I============================================================ INDOOR ROWING NEWSLETTER # 33 ======================== 23-March-2001 ======================== _________________________________________________ C O N T E N T S 1. Red Nose Row 2. World's Fastest Woman 3. Tel's Tales #1 4. Team Ranking 5. Ultra-Distance Rowing 6. Tel's Tales #2 7. The Boat Race 8. Regional Races 9. Tel's Tales: SWL 10. Forthcoming Events 11. World Championship Photographs 12. British Blind Sport 13. Top Tip: Breathing ________________________________________________________________ ========================================================= Red Nose Row ========================================================= 3 - This year's Red Nose Row for Comic Relief started on September 16th with the launch of the Million Metre Challenge, for which people had exactly six months to cover the distance (http://www.concept2.co.uk/rnr/rnr_mmc_index.htm) 2 - It really took off in February when Steve Redgrave's Leander Team edged out Royce's Gym from Wigan over 100,000 metres, providing global TV coverage (http://www.concept2.co.uk/rnr/rnr_head2head_index.php3) 1 - It reached escape velocity and accelerated rapidly away at warp speed 7 on Red Nose Day itself, March 16th, with hundreds, nay thousands, of people taking part in events up and down the country. We know that loads of things went on, and we've yet to hear about a lot of them, so if you took part in an event, and you've yet to tell us make sure you e-mail rnr@vermonthouse.co.uk or (and more preferably) fill in the form on our web site at http://www.concept2.co.uk/rnr/rnr_events_database2.php3. By this time next newsletter we'll hopefully be able to list and credit *every* person or team who took part (and who tells us about it anyway). People such as Mike Crossley (www.giants.freeserve.co.uk), who decided that a million metres didn't stretch him enough and turned it into a Thousand Mile Challenge instead or Charles Bradley who did 400,020 metres over Red Nose Week itself. There are the team events as well, of course. The ones such as the Blue Nose Row in which a team of ten from HMS Invincible completed the 100,000m team event in 6:29:46. They started the row at 8am whilst parked in Harstad, northern Norway, which is about 140 miles inside the Arctic Circle, and completed it shortly before 2:30pm off the coast of Norway and well inside the arctic circle - arguably, the most northerly, and the coldest, Red Nose Row yet. Or there was the Clarke family from Chester, husband, wife, son and daughter who covered 14,474 metres for the one hour mixed team relay. Anyway, make sure you tell us what you did and we'll list all you unsung heroes on our web site. Two brief notes. Firstly about sending in money to Comic Relief. If you want to try and win one of the six free Indoor Rowers as one of the top individual or club fundraisers, remember that your money must be sent in the form of ONE big cheque and made payable to Comic Relief Red Nose Row. Send this to Red Nose Row 2001, Ernst & Young, P.O. Box 678, London EC4A 1NT by Friday 18th May 20001. Secondly: if you took part in the Million Metre Challenge and DIDN'T do it on-line through the world ranking, make sure you get your log book in as soon as you can. To those of you who've already handed over your metres to us: your certificates and/or T-shirts will be arriving in the next couple of weeks. ========================================================= Fastest Woman In The World ========================================================= In the aftermath of this year's World Indoor Rowing Championship, many a person gets motivated to try and improve their 2,000 metre time. They download the Training Guide from the web site, they start training five times a week, they alienate friends and colleagues with their obsessive training etc. etc. Turns out, all you need to do is move to New Zealand where they're obviously adding something to the lamb. Not only do they have the world's fastest man in the form of Rob Waddell, but now Georgina Evers-Swindell has just taken over the mantle of world's quickest woman. Georgina, who finished second behind Amy Fuller of the United States when she set the previous record at the 2000 World Indoor Rowing Championship, set the new mark of 6:31.6 at the New Zealand national rowing team trials last week. Full British and World records for every age and weight category can be found at http://www.concept2.co.uk/v4/brit_world_records.htm ========================================================= Tel's Tales #1 ========================================================= "Beauty is truth, truth beauty," - that is all Ye know on earth, and all ye need to know. So quotheth John Keats shortly before he coughed his last. Which is, y'know, a nice sentiment to be sure, but let's face it, what if you've got a problem with your technique or you want to understand more about heart rate training? How's that beauty/truth thing going to help you there eh John? Eh? No, what you need to do is dash off an e-mail to three times Olympic rowing coach Terry O'Neill at webmaster@vermonthouse.co.uk. He'll sort you out, not some daft old Greek pot. Paul Karanevich: Why is it that pictures taken at the World Indoor Rowing Championship, and shown on About.com, reveal rowing forms (i.e.