With all the last minute GLRF work to do before I slink out of town for the US Independence holdiay, I rushed to the Marina for an abbreviated, 35 minute row. To most, it would seem like a waste of time to bicycle 14 miles one-way just to row for half an hour, but time on the water is time on the water. This morning, that truism came home in spades.  

In spite of the choppy, wake-laden water from the holiday boaters heading out for a 3 hour tour, I began my usual drills of rowing with my feet out of the stretchers.  Super coach Marlene Royle impressed upon me the importance of clean releases at the Florida Rowing Center and she even mentions it again in the July issue of Rowing News.  About halfway through the drills, I suddenly had a feeling of the speed of the oar through the water and making the release of the blade timed with the speed of the water.  You're probably reading this and thinking that I only figured this out now, after all these years, but making the connection between what coaches and technique articles say and actually feeling it are sometimes far apart.

I asked one of the Olympic rowers after the workout if they every felt these sudden realizations of technique.  Her answer: "oh yeah, all the time!"

I guess this is what makes rowing so wonderful as a lifetime sport - new discoveries and continued improvements.

Now back home, I saw this video and just couldn't stop laughing.  No offense to those who understand German and certainly, my family was affected by Hitler.  All of my grandmother's family, father, mother, and all brothers, were killed in concentration camps.  But for a non-german speaking person, in today's environment, this video is very funny for many reasons:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ELyTBXzfQJ8

Okay, time to hit the road. Erg session on Saturday and Sunday, if the gym is open.