to make something very clear: Justin's masterstroke was figuring our lineup early on and leaving it mostly alone. Alex was the tallest of us, but was a brilliant stroke. I think Justin figured that out by the second practice, and nobody else ever stroked the boat. Hans and I were the strongest ergs and were six and five. I grumbled to myself, wanting my accustomed seven seat, but Steve bluntly told me my technique wasn't up to that level yet. "Jimbo" the Yankee fan sat behind me in four, and we would growl at each other through rough practices, pushing each other along. The only change Justin ever made in the lineup was switching Quentin and Nathan from seven to bow. He also put a novice into two in the spring. The core of the boat never changed, and that allowed us to build "swing" over the endless miles of training.

We came in second at the Head of the Charles, behind Harvard. Justin had set us up with some knee-high soccer socks to wear in the race, calling them "full potential." I was annoyed to lose to Harvard, especially after we started so far back in the pack. It would take a few years for me to understand what an accomplishment that second place was. Perhaps Justin had an idea then.

That crew was built for real in the winter. Justin hung a huge poster up in the training room, listing every workout result we did. Hans and I started trash-talking about erg scores, the beginning of a friendship that brought him to my wedding as best man. Our technical issues were ironed out during hours of work in Yale's rowing tanks. Saturday "hell practices" found Justin throwing us against the varsity in erg relays and "vertical death" sprints up Payne Whitney Gym. (The info in that link says "nine and one half stories tall." Trust me, each of those "half stories" has ten foot ceilings and the stairs to climb.)

I think we figured there might be something about that crew after spring break in Tampa. Wednesday morning practices were 5x1500m. Our third varsity would get a head start, then we would start with the second varsity and the lightweight first boat. Then our varsity would chase us all down. We would beat the JV every time, and the lights 4 out of 5.

Princeton was the dominant crew that year, and the Yale-Princeton-Cornell race was in Princeton that year. Justin got us really jacked up the night before, and I didn't sleep well. Our victory there brought a cocky attitude. Justin did everything he could to keep us challenged during practice leading up to Eastern Sprints. That race went wrong. Really wrong.

Princeton took off, seven seats up, taking Brown with them. We didn't catch Brown until 8oom left, and I thought we would lose. Steve didn't let us give up, and we crawled back in. Steve started our sprint at 600m out, and I remember looking down at my legs and thinking "this is going to really hurt." We pulled even with 200 to go, and people later told me Princeton's two seat had checked out by that point.

That crew was not designed to come from behind. I don't think Justin ever considered that we would be that far back. What won that race was our belief in each other, forged over months in rowing basically the same lineup, and Steve's command under pressure. While Justin hadn't predicted how that race would unfold, he had prepared that crew by letting us row together for so long.

We could do no wrong after Eastern Sprints. Training for the Harvard-Yale race was Justin's opportunity to play. We learned a flutter, raced three miles with the JV (instead of the usual freshman two), and planned our trip to Henley, an honor awarded if we won. Steve planned to win big, and drove us like he stole the boat. Our time in England was Justin unleashing a bunch of lunatics. I got a stupid haircut, was quoted in the Yale paper later on and unleashed my most violent race in the semi-finals, when we faced the team that had eliminated my high school crew the previous year. Mark had whipped us up when he faced his high school nemesis earlier in the tour, and we all responded, despite a borrowed boat and no warm-up.

Justin gave us confidence, a belief in each other that couldn't be shaken by an "off" race or unexpected events. Allowing a crew the time to "find itself" isn't always possible, but we got that opportunity and made the most of it. The best Yale freesh crew ever couldn't have happened without Justin, because he was part of the crew, like a coach should be.

Categories: Rowing, Yale, Tribute, Memories, Coaching, Personal

Crank Calls

Being associated with as many juvenile boys as this job brings me into contact with, strange phone calls are to be expected. Perhaps because I'm still pretty juvenile myself, I actually have a good time listening to what the lads come up with. (I'm not dissing the ladies, I'm sure they would be more creative than the guys. I'm just not holding my breath for a crank call from a girl.)

