Rochester Rowing Club

All rowers should own a 7/16" wrench and a flashing bicycle light. Whenever rowing in the early morning or late evening, the bow-seat and coxswain must wear the lights to stay visible on the water.

Rowers should wear shorts and a t-shirt during warm weather. Shorts should not be too long or too loose or they may get caught in the slide.

During cooler weather, sweatpants and sweatshirt can be worn, but again, they should not be too loose-fitting.

Some rowers choose to wear tighter synthetic clothing (similar to spandex, but cooler and more comfortable) which keep the body warm during cool weather and breathes during the workout.

Rowers should always bring running shoes to practice in case they need to do a land practice.

Finally, all rowers must own a uni-suit or uni-top and a long-sleeve jersey in the club colors. This is a regatta regulation at almost all our races. Group orders for these items are placed several times a year.

Our competitive rowers race across the country and sometimes even abroad. Typically, we will race more often in Minnesota, Wisconsin and Iowa, with rare trips up to Canada or to the east coast. In 2004, the RRC sent a girls' four to England, where they won their national championship, the Royal English Henley Regatta!

The Rochester Rowing Club is open to everyone from the age of 12 years. No one is too big, too small, too short or too tall. Whether you are looking for a serious workout or just to be active and meet some nice people, you are welcome at the RRC.

Usually members in high school or younger join the junior competitive program while everyone else joins the adult program. In addition, the club is split between the new rowers and the more experienced rowers. Finally, the boys and girls row separately, although everyone is part of the same team and we all go to the same races.

The RRC encourages everyone to give rowing a try. Even if you've never been in any kind of a boat before or think you have no athletic ability, rowing could be for you. Most importantly, no one is too small, too big, too strong, too weak, too short or too tall.

For juniors, we have a specific program for "novices", who are coached separately from the experienced rowers. For one year, they train and race against other novices and their training program is less demanding.

For adults, we run "learn-to-row" programs twice a year. These programs last for about 4 weeks and run twice a week in the evening and once on weekends.

Each person is guaranteed personal attention from a coach. The groups are small enough that there is always a coach nearby during the workouts.

Rowing is actually a year-round sport, even in Minnesota!
For juniors, the main racing season is the spring. We travel most weekends around the Midwest, racing against some of the fastest programs in the country. In order to prepare for this, we start training indoors in January. It really is a two-season season.

The summer season is split - for some people, it is a time to take it easy and enjoy themselves. Practices are not mandatory and racing is optional. This is a great time to take up rowing as a hobby and see if it's right for you. For other people, the summer is the perfect time to train hard and win some more races!

The fall season is for the longer races. Usually over a course of 3-miles, the "head-racing" season is a great time to learn the ropes. The teams have fewer mandatory practices during the fall, but everyone is always encouraged to come.

Safety is our first concern at the RRC. If conditions are extremely poor, no boats will be allowed on the water. Although rowers are required to pass a basic swim test, it is extremely rare for a boat to capsize or take on water. In addition, the oars are hollow and are Coast Guard-registered Personal Flotation Devices. Finally, there is always a coach present at every practice.

In the winter, we have an arrangement with the Rochester Athletic Club where we use "The Neighborhood" children's area as our own room. We train on the rowing machines, we run on the stairs and we lift weights. By the end of the winter season you will be in the best shape of your life, guaranteed. This is mandatory for juniors who expect to be on the varsity team.

The rest of the year, we train out of our boathouse on silver lake. It is located right behind the fire station at 7th Street NE and Silver Lake Drive. There is public parking just north of the entrance in the park itself.

Click here to view the location on a map.

The adults train on a schedule which fits with as many people as possible. Usually this means that we row twice a week in the evenings and once on the weekend. For those that have never rowed before, we offer "learn-to-row" programs twice a year. Please contact us for more information about adult rowing programs.

All active members of the club pay $90 per quarter in dues. This covers all coaching, equipment use and repairs, gas for the coach-boats and other day-to-day expenses.

For those that choose to join the competitive team (which includes all junior members), there are some additional costs.

Rowers are charged individually for each regatta. Depending on the location of the race, cost can vary from $20 to about $150. For example, a one-day race in Minneapolis is cheaper than a weekend-long race in Cincinnati. This cost covers transportation, food, lodging, transporting the boats and race entry fees.

Rowers must wear an athletic uniform during the races. The uniforms do not change from year to year, so this is a one-time charge and varies depending on the number of new members. The club does not make any money from the uniforms as they are purchased directly from the manufacturer.

The RRC is also willing to accommodate rowers who may not be able to pay the full amount. Our goal is to have as many people rowing as possible, not to gain a profit. We have subsidized rowers in the past and are always willing to make arrangements.

You can expect personal coaching. You can expect to make life-long friends. You can expect to work very hard. You can expect to surpass goals you didn't even know you had.
After your novice season, if you come to all the practices and all the races, you can expect to get a varsity letter from your school.

If you work hard, you can expect to win races from Tennessee to Canada.

If you stick with it, you can expect to be recruited by colleges from Iowa to Princeton.

What can you expect? Contact us and find out.

All rowers should own a 7/16" wrench and a flashing bicycle light. Whenever rowing in the early morning or late evening, the bow-seat and coxswain must wear the lights to stay visible on the water.

