Yesterday, I got a buddy of mine to take video of me as I rowed under a convenient bridge so I could get a better idea of what my catch angle it. Here are the videos
From the second video, I grabbed a frame and drew some angles:
This makes it look like my catch angle is about 45 degrees. I’m not an expert, but references that I have seen say that I should be trying to get to a catch angle closer to 65 degrees. This measurement is not all that accurate, but I think that I should probably do some experimentation with decreasing my span. The only problem is that I have already cranked my oars down as short as they can go and I will need to decrease inboard when I reduce span. (Maybe it’s time to buy some shorter oars?)
Sunny, cool, dry, wind from the west 4-6mph. Really nice morning to row.
Plan: Following my Head Racing Training Plan, I have set Thursday as the day I do short intervals with short rests. Today was 3 minute intervals with 1 minute rests. The intent of these workouts is to put do more than head race meters at better than head race pace to work on rowing efficiently at the appropriate rates and to build lactate tolerance. I am doing these sessions instead of short intervals with longer rests that are typically part of a 2K training plan since I need to work on endurance improvement going into the fall and I need to get very comfortable at around 28 spm for race season.
4 x ( 3 x 3′ / 1′ paddle ) / 2′ rest (Note the 2′ rests are included to let me get the boat turned around at the end of my short stretch of river. If I try to do it in a minute, my HR never really goes down.
Rate: 24 to 26 spm
Pace: Hopefully better than 2:15
Technique: compression at the catch, rowing light.
I was having trouble with the HR pickup for the first set of intervals for some reason. I guess it might be time to clean the contacts and replace the battery (again!)
Dist__|_Time__|_Pace___|_Strks_|_SPM__|_DPS__|_AvgHR_|_Remarks
01000_|_05:46_|_2:53.2_|_105___|_18.2_|_09.5_|_112___|_warmup
08180_|_36:02_|_2:12.1_|_930___|_25.8_|_08.8_|_142___|_Main set
01680_|_11:01_|_3:16.6_|_219___|_19.9_|_07.7_|_140___|_rest meters
01340_|_08:33_|_3:11.2_|_168___|_19.7_|_08.0_|_131___|_cool down
12200_|_01:22_|_2:30.9_|_1422___|_23.2_|_08.6_|_137___|_Total
I liked this workout. It was hard, but not a near death experience. The slower intervals were generally ones where I was in the s-turn, or screwing up my approach to the bridge (The one with the 2:20.8 pace was the bridge incident. I nearly ran into the abutment!)
Over the rest of the summer, I’d like to get to the point where I can do this workout at faster than 2:10 and r28.
Tomorrow: recovery session. technique (2′ square / 2′ slow roll ups / 2′ r20) – repeat for 10K
Dist__|_Time__|_Pace___|_Strks_|_SPM__|_DPS__|_AvgHR_|_Remarks
01060_|_09:44_|_4:35.4_|_172___|_17.7_|_06.2_|_123___|_warmup
11660_|_58:13_|_2:29.8_|_1199___|_20.6_|_09.7_|_152___|_Main set
00240_|_01:37_|_3:22.1_|_027___|_16.7_|_08.9_|_124___|_rest meters
01060_|_06:01_|_2:50.1_|_119___|_19.8_|_08.9_|_139___|_cool down
14020_|_15:35_|_2:41.7_|_1517___|_20.1_|_09.2_|_147___|_Total
I basically ran out of gas at the end. The wind picked up and I started to really row slow!
Conditions: Cloudy, 70F, 75% humidity. A bit better than yesterday, but still pretty sticky. Light wind from the NW (1-2mph) which is a headwind going up river.
Plan:
4 x 2500 / 5′ rest
Rate: 24 spm
Pace: faster than 2:15
Technique: Keep rate at or above 24. Try to maintain good posture (don’t slump at the catch). Try to stay forward during the leg drive. Try to minimize layback at the finish and keep finishes clean.