- technique) that my Concept 2 manuals and video would illustrate as being incorrect? One picture shows a competitor with bent wrists, another bringing the "oar" up to his chin, and a third with elbows far out away from his torso. I am a stickler for proper exercise form since, in my opinion, to do otherwise will eventually result in injury. Are these serious competitors rowing incorrectly or am I misinterpreting the Concept 2 manuals and video? Terry O'Neill: The technique advocated by Concept 2 in their manual and video is based on sound biomechanical principles. For the majority of rowers, following this method will produce the best results. However there will be variation for a number of reasons and I'll give you two examples. Herbert Leah has won virtually every race he's been in, but if you look at his technique there are many faults. He rows with bent arms due to an accident several years ago which resulted in a permanent bent arm which he physically cannot straighten. He also doesn't sit square on the seat, and this is because he has one leg two inches shorter than the other so he has adapted a technique that suits his body. Even five times Olympic Champion Sir Steve Redgrave rows with bent arms. Scullers are used to rowing the oars in an arc and so when they get onto the machine their elbows tend to go out at the finish. You would not teach this on the machine because there is no angular element to the machine but there is to an on-water rowing stroke. If the user of the machine's main aim is to perform on the water you would not want to change his technique on the machine. Finally the pulling of the 'oar' to the chin. This is unique to the US and it stems from the belief that the extra length will give a better result. The proponents believe they can cheat the machine but the machine can only measure effort. So whereas this extra long pull may result in the split coming down there will be an energy cost to the rower. ========================================================= Team Ranking ========================================================= How many times have you sat there and thought "The on-line world ranking (http://166.82.35.96/sranking/home.asp) really floats my boat. Wouldn't it be great, however, if there was one for teams so that people who've done, say, a 100,000 metre team event for the Red Nose Row can enter their times?" If you're anything like us it must be at least seven and twelvety times. Fortunately there's now a cure for this noodle scratching as the prototype version of this has just gone up. Hop on over to http://166.82.35.96/sranking/teams/teamHome.asp enter your team and their result and then sit back and see where you compare. ========================================================= Ultra Distance Rowing ========================================================= Talking about things which seemed a good idea down the pub... As of 06:30 Friday morning, Nigel Gower has completed 803,000 metres in 6 days as part of his Million Metre attempt. Nigel apparently suffering like a good 'un now, but is pinning his hopes on a new "hi-tech bum-pad". He's a fraction behind his schedule of a million in seven and a half days, but with a little overtime on Friday he hopes to catch up. All funds raised are going to support White Lodge Centre (Chertsey) for disabled kids and Weyfarers to provide rowing equipment for these kids to use, with 20,000 pounds the target in sight. Offers of help and support can be given to Nigel at sculler@fsmail.net while the details of his attempt are regularly updated at http://www.weybridge.rowing.org.uk Those of you for whom the call of an indoor rowing seat sings plaintively in your ear might want to be reminded that we're reaching the end of World Marathon Week (soon to be renamed World Snickers Week). The deadline if you want to take part in this is March 25th. For more information, nip to http://166.82.35.96/sranking/world_marathon/marathon_index.asp ========================================================= Tel's Tales #2 ========================================================= Carole Jackson: I am a keen rower but have had some problems with my knees recently that I have been addressing by doing exercises recommended by my osteopath. However, if there is any modification kit available for my Indoor Rower, or if there is anything I could do to modify it myself, I would be pleased to hear