Row, row, row your boat...

...gently down the stream. Or not so gently, as I experienced in early November 2012 (better late than never), when I threw myself into the deep end (not literally, thank god) and decided to try out a day of rowing with City of Cambridge Rowing Club.  As I mentioned before, this madness (as my friends called it), was inspired by watching Katherine Copeland and Sophie Hosking win gold in the women's lightweight double sculls in the summer Olympics.

So I thought, why not give it a go myself? I cycle by the river everyday to work and love to soak up its calming atmosphere before a stressful day. With this in mind and my trusty strong thighs, often called 'power thighs' by my male friends, I thought it might be perfect for me - after all, it's all about the legs. Rowing is said to be a 'pushing' sport.

So I googled good rowing clubs in Cambridge and found City of Cambridge Rowing Club the most appealing - they were the only ones to a offer a taster day course for just £25 and prided themselves on being the most sociable club on the river with a bar and regular parties. So I signed myself up and eagerly awaited the 3 November.



Me in front of the boathouse



On the day, I layered up and headed for the CCRC. As I approached, I was welcomed by the aroma of cooking meat and a tantalising sweetness lingering in the air. There were people doing a BBQ surrounded by a mountain of cakes. I liked this already.

Once everyone arrived, we were given an introductory talk with a few health and safety points. We were then split into groups - one would go do core exercises, one would practice on the rowing machines and one would go out on the water, eek! I was glad this wasn't me - thankfully my group had a chance to go on the rowing machines and perfect our technique (or not). I think I was doing it wrong as I was using my arms more than my legs, hence the achey arms.

 

Rowing machine practice!

After an hour and a half of this (and a cheeky hot dog and cake), we were ready to go on the water. Slightly nervous, I got into the boat and placed my feet into the fake strapped on shoes. Little did I know that the position I had chosen was the one which required most effort. This was Bow. My strength (or lack of, as was discovered) was needed to get the boat moving, stopping and changing direction. Apart from me and the person right at the front, everyone else was given a number. The Cox would then shout out which numbers needed to do what. I found this highly stressful as we weren't briefed beforehand on what all the instructions meant so no one wholly undertstood and the boat kept tipping, wobbling and we didn't get very far at all. I could tell the Cox was getting very irritated and was losing patience. The oars were also extremely heavy (looks can be deceiving) and I found it difficult to control them. After a bit of perserverance we managed to do a bit of a lap but we soon turned around and went 'home'. Once out of the boat, we had to help carry it back to it's spot. This required team effort and again a lot of strength. Something I was struggling with at this point.



Relaxing after being on the water

All in all, I found it an interesting experience and definitely felt worked out after, if not a little tired and achey. It was nice being out on the water in the sunshine and its a great sport for team building. However, it is a large commitment and not just a hobby you can dip in and out of. I don't think I'll be pursuing rowing for now, but it's good to try new things and now I can surely say it's not quite for me.