Start_|_Dist_|_Split_|_Pace_|_Strks__|_Rate_|_DPS_|_AvgHR_|_Remarks
00020_|_0980_|_05:14_|_2:40.4_|_105___|_20.0_|_09.3_|_120___|_warmup
01000_|_2000_|_08:41_|_2:10.3_|_217___|_25.0_|_09.2_|_161___|_Int #1 (shortened)
03000_|_0900_|_05:04_|_2:48.7_|_098___|_19.4_|_09.2_|_124___|_rest
03900_|_2500_|_10:59_|_2:11.8_|_276___|_25.1_|_09.1_|_168___|_Int #2 (head wind)
06400_|_0600_|_04:05_|_3:23.9_|_072___|_17.7_|_08.3_|_130___|_rest
07000_|_2500_|_11:05_|_2:13.1_|_278___|_25.1_|_09.0_|_171___|_Int #3 (tail wind)
09500_|_0400_|_03:04_|_3:50.5_|_056___|_18.2_|_07.1_|_131___|_rest
09900_|_2600_|_12:07_|_2:19.9_|_288___|_23.8_|_09.0_|_166___|_Int #4 (head, bailed on the rep twice)
12500_|_1320_|_07:41_|_2:54.5_|_166___|_21.6_|_08.0_|_139___|_feet out
Dist__|_Time__|_Pace___|_Strks_|_SPM__|_DPS__|_AvgHR_|_Remarks
00980_|_05:14_|_2:40.4_|_105___|_20.0_|_09.3_|_120___|_warmup
09600_|_42:53_|_2:14.0_|_1059___|_24.7_|_09.1_|_167___|_Main set
01900_|_12:13_|_3:12.8_|_226___|_18.5_|_08.4_|_128___|_rest meters
01320_|_07:41_|_2:54.5_|_166___|_21.6_|_08.0_|_139___|_cool down
13800_|_08:01_|_2:27.9_|_1556___|_22.9_|_08.9_|_153___|_Total
Quick warmup. Then right into the first rep. 24 spm felt good and I was able to maintain much closer to 2:10 than 2:15, which was nice to see. I had to maneuver around a paddle boarder and I passed a sculler going the other way in the s-turn, but other than that, I was just counting strokes and hoping for it all to be over.
As I approached the Prospect Street bridge, I saw that another sculler was stopped in my path to the proper arch. I needed to talk to this guy anyway, so I decided to stop this piece at 2K. 8:41 @ r24 – I’m happy with that.
The sculler is Bruce. He and I both launch from the same place. I wanted to ask him if he could take a quick video of me from a bridge so I can check my catch angle. He was ready and willing to help out!
I paddled out to the Moody Street dam and turned around for interval #2. This one was a little bit slower with the touch of headwind, and it certainly hurt a bit at the end, but no drama.
I paddled to start of the next interval and had a drink of water. I was starting to feel pretty tired. But this one was with the ghost of a tail wind. I was starting to really feel the fatigue and the pace sagged a bit in the middle. But once I went through the Prospect Street bridge, I pushed the rate up a bit and brought the pace to around 2:10.
The last two intervals had pushed my HR up above 95% of HRR and I was really depleted. But I set out on the last interval. The head wind was a bit stronger, but still probably below 4mph. Right before I went back under the Prospect Street bridge, my starboard oar touched bottom on two strokes in a row. The river level is about a foot below normal, I guess I need to steer a different line through here until it comes back up.
After the bridge, I was really struggling. My form was starting to fall apart and my splits were getting worse. I made it to beginning of the s-turn and I decided that I had had enough. So, I coasted to a stop. I immediately regretted it. I started up again and pushed through the turn, but bailed again about 30 strokes into the last stretch, and then picked up again after a couple of paddled strokes. From there it was just grinding it out to the end. All of my drama cost me about 30 seconds on the time for the whole interval.
This was hard work. My training over the past month has been very sprint focused, and I think I have some aerobic base building to do.
When you put it all together, the average pace for the session was 2:14. I think next I do this, I will probably aim at about a 2:13 or so.
