Trialling

Rowing Granta

» Trialling

CULRC's sole objective is to race and beat Oxford in the annual Men's Lightweight Boat Race held in Henley-on-Thames. We aim to attract the best lightweight or potential lightweight oarsmen and coxes in Cambridge.

Current Cambridge students interested in trialling for the 2008-09 season are invited to a meeting to be held at 5:30 pm on Monday 19th May in the Captains' Room, Goldie Boathouse, particularly if they are interested in participating in our Summer Development Squad. If you are not able to attend or would like more information, you are encouraged to contact one of the committee.

The criteria below are designed to give you some indication of the initial level of ability required to trial with CULRC. Whether you make a final crew ultimately comes down to hard work, dedication and enthusiasm throughout the season.

If you wish to apply to join the squad please contact Dave White (dew27@cam.ac.uk), the club's Vice President, as soon as possible.

Rowers

  • At least a year's rowing experience
  • An eagerness to learn and improve, and commit to a demanding and dedicated training programme
  • The ability to weigh less than 72.5kg on race day next March while at full strength. This usually equates to weighing less than 80kg now
  • As a guide, a 2k erg score less than 6:50 is desirable

Coxes

  • At least a year's coxing experience
  • An eagerness to learn and improve, and commit to the same demanding and dedicated training programme as the rowers themselves
  • The ability to weigh 55kg on race day next March

» Weight Limit

Lightweight rowing is so called because there is a limit on the weight of the oarsmen - no oarsman may weigh more than 72.5kg (11st 6lb), and for all boat classes other than single scull, there is an additional requirement that the average weight of the crew (excluding coxswain) must not be greater than 70.0kg (11st). (For women, the corresponding weights are 59kg maximum and 57kg average, although the average weight requirement for the Lightweight Women's Boat Race was recently removed)

This weight requirement is checked by weighing the crew members shortly before the race (1-2 hours before for international events, 1-4 hours before for the Boat Race), after which there is no further checking. For events with more than one round, the rowers are only required to weigh in once, unless the event spans several days in which case it is necessary to weigh in 1-2 hours before the first race each day.

During the 'off season' between September and March, many lightweights will not be at race weight, either because they are new to the sport and have not had time to get down to weight or because they have deliberately gained weight over the summer. As a result, indoor rowing competitions (e.g. British Indoor Rowing Championships) that take place during this period, have a weight limit of 75.0kg. This weight limit is also used for first and second round GB trials - for subsequent rounds each athlete is assigned a personal target weight.

It is not unusual for CULRC triallists to lose 10 or even 15 percent of their previous body mass over the six month trialling period, and the club has a dietician to ensure this is done effectively and safely. That said, it is advised that anyone weighing over 82kg in September gives serious consideration as to whether lightweight rowing is appropriate for them. Other triallists may start off on or close to the weight target and instead of dieting their focus will be to increase strength and fitness during the trialling period.

» Coaching Team

CULRC recently appointed Nick Brown as head coach for the 2007/08 season. Nick started rowing at the age of 12 and coaching at the age of 16. He has coached senior First VIIIs at both Brisbane Boys Grammar School and Brisbane Girls' Grammar School in Australia, and received a University of Queensland Sports Scholarship for coaching in 2002-03. He coached for the University of Queensland Boat Club from 2000-2004, where his crews won many State and National Championships. At the 2001 Youth Olympics, Nick's crews won a clean sweep of gold medals in the men's 2-, 4- and VIII, and at the 2003 National Championships the Queensland Youth VIII won silver. Nick also coached a number of UQBC athletes to success at National Selection regattas who went on to win medals at various Under 23 World Championships. In 2005 Nick, also a medical doctor, toured with the Under 23 Australian Team as part of the medical staff. Nick graduated from Cambridge with an MPhil in 2007 and is currently working towards his M.D. degree. He has been coaching for CULRC since 2006.

Jon Hutton rowed for CULRC in 1977 and was Captain of Jesus College Boat Club the following year. He won National Colours for Zimbabwe, steering the IV which toured Europe in 1989, winning Gold in the UK National Championships. In the 1990s he coached southern African crews to the World Championships. In 2000 Jon returned to work in Cambridge where he works for the UN, spending his spare time coaching town club crews, Jesus College and the Lightweight Squad.

» Water Safety

CULRC treats the health and safety of all its members with the utmost seriousness. All club members are required to sign our code of conduct, and familiarise themselves with all of the potential risks involved with the sport of rowing. You can download both our Code of Conduct and Risk Assessment here: Code of Conduct and Risk Assessment

» The Trialling Year

Trials for the CULRC begin at the middle of September, meaning that the full Boat Race programme lasts for six months, culminating in the race itself.

During the Michaelmas term we aim to build a solid physiological and technical base. Training takes place in Cambridge and on the River Ouse in Ely. We compete in races on the River Cam throughout the term. In November we race the Head of the River Fours which is held on the same stretch of the River Thames as the Heavyweight Boat Race. In December full term concludes with a training camp and initial round of seat racing. Throughout this term individual athlete physiology and weight is carefully monitored, with expert dieting advice provided by professional nutritionist.

Immediately after Christmas we reconvene for a warm weather winter training camp. Final crew selection takes place at the start of Lent term. In the run up to the race itself we compete in a number of races, including the BUSA Head Race and Bedford Head. For further side-by-side race experience we also arrange a number of private fixtures.

After the Henley Boat Races the summer programme includes showpiece events such as Henley Royal Regatta as well as the BUSA Regatta. We run a summer development squad for a month after term finishes. This gives potential triallists for the following year the chance to experience what training with CULRC means, under the under expert guidance of our coaching team.

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