Our athletes want to race and compete. Though motivated, they lack knowledge and experience. Coaches improve their rowers and crews by providing this knowledge and experience. We bring perspective from outside the boat and should look at the bigger picture always. We help our athletes best by identifying repeatedly the factors limiting performance and addressing them above all other concerns.
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Athletes aside, most programs have substantial limitations. One or more of these may be addressable and, if remedied, result in a profound increase in speed. Survey the scene, compare your situation to those of your peer competitors (or those you want as your competitors), and see what can be done. Team culture? Recruiting? More coaches? Water time? Equipment? Admittedly, money plays a big role in the success of any program, but some limiting factors can be tackled without it.
When thinking of limiting factors, we think more commonly of what’s happening in the boat. Here, it’s valuable to ascertain whether it’s limitations in skill, fitness and power, or psychology that are holding the crew back the most. If it’s skill, then differentiate between style and substance. Substance involves the laws of physics. Style is your way of doing things. Don’t fall into the trap of trying to dictate style at the expense of teaching substance. It’s shocking how much time and energy are spent on the minutiae of rowing at the expense of performing the basics better.
If you’re not sure where to start, begin by making sure the boat is rigged appropriately for your athletes. Comfort in the boat is a precursor to performance. The next level of comfort involves stability of the shell when it’s moving. Stability provides a level platform for your rowers all through the stroke cycle. If that’s adequate, then everyone—and I mean everyone—can pull harder.
Yes, power is generally the ultimate limiting factor. If you’re pleased with the power output, help your rowers do a better job getting connected earlier in the drive. The front end is the ultimate technical limiting factor, and it can be coached. If still in doubt, enlist a more experienced coach to view your crew and offer his or her opinion on what’s limiting their racing. A fresh set of eyes can unlock amazing opportunities for increased speed.
Sometimes the limiting factor may be just one athlete. Here your options are either to replace the athlete or coach up and improve the athlete. Replacing is easiest but not always available. Coaching up is harder, but by identifying the single greatest limitation of your athletes, you can speed their development. Better to focus narrowly on their limiting factors than overwhelm them by addressing every issue.
Whether with your overall program, your crew, or a single athlete, exercise your coaching perspective by identifying the biggest limiting factor to successful performance. Once identified, address it continuously until progress is achieved and a new, but less detrimental, limiting factor emerges.
Then repeat the process.