Tomorrow: 4 x 3000 / 1′ rest (HR cap at 80% HRR – 157 bpm)
Conditions: Light wind from the west, built during the session to about 7mph at the end. This was a head wind going upriver. It was also HOT and HUMID. Around 80F and >80% humidity.
Dist__|_Time__|_Pace___|_Strks_|_SPM__|_DPS__|_AvgHR_|_Remarks
00980_|_05:27_|_2:46.6_|_107___|_19.7_|_09.2_|_114___|_warmup
04000_|_19:56_|_2:29.5_|_371___|_18.6_|_10.8_|_143___|_r18
04000_|_19:24_|_2:25.6_|_393___|_20.3_|_10.2_|_154___|_r20
02000_|_09:17_|_2:19.3_|_207___|_22.3_|_09.7_|_162___|_r22
01000_|_04:16_|_2:07.8_|_103___|_24.2_|_09.7_|_166___|_r24
11000_|_52:53_|_2:24.2_|_1074__|_20.3_|_10.2_|_152___|_main set
00750_|_05:56_|_3:57.5_|_106___|_17.9_|_07.1_|_134___|_rest meters
01130_|_08:06_|_3:34.9_|_162___|_20.0_|_07.0_|_126___|_cool down
Overall, a good session. I did not respect the HR cap and I paid for it in the last rate ladder. The wind was building up a bit and there was a head wind. I set out trying to hit the same ~2:27ish pace at r18 as the other pieces, but I couldn’t manage it. I stopped to gather my thoughts for a few seconds and started up again at a more moderate pace.
In future, I think I need to row to a much more strict HR cap or the point of the workout is lost.
I am visiting Linz Austria, which is on the Danube river. So, while I when I was on my way, I googled “rowing club linz”, and remarkably, got a hit for Linzer Ruderverein Ister. More remarkably, the boathouse was 250 meters away from my hotel. Even more remarkably, after I arrived, I walked over to the club, met a nice gentleman, who hooked me up with another gentleman, who found someone to row with me this morning. The club is at the end of a 1km long inlet, shown with the pin on this view.
I met Antonis, a friendly greek expatriot physicist who has been working in Austria for the last 7 years. He was an very good rower, much better than I am, and has been rowing since 1992. We went into the boat storage area (which incidentally is a concrete bunker that used to be a military installation), and he picked out a beautiful wooden double for us to use. The boat was apparently used by the Austrian Team in the 1984 Olympics in Los Angeles. It has been meticulously cared for since then because it felt stiff and light when we rowed it.
I rowed stroke and he was in bow.
The Danube is an impressive river. There is a significant current, I think about 4 km/h or so. So when we went up river Antonis tried to hug the bank, and then coming back down river, we tended toward the center of the river.
We rowed about 4 km upstream through downtown Linz to what he told me was the old boathouse location. It is now a private residence. Apparently up stream another few km is a world class 2K venue.
I have to admit that I was not thrilled with how well I rowed, In some stretches the boat was nicely set and running well. At other times, it was quite sloppy. I can’t help think that I dragged him down to my level. It was a terrific workout and a once in a lifetime opportunity to row in an incredible location, so I not going to get too picky about form.
Here’s a map of our row.
Here is the pace and rate
Start_|_Dist_|__Time_|_Split Pace_|_Strokes_|_SPM__|_DPS__|_Remarks
00000_|_0977_|_06:19_|_3:14.0_____|_097_____|_15.4_|_10.1_|_warmup
00977_|_4423_|_26:22_|_2:58.8_____|_523_____|_19.8_|_08.5_|_Up stream
05782_|_4153_|_15:07_|_1:49.2_____|_339_____|_22.4_|_12.3_|_Down stream
10057_|_0919_|_04:15_|_2:18.7_____|_086_____|_20.2_|_10.7_|_Cool down
Distance_|_Time__|_Pace___|_Strokes_|_SPM__|_DPS__|_Remarks
0977_____|_06:19_|_3:14.0_|_097_____|_15.4_|_10.1_|_warmup
9495_____|_45:44_|_2:24.5_|_948_____|_20.7_|_10.0_|_Main set
10472_____|_52:03_|_2:29.1_|_1045_____|_20.1_|_10.0_|_Total
Upstream, against the current, our pace was around 3:00/500. Coming back down stream, we averaged about 1:50/500, My best guess is that we had about 30 seconds of pace impact from the current heading up stream and maybe 40 seconds of benefit heading down stream.
