Bad Day of Rowing

The learn to row class finished and four participants registered for the regular rowing, so now we have a novice boat. Which of course I am in. I thought it would be great because we would have time to focus on things like early roll ups and such, but so far it completely sucks. It's only been two rows, so hopefully it will get better.

Today I was actually in the five seat! I don't get be in the center of the engine room often, so I was pretty psyched about it. It was also super windy, which kind of sucked. The thing that was no fun, though, was that we were down to starboard the entire row, so the release my oar was dragging on the water. It was so hard, and after a while it just made me so cranky. By the end I was so glad to get out of the boat.

We went over all the ways that the boat gets offset - different catch timing, different handle heights on the recovery and something else and tried to focus on them individually. Occasionally it improved for a few strokes, but then it went back to how it was. Which was sucky. By the end I was so annoyed I didn't want to focus on technique or timing, I just wanted to snarl at people. But I didn't. I hope we can improve, because it would be a whole lot of no fun to row like this for the rest of the season. 

Cox

Today was my first time coxing - we all survived, I didn't hit a bridge, and I even managed to get us back to the dock, so I'm considering that a win! We have a few people who cox sometimes, but mostly we just have to take turns doing it. I knew it was coming, and now I'm glad it's over with for a bit :)

I was assigned to cox in a 4, which I think was easier in some ways because there are fewer people in the boat to get confused about and because you sit up front and can see really well. It's also harder because you are up front and can't see the rowers. I kind of forgot, though, that the bow was right behind me and the stern was in the back because I was in a different space, which was really confusing. Otherwise, though, I did get everyone to turn correctly and figured out the steering of the boat pretty well.

I arrived a little early and asked someone for help with it, since I had never coxed before. She showed me where to get the cox box, headset, basket and emergency kit. And then she was like "all set!?" and I was like "no! How do I steer the boat?", so we went over and she showed me how to plug everything in and steer. When I got into the boat I realized how small the cox spot was and had to go get something to sit on - it's clearly not designed for a person with hips. Fortunately for me, while I was trying to get settled one of the other rowers accidentally set her boat adrift, and so we had to wait for her to catch it and get in, etc. 

At first I was super unsure about what was going on and how to steer, and about all the commands for the drills. And, I kept thinking I was going to hit the other boat. So things were a little slow. But once I got the hang of it we did a lot better. The woman who was in bow gave me some reminders, in a very nice way, and fortunately the workout was mostly just rowing at a steady state. I even was able to share the stroke rate with the rowers, and sometimes call the power 10's correctly. I have to say that they were really well balanced and in rhythm, especially once we got settled in - it turned out to be a good row.

There is a swan's nest right by one of the bridges and every time we have gone by there for the last few weeks there has been a swan sitting on eggs. I keep waiting for her to be either gone or sitting with her babies, but she was still there. I'm loving that it's definitely spring!

Put away the dryrobe

It's officially spring/summer - I put my dry robe away in the attic for the season and got out my summer mumu!  It was actually in the high 80's today and so the water at the lake is up to 68 - that's weather that most people can swim in, not just weirdos. 

On Tuesday it's supposed to get up into the 90's, so I decided that this weekend was a good time to start preparing for summer. I went to get my ac down from the attic, and once again instead of lowering it down I dropped it. Dope. I was googling if I could still use it because I couldn't remember what I did last year, but then I started reading that I should actually replace it because ac's are so much more efficient now than the were 10 years ago. So, today I did parkour, then I bought a new ac and installed it, then I went to the lake. Of course all the parking was full and it was a zoo there. Some of my friends have a folding bike, so they were able to park a mile a way easily, and I decided that I need one of those too - not just for the lake but also to leave a spot for hiking. So, I ordered one - we'll see how that goes, and if it's any better than bluebikes.

Also this weekend I put some plants in my garden. I did cherry tomatos, because they are the best. And kale, which we can all agree isn't the best, but it's good for you. And a sage plant because I feel like they are hardy. My rosemary came back from last year and I already planted snow peas. And of course the raspberries and horseradish returned. I still have a little space so I have to decide what else to put in - maybe tomatillos because they always grow so well? 

