Nisky Freshmen Sweep

The following narrative of the Shaker Invitational was written by Nick, six seat in the Dirigo. The Dirigo and Swift are the two freshmen eights used by Niskayuna rowing.

For the week leading up to the race, our whole team had been improving by leaps and bounds. Our timing was close to perfect, our technique was getting better, and we were all strong. The Swift was also frighteningly close to the Dirigo. In fact, on some of the short distance sprint drills, the Swift was faster.

Going into today’s race, we in the Dirigo knew we would beat Shaker. Coach told us up front he wanted us to demolish them. The real question was if the Dirigo still deserved to continue to consider itself the faster boat. The Swift was mostly lightweight rowers, but they gave it their all in every stroke. The Dirigo would never be able to slack off for fear of being passed by the Swift.

When we got to the start, we were very focused on beating the Swift. It was a little cold, but that would only make us want to go faster to warm up. The race started with all three boats flying. Neither Nisky boat left Shaker in the dust as originally planned. They stayed right with us… for maybe twenty strokes. After that, they just fell further and further behind the Swift and Dirigo. Two hundred fifty meters in, the race was between the two Niskayuna boats.

The Dirigo had a stronger start, but did not open water quickly. At one point, it looked like the Swift could start taking water back. Then the Dirigo hit the halfway point, and we took off. Our rating slowly increased, and we got faster with each stroke. We finally started opening water on the other boat. We crossed the finish line, most of us barely able to get through the last few strokes under the bridge. The Swift was maybe two or three boat lengths behind, and the Shaker boat was easily five boat lengths behind us. That race was the fastest we had ever been. For the first time in a race, our whole boat rowed together with all the lightness, power, and speed Coach had been trying to get us to achieve all season. We had a first and second Nisky freshman sweep.

2000 Meter Psychology

The Freshmen Boys on the Niskayuna Rowing team recently pulled 3 x 2000 meters on the erg - not an easy workout. The 2000 meter erg piece is standard in the sport of rowing, the common denominator against which athletes are compared. It is fatiguing both physically and mentally. Below are their reactions to the workout, a further glimpse into the psychology of rowing.

"Before I started the 2k pieces I was kind of nervous because I wasn't sure if I could maintain the high level intensity for all three of the pieces. Once I got into the first 2k i didn't think that it was too hard to maintain the slightly higher split, but once I got to about 650 meters left I started to feel tired and needed to push myself harder to maintain that speed. During all the 2k's, I made little "checkpoints" for myself (every 250 meters) so that I could focus for about one minute on making it through a little bit of the 2k. After the 2k's I feel good mentally because I worked hard and pushed myself; but physically I feel like (alternative language) because I am fatigued." - James

"Before the 1st 2k I was sort of motivated and ready to erg. I started getting tired around the end of the second 2k, this was also around the time I wanted to give up, but I kept telling myself to keep going. My motivation at the finish is the sprint because thats when I just go all out; until then I get worked up about the finish and then I just push myself through it. The sprint at the end is what I always use to bring down my split." - Eric

"Going into the three 2Ks, I was thinking about how stupid I was to make coach think of doing that. Actually, he may have been planning on it anyway, but the feeling that I had inspired it made it seem worse. One 2K was hard, three would be murder. It wasn't as bad as I thought it would be. I did my first one at a decent speed, and found out that I really wasn't that tired. I went harder on the second one, and got near by best time. I was spent by that time though. The third one didn't go so well. I found out though, that I can do two 2Ks pretty quickly, which means I should be able to sprint a 1500 meter race. One thing that really helped me was hitting the midpoint. For the first half, I concentrated on keeping my split where I needed it to be. When I hit the 1000 meter mark, I went faster. Being half way done with the piece made it seem easy. Usually, I want to give up at about 1200 meters to go. That's where my third piece started to sink. If I can force myself to work through the 1200-700 part though, I'm fine for the rest. Now I know where I get tired and when I can sprint, and I know I can go a lot faster on the next one." - Nick

