INDOOR ROWING NEWSLETTER #131 ======================== 19-October-2005 ========================= _________________________________________________ C O N T E N T S 1. 2005 British Indoor Rowing Championship 2. How To: Fundraise 3. Cartoon By Rog 4. Concept 2 British Rowathlon Series 5. Schools Indoor Rowing League 6. RowLog 7. Regional Races: Nottinghamshire, Enfield, York 8. School Fitness Diary 9. Winter Team Relay League 10. Reader's Letters: Gerald Haigh 11. Forthcoming Races And Events **************************** Feedback Back Issues Subscription Information ________________________________________________________________ With Bells On ***************** For a glitzier, HTML version of our newsletter with pictures, cartoons and all the funny jokes (possibly), go to: http://www.concept2.co.uk/email/newsletter.htm. To receive the newsletter in HTML format, send an email to subscription@concept2.co.uk with HTML as the subject title. How To Write To Us ***************** Please don't reply directly to this email, 'cos we won't ever see it. Instead send your bouquets or brickbats to editor@concept2.co.uk. Indoor Rowing Glossary ***************** A guide to some of the more common terms used in indoor rowing can be found at http://www.concept2.co.uk/rowing/glossary.php ========================================================= 2005 British Indoor Rowing Championship ========================================================= The deadline for entry for this year's British IRC championship is Friday, October 28th for postal entries and 9 a.m. on Monday, October 31st for on-line entries. If you haven't yet entered, you can do so at http://www.concept2.co.uk/birc/entryform.php. British IRC Poster ************************ If you want to advertise the British IRC down your gym, or place of work, or bedroom, it's now possible to download and this year's official poster from http://www.concept2.co.uk/birc/poster.php. And please, for heaven's sake, no printing them out at A1 size on glossy paper and flyposting the nearest city with them. That would be dreadful. Freshers Challenge ************************ Despite sounding like the subtitle for Porky's 5, the "Concept 2 Freshers Challenge" is a new initiative for British University rowing, with the annual reward of a brand new racing boat for the top University Club. The Challenge is based on the four British University Rowing events: the British IRC, the Head of the River, the BUR Regatta Long Course and Sprints and is open to all first year, first degree students. All four events have equal points weighting. At the British IRC, points will be decided based on total times, with the results from the top eight men and women Freshers from each University being added together to produce a ranking order. The great attraction of hosting Round One at the British IRC is that Universities can use all their best new ergo-pullers whilst they are still teaching some of them to row on the river, using the Concept 2 as a teaching tool whilst getting recognition and points within the British Universities events. For more information on the Concept 2 Freshers Challenge, visit http://www.concept2.co.uk/birc/news.php or contact Nigel Mayglothling on nigel.mayglothling@nottingham.ac.uk or 0115 951 5516. Training Camps ************************ Fletcher Sport Science will be holding four one-day training camps for British IRC participants on Saturday the 22nd October and 5th November and Sunday 23rd October and 6th November. The training camps will be run by Eddie Fletcher and Anna Bailey. Places are strictly limited on a first come first served basis and restricted to 12 participants on each day. The venue is Colmers School and Sports College in Birmingham and the cost is £65 per person. Ring Eddie on 01386 40050 or email info@fletchersportscience.co.uk to reserve your place and request an application form. Tips for Novices ************************ We'll be running a comprehensive article on everything you need to know about the competing in the championship in the next newsletter. If you've got any questions or worries in the meantime, you can either send an email to birc@concept2.co.uk or checkout the message board thread at http://www.concept2.co.uk/forum/viewtopic.php?t=8563. ========================================================= Fundraising ========================================================= Over the years, hundreds of thousands of pounds have been raised for charity from sponsored indoor rows. As a result, we've put together a How To framework for anyone thinking about planning a fundraising event. It's in four sections and depending on what point you are at with organising your event you can refer to Planning 1, "How do I begin" - which is for those starting out and checking the options at the initial ideas stage. Or, if you are already some weeks into your scheme, then look at Planning 2, "Building the Team." Next is structuring the "Time Line" and finally the fourth section is "Delivering the Sponsored Fundraising Event". We also have links to some case studies of past sponsored rows You can read the "How To Guide…" at http://www.concept2.co.uk/rowing/fundraising.php. Remember, if you do use the Indoor Rower to raise money for a good cause, make sure you send a report of the event and any photographs into editor@concept2.co.uk so that we can run it in both the newsletter and our website. ========================================================= Cartoon By Rog ========================================================= http://www.concept2.co.uk/email/images/cartoon131.jpg ========================================================= Concept 2 British Rowathlon Series ========================================================= The final race in the 2005 Concept 2 British Rowathlon Series was at Marlow on the 2nd of October, with a record 355 people taking part. The overall winner was Hywel Davies, who