Indoor Rowing Outdoors
Today I went to my first Indoor Rowing Competition of the 2007-8 season, outdoors at Dorney Lake. Dorney Lake is the Eton College venue that is going to be used for the 2012 Olympics Rowing Competitions.
I've always rowed ergs (rowing machines) indoors - usually in a Gym or Sports Centre, but also a rowing shed (at Newark) or an Arena (the National Indoor Arena in Birmingham for the British Championships) and at a Velodrome (in Manchester for the English Championships).
So this was the first time I've actually rowed an ergs outdoors. Fortunately the weather was kind and it neither rained nor was too hot or sticky.
The ergs at Dorney Lake were set up on two floating pontoons in the Lake itself. Slightly worrying as the massed ranks of the Rowathon competitors (a Rowathon is similar to a Triathalon but avoids getting wet being 4k row on ergs, a 30k bike ride and 7.5k run) who preceded us got the pontoons visibly moving about and also the ergs seemed to be moving about on the pontoons and threatening to migrate into the Lake.
In the event there were only 4 of us doing the 2000m race and, having moved my erg well away from the edge, I didn't notice any movement of either the erg of the pontoon while I was racing.
Despite (or because of) some rather atypically loud grunts from me towards the end of the race I did the 2000m in 7:58.0, which was wonderful for a start to the season race where we had virtually no warm up: 7:58 equals my best time of last season and is, of course, below the magic 8 minutes.
Next challenges - to better my PB of 7:50.4 and to win a medal at the British Championships (I've come in 4th in each of the last 4 seasons).
I've always rowed ergs (rowing machines) indoors - usually in a Gym or Sports Centre, but also a rowing shed (at Newark) or an Arena (the National Indoor Arena in Birmingham for the British Championships) and at a Velodrome (in Manchester for the English Championships).
So this was the first time I've actually rowed an ergs outdoors. Fortunately the weather was kind and it neither rained nor was too hot or sticky.
The ergs at Dorney Lake were set up on two floating pontoons in the Lake itself. Slightly worrying as the massed ranks of the Rowathon competitors (a Rowathon is similar to a Triathalon but avoids getting wet being 4k row on ergs, a 30k bike ride and 7.5k run) who preceded us got the pontoons visibly moving about and also the ergs seemed to be moving about on the pontoons and threatening to migrate into the Lake.
In the event there were only 4 of us doing the 2000m race and, having moved my erg well away from the edge, I didn't notice any movement of either the erg of the pontoon while I was racing.
Despite (or because of) some rather atypically loud grunts from me towards the end of the race I did the 2000m in 7:58.0, which was wonderful for a start to the season race where we had virtually no warm up: 7:58 equals my best time of last season and is, of course, below the magic 8 minutes.
Next challenges - to better my PB of 7:50.4 and to win a medal at the British Championships (I've come in 4th in each of the last 4 seasons).