Master Coaching

Overcoming warm-up hassles on race day

By Mayrene T. Earle, M.Ed.

This past winter I received several emails from masters rowers asking for information about warming up at specific race sites. One common theme in all their questions was how to warm up properly given the layout limitations of warm-up areas at regattas they would be attending. While I won’t answer their site-specific questions in this column, I will provide strategies that you can adapt to any regatta situation.

Before you can modify your standard warm-up to the constraints of a specific regatta site – and chances are you will have to modify it – you need to know the precise time and space requirements of your usual warm-up and the limitations of the warm-up area at each race venue. How long does your warm-up take? How many meters do you need for the longest portion of your warm-up? My warm-up, for example, includes a 5:30 stretch where the rate and the pressure come up each 1:30. I always need to determine if the race location allows enough room and modify accordingly.

If you’ve never rowed at a specific venue before, or even if you have, it’s a good idea to arrive early and walk the course. This will help you decide whether you need to modify your warm-up and how best to do so. Better yet, arrive a day before your event so you can test your warm-up on the water and modify it as needed for race day.

Great, you say. But what about those times when you find yourself trapped in a highly congested area while waiting for your race to be called? What then? First, find out from an official when your race will actually start. If there’s a bottleneck, it’s often an indicator that races are backing up, and you just might have enough time to get out of the area. That will allow you to keep moving -- take a Power 10, do an extra start or just paddle -- and not lose the benefits of your warm-up by sitting still.

When this is not an option, as often happens, you need a strategy. Of course you could do the misery loves company thing, since you won’t be the only one in your race who’s stuck sitting there and cooling down. A better option is to prepare mentally for just this situation, so you can do everything possible to hold onto the benefits of your warm-up. How do you do that? For starters, you can put a layer or two of clothing back on if needed. Second, use your mental resources. Visualize the course. Review your race plan. Picture yourself winning. Third – and most important – do ANYTHING, and I do mean anything, to keep from sitting still. Keep moving on your slide. Stretch. Practice catch drills.

To be honest, some regattas present insurmountable hurdles. For instance, conditions are such that it’s impossible to launch and/or dock in a timely manner or there are safety concerns. Over the years I have stopped participating in these regattas. Fortunately, these days there are plenty of quality regattas to choose from.

And some regattas are worth participating in despite their limiting logistics. The Head of the Charles is one. For many years, I launched from the MIT boathouse and I continue to do so. Recently, the warm-up area has been made safer, but now it’s smaller, a triangular 300-meter area. Last year I had to revise my warm-up and adapt it to suit the new space. The biggest change I made was warming up my crews on the erg before launching, because there simply was not enough room to warm up properly on the water. (Those of you launching upstream have the opposite problem.)

Best wishes to all of you for a wonderful spring and summer race season.

Mayrene T. Earle, M.Ed., is founder of MastersCoaching. She conducts camps and clinics for masters rowers around the world; provides coaching for coaches, and offers Erg Inspiration classes by phone. Contact her at mayrene@masterscoaching.com.

Copyright © Mayrene T. Earle. All rights reserved.


						“Mayrene's coaching stands out for me because she has the ability to get you to do more and row better than you think you are able. Through gentle encouragement and vivid imagery she has helped me find and keep in touch with that rowing stroke buried within.” Noreen Warren,Madison Wisc.

				Overcoming warm-up hassles on race day By Mayrene T. Earle, M.Ed. This past winter I received several emails from masters rowers asking for information about warming up at specific race sites. One common theme in all their questions was how to warm up properly given the layout limitations of warm-up areas at regattas they would be attending. While I won’t answer their site-specific questions in this column, I will provide strategies that you can adapt to any regatta situation. Before you can modify your standard warm-up to the constraints of a specific regatta site – and chances are you will have to modify it – you need to know the precise time and space requirements of your usual warm-up and the limitations of the warm-up area at each race venue. How long does your warm-up take? How many meters do you need for the longest portion of your warm-up? My warm-up, for example, includes a 5:30 stretch where the rate and the pressure come up each 1:30. I always need to determine if the race location allows enough room and modify accordingly. If you’ve never rowed at a specific venue before, or even if you have, it’s a good idea to arrive early and walk the course. This will help you decide whether you need to modify your warm-up and how best to do so. Better yet, arrive a day before your event so you can test your warm-up on the water and modify it as needed for race day. Great, you say. But what about those times when you find yourself trapped in a highly congested area while waiting for your race to be called? What then? First, find out from an official when your race will actually start. If there’s a bottleneck, it’s often an indicator that races are backing up, and you just might have enough time to get out of the area. That will allow you to keep moving -- take a Power 10, do an extra start or just paddle -- and not lose the benefits of your warm-up by sitting still. When this is not an option, as often happens, you need a strategy. Of course you could do the misery loves company thing, since you won’t be the only one in your race who’s stuck sitting there and cooling down. A better option is to prepare mentally for just this situation, so you can do everything possible to hold onto the benefits of your warm-up. How do you do that? For starters, you can put a layer or two of clothing back on if needed. Second, use your mental resources. Visualize the course. Review your race plan. Picture yourself winning. Third – and most important – do ANYTHING, and I do mean anything, to keep from sitting still. Keep moving on your slide. Stretch. Practice catch drills. To be honest, some regattas present insurmountable hurdles. For instance, conditions are such that it’s impossible to launch and/or dock in a timely manner or there are safety concerns. Over the years I have stopped participating in these regattas. Fortunately, these days there are plenty of quality regattas to choose from. And some regattas are worth participating in despite their limiting logistics. The Head of the Charles is one. For many years, I launched from the MIT boathouse and I continue to do so. Recently, the warm-up area has been made safer, but now it’s smaller, a triangular 300-meter area. Last year I had to revise my warm-up and adapt it to suit the new space. The biggest change I made was warming up my crews on the erg before launching, because there simply was not enough room to warm up properly on the water. (Those of you launching upstream have the opposite problem.) Best wishes to all of you for a wonderful spring and summer race season. Mayrene T. Earle, M.Ed., is founder of MastersCoaching. She conducts camps and clinics for masters rowers around the world; provides coaching for coaches, and offers Erg Inspiration classes by phone. Contact her at mayrene@masterscoaching.com. Copyright © Mayrene T. Earle. All rights reserved.