Weather:  Started sunny, but clouded up while I was rowing.  Warm, around 70F.  Wind S to SE building from 3 to 6 mph during the session.

Plan:

1. Drills, short warmup
2. 7 x 1000 intervals
3. Rate: r24 –> r26 –> r28 –> r30 –> r28 –> r26 –> r24
4. Pace:  No real target.
5. Technique: I wanted to hit the rates as closely as possible and if possible increase pace with increased rate, but the focus was on trying to maintain form at higher rates, especially getting further out to the catch and maintaining clean finishes.  Standing start for each, but not a full racing start.  Essentially half pressure, but the same stroke rate and sequence.
6. ~500m rests, plus a quick drink.

Pace:

Rate:

Start_|_Dist_|_Split_|_Pace_|_Strks__|_Rate_|_DPS_|_AvgHR_|_Remarks
00020_|_0980_|_05:12_|_2:39.0_|_103___|_19.8_|_09.5_|_129___|_warmup
01000_|_1000_|_04:22_|_2:11.1_|_106___|_24.3_|_09.4_|_159___|_r24 tail wind
02000_|_0500_|_03:19_|_3:18.7_|_054___|_16.3_|_09.3_|_132___|_rest
02500_|_1000_|_04:16_|_2:08.0_|_114___|_26.7_|_08.8_|_166___|_r26 head wind
03500_|_0400_|_02:52_|_3:35.5_|_050___|_17.4_|_08.0_|_137___|_rest
03900_|_1000_|_04:10_|_2:04.9_|_118___|_28.4_|_08.5_|_171___|_r28 tail wind
04900_|_0600_|_04:02_|_3:21.5_|_071___|_17.6_|_08.5_|_144___|_rest
05500_|_1000_|_04:15_|_2:07.7_|_129___|_30.3_|_07.8_|_175___|_r30 head wind
06500_|_0400_|_03:07_|_3:54.2_|_052___|_16.6_|_07.7_|_136___|_rest
06900_|_1000_|_04:14_|_2:06.9_|_120___|_28.4_|_08.3_|_172___|_r28 tail wind
07900_|_0600_|_03:50_|_3:11.7_|_073___|_19.0_|_08.2_|_142___|_rest
08500_|_1000_|_04:26_|_2:13.2_|_119___|_26.8_|_08.4_|_173___|_r26 head wind
09500_|_0400_|_02:47_|_3:28.6_|_050___|_18.0_|_08.0_|_143___|_rest
09900_|_1000_|_04:24_|_2:12.2_|_111___|_25.2_|_09.0_|_172___|_r24 tail wind
10900_|_2420_|_13:49_|_2:51.3_|_280___|_20.3_|_08.6_|_147___|_feet out

Dist__|_Time__|_Pace___|_Strks_|_SPM__|_DPS__|_AvgHR_|_Remarks
00980_|_05:12_|_2:39.0_|_103___|_19.8_|_09.5_|_129___|_warmup
07000_|_30:08_|_2:09.1_|_817___|_27.1_|_08.6_|_170___|_Main set
02900_|_19:57_|_3:26.4_|_350___|_17.5_|_08.3_|_139___|_rest meters
02420_|_13:49_|_2:51.3_|_280___|_20.3_|_08.6_|_147___|_cool down
13300_|_09:06_|_2:35.9_|_1550___|_22.4_|_08.6_|_153___|_Total

This was a good workout.  I worked very hard in the 28,30,and 28 reps but kept it together technique wise.  My HR responded very differently today compared to Sunday.  Today, it just glided upwards during each rep and I never felt that awful drowning feeling, even though I was pushing quite hard in the middle reps.

I quite enjoyed the first two reps and focused very closely on technique.

The first r28 was proportionately harder but still I was able to hold it together.  The last 250m of that rep felt very good.  I lightened up at the catch, but kept the strokes long.  You can see the pace increase by couple seconds at that point with the rate staying right on.  I think this is similar to what Ben commented on from my race videos.  This was the point where I started to count down strokes to the end and really worked on keeping my form together.

The r30 was hard.  The wind was slowly building and I really noticed it in this rep.  The boat felt very heavy and the paces were slow.  I focused on sticking to the rate and keeping my reach at the catch, and let the pace do whatever it was going to do.  In the last 200m or so, I came into the wind shadow of a headland and I sped up a little, but this rep was very taxing, even though it was slow.

The next r28 was with the wind and with the damage that I had done to my legs with the prior rep, I stuck to the plan of working on hitting the rate and not worrying about the pace. The rep started poorly.  I started right after one of the huge weed harvesters went by in the opposite direction and I hit the wake on my 3rd stroke after the start.  It took me a couple of stroke to get myself back into the groove, but after that it was just a matter of keeping my eye on the rate and the river and making sure that I kept getting forward for the catch.

Now the fatigue was really setting in, and I knew that the r26 rep was going to be going into the wind.  Again, I stuck to the plan.  Focus on rate.  Don’t fret the pace.  It was over reasonably quickly.  The r24 with the tail wind was just the period on the end of the sentence.  It was difficult  to get my rate down to 24.  It wanted to creep up and I ended up averaging r25 for this one.

Having finished the reps, I now noticed how sore my legs were and my butt was really hurting.  I took my feet out of the shoes and rowed with feet out back to the dock, and literally crawled out of the boat.

This was a good session.  I can build on this.

Tomorrow:  Steady State