Rowing

by R. C. Lehmann

The duties of a coxswain consist of many and varied details. To make a smart crew, attention should be paid to discipline both in and out of the boat, and he can and ought to further this object to the utmost of his power, thereby saving the coach or captain a great deal of trouble. If the coxswain of a light eight-oared racing ship has been ordered to get her into the water, he ought to be there to superintend the order being carried out. He should bid his crew "stand by" their riggers, and see that each man is in readiness to lift and carry her to the water's edge. There

is generally a waterman at hand, but whether there is or not, the coxswain should be ready, if necessary, to remove any stool upon which the ship may have been resting, so as to prevent any stumbling on the part of his men. His place is near the rudder (unless she is launched stern foremost, when, of course, it would be impossible), to prevent any injury happening to it, until the boat is safely in the water. He will then get the oarsmen into her in an orderly manner. There is necessity for this, for otherwise the boat's back may be strained. This might occur by allowing stroke and bow to get in first, owing to a boat of such length and lightness of build being supported in the centre and at the same time weighted at each end. The best order for the men to take their places is, 4, 5, 3, 6, 2, 7, bow, and then stroke. The coxswain should call out their numbers one by one, holding the boat firmly whilst they take their seats, and on no account allow more than one man to get in at the same time. In disembarking, it is part of his duty to see that the crew leave the ship in the reverse order. The coxswain seats himself in the aftermost thwart perfectly upright, with his legs crossed tailor-fashion, and

takes up the rudder-lines one in each hand; and, before he gives any command, should see that his steering gear is in proper order. It is a common and useful custom for the purpose of preventing the hand from slipping, to have attached to each line a piece of wood of about three to four inches in length, and one and a half in circumference, called a tug. These the coxswain clasps tightly, one in each hand. Some coxswains hold their rudder-lines in front of the body, others behind; but in my opinion the best place to hold them is by the side, with the hands resting one on each gunwale. The coxswain, by thus supporting himself, can better preserve a firm and steady seat. He should never slip about on his seat, but always keep his body as nearly as possible erect, and balanced from his hips. He must on no account roll with the boat, and should endeavour to prevent himself being moved to and fro by the action of the rowers. Often a narrow strip of wood is nailed to the seat the better to enable him to sit firm. The lines must be kept taut, and tied together in front of him, lest by any accident he should lose one or both overboard. After having shoved off and paddled into position, he

should see that the bows of his boat point straight for the course he wishes to steer. He will then start his crew by calling upon them to "get ready," when they will divest themselves of any superfluous clothing and make any other necessary preparations. He will then say "Forward!" or "Forward all!" for them to come forward in readiness for the first stroke. He should now take care that his boat is level, and should tell the oarsmen on the side to which she may list to raise their hands, or call upon the crew to get her level. After that he asks, "Are you ready?" as a final warning, and lastly cries, "Row!" or "Paddle!" as may be required. Some other forms are employed, but this is as good as any, and better than most, and the same words should always be used when once adopted. In the event of a crew making a bad start, they should be at once stopped and restarted. If the coxswain be desirous for his crew to stop rowing or paddling, "Easy all!" is the term to use, and this order should be given almost immediately after the commencement of a stroke, to prevent the rowers coming forward for the next one. In case it may be necessary to bring his boat up sharp, he will

say, "Hold her up all!"[12] and if (at any time) there is any danger of the oars touching anything, he should cry, "Mind your oars, bow side," or "stroke side," as the case may be. The boat is ordinarily turned on the port (left) side by calling upon bow and No. 3 to paddle, and stroke and No. 6 to back water, or back, for brevity; and on the starboard (right) side by calling upon Nos. 2 and 4 to paddle, and Nos. 5 and 7 to back. In each case the coxswain naturally assists with the rudder. When turning a racing ship, for fear of weakening her, the paddling and rowing should not take place simultaneously.

[12] This is the term used at Cambridge, where "Hold her" is also used with the same meaning. At Oxford, "Hold her up" means "Paddle on gently;" and "Hold her all," or "Stop her all," would be the order if a sudden stoppage were required. To carry out such an order the rowers turn the blades flat on the water, and raise their hands quickly, thus burying blades in the water.

Whatever the coxswain addresses to his crew should be spoken clearly and distinctly, so that all may hear without difficulty. The preceding instructions comprise most of the everyday terms that a coxswain should know.

Now let me turn to his functions of a semi-coaching character, of keeping his crew in time.

Whether the crew are rowing or paddling, he must carefully watch the time of the oars, both as they catch the water and leave it. If the oarsman catches the water too soon, he should be told not to hurry; if too late, he should be told, "You're late." If he leaves it too soon, or, as it is called, clips his stroke at the finish, he should be told to finish it out, etc. (but if an oarsman finishes it after the stroke, I cannot advise the coxswain to take notice of it). All these semi-coaching remarks, if I may so call them, should be prefaced with the number of the crew to whom they are addressed, for the purpose of calling his attention, and must be used with judgment and tact, for nothing can be more aggravating, not to say maddening, to an oarsman at any time, more especially when fagged in a race, to hear incessantly the possibly high-pitched and monotonous tones of a coxswain. There is only one fault that will excuse him shouting himself hoarse, if he be so disposed, and it is the fault, or rather vice, of one of the crew looking out of the boat; and he should at once cry, "Eyes in the boat!" and continue to do so until he is obeyed. There are certain acts of watermanship which an efficient coxswain will not

neglect to carry out, namely, when turning to come down-stream, to swing his boat round by pulling her head outwards into the current; and, on the other hand, when turning to proceed up-stream, to thrust her nose into the slack water inshore, and allow her stern to come round in the same manner; and always to bring his boat in to the raft or landing-stage with her head pointing up-stream.