about it. Terry O'Neill: There are no modifications as such. There are two things that can be done in the case of rowers with existing knee problems. If you are still receiving treatment you can discuss them with your osteopath as you don't mention what your problem is. The areas of risk for people with knee problems are over compression at the front and pulling the knee joint apart at the finish. The finish position is easier to deal with, especially if it is your own machine. You simply take a small piece of wood and a G clamp. You clamp the wood onto the slide, positioning it at a point so that when your legs are flat the seat wheels touch the wood, stopping its travel. When you row you then lock your knees out against this back stop and you cannot overextend the joint. To address the issue of over compression, you could mount a similar arrangement at the front but you would need to be careful that it did not foul your legs going down. First, although, I would try raising the flexi-foot so that the shin cannot go beyond the vertical. ========================================================= The Boat Race ========================================================= The 147th Boat Race takes place this Saturday at 1:30 pm, with this contest promising to be one of the most tightly fought for years. Those of you who fancy a social spot of indoor rowing might want to watch the action from Furnivall Gardens - just 300 yards west of Hammersmith Bridge - and join the fun in the Auriol Kensington marquee. Not only is there the promise of cheap beer, but there's also a one minute indoor rowing challenge to master. ========================================================= Regional Races ========================================================= The final of the Aberdeen Assets Boat Race City Challenge took place on Wednesday 21st March at Broadgate Arena London. Not only was there chance of individual success and the prize of an Indoor Rower for the winners of the final, but for those taking part in the four man 4x1,000 metres team event there was the opportunity to go up against Matthew Pinsent who was part of the Aberdeen Assets Management team. Matthew pulled a heft 2:49.1 for his leg and helped keep the all-star team in front of the competition, finishing as they did in 12:15.1, ahead of the Don Scullers in 12:39. The winner of the Men's Individual 1,000 metres was Nik Fleming from UCLES with a time of 2: 52.9 seconds while the winner of the women's final was Karolyn O'Hare. ========================================================= Tel's Tales: Safe Working Load ========================================================= Every time you enter a lift you see a notice saying the maximum amount of people that should be in there. When engineers design lifts, bridges and buildings they have a safe working load (SWL). If I remember correctly from my O level Mechanics, the absolute maximum load is two and a half times the safe working load. By coincidence this figure of 40% of maximum is the same as the percentage of muscle fibres we recruit when we do a single maximum repetition lift, which should represent our absolute strength. The brain decides how many fibres to recruit to overcome the task and the brain can be fooled. How many times have you gone to pick up a container that you thought was full but was in fact empty and it shoots up in the air; conversely, when you go to pick something up, usually your wife's suitcase which you foolishly believe would weigh the same as yours as you are embarking on the same journey, you find that at first it remains stubbornly upon the ground. This is because the brain has either over- or underestimated the number of muscle fibres needed to carry out the lift. If the brain can be fooled into recruiting more fibres than it needs, can it be conditioned to go beyond this 40% figure to improve performance? One of the possible explanations for this maximum of 40% fibre recruitment is that the brain has to hold back fibres to enable their use in rotation for repetitive actions. Another possibility is that this 40% is part of the evolutionary process. This would in part explain how early man, standing under five feet tall, would be able to pick Sir Steve Redgrave up above his head and hurl him across the room (or cave). When compared to modern sporting giants, early man was far stronger in absolute terms, despite the fact that today we have better nutrition and scientific monitoring of training. Could it be that the explanation for this is that no such SWL existed in early man and he was able to summon all his potential strength? Apart from the safety aspect of a SWL, if we operate anything at below its maximum it lasts longer. Early man drove with the pedal to the metal and would be lucky to see his twenty-first birthday, let alone take part in competitions at age 90 like