Confirmed that I won't walk on in the fall, now what should I do?

This thread is closed. Sorry.

I just opened it back up.

You're welcome.

OP replying now, haven't had internet. To clarify, I was told that that the coach was not accepting any walk ons as there was only 1 roster spot left and since the team was very young, coach wanted to save the spots for future recruits. My school has a rowing team but no lightweight. I would be interested in another sport but like I said, only 2 years left, not sure how much I can refocus for another sport unless it was somewhat related to running. And yes, to clarify, my school is a lower tier team.

and not trying to whine about this, but i'm just generally unsure of where I should go now. I'm considering just stopping altogether but i'd like to at least go somewhere with this fitness. And to answer someone else, I am trying to find other people that may have been trying to walk on as well but none yet.

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OP, for what it's worth, I rowed for a very competitive D1 program. In my 4 years, we had two different athletes join up (1 as a junior, 1 as a senior) who were transitioning from different sports; be aware that rowing has a completely different culture and attitude towards novices even at the collegiate level. Also, although your school may not have a lightweight team there's this thing we call "power to weight ratio". Good coaches know about this, and it's the reason that there's often 1-2 lightweight-types in the varsity boats. You can still be competitive, so might as well go find the rowing coach and have a conversation about possibilities.

hmm really? I might have to consider it. My issue though is that I am not tall and from the looks of it, I would be a very short rower for the team. I am 5 10, and just under 150 lbs. I'm not sure how I would work on that until it would be an acceptable level but if you could help with any insight/is it too late? I go back to school in just under a month.

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5-10? 150? That's fine. I will be very straight with you (as I am with all my athletes, I'm a rowing coach). Go get your ass into a meeting with the rowing coach at your school, pronto. Send an email, list you stats (height, weight, running PRs as evidence of aerobic fitness) and desire to compete. The only way you'll have any idea of if it's possible/if the coach would be interested is to ask. So do it. No whinging, no drama, just get it done.

Rowing sweep in big boats (8+) at the collegiate level is something that is fairly quickly learned; there's enough stories of walking on in college with zero experience and making national teams within 3-4 years that you should understand that raw fitness, coupled with basic technique that's quickly aquired with decent coaching, is all that's required for moderate success in rowing. There's a huge difference however between the technical skill required to win in small boats (which aren't typically contested collegiately) and the brute hack-job that passes as acceptable in American sweep rowing.

As for your size, go to

http://www.concept2.com/us/interactive/calculators/weight_adjustment.asp

and

http://daily-erg-workout.blogspot.com/2007/02/weight-adjusted-erg-scores-find-hidden.html

to understand a bit more about the issues in play. A good coach knows that raw power output doesn't equal boat speed; what we're looking for is an ideal combination of power:weight ratio (if you're fit and light, then you can come out ahead here) and competent technique (both as an individual and in your skill to blend in with the team).

I suspect you'll find that you're welcome. Be prepared that rowing has a very different mentality than running, in my experience. A few main points I've noticed: 1) Rowers eat. Heartily. Without any thought other than, "I've worked hard, I'm hungry, I'm eating the sh!t out of that buffet!" Big is beautiful here. 2) Rowers think about psychology, all the time. It's an integral part of performance that seems often neglected in running. This is why rowers have little wee people they carry around in the boat talking to them. 3) Rowers think about technique, all the time. It's an integral part of performance that seems often neglected in running. This is why rowers have big coaches following them in motorboats talking to them. Continuously. With a loud megaphone, preferably in highly colorful language. It's a whole different world out there...

ok thanks. I sent an email to both the head rowing coach and the novice coach yesterday so who knows. I guess ill try to call later this week and see what's up too. Can't hurt I suppose.

ok so in case you see this agian or if someone else has any thoughts...

I talked to the novice coach today. He told me that they might take 5-6 walk ons but that he won't be sure on how many until probably 3 weeks from now. He said that it isn't impossible for me to walk on but that it probably is unlikely because the head coach might only want to take me if he thinks I am able to make boat 1 my senior year. He told me to keep running but to work on my core strength and do pushups, etc. He said they generally do look for guys that are 6'2'' or taller and have raw strength but that they do have several guys that are around 5'11''.

He also said how they look for the guys with the right attitude and outlook and just generally look like they would be successful rowers. Also he said how it isn't a set in stone process but that they might do a test on the erg and look at some other strength stuff to see where we are.

So i'm not sure what'll happen, it seems like it might be impossible for me and that he was trying to keep positive, but who knows. I was also told that this team is probably in the top 5% of all rowing teams so it is tough.

Finally, I was told that they would probably try to bulk me up to at least 165 but probably 170+ if I make it. Idk, any thoughts?

Hmmmm, well it sounds like he's looking for your reaction. How do you handle that news? A big part of rowing is (as I previously wrote) psychological, and how you react IS a test. It isn't worth a coach's time to invest in training you, only to have you quit (google "lay down Sally rowing" to see what rowers think of quitting). As far as only taking you if you can make the v1 by senior year, bullshit. The competition amongst the JVs and 4s is just as intense, and senior leadership amongst those crews is critical for winning overall. I suspect that the coach is wary of your committment level and is trying to figure out if you're dedicated to the idea of rowing, or just haphazardly flitting about on a whim. What makes a successful rower? Tons of balls, brains enough to know how to do what you're told, and definitely not enough brains to know when it's smart to quit. The best predictor of success in rowing is a certain insanity and lust for the rush of pushing your body into pain and through the other side. Nowhere, mind you, have I written anything about 6'2".

I suggest you start getting on the erg, now, to prepare for the certain eventuality of erg testing. Start by going to

http://www.concept2.com/us/training/technique.asp

and watching several times. You should not look like you're humping a barrel whilst erging (despite the common assumption in a gym). Start with just 30 minutes, break it up with stretching. Set the little lever on the side of the erg somehwere around 3-4 (or even better, figure out drag factor and set it to 115). Try taking some hard strokes, but do most of it fairly easy (spm=18-20, moderate effort). Do this in front of a mirror, if possible, so you can compare yourself to the video. Just think "arms-body-legs, legs-body-arms". Like a fruit roll-up....you compress yourself up, and then unwind in opposite sequence, over and over again. Put your thumbs on top of the handle so that you don't have a death grip. Expect that for the first two weeks, your mid-back will feel excruciating. You'll get over it.

If you really want to impress the coach with your interest, you'll pull an erg test in about 2 weeks after you have a chance to get used to the machine. In the fall, we test 6k; spring is 2k. Since you have no clue what you're doing, just pick whichever suits your strengths better (are you more endurance or speed?), set that puppy, and go as fast as you can (for the entire piece, not just at the start...fly-n-die does not work well here. I suggest moderate effort to start and then crank it down). Write down the total time, average /500m, and spm. Email that to the coach and tell him you had the time of your life, loved it and the pain, and want to learn how to row properly so you can push harder and be more effective. p.s. if you actually pull the erg, you'll know you did it correctly if you feel like crap at the end and your legs turn to jello and it feels like someone has dumped acid on your butt-cheeks.