"Regarding the erg piece yesterday, I believe it was a highly helpful exercise, and gruesomely exhilarating. Before the piece I imagined some good music to pump myself up, get that adrenaline going, and prime myself for some hardcore erging. I think the only part I got tired was at the end at the last piece. By then, my energy was gone, and I was relying on the little bit of endurance I had left. Although tired, I did not want to give up on any of the pieces; my motivation, the top boat on the team. There is no secret to erging hard, but there are strategies you can use to motivate yourself. Personally, I imagine myself winning a race, and coming to the finish, with a medal awaiting me. This helps bring your split down at the end 500 meters, approaching the bridge is what I like to call it. The only point you can feel is the last stretch of the race, during the race you focus on your stroke and power to much to worry about anything else. However, through this pain and struggle, there are only a couple more glorious moments in this world greater than that of finishing an erg piece knowing you pulled your (alternative language) off and that you did your best. If you are not a rower, and you do not know this feeling, it is an experience you must do, so join crew." - Eli

"Motivating yourself is task one. I can't speak for my teammates, but when I sit on an erg and Coach gives me my projected split this isn't enough for me to motivate myself completely through three different 2000m pieces. I need something more, at this time I think to the time I joined the team. I remember what the sport is about and I think how nice it would be to really be a contribution to the team, and not that guy. That guy who shows up day in and day out to fool around. The best thing about these pieces though, is I can honestly say our team has plenty of heart. This empowerment allows our team to pull hard from start to finish, knowing that each team member is pulling as hard as they can. And that guy, he didn't show up for practice. This is what allows me to complete these pieces with a split I'm happy with and still enough energy to cheer on me teammates." - Naji

"I think that the 2000 meter erg piece is pretty intense. Before the piece I am usually nervous. During the row I don't really use any strategies to get through it. I just row, and watch my split. The 3x2000 meter piece was hard. I thought that it was really good for my endurance, but it was tough. I didn't like it as much as the normal 2000. I like just getting the row over, with not drawing it out." - Zack

Rowing 2000 Meters in 5:37.0 (WR)

Interview with Matthias Siejkowski

Indoor Rowing World Record Holder

by Verena Loch -February 12, 2002
Translated by Oli Rosenbladt

row2k: Would you please describe the race?
MS: I kept the 500m at 1:24; 1:25, 1:25 and 1:23. That's an average of 1:24.2 over 2k. My opponents were elite national team members of Poland who had to qualify in several heats. Shortly after the 1000m mark I had difficulties keeping up the intense speed. That's when I got some help from outside. My former partner of 1993 (Polish Eight), Andrzej Krzepinski (who is now the chief of sport marketing for the Polish Rowing Federation), went ahead and yelled: "Wind it up, Maciej, wind it up!" Right in time with the rating, and again and again. At that point, I hardly felt strong enought to keep it up unless I would increase the stroke rate. Hearing the commentator's voice over the loudspeaker, I closed my eyes after 3.5 minutes and worked it up stroke by stroke.

Beforehands, I had prepared a note for myself and stuck it to the floor which said: "You can do it! Work with every stroke. No brains, just work!" Well, and then I stopped thinking about the pain and somehow there was the finish. I realized the score, broke down for a second, got treatment, but then managed to push away the paramedics. I rose up to new strength and got up again. Started dancing with joy, hugging and kissing everyone around.

row2k: At what point did you realize you were about to break Rob's record?
MS: At 1300m I went down to 1:23 (as I managed to peek through my right eye now and then). That's when I knew that I wasn't about to let it disappear any more. It appeared to me that this was THE day I had set the programme for. After all, it's just a head game. The psyche is the key to a successful competition. Of course, I had prepared both my body and my technique with a lot of precision. I inherited a book from my father, called "Psychology between the Starting Line and the Finish." It's from the former GDR and excellent, I recommend it to every athlete.

row2k: What settings do you generally use for your races? How did you pre-set your display this time?
MS: I usually set the drag factor to 155-160. My stroke rate after settling down was around 36, and I could see 500m splits of 1:25.