Rowers should wear shorts and a t-shirt during warm weather. Shorts should not be too long or too loose or they may get caught in the slide.

During cooler weather, sweatpants and sweatshirt can be worn, but again, they should not be too loose-fitting.

Some rowers choose to wear tighter synthetic clothing (similar to spandex, but cooler and more comfortable) which keep the body warm during cool weather and breathes during the workout.

Rowers should always bring running shoes to practice in case they need to do a land practice.

Finally, all rowers must own a uni-suit or uni-top and a long-sleeve jersey in the club colors. This is a regatta regulation at almost all our races. Group orders for these items are placed several times a year.

Any rower with an oar in each hand is “sculling”. Rowing with one oar in both hands is called “sweep”, but one would just say “rowing”, not “sweeping” or “sweep rowing”.

Although technically “crew team” is redundant, it has become the popular expression. So one joins “the crew team”. One rows with a crew. The crew is all the people in a boat, including the coxswain if there is one. The team is the group of all the crews.

Sculling boats:

A single scull or single
A double scull or double
A quadruple scull or quad

Sweep boats:

A pair
A four
An eight

In schedules and results, the following symbols apply:

‘+’ means with coxswain
‘-‘ means without coxswain – commonly referred to as “straight” as in “straight four”
‘x’ means a sculling boat – in the US, sculling boats are almost never coxed

i.e.

1x – single
2x – double
4x – quad
2- – pair
4- – straight four
4+ – coxed four
8+ – eight (coxed is implied, you would never row an 8 without a cox).

Some expressions you might hear:
“John Smith sculled his way to a silver medal.”
“John Smith rowed his single to a silver medal.”
“The Rochester junior women’s pair rowed well.”
“The Rochester junior women’s double rowed well.”
“The Rochester varsity boys’ eight placed third.”
“The entire crew was pleased with the result.”

The key to happy hands is keeping them clean. Unfortunately, there are no magic cures for blisters. Some people put rubbing alcohol or peroxide on blisters immediately after rowing to avoid infection. Others simply wash with soap and water.

Putting clean tape over a blister wihle rowing sometimes helps, but tape can also cause new blisters. It is often best to simply ignore the blister while rowing and keep it clean and open to the air when off the water.

Whatever you do, stay away from moisturizers immediately before and after rowing. They make your hands slippery and will lead to worse blisters in the long run.

Finally, if you ever see bright red in the skin around the area of the blister, if you entire hand is in pain or especially if you see any kind of red streaks, you may have an infection and should immediately seek medical attention.

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In the winter, we have an arrangement with the Rochester Athletic Club where we use "The Neighborhood" children's area as our own room. We train on the rowing machines, we run on the stairs and we lift weights. By the end of the winter season you will be in the best shape of your life, guaranteed. This is mandatory for juniors who expect to be on the varsity team.

The rest of the year, we train out of our boathouse on silver lake. It is located right behind the fire station at 7th Street NE and Silver Lake Drive. There is public parking just north of the entrance in the park itself.

Click here to view the location on a map.

Rowers should wear shorts and a t-shirt during warm weather. Shorts should not be too long or too loose or they may get caught in the slide.

During cooler weather, sweatpants and sweatshirt can be worn, but again, they should not be too loose-fitting.

Some rowers choose to wear tighter synthetic clothing (similar to spandex, but cooler and more comfortable) which keep the body warm during cool weather and breathes during the workout.

Rowers should always bring running shoes to practice in case they need to do a land practice.

Finally, all rowers must own a uni-suit or uni-top and a long-sleeve jersey in the club colors. This is a regatta regulation at almost all our races. Group orders for these items are placed several times a year.

Any rower with an oar in each hand is “sculling”. Rowing with one oar in both hands is called “sweep”, but one would just say “rowing”, not “sweeping” or “sweep rowing”.

Although technically “crew team” is redundant, it has become the popular expression. So one joins “the crew team”. One rows with a crew. The crew is all the people in a boat, including the coxswain if there is one. The team is the group of all the crews.

Sculling boats:

A single scull or single
A double scull or double
A quadruple scull or quad

Sweep boats:

A pair
A four
An eight

In schedules and results, the following symbols apply:

‘+’ means with coxswain
‘-‘ means without coxswain – commonly referred to as “straight” as in “straight four”
‘x’ means a sculling boat – in the US, sculling boats are almost never coxed

i.e.

1x – single
2x – double
4x – quad
2- – pair
4- – straight four
4+ – coxed four
8+ – eight (coxed is implied, you would never row an 8 without a cox).

Some expressions you might hear:
“John Smith sculled his way to a silver medal.”
“John Smith rowed his single to a silver medal.”
“The Rochester junior women’s pair rowed well.”
“The Rochester junior women’s double rowed well.”
“The Rochester varsity boys’ eight placed third.”
“The entire crew was pleased with the result.”

Our competitive rowers race across the country and sometimes even abroad. Typically, we will race more often in Minnesota, Wisconsin and Iowa, with rare trips up to Canada or to the east coast. In 2004, the RRC sent a girls' four to England, where they won their national championship, the Royal English Henley Regatta!

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