I took a personal day on Friday and was going to hike Lafayette and stay at the hut up there, but the weather report was saying sleet and freezing rain for Friday, as well as 30-40 mph winds for Saturday, so I stayed home and was productive in terms of getting my car inspected and renewing my parking permit. So, the hut is still on the bucket list. 

Rowing Port

I looked on the spreadsheet for seat assignments today and I was in the 2 seat - port side! I was sure it must be a mistake, but every time I looked I was still port. Even after the wind picked up and the singles and doubles had to be moved to an 8 and other people were rearranged, I was still port. But, I decided it would be good for me and didn't say anything. The irony was that the woman in the 3 seat was a port rower, and this was her first time on starboard!

Anyhow, it was super windy at the water and we were floundering around a lot, especially since I was doing things all wrong - for example holding before tapping down and keeping my oar handle too high. It was easier to feather with my left hand, but my whole body was confused because I was twisting and pulling opposite. By the end of the hour I sort of got it on port side, though I was still a little funky. 

Having rowed port, though, I think I should change myself to row both sides because I could feel that I was stronger on the other side, and if I'm doing this for fitness then I should really try to be balanced. But I'll make that change for next week, because it was really hard.

I took a personal day for Friday since I need to use them before I lose them, and I was going to hike Lafayette and stay at Greenleaf, but it says there will be sleet and a wintery mix, followed by rain on Friday and then winds up to 40 mph on Saturday. Maybe this makes me a fair weather hiker, but I think it makes me smart - I cancelled and am planning to sit on my couch with the cats instead.

April activities

Although I haven't been writing about it, it's been a busy April. I hiked Mt Major, went climbing in Quincy Quarries and have been rowing 3 x a week, mostly in the bow seat. 

Mt Major, as always, was an amazing way to start the hiking season. I went on April 12, which was still cold, but there wasn't really any snow to speak of. I was meeting a friend for dinner for her birthday, which forced me to get up early-ish and get moving. Good drive up, awesome hike, and lovely view at the top. I brought a delicious cheese and avocado sandwich which of course was amazing. The new path at the bottom is such an improvement, it's got switchbacks and a pretty trail instead of the washout that you used to hike. The only thing that wasn't great was there was a couple with a reactive doggo on the way up - I get wanting to get the dog out in nature and socialized, but at the same time it clearly wasn't ok with people. They stopped to let me pass, but then it was clear that they were way faster than me, so I had to stop and let them go by, which of course took longer than I wanted. After I didn't even go to Kittery because I had to get home, which I think was for the best because $$.

I went climbing with my brother and his partner when they were visiting. We decided on QQ because it's so easy to get to, there's slab, and the spray paint is so atmospheric. It had been a while since I was there - lots of new spray paint to enjoy, but fortunately the stuff on what we were climbing wasn't so slippery. I think people had already climbed it this season. We went to C wall, by the water, and did the nice slabby climb on a flake - I went up three times on different routes at the bottom - once on each side of the flake once through the center. Then we went to the area by the entrance and did a couple of climbs on the S wall. The spray paint does add a grade or two, plus the fact that I haven't done outdoor climbing for a while.... 

The AMC learn to climb group was out, and I felt nostalgic for the program. I did some reading on setting up a top rope today - the AMC was very much "no metal on metal" but it seems like everyone else now is like "connect your slings to the bolts with carabeners. And so that's what I did. Because advice changes, and it's way easier that way. I got a couple new slings at this climbing shop in Union Sq. They seem so thin, but the guy was all about the newtons and how they can hold an SUV and I would break before they did. And they were fine, and much easier to set up. So, I'm going with it for the future.

There was this one group from AMC that was near us that was struggling with their set up. Their rope was like 6 feet from the ground, untied, and the guy kept yelling up that it was fine. And I was like "no it's not!" because I'm not usually a butinsky, but that's just not safe. Anyhow, it was a really fun day and I'm going there again this weekend with a friend to do it again. 

Rowing continues to be a lot of fun - I feel like I might be getting a little better at it, though there is much to work on. There's this woman in my boat who's new, and she knows what she's doing even less than me, which is a bit of a feel-good, I'm not going to lie. I've mostly been in the bow, which is tippier than the three seat. It's such good exercise and so nice being on the water (except for days when it's cold, windy and or rainy - though even then a bad day of rowing is better than a good day of crossfit). I feel like I'm starting to get to know the other rowers better, and they seem like pretty cool people. So, psyched to continue with it this summer. 