John Hodgson. Nowadays there is not the demand for man to hunt down dinosaurs and throw them roughly to the floor single-handed [Tel appears to be ignoring the fossil records and instead relying on The Flintstones for his knowledge of the lifestyle of early man]. Modern man driving his body with due care and attention gets his full 3 score years and ten. In support of this theory, when basic instincts come to the fore people are capable of phenomenal feats of strength. A case study from a course I attended told of a young mother who, whilst backing her car off the drive, inadvertently ran over her toddler. Without a second thought she ran to the back of the car and lifted it up, releasing the child. Had she thought about it she would never have been able to lift the car but her maternal instincts to protect her child were so strong they overrode all other considerations. Although we can fool the brain to recruit more fibres than we need, whether you could consciously summon up all of your potential strength and override the SWL I doubt. There is something we can achieve by applying positive thought. When we are children we learn to overcome the most difficult tasks we are ever likely to meet. We don't do this with the aid of a user manual but by a process of trial and failure. As children we have no awareness of difficulty and no fear of failure; these come later in life and create barriers. If we can approach tasks with the mind of a child, open minded and fearless, then we will be able to improve performance. If we don't, there's always next time. ========================================================= Forthcoming Events ========================================================= The Cornish Indoor Rowing Championship takes place this Sunday the 25th March at Phoenix Leisure Centre, Coronation Park, Launceston so pop along if you're at a loose end in the South-West. Contact Martin Williams on 01566 772 551 for more details. ========================================================= World Indoor Rowing Championship Photographs ========================================================= Photograph's taken at last month's World Indoor Rowing Championship are now available to purchase on-line at http://www.concept2.co.uk/wirc/photographs.htm. They cost 5.50 pounds each with postage being charged at a flat rate of 2.50 pounds for however many photos you want. Which is pretty much all there is to say about them, thus leaving room for a joke. A man takes his Rottweiler to the vet. "My dog's cross-eyed, is there anything you can do for him?" ""Well," says the vet, "let's have a look at him." He picks the dog up and examines his eyes, then checks his teeth. Finally, he says, "I'm going to have to put him down." "What? Because he's cross-eyed?" "No, because he's heavy." ========================================================= British Blind Sport ========================================================= On March 11th, a team of four from the Fitness Suite at Sleaford Leisure Centre raised funds for an Up for the Challenge Night being staged in aid of British Blind Sport. The idea was the brainwave of Brian Statham who read in the Guinness Book of Records about a coxed four in 1947 who rowed a distance of some 48 kilometres from Sandgate, Kent across the channel to Boulogne, France in 4 hours 15 minutes. Although none of the participants had previous experience of distance rowing, husband and wife, Walter and Linda Burden from Digby and Sleafordians, Tony Sherlock and Brian Statham decided to match this, and each rowed 12,000 metres to cover the 48 kilometres in 3 hours and 33 minutes. Up for the Challenge Night itself is being held between 6pm and 10pm on Saturday, May 5th, at Sleaford Leisure Centre, Eastbanks, Boston Road, Sleaford. The organisers are appealing for sponsored participators to swim 1 or 12 lengths of the pool in the cross-channel relay. Everyone will receive a certificate endorsed by Kate Hoey MP, Minister for Sport, and Bill Frindall, President of British Blind Sport. Children under fourteen will receive a commemorative medal. All proceeds will go to British Blind Sport. The fund-raising evening also entails a Tour de France spinning relay and 26.2 mile blindfolded treadmill relay marathon. ========================================================= Top Tip: Breathing (By Harry Welsh) ========================================================= The people who attended the Overseas Competitor Reception in Boston will have heard John Hodgson's top tip for a long life: just keep breathing. As the resident indoor rowing nonagenarian we of course bow to his wisdom in these matters. The slightly trickier question of breathing patterns during rowing, however, is one that frequently rears its ugly head. Fortunately the following article dropped into our post box from Harry Welsh, the former 70-79 