Tonight's call had everything needed for a great prank call. Blocked caller ID (key: how many crank calls crater due to caller ID?), a well-disguised falsetto voice and a funny premise. No, I don't want to buy any prunes. Yes, I don't think that a voice like that will sell many prunes. Are you making a suggestion, trying to sell me prunes?

Great call, whoever you were. Thanks for not calling at 2am.

Categories: Misc

What "team" means

I'm still here. I'm just no longer coaching for Pitt. Perhaps someday I'll be able to write about what's happened over the last 5 months. Many here in Pittsburgh know parts of the story, but I've kept the whole thing private. I think that I'll have to sell the movie rights to it.

Anyway, there's been a story going on here in Pittsburgh that I would like to discuss. I'm sure that anyone who watched Sportscenter is aware of the shooting of Duquesne's basketball team. The reports now point toward the usual insanity that occurs when guns are involved.

However, I'm taking this opportunity to point to these two articles. Take the time to read.

Notice anything here? A group of young men, from all over the globe, together for a sport. They've only known each other for a few weeks. They haven't even started the season. Out together, spending time with each other, they are attacked after a juvenile confrontation over somebody's girlfriend talking to them. ("You'd better not be talking to my girl" or some such like that. Please. Like women in today's society don't have the right to talk to whomever they please.)

They had turned away from the confrontation. They were leaving. They had done the right thing. And then they were shot. Senseless, insane, tragic are the words that immediately come to mind.

What I find so important, so central to the theme of this horrid chain of events is the response of these teammates. They ran towards the gunfire to pull their brothers clear. They stayed at the scene to tend to others. They gathered at the hospitals, they closed ranks with each other and together with their coaches, they are a family.

That's "team". That is what sport is supposed to bring to everyone who competes at any level. What happens at the competition is secondary. What happens off the court, field or boat, the relationships built between teammates is central to sport. "I've got your back. No matter what. No matter when. No matter why. Tomorrow, next week or ten years from now." That's "team".

Categories: Teamwork, Personal

New Tool

Google Earth. Great idea and wonderful program. An interactive satellite display of the entire planet. I've been playing with it for a month, since Emily put it on her laptop. I thought it was just a toy until I discovered the "ruler" feature, which lets you measure distances between points you click on the map, in either miles or kilometers. In many ways, this is easier than a GPS, because I wouldn't be drifting down the stream trying to take a reading.

I've been enjoying looking at old places I used to row and figuring out just how far those distances really were. Was the "Norwich row" really seven miles? How about from I-275 to the boathouse in Cincinnati? What's the distance from bridge to bridge in Pittsburgh? How far away is Sandcastle? It's all there. Cool.

The depressing part has been realizing how short those distances are. Sure, some are really 4 miles, but some rows I swore were 20 were closer to 12. Pitt kids, look up Camp Bob. Some of those days may not be as terrible as you think. It could be worse: we could be out on the main lake!

Anyone want to suggest some rows now that you can see the distance?

Categories: Rowing, Misc

Moving

Just a cool shot of the Blue Angels from the Dayton Air Show two weeks ago.

Anyway, I've got some news. For reasons many local readers know, I'm no longer coaching for Fox Chapel. I will say that I'll always have a fond memory of the time I spent with that crew, because they were the first team I ever coached. I'm still with Pitt and looking forward to the upcoming season.

Central Catholic picked me up to become the new novice coach. The head coach and I have been friendly since I'd started three years ago and I'm really excited to join this team. There is a great record of success being built at Central and I'm really looking forward to adding as much as I can. I can't thank the Diocese of Pittsburgh and the Central Parents' organization enough for taking a chance on me.

There are a few little problems with this new team. First, the head coach is also named Jay. I think that I'll get tired of us both saying "huh?" when one of the kids shouts "Jay!" Also, Jay went to Harvard. We never raced against each other, but I'm not sure what my old Yale teammates will say when it gets out that I'm working with a 'Vard.....

Categories: Rowing, Personal, CC, Photo