Ergged 10K

I got to rowing today and people were rolling out the erg machines. I was so sad. It looked so nice outside from my couch, but at the river it was windy and cold and so instead of going out on the water we lined up in a row behind the boat house and ergged for a whole hour. It sucked. But also I did get to focus a little on technique and power, which was good. In the end the rower said that I went 10500 meters, which is a little over 10K! My longest erg ever. 

I think I need to do some research on this because I'm clearly not doing it as efficiently as possible - when we finished some of the folks who are really good looked like they were about to die. I was winded, but only in zone 2 for my heart rate. 

On Saturday I went to a full day women's parkour workshop which was really good. After warm up we did 2 morning sessions and 2 afternoon sessions, with a talk from a physical therapist about hips right before lunch, and a stretch at the end. One of the morning sessions was learning this coach's approach pattern for things like kongs - she does a step, step, then short step with feet close together, bends her knees and then takes off from two feet. It definitely made sense once you broke it down because it really kept the momentum going and allowed you to control where you were headed. We also did a morning session on handstands and gate vaults. The best part is that we did reverse gate vaults over a softer pad, which to me looked like a back walkover, and I could do them! In the middle of going over you hit a handstand position, which is something I struggle with - who knew that I just needed to approach the handstand from bending over backwards?? 

The hip session was really interesting - she talked about hip anatomy and we did an exercise at the end for the gluteus medius, which it the muscle that I need to work on the most. You put a band around your knees, stand on one foot, and then reasonably quickly move the other foot to the side, diangly back, straight back, and then next to your other foot and do a calf raise. You do this fast 10 times on each side and then your butt will hurt for 2 days :).  Super effective. I'm going to add it into the rotation with clam shells. 

After lunch we did swings and climbing. They have two shipping containers at the place where we had the workshop, and at first I didn't think I could climb on either of them. After I tried it out, though, I got on both of them! The first one had a scaffolding next to it to climb on, which was a little scary at first, but ultimately not bad. The second one just had a couple of bars next to it, and ridges that your feet could go into - once coach demoed how to do it I thought I could, and so I did. At first I was worried I couldn't get down, but then once I tried it it turned out to be very easy. Definitely a fun day!

First row of the season

Today was the first day back on the water! I'm glad I signed up for the whole season, it was a lot of fun. The group right now is pretty small, it seems that there are 19 of us, including two coxes.  Which is an eight, a four and some doubles - I guess they don't bring out the singles until the water warms up in case they tip over. 

Anyhow, we started in a big circle with introductions - your name and how long you have rowed. Everyone was like "6 years" "10 years" "2 years" and then I was like "3 months." And then the head coach moved me from the four to the eight. I was so sad because I had memorized everyone's names in my boat, but I didn't know the folks in the new boat. 

I had forgotten a lot over the winter, but fortunately the most essential parts came back to me. I didn't completely suck, or catch crabs or throw everyone else off. And throughout the class I got more into the rhythm of it, and was better able to keep time with the other rowers. The cox even complemented me on that :)

We started with some drills on placement, which I really needed to remember the different positions and how to move my body in legs-body-arms-arms-body-legs order. Then we went back and forth with four people at a time rowing and two steadying the boat, which was a really nice way to get back into things. I assume we didn't have everyone rowing at once because we were two rowers short - it worked for me, though. According to my watch we went 8.68 km with an average pace of 4'34" and my heartrate was in mostly zone 1, but got up to zone 2. 

It was really nice on the water. We got to watch the sun set and the stars come out. When we finished and were taking the boat out of the water I got wacked in the leg and now I have a shinjury - it's a little bloody and I bet there will be a bruise there tomorrow. Also, I bet I'm going to be sore tomorrow. 

Over the weekend there was a rally in the city that I went to with a friend. It was really nice seeing so many people out in support of democracy. I love the signs and the energy. Both our senators talked, as well as the governor and AG, and then a bunch of regular folks. And then the dropkick murphy's played, which was pretty awesome. The star of the band wound up being the ASL interpreter; he was so into it. At one point ken casey was like "this is our new seventh band member." I feel like there will be more protests and I'm going to try to go to them - I'm not sure if they really do anything, but it's better than staying at home acting like everything is OK.