Lwt World Champion that answers many of the questions involved. Remember, if you've got a Top Tip, send it into webmaster@vermonthouse.co.uk "Observation of many rowers has led to the realisation that, in many instances performances could benefit from a greater appreciation of, not just the breathing rhythm, but a more in-depth understanding of the physiology of breathing. This is borne out by the number of questions that have been posed to Terry. "Listening to the breathing of rowers under stress, the arrhythmic gasping and panting occurring is indicative of this. So for those rowers who do have some concern, or those who haven't, but who would appreciate a little knowledge, the following discourse is offered. The primary and essential function of inhalation is to provide oxygen for the lungs, to play their part in the cardio-respiratory process, whereby oxygen is transported by the bloodstream to the muscles as a form of fuel. Conversely the function of exhalation is to provide the means whereby the body can rid itself of waste products (carbon dioxide). The heart as a muscular pump providing the means whereby venous blood is distributed to the lungs, and oxygenated blood is circulated throughout the body. Within the lungs a gaseous interchange takes place by way of the thousands of air sacs (alveoli), within the lungs. As the walls of the alveoli are only one cell in thickness, gases, oxygen and carbon dioxide, can diffuse freely from and into the air sacs. This is possible through the principle of attraction, whereby a larger concentration of gas is attracted to a smaller concentration. Thus on inhalation the higher concentration of oxygen present in the lungs, passes into the circulatory system. At the same time the low concentration of carbon dioxide within the lungs, attracts the high amount of carbon dioxide in the blood stream. This process is continuous. The capacity of the lungs is physiologically divided into three areas. Namely: a) Residual air: which is air left within the lungs after full exhalation b) Tidal air: which is the ebb and flow of normal breathing and c) Vital capacity: which is the total amount of air that can be exhaled from full inhalation to full exhalation. Vital capacity is of great importance and can be measured with a spirometer. "Now to the point. From the above, it can be deduced that the less carbon dioxide that is present within the lungs, as the gaseous interchange is taking place, the greater will be the amount of carbon dioxide extracted from the circulatory system. The reverse being true of oxygen input, so it follows that exhalation, that is prolonged and strong, during an endurance event will benefit the aerobic performance. The recommended rhythm of breathing is in time with the recovery and the drive. That is to say inhale on the recovery and exhale on the drive. "As stated previously, the inhalation must be deep and the exhalation strong and prolonged. However, it is easier to say than do. It needs practice in order to establish and superimpose the new habit over an existing one, as when under stress old habits will reassert themselves over any newly acquired ones. Mention was made of the gasping and panting by many rowers. Usually this is the result of trying to get more oxygen into the lungs, a perfectly natural concern. A very short exhalation follows; this tends to result in a backlog of carbon dioxide building up within the circulatory system. In such circumstances, the respiratory centre in the brain is stimulated to increase the breathing rate. Within the context of retaining a stable and effective breathing rhythm in a demanding situation, inhalation is obviously vital. However, exhalation could be more important. Major points are: - a) Establish the adopted breathing pattern and rhythm during steady state rowing. b) Deep inhalation; strong prolonged exhalation, in time with the recovery and drive. c) Prior to, and after a row, aerate the lungs through full inhalation followed by full exhalation, 2/3 times. You will be better prepared and should recover quicker. Hoping the above may prove to be of some help to a few." ____________________________________________F E E D B A C K Like what you read? Dislike what you read? Ideas for future newsletters? Make sure to tell us at webmaster@vermonthouse.co.uk. Or of course, you could always tell us at our message board: http://www.concept2.co.uk/messageboard.htm. Oh go on. _________________________________________________________ _______________________________________SUBSCRIPTION INFO If you think you're on this mailing list accidentally, just return the e-mail with "unsubscribe" in the subject header. If you're getting more than one copy, then reply with "multiple" as the header. A man goes into the doctor's. "Doc, I've got a cricket ball up my backside "How's that?" "Don't you start Doctor."