ROWING

Evening Post, Volume CX, Issue 118, 14 November 1925, Page 18

ROWING

By 'STBCKE.'

INTER-CLUB RACING

ANOTHER REGATTA?

NOTES FROM HERE AND THERE,

This is the slack time for oarsmen. After ppening day, on which the Bedding Shield is competed for, the local clubs are not engaged in inter-club racing till New Year's Day, when the Picton regatta is held on Queen Charlotte Sound, and it i$ now. that the clubs can find opportunity to make progress with their club racing. The Wellington clubs have been more' fortunatel this season than usual in regard to weather. In previous seasons operations are usually suspended for several weeks on account of prevailing winds, but the fine week-ends experienced in tho past month have given the clubs the opportunity of getting tlieir club races under way.

To Create Interest,

Two or three seasons ago it was cus? tomary for one of the Slothes Shield regattas to be held early in December, but the bad weather experienced at the southern end of the harbour before the New Year called for the discontinuance of the policy of competing for the Mothcs Shield at two regattas—one before, and tho other after Christmas—and now. tho shield is decided at one fixture, usually held a week or so before the annual Wellington regatta. Although it can be readily understood that clubs are unwilling to compete for a trophy under a hardship, that is no reason why interclub racing beforo Christmas should be completely dropped. Several year* ago it was customary to hold three or four inter-club regattas during the season, and there is no reason why one or more of these fixtures should not be reintroduced. This season particularly, the competition among tho clubs'at the Redding Shield regatta was very keen, but the racing wrs not a real test, because crews were untrained, and had not developed combination. Tho races were therefore all "sprint" events of not more than a quarter of a mile. Crews which do well in a, short race may not do as well over a longer distance. If an inter-club regatta were held, it would give the clubs art idea how they stood before competing away from home. This matter might well be considered by , tho local association, which would be sure to have the support of the clubs in the event of a regatta being held between this and Christmas.

An Old Trtphy.

An interesting trophy has come into the hands of the Otago . Rowing Club from Wellington (states an exchange). It is a silver drinking cup__ which was awarded in the season 1882-83 to the winning crew of: the Walter Fours—a club race Nyhich is still held annually by the Otago Rowing Club. 'The names of the members of the crew engraved on tho cup are 81 B. Gibson (bow), H. W. Wait (2), H. S. Dick (3), S. J. Cantrell (stroke), and F. -Spooner (cox). None of ■ these names are familiar to present members of the club, but an older generation may remember them. The first trophy lor the Walter Fours was donated to, the club by Henry John Walter, -an esteemed citizen, who was Mayor in 187S-7&

A Veteran.

Mr. Harry Spindle, who is well kiiown in rowing circles in Wanganui, was recently re-elected, for the 88th year in succession as secretary, treasurer, and custodian ,of the Clifton Rowing Club, a record which the .chairman .■ (Mr. L. Bakewell) described as being probably a record for Australasia. Mr. Spurdle is still,a very vigorous man, and will probably carry on the duties for many years yet. Ho has stuck to the club through adversity to its present vigorous financial position, and ithat the members .considered the position was entirely due to Mr. Spurdle's able guidance was shown iii" no uncertain manner (states tho Waitara "Mail"). Ho has carried out his strenuous duties without lemuucration, and now that tho hall ia free of debt, and a handsome balance in the bank, tho members felt that it was unfair to ask him to carry on any longer without some remuneration in the way of a regular salary, which was accordingly voted amidst great enthusiasm.

"Swing."

Some interesting observations on coaching are made by the Eight Hon. S. M. Bruce, in the Sydney "Referee." Mr. Bruce is one of the. foremost living authorities on oarsmanship and coaching. After Cambridge had been defeated by Oxford for five consecutive years, it was he 'who coached the winning Cambridge crew for the annual event on the Thames in 1914. /

In regard to the question of "swing," Mr. Bruce says :—"I yield to none in my desire to see a crew with a long swing, because length of swing means length oE blade in the water. I would, however, stress this point, because there appears to me to be a school o! thought in rowing to-day which believes in a long swing for the swing's sake, and overlooks what, to my mind, is the only true objective of a long swing, viz., the additional length of blade it gives in the water. Holding this view, I naturally take the point that unless the length of' swing gives a corresponding length of true blada work in the water, it is a useless thing." "Lenpth" Defimd.

"What is length?" he asks. "Many recent crews which have had length of body-swing have had an over-reach of the shoulders, which has destroyed the length of the true blade work, and consequently the so-called length of awing has constituted a bad fault. In endeavouring to get length, I hold the view that the .word 'swing' should be romovnd from a coach's vocabulary. Instead of talking of 'swing,' jv man should be shown where his strong position is, and should bo urged flay by day, as his muscles geb more supple, and as he becomes fitter, to try to carry his strong position further forward. In this way, I mainlain, one gets true length,, as against false length, which has ruined so many good crews in recent years. One other point with regard to this question that I would remind all coaches of is that no man, however good, can swing to the same length when he has not been rowing for some time, as he can when he has been rowing regularly for a few weeks. One's object, therefore, should be to try to get a crew longer nnd longer right up to the day when it wuWj utttl )!ot expuut it to pot» its full length liter ous or two outings."