From: GC.SUL@forsythe.stanford.edu (Sullivan)
Subject: comments on kayaking, rowing, level field
Organization: Stanford University, California, USA
Date: Thu, 13 Aug 1992 02:39:23 GMT

I'm responding to a number of different comments and questions.
I'm a former rower and coach who trained with a heap of kayakers and
canoers and provided a training location for them at UCI boathouse
when I coached there. (happy to see Sheila and Kathy M in the K4!)

A K4 will certainly not blow by an eight in 500m.  Given equal
athletic talent and expertise, an Int'l level men's 8 can do
sub 1:18 in 500m flat out to a K4's 1:35 or so.

A K4 is a wonderful training partner to a double,  pair, or straight
4 since the speeds are in the ball park, and the K4 can see much
better what hazards we are approaching.  It is a super advantage to
blind small boats, as if you have a bouyed course to train on.

A good K2 and a good single can do some distance training together
quite nicely.

Kayaks got very little benefit doing short pieces with us, because
they would always win the starts, and lose distance during the
duration.  That can be psychologically disadvantageous in training.
Also, since their races were a larger portion of anaerobic to
aerobic compared to us, our regimens didn't intersect quite enough.

RE: level playing field.  In 1974, I raced the world championship
trials at Princeton in the 2-.  At the time, there had been a huge
rain storm that passed through swelling Lake Carnegie.  In those
conditions, lane 5 and 6 of that course flow at a good clip, lane
1 and 2 are in the eddy.  We had lane 1.  Lane 6 won the trials
beating another pair in lane 5 by 2 seconds.  The lane 5 pair was
our teammates who we were accustomed to beating by 10 seconds over
2k.  We protested before the race was run (before even the lane
draw!), after the race was run, to no avail.  The officials had to
get to work the next day and were in no mood to hold off a day or
so to let the water run out.  Even now, I don't look back at that
situation as 'character building', or an interesting competitive
experience.  The only value of that race was that there were some
people who were victimized by it that made a difference in the
running of the '84 Olympic regatta at Casitas so that it would be
fair.

Re:  World Records in Rowing.  There are unofficial world records,
and unofficial 'fastest times' but nobody really cares in Rowing.
Generally, you can add or subtract according to what's known about
the conditions to compare your times relative to past crews.
Technology improvements in boats and oars have made big differences
in boat speed and rowing technique.  If a crew gets a commanding
lead in a final, it often will not do a finishing sprint as there
is a risk of equipment failure, crabbing, mistakes when you crank it
up that can cause you to lose to a boat even a length behind.  It's
not worth the possibility of losing to win by a lot more.  Besides,
nothing is more glorious than being well in command, heading in
to home with a nice swing in the crew - save the throwing out the
kitchen sink for the many times you'll be down or even in the last
250m.  There's nothing lazy about it, you are rowing hard, just not
high and risky.  It is a rare thrill and usually well earned by LOTS
of hard work.

As to the 'spoiled brat' comment.
Right.  If Silken is your only exception, then your entire
acquaintance with athletes and competitive sports is certainly
through TV.

Mike