finished the 4km row, 25km cycle and 7.5km run in a total time of 1:21:27, just under two minutes ahead of Paul Holdaway in second place. The ladies event was dominated by Michelle Parsons (Worcester Tri) who came home in 1.32.42, nearly 13 minutes ahead of Nikki Joyce to record the overall win and the win in the Women's 30+ section. Full results and a report on the event can be found at http://www.concept2.co.uk/rowathlon/. All senior series winners from the Rowathlon will receive an expense paid trip to the Concept 2 European Open in Denmark this December. These were: Men's 20+: Paul Holdaway Men's 30+: Dan Staite Men's 40+: Christopher Heape Men's 50+: David Koss Men's 60+ Les Bailey Women's 20+: Sarah Darch Women's 30+: Elaine Pye Women's 40+: Sara Bartlett Final Rankings from the series are at http://www.concept2.co.uk/rowathlon/rankings.php ========================================================= Schools Indoor Rowing League ========================================================= The inaugural round of the Schools League has finished, and you can see full results at http://www.concept2.co.uk/league/results.php and a summary at http://www.concept2.co.uk/league/summary.php. So far, over 150 teams have signed up for the League, which sees teams of eight compete once a month in relay format on a machine at their own school or gym. Where the first round saw teams from Years 6-9 compete over 1,000m, while Years 10-13 competed over 2,000m, Round Two, which closes at 12:00 pm on November 7th, sees them race over either 1,600m or 3,200m. If you haven't yet signed up for the League, you can do so at any point, and it doesn't matter a jot if you haven't taken part in previous rounds. For more information, or to sign up, go to http://www.concept2.co.uk/league/. ========================================================= RowLog ========================================================= Our sister company Oarsport has recently launched RowLog, which aims to do for on-water rowers what the Online Logbook (http://www.concept2.com/sranking03) does for the indoor variety. RowLog is an on-line training diary for both athletes and coaches to monitor training and performance. You can log all your training, whether on-water, on the erg, cycling, running or in the gym to build up a comprehensive picture of your training disciplines for yourself or your coach to analyse. Following analysis you can adjust your regime to suit the event you are training for or, if for interest only, compare week on week, month on month, year on year and again adjust your training to suit seasons, injuries, weather conditions, weaknesses etc. The ability to add notes to the Row Log allows for noting if a piece of work was a test, a race, or a particular or favourite route on a run for instance where the actual distance is not known. It is a secure system so only you and/or your coach (or anyone else you choose to access your log) can input information or analyse your training. This is a great tool for anyone who is not always in contact with his or her coach and, by altering your regime from one period to the next, it can highlight what disciplines help you improve your times on the water. RowLog has just launched, so more features will be added in the future. To sign up for your free RowLog account, go to http://www.oarsport.co.uk/rowlog/ ========================================================= Regional Races: Newark, Enfield, York ========================================================= Nottinghamshire IRC ******************************** The Nottinghamshire IRC takes place on Saturday, 29th October at Newark Rowing Club. The race is over a mile (1.609m) and entry forms are available to download from http://www.concept2.co.uk/racing/calendar_uk.php?id=171. The deadline for entry is Thursday, 20th of October. If you are running late with your entry, you can e-mail the details to organiser Graham Price at gprice@itwpromedia.com or ring 07793 437582. Enfield Indoor Rowing Gala ******************************** The third Enfield Indoor Rowing Gala took place on the 25th of September and saw a significant rise in numbers, with 80 entries. Competitors raced over 2,000m, 1,000m and 500m with several trying all three. The outstanding performance of the day was produced by Matt Hellier (Bexhill), whose time of 6:24.2 bettered his Grand Prix record of 6:36 by a significant margin, and earned him a bike donated by Halfords. The fastest 2,000m overall was by Andrew Jones with a time of 6:12.5, whereas Tracy Watkins and Megan Brown tied for the honour of fastest woman, both registering 7:19.9. Despite problems with the USB based Indoor Rowing Race System that meant that 9 of the 16 races were run without the system, a successful afternoon's racing was experienced by all. The event also raised £200 for the Enfield mayor's Charity. York Mile ******************************** The York Mile IRC, which was due to take place on the 23rd of October, has unfortunately had to be cancelled. ========================================================= School Fitness Diary ========================================================= A recent addition to the School section of the website which might be of interest to some people is the "Fitness Diary and Workbook" used by senior pupils from King Edward the Sixth School, Aston. The Diary is used by pupils to record their physical activity with particular reference to aerobic, muscular endurance and strength training programmes. It aims to get pupils to reflect on their exercise routines away from what is timetabled for PE and Sport as well as encouraging them to plan and evaluate their fitness through setting objectives and goals. You can download the Dairy from http://www.concept2.co.uk/school/dairy.php ========================================================= Winter Team Relay League ========================================================= A