(source www.rowingact.org.au)
The Aim of an effective release or “finish” is to extract the blades from the water at the completion of the drive with as little disturbance to the run of the boat as possible.
Teaching points—the release
A good release should be part of the continuous acceleration of the drive so that the air pocket created behind the blade doesn’t fill in and create a “dirty” finish where there is a lot of water splashed around the blade as it is extracted. A dirty finish will slow the boat down just where it should be accelerating. (The fastest speed that the boat achieves is just after the release and it is important not to disrupt this acceleration.)
The power of the finish should derive mainly from a strong leg drive with a coordinated opening of the body and arm draw to add to the total force applied.
The release should be flat, in line with the rest of the draw, not drawn down into the lap. The rower needs to feel that he/she is pulling the handle up into the finish.
The release should be executed with flat wrists or a slight downward rotation of the wrist (inside wrist in sweep-oared boats) to help feather the blade, with minimal tap down of the handles for sculling blades (just enough to clear the blades from the water). This is because with cleaver blades most of the blade hangs below the shaft, and once the blade is feathered the shaft does not have to be lifted very far to clear the water surface. Try to feather the blade in the air pocket created behind the blade, which will ensure a clean release.
With sculling blades learn to feather by rolling the handles into the fingertips rather than by dropping the wrists. With sweep blades use the inside wrist to feather (although many scullers use both wrists with sweep oars)
At the release the elbows should be drawn back past the body, with forearms parallel to the water. The shoulder blades should also be drawn back (and should feel as if they are meeting in the middle of your back in sculling boats). In sculling boats it is okay to follow the handles round their arc at the finish and draw the elbows slightly out to the sides (but still keeping the forearms parallel to the water).
The release should be smooth, not jerky. At the finish the hands should come in, around the turn, and away without stopping—it keeps the finish smooth and saves time when rowing at high ratings, so that there is less need to rush forward up the slide (thereby introducing a whole range of boat-stopping movements).
A strong stable body is necessary for a strong finish because the body must be held steady while the blades are drawn to it.
At the release the body should be just leaning back from the vertical about 25 degrees but not slumped, and the head should be looking straight ahead (not thrown back or with the chin on the chest).
In a sculling boats the hands should be approximately 14–16 cm apart at the release, depending on the size and build of the rower. Sculling blades should not be able to be pulled past the body.
Common faults—the release
Pulling the handle down into the lap, causing the blade to wash out and resulting in a shorter, less effective stroke.
“Lugging it in” at the finish, i.e. leaning back too far and pulling the handle heavily downwards to finish off the stroke. This causes the boat to dip at the finish, slowing the boat run.
Handles slowing down at the finish—usually caused by lack of coordination between the legs, upper body and arms through the stroke so there isn’t an efficient summation of forces culminating in maximum acceleration. Often the leg drive is finished early, leaving the weaker arms to finish the stroke—a two-part drive and weak finish result.
Slow finishes can also be caused by lack of skill with feathering. This is common with beginners.
Elbows “winging” out at the finish—this will not result in maximum force due to an inefficient pulling angle, making arm draw weak.
Drawing the body to the handle rather than the handle through to the body.
Drawing the handle too far past the body, or not drawing the handle far enough through (cutting it off).
Leaning too far back at the finish or not leaning back far enough.
All the above are common faults with beginners. It is very important that rowers form a mental and sensory picture of correct body posture at the release. Videos and work on the ergo in front of a mirror are very good for this feedback.
With beginners a lack of core stability strength may be contributing to the incorrect posture at the finish. Gym work on abdominal strength and upper and lower back strength will help core stability. Even elite crews do work on developing and maintaining core strength as it is very important for injury prevention.
Fault correction exercises—the release
A good release is the product of a good coordinated drive phase, so it is difficult to separate release exercises from exercises for the drive.
1. Tapping down and away exercise
Description: Sitting at finish and tapping the handle down and away repeatedly.
Purpose: To develop tap down and feathering skills. For crews it also good for coordinating the timing of the release.
2. Square blade rowing and delayed feather
Description: As per title. A delayed feather is when you extract the blade vertically, then feather the blade once it is clear of the water.
Purpose: To develop tap down and feathering skills; for separating the two actions.
