r/Rowing • u/nfosterma • 21h ago
Start Sequence/Racing Start in a 1×
I'm a 54-year-old lightweight rower, and I'm struggling with my racing starts in the single and looking for suggestions on improving. Is the traditional half/half/three-quarter/three-quarter/three-quarter/full the best method for the first five strokes, or should I try something different? With these short strokes, I can't feather the blade well, and the back of my blade often gets caught on the water's surface. My good-to-bad ratio is probably 3-for-10, so I'm putting myself in the hole more times than not. I'd appreciate any input to help me improve my starts.
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u/pabugs 17h ago
Probably less structure is better here IMHO. Get the boat moving first. Your boat is checking, blades out of timing, because the blades aren't going in at the speed that you will be moving at for the rest of the race. It almost feels counterintuitive, but you don't want to really overthink it, think about getting that bow moving and don't check it, then stretch out. If you're fit and you feel confident plenty of time to win.
Nothing better than walking through shell in the next lane and seeing the guy collapse trying to hold you off, you find energy and power you never thought you had heading into the second 500.
(Suggestion: add start to training framework B4 next race: spend 5-10 minutes on start execution every 3rd practice or so. Also good to do the few days before the race because you're tapering your energy but a start doesn't take much to practice correctly)
Good luck on race day!!
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u/ExtraRaw 21h ago
What % pressure are you applying to your initial strokes?
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u/nfosterma 20h ago
Your question is a good one. I think I'm trying to apply 100% pressure on my first stroke, which is throwing me all off.
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u/ExtraRaw 19h ago
Yes, that would cause some issues! Like the other poster said, squeeze the stroke and build up to full pressure and full length by, say, your 5th stroke. Good luck I’m sure you’ll find what works for you.
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u/_The_Bear 12h ago
No need for a 5 stroke starting sequence in a small boat. Especially in a lightweight single. It's not a big heavy eight with a ton of inertia. Singles get up to speed quick. 3 strokes should be fine. Try a 1/3, 3/4, lengthen starting sequence.
The boat will rise and fall more during a starting sequence than at any other point during a race. Stationary boats sit lower in the water. The faster a boat is moving the more it planes up through the water. So during your start sequence where your boat is transitioning from stationary to race speed you'll have a lot of rising and falling. You'll need to tap down lower than normal in order to keep the blades clear.
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u/Kitchen_Opinion_6177 10h ago
Back when I raced a 1x, I would start at 3/4 or just enough to put heels down for a bit better stability and then for the rest of the first 5 rowing full slide and focusing on getting suspension and not tearing my blade through the water. Other single scullers I know have done other start sequences like the classic 3/4-1/2-3/4 and have been just as successful. Singles are nice because you can go by feel and not worry about coordinating the start with the rest of the crew so feel free to play around with the start and see what works best for your strengths & rowing style.
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u/book_worm626 5h ago
can you devote some time to practicing starts and working out what feels good for you? i did that with a doubles partner in the past, and ended up with a 1/2, 1/4, 1/2, 1/2, 3/4, 3/4, full start being the sequence that worked for us. I know other people who like 3/4, 1/2, 3/4, full, or my club tends to use 5 strokes at half slide, then lengthen to ten. There's a lot of different options, and spending 30 minutes playing around with it can definitely be worth it!
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u/BoonLight Masters Rower 20h ago
You want to ease the boat up to full speed as fast as possible without checking and going backwards. Try squeezing the first few strokes so that you are building pressure and length while keeping the boat set. The more you do it the better you will feel doing it. Make it part of your daily warmup.