quick reminder about the 2005/06 Winter Team Relay League. The League is a worldwide tournament in which rowers race as a team in relay format on one Concept 2 Indoor Rower. As well as overall standings, results are also available for the separate national leagues. There are separate events for teams of eight and teams of four rowers and your row take place anywhere. There are five rounds, one a month from October to February. Each round has a different race format and a team doesn't need to consist of exactly the same rowers in all rounds. So far, over 450 teams from 17 different countries have signed up, meaning it promises to be even bigger and better than last year. The deadline for the first round is November 7th, so make sure you can your team registered before then at http://www.concept2.co.uk/8gp/ ========================================================= Reader's Letters: Gerald Haigh ========================================================= "I was interested in Terry O'Neill's replies to correspondents about training, the muscular demands of the Indoor Rower and so on. I've also written to you before about the slight worry I have regarding the balance between my quite heavy blood pressure medication and my rowing. (One of my drugs slows my heart rate, and that makes me cautious about pushing myself too hard.) "In the end, my old friend Clifford North, another of your correspondents, put me right when he suggested to me that if I can do long rows at sub 2:15 for 500m, then maybe I should settle for that. "At 68 it's not bad by comparison with the rest of the population at large. It does mean, though, that I won't turn up to the British IRC any more - too slow over 2,000m to be respectable I fear. "The following thoughts, though, come to mind. "1. Turning in 10,000 metres in 45 minutes day after day week after week will never make me faster than about 8:30 for 2,000m. For that, the need is for speed training - lots of interval work, with flat out 500m and slower recovery in between. I know a lot of older people do the intense high-speed stuff, but I'm unsure about its suitability for anyone with any sort of cardiovascular history. "2. For real short and medium distance performance in any athletic sport, quality of training is more important than quantity. Twenty minutes of really intense intervals is better than an hour's steady work. The middle distance runners discovered this principle years ago and it also worked for me when I was a veteran racing cyclist. The club used to go off on long Sunday rides. That to me was a waste of valuable time with the family. Instead I'd do 25 miles in less than one hour fifteen over a hilly course, three times a week. Cycling on the road is natural interval training because of the changing demands of the contours and traffic conditions. "3. Training for a good time over 2,000m on the rower isn't ideal for losing weight. For that you need long steady work. You pays your money and you takes your choice. At the moment, for me, with my health history and a weight problem, it's the long rows. "4. As a general rule, in any sort of athletic training, even the long distance stuff, if you can hold a sensible conversation while you're doing it, you're not working hard enough. Check how many people in your gym are gabbing to one another on the rowers and the treadmills. That's fine so long as they know that what they're doing is having a night out. They can't call it 'training'. "5.Technique matters. It really does. In your gym, I guess the number of people who are rowing badly far exceeds the number using a safe and efficient technique. You see everything - underhand grips, rapid short snatched strokes, 'humping' over the knees, lying too far back - the lot. There you are doing it properly, so why don't they learn by looking, or even ask? That's a real mystery to me. There's even a diagram on the machine in some places, and lots of help on the website. They're just not interested are they? Worse still, the gym staff aren't bothered either." ========================================================= Forthcoming Races And Events ========================================================= Name: York Mile Date: 23/10/05 Notes: This event has now been cancelled Name: Nottinghamshire IRC Date: 29/10/05 Venue: Newark Rowing Club Distance: One mile, 500m, Team Relay Organiser: Graham Price T: 020 8886 8499 E: gprice@itwpromedia.com Name: 9th BluRed IRC Date: 06/11/05 Venue: Grenville College, Bideford Distance: 2000m Organiser: Nigel Cann T: (h) 01237 473805 (w) 01237 428667 E: ncann@tycoelectronics.com W: http://www.concept2.co.uk/racing/calendar_uk.php?id=175 Name: British IRC Date: 20/11/05 Venue: National Indoor Arena, Nottingham Distance: 2000m Organiser: Concept 2 T: 0115 945 5522 E: birc@concept2.co.uk W: http://www.concept2.co.uk/wirc/ ____________________________________________________FEEDBACK You like? You dislike? You want to write something for the newsletter? Want to mock us on making a basic error? Make sure to tell us at editor@concept2.co.uk. Or, of course, you could always say something at our message board: http://www.concept2.co.uk/forum/ _____________________________________________________BACK ISSUES Have a blast from the past by going to http://www.concept2.co.uk/news/newsletter_archive.php and checking out the hidden treasures of the Indoor Rowing News. New issues are posted on the release date of the following newsletter. _________________________________________________SUBSCRIPTION To subscribe to the Indoor Rowing News (yay!), send a blank email to subscription@concept2.co.uk with SUSBCRIBE as the message title. To unsubscribe (boo), send a blank email to subscription@concept2.co.uk with UNSUSBCRIBE as the message title. Concept 2 Tel: (0115) 945 5522 E-mail: info@concept2.co.uk Web: www.concept2.co.uk Printed from: www.concept2.co.uk/news/newsletter_archive.php