row2k: Why did you not row at the Olympics in Sydney?
MS: In the spring and summer of 2000 I had to make ends meet as a newly unemployed engineer, so I was very busy looking for work, and that had to be a priority. But my heart was bleeding while I watched the German men's sweep team have so much "success" in Sydney.

row2k: How much do you train? Do you do only ergs, or do you cross-train as well?
MS: In the peak training periods of October/November 2001, I was doing 19/20 hours per week. Everything else I think I'd like to keep a secret...

row2k: Who is your coach, and who writes your training programs?
MS: I do all that myself, I have 20 years of experience. >From time to time, people who know a little bit about rowing watch my technique, which is very important even on the erg, and give me valuable tips. In that area, you need outside input. I'm extremely grateful to all those who have supported me.

Niskayuna Overtakes Burnt Hills in Bell

The following narrative of the Mohawk Bell was written for the Niskayuna Freshmen Boys' blog by Alex, three seat of the novice eight.

It was windy, it was cold, and the odds were…with us? Wednesday, October 31st was the Mohawk Bell and I must say the freshmen guy’s crews pretty much owned. The spirit of Trogdor must have been with us today because we won a lot, even with a pretty sizeable mishap.

In all seriousness, however, I personally did not have much confidence in our form as were heading to the start and warming up. It was probably a combination of the headwind and the fact that we were headed to a racecourse that we had never rowed before, but I was just not feeling it, and I was pretty worried about how we were going to do. Regardless, we got to the start and hoped for the best.

We saw the Burnt Hills crew at the start area, and I found that they were looking about as out of it as we were, so I got a little more pumped, and got excited for a win. The Burnt Hills freshmen crew abruptly started, and my boat saw that the Nisky freshmen boat was already almost at the Amtrak Bridge. Our boat was called, and we began the paddle.

Half pressure. Three quarters. Full pressure! And we were off. The boat started somewhat poorly, but we got it together within about ten strokes, and the race started. I think we had an unspoken goal of passing the Burnt Hills crew before Freeman’s Bridge, because now it wasn’t a question of whether or not we would pass them, it was a question of when we would pass them. Alas, we did not achieve this, but we caught up to their boat, our bow to their stern, about halfway between Freeman’s and the railroad bridge. A power ten was promptly issued, and we rowed.

And we crashed. Into a buoy. We were forced into the buoy before the railroad bridge, and we lost a very good deal of speed. We got back into it with a power ten and passed them just after the railroad bridge. Now it was just a matter of getting farther away and finishing the race, which we did.

Pain, Rain, and a Strong Finish

The following narrative of the Head of the Fish Regatta was written for the Niskayuna Freshmen Boys' blog by Eli, six seat of the freshmen eight.

Up until the Regatta on Saturday, I never realized how much pain a body can take. Pain, that’s what crew is all about isn’t it? The pain, the amount of hurt your body can take before you breakdown. Getting up at 5:00 in the morning, trudging through mud, and getting soaked by the nonstop rain, then rowing two 3200 meter pieces is pain, but you hardly ever feel it until afterwards.

I stood on the sinking dock, holding my oar in one hand, and my half frozen water bottle in the other. I thought to myself, this is CREW! I plopped my oar into my rigger and waited for the coxswain’s command. I looked around me. It was a total scene of chaos. Like a scene out of Saving Private Ryan, coxswains were shouting, rowers were checking there riggers, and the rain; there were at least 3 dozen other boats on the water near the dock, and the rain, oh the rain, it was the killer. People were constantly trying to bail the water out of their boats because the weight of the water would effect their race time. Our coxswain gave us the command to get in, and so I hopped into my seat, and waited to embark on one of the greatest events of my life, the HEAD OF THE FISH.

I never have been in a more awesome state then I was during the race. Rain whipped against all our faces, my arms were aching, my hands hurt every stroke, as one more blister popped open. We were nearing the 300 meter mark on the race course, only 300 meters left to go! The oarlocks were banging so loud, it would have sounded like thunder to someone over top on the bridge. St. Catherine’s was just about 200 meters ahead of us. We had done so well this race, we had to have a big finish. At last the Coxswain called for the final sprint. We pulled so hard after that last word came out of his mouth, it was like magic. The boat seemed to lift off the water and cruise through the air with such speed and precision. When everyone is rowing with each other, at the same time, there is this indescribable feeling you get that makes rowing what rowing is. This is what rowers live for, this is crew!