Here’s the view of the boathouse from the dock:
Antonis and the Olympic double
Yours truly
Tomorrow: I will probably go for a run along the river in the morning, then fly back to the US in the afternoon.
I am planning to enter 3 or 4 head races this fall.
Textile River Regatta: Sunday, October 4, 6K race in Lowell
Quinsigmond Snake Race, October 10th or 11th, 4.5K race (Tentative)
Head of the Charles, October 17th or 18th, 5K race in Boston (Tentative)
Merrimack Chase: Saturday, November 6
Priority:
HOCR
Textile
Merrimack
Snake Race
If I don’t get an entry for the HOCR, then the Textile is my key event, so I need to plan to peak for the beginning of October and then maintain from then to the beginning of November.
The plan is focused on improving performance over a 5K to 6K race. I have time for 6 sessions a week. I seem to best with a polarized plan, so I am planning to do 3 lower intensity endurance sessions per week. One hard distance piece a week (basically head race distance). One set of long intervals (Like a WP L2 type session).
So far, this looks like the Pete Plan or the Wolverine Plan. The difference is that I plan to substitute the short intervals (L1s in WP language) with another session focused on improving lactate clearance and tolerance. I’m thinking that this would be an interval based session at about head race pace and rate, with short rests. The intent here is to accumulate fatigue (and lactate) as the session goes on. Examples of this type of workout on the erg are things like the 15×3’/1′ rest or 8x1K/2′ rest.
I like the cyclical nature of the Pete Plan, so I am planning a 4 week cycle after which the workouts repeat so I can try to measure progress.
Because of where I row, I have to limit the distance covered in each interval. I have just about 3000 meters of river that can be rowed at full pressure. Any turn is basically going to cost about 1 minute of rest time, so I would like to try to work within that constraint. The one exception is that on weekend days, I can row on Lake Quinsigamond in a club boat, so that is why my hard distance days will be on weekends.
The plan is obviously going to be impacted by travel and life, but I figure having a plan and changing is better than having no plan at all.
Weather: Sunny and Hot! 85F Cross wind, about 7mph.
I got to Riverside Boat Club at about 6AM and unloaded my stuff. Luckily I found a parking spot close to the action. (I was worried that I wouldn’t)
I checked in and went to the Coxes and Coaches meeting at 6:20. Then I found a few folks from Lake Quinsigamond and hung out until it was time to launch. I was in race # 13. Scheduled for 8:08. I launched around 7:20 and started to head up river.
I was nervous. Very jittery. The boathouse is at the finish, and you have to make your way upriver through the same bridge spans that lane 1 uses coming down river. So they post referees on each bridge to give you the all clear to go through. I rowed nearly the whole way up to the start doing drills. Arms only. Arms and Body. Legs Only. Legs and Body. Once I was past the Weeks Footbridge, there is enough room to do a proper warmup. So I started to my ten stroke on / ten stroke off rate ladder. I found there was too much turning required, so I just did sets of twenty up and down this short section. After I went through that, I did a few practice starts. The first was horrible. After that I calmed down a bit. Around 8:00, I paddled back down through Weeks and drifted toward the start.
After a bit of backing and forthing they had us set up for the start. In Lane 1 was a guy from Maine (Hornney). He pulled a 6:30 erg at last years Crash-Bs, and did well in the Cromwell last year. I figured he’d beat me by 5 to 10 seconds. Maybe a boat length or two. Lane 2 was another guy from Maine (Beretich). I couldn’t find as much info about him, but I figured I would be competitive with him. In Lane 3 was another rower from Lake Quinsigamond. I beat him by a little in last year’s textile regatta, but I’d never matched up with him in a sprint race before. I thought we’d be side by side as well.
