"There is a place where cerebral an
corporeal meet: they call
it rowing" -- Barry Strauss from Rowing Against the Current
History of Rowing:
Boats propelled
by oars were used in ancient times for both
war and commerce. Rowing is now generally used only for propelling
small boats
or for sport. One of the oldest continuous sporting events in the world
is the
Doggett’s Coat and Badge rowing race, held in London every year since
1716 and
named for Thomas Doggett, a popular actor of early 18th cent. England.
The most
famous of all rowing races are the Thames River competitions between
Oxford and
Cambridge, first held at Henley in 1829. The first collegiate rowing
regatta in
the United States took place in 1852 between Harvard and Yale.
Rowing Today:
In modern racing, each member of the rowing team, or crew, uses both hands to pull one oar through the water. The oars, attached to riggings jutting out from the side of the boats to increase leverage, are positioned alternately on opposite sides of the vessel. The boat, or shell, is sometimes steered by a coxswain, who sits at the back of the vessel and manipulates tiller ropes attached to a rudder; the coxswain also directs the speed and rhythm of the crew’s strokes.
"Real athletes row. Everyone else just plays games." -- Rowing Shirt Logo
"Crew is life ... everything else is just details." -- Racing Shirt Logo
"A couch
potato would be lucky to get three liters of oxygen a
minute… [Rowers] average 6.5 to 7." -- Fritz Hagerman
"The oldest
collegiate sport in America is all about glory,
pain and sweaty shirts" -- from Jayne Keedle
"And all the way, to guide their
chime, With falling oars they
kept their time." -- Andrew
Marvell
"Pull thy oar, all hands, pull thy
oar, till thou be stiff and
red and sore…" -- Dr.
Sydney Dangell
"It's the quintessential Greek sport:
harmonious, competitive,
agonizing, nautical, and above all, intelligent. It combines Odysseus's
brains
and brawn and love of the sea with the tactical precision of the
Spartan
pikeman." -- Barry Strauss from Rowing Against the Current
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