Ten strokes to go. Now we were pulling hard! Three, two, one, over! I nearly collapsed as we passed the finish line at the bridge. We quickly turned around and started off towards the dock. Our Coach was the happiest we had ever seen him the whole season, and it gave us joy that we had shown him that we were a team, and we accomplished something we thought we never could do at the beginning of the season. Once we got onto dry land (minus the dry), we sat in chairs around a heat source and waited for our times. About an hour later they came, and we had gotten 2nd place! We had represented Niskayuna’s High School Freshmen, and shown all the other crews, even those from Canada, who we are and what we do!

Novice Eight Pulls Hard at Mayhem

The following narrative of the Mayhem on the Mohawk against Shenendehowa, Saratoga and Shaker was written for the Niskayuna Freshmen Boys' blog by Tom, coxswain of the novice eight.

The race began, and we got off to a somewhat rocky start in that Shen had a good start over us. However, we quickly organized ourselves, and began to move quicker. By the time we passed the railroad bridge, we had closed the distance between us and Shen to about three boat-lengths. The dead spot passed, and by the end of it, we had closed the water between us. I then called two successive power tens and by the end of them, we had pulled ahead and Shen had fallen back in disorder.

By this time, we were about four boat-lengths behind the Toga boat. I called another power ten past the end of the island, and we began to close the distance. By the time we had reached the abutments, we were only ½ a boat-length behind. They were good rowers, and had held us off until the final stretch of the race.

From the abutments to the bridge we began to feel the pressure by Toga. As the three buoys went by, we had closed the water between us. We both pulled, full power under the Rexford Bridge. By the end of the race, we were almost neck and neck with Toga.

They were good opponents, and they clearly knew what they were doing by giving us such a hard time. I was proud to row against them.

Freshmen Boy's Victorious in Mohawk Cup

The following narrative of today's race against Shenendehowa and Burnt Hills was written for the Niskayuna Freshmen Boys' blog by Nick.

We boated out at about 8am, ready to race. It was a really cold, clear morning, and the water was the smoothest I had ever seen it. It was a good day to race. The finish was just past our dock, so we basically had to row the length of the race to get to the start. Our coxswain, Kevin, started us off rowing in groups of six. About halfway to the start, he took it to all eight. We were only rowing three quarters pressure, but we were going almost as fast as the sprints we had done a few days earlier during practice. Our timing was good and we were ready to race.

That changed when we were about two hundred meters from the start. We saw a huge motorboat coming up behind us. Water sprayed out from its sides for at least ten feet. The driver slowed down as he got near us, passed us, and suddenly sped up, creating a huge wake. Unfortunately for us, we rowed right into it. The wake crashed into the six seat, drenching us. It was kind of funny at first, but the water just kept coming. By the time the wake was over, there was seven inches of water, almost up to our seats. A lot of us were swearing so loudly, I bet the driver heard us over his engine. We were panicked for a few minutes, but Kevin successfully calmed us down. No one actually saw the driver, but we later imagined him as a big guy eating foot-long twinkies. Various people in launches, including the head coach came and helped us pump the water out of the boat. Then we finally were ready to row through the bridge and start the race.

We were second in the order, with the Burnt Hills boat in front and the Shen boat behind us. Our motivation was to pass the Burnt Hills boat in front of, or before, their own dock. They had about a thirty second lead when we started, and the chase was on. About a third of the way through the race, we were next to them. Our boat kept creeping up, until our stern deck was level with their bow deck. They valiantly held us for a long time, but our persistence paid out. Suddenly their morale crashed and ours soared, and we walked right through them. For the rest of the race we opened more water on them. As we approached the finish, we were golden. Our timing was good, and we were ready to win our race. We went through the finish with a new burst of energy. There’s nothing like finishing in front of your own dock, with all our teammates and parents cheering for us. When we stopped, breathing hard, we were excited. We had our fist win.