We eventually got aligned and they called the start. Which was helpfully captured by row2Ks cameras. I’m in blue.
I was slow off the line, but accelerated well and seemed to be even with everyone after about 10 strokes. I didn’t settle my pace down after 10 strokes because I didn’t want to let these guys get away. But around the 20th stroke, I did pull my rating down to 30 and focused on trying to get way out over my feet for the catch. At stroke 20 was the point to check my steering and I saw that I needed to make a little adjustment away from the center of the river to get lined up with the Boston side arch of the first bridge. I did that while counting out my next twenty and I was through the bridge. At this point I looked across the other lanes and I saw that I was about half a length up on lane 3, lane 2 was a couple lengths behind me, and it looked like lane 1 was maybe half a length ahead of me. I settled into this next set of 20 trying to focus on taking long strokes. I was a bit distratced between the two bridges because there was a wakeless launch trailing with a photographer, who I swear had the longest telephoto lens ever. I think this is the result of that.
At the end of this twenty (60 strokes into the race), I checked for my line and discovered that I was drifting over toward the boston bank of the river. So, I corrected as I went into my next 20 strokes. This set I tried to focus on legs. Really staying forward during the leg drive and getting my arms out an body over before I broke my knees on recovery. I checked my line after 5 strokes and saw I was still off line and corrected more strongly. This was about the slowest I got in race and I saw the pace drop below 2:00/500.
I remembered what Sander had wrote about focusing on technique and I lightened up a bit and tried to take good smooth strokes the rest of the way through the second bridge. This happened on schedule around 80 strokes. Coming out of the bridge, I noticed that I was still only about a length down on lane 1, and a couple lengths up on lane 3. Lane 2 had not yet emerged from the bridge. This was highly motivating. I counted out another 20 strokes, allowing the rate to start creeping up and apparently lane 1 did the same thing because he actually started to pull a bit further ahead. You can see this at 3:00 of the video, his bow just becomes visible as he puts in a push. He continues to get further ahead until about 3:25 when I look over again.
It was time to decide. Either I could just row the rest of the race out and settle for second, or I could try to take this guy. I decided to give it a go. I had about 30 strokes left, so I threw everything I had at it. I started to overtake him and I pushed the rate up even higher, it looked like we were right on line together. I was rating up at 35 and rowing very sloppily. I could hear a great “pock” noise at the catch because I was starting to drive to soon, but I just wanted to get more rate and get more strokes in before the end. I totally ignored the markings of the course and just rowed until I heard the beep. There were two beeps right together, and neither me or lane 1 really knew who won the race. I went for a nice cool down row and then came back to the dock. I wandered over to the finish line officials and asked. They told me I had come in second by 0.78 seconds. My final time was 3:53.1. Although I would have loved to win a medal, I was delighted with the race. I stuck to my plan. The course was a blast to row. The conditions were beautiful. The race officials were friendly and helpful. I rowed the fastest 1K I have ever rowed by probably about 6 seconds. I am already looking forward to coming back next year. Here are the full Cromwell Cup results.
Looking at the results. I was 0.3% off winning time. The guy who won the second heat (Loucks) beat me by 7 seconds at the Festival Sprints. Today, my time was 5.5 seconds faster than his although he was not pushed at all in his race. So, it’s all good.
Here’s the HR plot for the whole row. Warm up, Race and cool down.
Here is stroke rate and pace from the speedcoach for the race:
Here is the GPS data showing how I got off line before the first and second bridges.
Finally, here is the video of the race:
Now I am off to Austria on business. I’ll try to do some cross training and start thinking about a specific Head Race Training plan.
Conditions: cloudy, drizzle at the start, wind ENE 5-7 mph. This is a headwind going down river and tail wind going up river.