3. Building abdominal and back strength
Description and Purpose: Sit-ups are effective for building strength in the abdominal muscles. There are several exercises with and without weights for developing back strength.
4. Rowing hands only
Description: Sitting at back chocks rowing hands only without any body swing.
Purpose: Helps to establish a strong finish position and cement that position in the mind.
5. Quarter slide work
Description and Purpose: Quarter slide work with squared or feathered blades is good for coordinating the finish. Starting at 1/4 slide and progressing down the slide to full slide is also a good exercise for this coordination. All 1/4 slide work will improve the stability at finish if done correctly. Quarter slide work is also good for improving feathering skills.
When done at speed 1/4 to 1/2 slide work is a good warm-up to bring crews together in the timing of the release.
Part 4: The recovery
The Aim of a good recovery is to carry the blades forward to the catch position with minimal effect on the run of the boat. It is also a time for recovery from fatigue and provides a time to relax the prime moving muscles.
Teaching points—the recovery
A good recovery should be in tune with the speed of the boat and take at least twice the time of the drive. It sets the rhythm of the boat and a top crew will always have a relaxed efficient recovery.
A good recovery will set the rower up for a relaxed but sharp catch, with little missed water.
The sequence of movements is as follows:
The hands come away smoothly from the release, with the knees held down to give the boat stability and allow the boat to accelerate from the release.
As the hands pass over the knees the shoulders follow the hands forward, followed by the seat moving smoothly up the slide as you let the boat come all the way under you. The body angle for the catch position is achieved by 1/2 slide
The speed up the slide should be constant or slowing slightly all the way to the catch with no jerky movements or pauses at any point.
The hands should come forward at the correct height with blades just above the water with enough clearance to square before the catch without having to make room by skying the blade before the catch.
Hand heights in a crew should be even as should bow and stroke sides in a sweep boat.
The upper body should be as relaxed as possible (“rubbery” or “like a blancmange”) on the way forward. This allows the muscles a chance to recover, be replenished with oxygen and have waste metabolic products cleared (more difficult if constricted). This is also useful in rough water where if the rower is tense the movements of body and boat will be exaggerated.
Above all the rower should develop a “feel” for the boat and be sensitive to the way the boat runs under him/her so as not to disturb the run.
Fault correction exercises—the recovery
1. Exaggeration of the recovery time
Description: Ensure a very slow slide by counting “1000, 2000, 3000” for the recovery, then “4000” for the drive. Alternatively you could have an experienced stroke in the crew who will stick to this slow recovery time. Progress to counting “1000, 2000” for the recovery and “3000” for the drive.
Purpose: To encourage a smooth controlled recovery; to encourage crews to let the boat run on the recovery.
2. Feet out rowing
Description and Purpose: Rowing with the feet out of the shoes will ensure a smooth recovery in tune with the speed of the boat because rowers will not be able to pull themselves forward by their feet and will not speed up as they come into the catch. It also helps boat balancing skills, as the balance has to be achieved with the hands only and hand heights have to be perfect.
3. Square blade rowing and variations
Description and Purpose: Square blade rowing will ensure a consistent handle height on the recovery and guard against carrying the blades too low to the water to feather without skying.
A variation on the exercise is the delayed feather where the blade is feathered between 1/4 and 1/2 slide on the way forward.
A further progression from this exercise is the double feather where the blade is squared and feathered twice on the recovery. This is really only suitable for experienced crews.
4. Checks or pauses during the recovery
Description and Purpose: A very useful sequence of exercises are checks or pauses during the recovery, then rowing on. These can be made at various positions depending on the problems with the rowers/crew.
Pausing at hands away is good for crews who do not sit back at the finish and do not hold their knees down while the release is made. It is also good for crews who need work on the timing at the release and the “hands away” beginning of the recovery. Many crews have problems here with different hand speeds which, in turn will cause different slide speeds as the crew members try to get into synchronisation with each other on the way forward. Different slide speeds will result in a wobbly, unstable boat.
Pausing at “bodies over” is a very good exercise for those rowers who don’t have much body swing forward from the finish. Without this they will not be correctly set up for the catch and may dive into the catch. It is also good for rowers who do not hold their knees down while their shoulders come forward. Holding the knees down while the upper body swings forward allows the boat to be more stable and gives the boat time for maximum run from the release.
