Ergometer

• Also called the “erg” – indoor rower for training

Bow

• the part of the shell that crosses the finish line first or forward portion of the boat; rowers face the stern

Foot Stretcher

• consists of two inclined footrests which hold the rowers’ shoes; shoes are bolted into the footrests; stretchers are moveable forward or backward to accommodate different leg lengths

Gunwale

• the top edge of a boat’s side; pronounced “gunnel”

Oarlock

• the device at the end of the rigger that holds the oar

Port

• the left side of the shell when moving forward; oars on the port side are 2, 4, 6 and 8 (stroke); for rowers, port oars are on your right

Rigger

• the “arms” attached to the exterior side of the shell where the oarlocks are attached; acts as the fulcrum for the oar

Rudder

• Small, moveable piece on the bottom of the shell that the coxswain uses to steer the boat

Skeg

• the stationary fin located at the stern section of the boat used to help stabilize the shell in holding a true course; not the same as the rudder

Slide

• the part of the stroke when the seat is moving, both during the drive and the recovery

Starboard

• the right side of the shell when moving forward; oars on the starboard side are 1 (bow), 3, 5, 7; for the rowers, starboard oars are on your left

Stern

• the rear of the shell and direction the rowers are facing.

Tracks

• the set of metal runners set inside each seat area where the seat wheels slide forward and back

Blade

• the wide flat part of the oar that contacts the water

Collar

• the ring around the sleeve of the oar that is moved to adjust the load on the oar and the length of the handle

Grip

• the rubber part of the oar handle that the rower grasps

Oar

• used to drive the boat forward; not paddles

Shaft

• the main part of the oar between the grip and blade

Catch

• the beginning of the stroke when the blade enters the water; rower is fully compressed (knees bent, arms reaching forward) and the seat is forward on the slide; blade is fully “squared” (perpendicular) to the water

Drive

• the part of the stroke cycle where the rower applies power to the oar, consisting primarily of the leg drive, then straightening the back, and finally pulling in the arms

Feather

• rolling the oar handle so the blade is parallel to the water

Finish

• the blade comes out of the water, the legs are straight, and the hands have finished pulling the oar into the body.

Recovery

• begins with the hands coming away from the body during the finish followed by the rower swinging the upper body to a slightly forward body angle position; the rower then moves slowly back up the slide towards the catch

Tap Down/ Release

• the downward motion of the hand that serves to remove the blade from the water and start the recovery

Back/ Backing

• to move the shell backwards by pushing the handle away from the body while the blade is in the water; typically one side of the boat backs while the other rows to turn the shell around

Crab/ Catching a crab

• an accident that occurs when a rower loses control of the oar; the blade gets trapped in the water by the momentum of the shell causing the oar handle to fly backwards, going over the rower’s head or striking the rower’s chest; in extreme cases, the rower may be thrown overboard. 

Check it down; Hold water

• placing the blades of the oars vertically in the water to slow or stop the shell

Cox box

• an electronic device used by coxswains (headset, microphone, and speakers located in the boat) though which the cox gives commands to the crew 

Full slide

• type of stroke where the seat is moved all the way forward on the tracks, so that the rower uses legs, back, and arms

Half Slide

• type of stroke where the seat is moved halfway forward on the tracks, prior to legs, back, and arms sequence

Layback

• rower leaning back toward the bow during the stroke

Let it run

• command to stop rowing, holding the blades out of the water and parallel to the surface so the boat continues to glide

Power Ten

• coxswain’s command for the rowers to take ten of their best, most powerful strokes

Puddles

• marks left by the blade on the water after the release; puddles indicate the “run” of the boat by showing how far it has traveled since the previous stroke

Run

• the distance the shell moves during one stroke

Rushing the slide

• a technical error caused by sliding too quickly and abruptly toward the stern

Set

• the balance of the boat

Settle

• part of a race where the crew decreases the rating from the initial high stroke to a lower pace that the crew will maintain until the final sprint

Skying

• incorrect action of carrying the hands too low during the recovery, dipping the hands just prior to the catch; results in the blade being too high off the water’s surface

Stroke

• the rower who sits closest to the stern; sets the rhythm for the boat; all rowers behind the stroke must follow the stroke’s cadence

Stroke Rate

• the number of strokes rowed per minute

Swing

• occurs when the entire crew is moving perfectly in unison and the shell seems to be moving very fast without much effort

Washing out

• when the blade comes out of the water during the drive creating surface waves, losing power, and unsteadying the shell

Way enough/ Weigh enough

• command to stop rowing, or stop walking with the boat overhead on the dock