Start_|_Dist_|_Split_|_Pace_|_Strks__|_Rate_|_DPS_|_AvgHR_|_Remarks
00020_|_1058_|_06:08_|_2:54.1_|_117___|_19.1_|_09.0_|_112___|_drills
01078_|_1904_|_09:28_|_2:29.2_|_214___|_22.6_|_08.9_|_145___|_warmup
02982_|_1003_|_05:59_|_2:59.0_|_111___|_18.6_|_09.0_|_117___|_slow roll ups
03985_|_0500_|_01:55_|_1:54.7_|_058___|_30.3_|_08.6_|_161___|_500 #1 – tail wind
04485_|_0503_|_03:43_|_3:41.4_|_065___|_17.5_|_07.7_|_127___|_rest
04988_|_0500_|_01:57_|_1:56.9_|_061___|_31.3_|_08.2_|_162___|_500 #2 – head wind
05488_|_0208_|_01:23_|_3:20.7_|_028___|_20.1_|_07.4_|_135___|_rest
05696_|_0837_|_03:59_|_2:22.9_|_083___|_20.8_|_10.1_|_146___|_r20 steady state
06533_|_0160_|_01:14_|_3:50.3_|_021___|_17.1_|_07.6_|_133___|_thru the cut
06693_|_0053_|_00:12_|_1:51.3_|_007___|_35.6_|_07.6_|_134___|_practice start
06746_|_0030_|_00:16_|_4:21.7_|_002___|_07.6_|_15.0_|_145___|_stop
06776_|_0074_|_00:17_|_1:54.9_|_008___|_28.2_|_09.3_|_150___|_practice start
06850_|_0769_|_04:35_|_2:59.1_|_088___|_19.2_|_08.7_|_135___|_back to the dock
Dist__|_Time__|_Pace___|_Strks_|_SPM__|_DPS__|_AvgHR_|_Remarks
03965_|_21:35_|_2:43.3_|_442___|_20.5_|_09.0_|_128___|_warmup
01000_|_03:52_|_1:55.8_|_119___|_30.8_|_08.4_|_161___|_Main set
00837_|_03:59_|_2:22.9_|_083___|_20.8_|_10.1_|_146___|_Steady State
00127_|_00:29_|_1:53.4_|_015___|_31.3_|_08.5_|_143___|_Starts
00901_|_06:36_|_3:39.5_|_116___|_17.6_|_07.8_|_130___|_rest meters
00769_|_04:35_|_2:59.1_|_088___|_19.2_|_08.7_|_135___|_cool down
07599_|_41:06_|_2:42.3_|_863___|_21.0_|_08.8_|_134___|_Total
Same warmup as yesterday. Into a headwind. Worked out OK.
Then into the 2 reps. I started the first one at the downriver end of the 1K straight. This was with a 40 degree tail wind. My start was good, and I settled effectively. I have done enough of these this week that it feels really familiar. I am finding that I can devote a bit more attention to steering and technique and less on feeling like I am going to blow up at any moment. The sensations of “lactate distress” are the same, but I have a better context for them and they seem to spook me a little bit less. We’ll see about that this weekend.
I just held 30 spm. I wanted to drift down to r29 because of the cross wind, but I tried to correct that as I went along. I counted out the strokes and tried to get maximum length through the last 20 strokes. I ended up with a 1:54.7 pace, I’m OK with that.
In the second interval, I was not happy with my start. I caught a mini crab on the fourth stroke. Not sure exactly what happened, but I didn’t finish cleanly on one oar and that threw me off balance. I recovery within a stroke, but it cost me speed (and confidence).
For this rep, the wind was a cross head wind, about 55 degrees off my bow. It slowed me down a little, but didn’t have much impact on the feeling of the boat.
I’m not sure why, but in this rep, I found myself wanting to rate a bit higher. At any rate, after I settled to pace after 10 strokes, I just counted out the remaining strokes to the end. This one ended up at a 1:56.9, which I am pretty happy with the cross head wind.
Tomorrow: I will go for a quick row, probably just a warmup, and then clean and load my boat for the race on Sunday.
Conditions: Warm, muggy, cloudy, wind NNE 6-8 mph (headwind going down river)
Plan:
3 x 500m / 500m rest
Race Pace and Rate or faster (<2:00, > 30 spm)
Technique: Work on race starts, getting out at the catch, rowing smooth above 30 spm.
