Glossary of rowing terms

In your Learn to Row course you will get to know some of the essential rowing terms listed below. Don't stress, you don't need to know them all.

Find out which ones we consider impotant by clicking HERE

• Back it > to row backwards
• Backchocks > the part of the slide closest to the bow
• Blade > the part of the oar that enters the water
• Bow (i) > the forward section of the boat (the first part of the boat to cross the finish line)
• Bow (ii) or bow seat > the rower in the seat closest to the bow, who crosses the finish line first
• Bow coxed boat > a shell in which the coxswain is in the bow instead of the stern
• Bow rigged boat > a shell where the stroke rows on bowside
• Bowball > the very front of the boat; a required piece of safety equipment
• Bowside > the right hand side of the boat, when looking to bow
• Strokeside > the left hand side of the boat, when looking to bow
• Button > a wide plastic collar on the oar, usually coloured pink on modern oars, that keeps it from slipping through the oarlock
• Canvas > the covered sections of the boat at the bow and stern
• Catch > is the point at which the end of the oar enters the water
• Check > command to stop the boat, blades are square buried
• Cleaver > asymmetrical blade, shaped like a butcher’s cleaver
• Coffin > where the cox sits
• Coxbox > microphone used by coxswains to order the crew
• Coxless > a shell without a coxswain i.e. a straight four or straight pair; aka straight
• Coxswain > person who steers the shell and is the on-the-water coach for the crew
• Crab (catching a …) > is where a rower loses control of their oar and doesn’t remove it from the water at the end of the stroke and the oar acts as a brake ... ie. this is bad news in rowing
• Deck > the part of the shell at the bow and stern that is covered with fiberglass cloth or a thin plastic
• Drive > the part of the stroke that the legs are used most
• Easy oar > stop
• Eight > a version of sweep rowing for eight people, ie eight oars
• Erg > an indoor rowing machine (ergometer) and complements on-water rowing
• Feather > blades are in a horizontal position
• Finish > The release of the blade from the water
• FISA > an abbreviation of Federation Internationale des Societes d’Aviron; this is the international governing body for the sport of rowing in the world, established in 1892
• Foot-stretcher > where the rower’s feet go. The stretcher consists of two inclined footrests that hold the rower’s shoes. The rower’s shoes are bolted into the footrests
• Four > a version of sweep rowing for four people, ie four oars
• Frontchocks > the part of the slide closest to the stern
• Gate > the bar across the oarlock that keeps the oar in place
• German rigging > a way to set a sweep boat, where two consecutive rowers have oars on the same side, rather than the standard configuration of alternating from side to side
• Gunwale > the top edge of the boat, pronounced gunnel
• Inside hand > the hand closest to the gate when using a sweep oar
• Keel > the strongest part of the boat, the centreline
• Lightweight > refers to the rowers, not the boats; a maximum weight for each rower in a lightweight event
• Macon > spoon shaped symmetrical blade, also called standard
• Oar > is used to propel the boat through the water ROWERS DO NOT USE PADDLES
• Heavyweight or open weight > refers to the rowers not restricted by weight
• Outside hand > the hand on the end of the handle when using a sweep oar
• Pair > a version of sweep rowing for two people, ie two oars
• Port > left side of the boat, while facing bow (the direction of the movement)
• Power 10 > a call for rowers to do 10 of their best, most powerful strokes … it’s a strategy used to pull ahead of a competitor
• Racks > where boats are placed when not in use
• Rating > the speed of the slide, counted in strokes per minute
• Recovery > the part of the stroke when the blades are out of the water
• Regatta > is a sporting event with a series of boat races
• Release > when the blade is taken out of the water, also called the tap down
• Repechage > a last-chance qualifying race in which the crews that did not automatically progress from the heats have another chance to advance to the next round
• Rigger > the triangular shaped metal device that is bolted onto the side of the boat to hold the oars
• Run > the run is the distance the shell moves during one stroke …. this can be viewed as the puddles made by the oar
• Sculling > one of the two disciplines of rowing, where the crew have two oars, one in each hand
• Set the boat > holding the boat balanced on the water
• Shell > can be used interchangeably with boat
• Shoulder > the main brace of the boat, where the riggers are attached
• Skeleton > the bracings and fitting on the inside of the boat
• Skin > the outside of the boat
• Slide > the set of runners for the wheels of each seat in the boat
• Sock up > make adjustments and get ready to begin rowing
• Speedy > the dinghy used by coaches, can also be known as a launch
• Spinning > turning the boat around
• Spit post > a wooden course or channel marker
• Split time > the approximate time to row 500 metres
• Square > blades in the vertical position
• Starboard > right side of the boat, while facing bow (the direction of the movement)
• Steering foot > movable foot connected to the rudder used in cloxless boats
• Stern > the rear of the boat; the direction the rowers are facing
• Stern seated > a shell where the cox sits in the stern
• Straight > a shell without a coxswain i.e. a straight four or straight pair; aka coxless
• Stroke (i) or stroke seat > the rower who sits closest to the stern and sets the rhythm for the crew
• Stroke (ii) > a cycle of rowing
• Stroke coach > a small electronic display that displays information such as stroke rate and elapsed time
• Stroke rate > is the number of times the oar goes into the water each minute (typically 35 spm is high, 18 spm is low)
• Sweep rowing > one of the two disciplines of rowing, where the crew has one oar
• Swing > the hard-to-define feeling when near-perfect synchronization of motion occurs in the shell, enhancing the performance and speed
• Toggle > what the cox uses to steer
• Touch > row with arms only
• Trestles > the stands that hold the boat on land
• Wash > waves caused by other boats
• Weight > pressure being rowed
• Zootie > is the lycra uniform that rowers wear when competing or training, it minimises the opportunity for clothing becoming entangled with equipment

For details of our upcoming Learn to Row courses

                               Click Here