Start_|_Dist_|_Split_|_Pace_|_Strks__|_Rate_|_DPS_|_AvgHR_|_Remarks
00020_|_0999_|_05:51_|_2:55.4_|_111___|_19.0_|_09.0_|_116___|_drills
01019_|_1954_|_09:47_|_2:30.2_|_218___|_22.3_|_09.0_|_149___|_warmup
02973_|_0517_|_03:33_|_3:26.4_|_064___|_18.0_|_08.1_|_123___|_slow roll ups
03490_|_0500_|_01:51_|_1:50.9_|_057___|_30.8_|_08.8_|_165___|_500 #1
03990_|_0501_|_03:47_|_3:46.9_|_064___|_16.9_|_07.8_|_133___|_rest
04491_|_0500_|_01:54_|_1:53.9_|_058___|_30.6_|_08.6_|_164___|_500 #2
04991_|_0499_|_04:00_|_4:00.7_|_069___|_17.2_|_07.2_|_136___|_rest
05490_|_0500_|_01:59_|_1:58.8_|_062___|_31.3_|_08.1_|_166___|_500 #3
05990_|_2122_|_12:22_|_2:54.8_|_241___|_19.5_|_08.8_|_134___|_cool down
Dist__|_Time__|_Pace___|_Strks_|_SPM__|_DPS__|_AvgHR_|_Remarks
03470_|_19:11_|_2:45.8_|_393___|_20.5_|_08.8_|_134___|_warmup
01500_|_05:44_|_1:54.5_|_177___|_30.9_|_08.5_|_165___|_Main set
01000_|_07:48_|_3:53.8_|_133___|_17.1_|_07.5_|_134___|_rest meters
02122_|_12:22_|_2:54.8_|_241___|_19.5_|_08.8_|_134___|_cool down
08092_|_45:04_|_2:47.1_|_944___|_20.9_|_08.6_|_138___|_Total
Same warmup today. power 10s at r18 up to r26. Then power 20s at r28, r30, r32. I liked it.
Then I did the first 500 with a tail wind. I started in front of the Watch factory and rowed the straight section there. It’s about 650m long, so plenty long enough for my purposes. I nailed the start. The secret really seems to be to not push too far forward for the first stroke. Between the good start and the tail wind, I was looking at 1:47 after 5 stroke, and stayed in the 1:40s until around the 15th stroke. I tried to calm down and settle my rate and pace per my race plan. With the tail wind, 1:55 felt a lot like 2:00 so I settled at that pace and r30. Then it was just counting out strokes and trying to stay nice and long at the catch. I resisted the urge to up the rate and sprint over the last 20 strokes and just rowed it out. With the tail wind, I set a new PB for a 500m with a 1:50.9.
I then paddled through the s-turn, had a quick drink and set myself up for the next interval, again with a tail wind. Again I was happy with the start. I know I still can massively improve in this area, but this was pretty comfortable. Again, I was in the 1:40s after about 5 strokes, bt this time I settled to race pace more crisply. Again, I tried to stick to race rate through the whole piece and not sprint the finish. 1:53.9. Not as fast as #1, but still faster than any other 500s I’ve ever done. (Thanks, tail wind!)
I felt like it was the the right and proper thing to do to do my last 500 into the headwind. I have to admit that I was tempted to just paddle back and do it downwind. I was having fun looking at the nice fast splits. But in the end, the desire to have some fresh experience getting to the “right” pace in a headwind won the day and I did the right thing. The start went well. The boat felt much heavier and I tried to trust myself in terms of the pace. I tried to keep the same stroke as much as I could. From the RIM data, it looks like I basically did. These three acceleration and velocity plots are for a single stroke around the 20th stroke of each of the three intervals. The green lines are into the wind
The accelerations look about the same, and as I would expect, the velocity into the headwind is lower. The head wind was very close to straight on and was between 2.5 and 3.5 m/s.
Quantified Rowing 