Yesterday afternoon we rowed a lineup I liked a lot, with Scott Morgan (Brown) stroking, me in 6-seat, and Osborne in 2 seat. Although we didnt take any pressure strokes, it was clear from the battle-paddle that we had significantly more free speed than the wisconsin boat. I wish they would give this lineup a legitimate chance. However, when they announced the lineups this morning, putting me back in 5 seat behind the Wisco 3, it became clear that they weren't going to give this new lineup a chance.
The seatrace went well. It pitched me against Glenn Ochal of Princeton. For the third day in a row, we went 3x1500m @34. This is about as brutal a workout sequence as I have experienced. It was exceptionally difficult to get out of bed this morning, and I really just felt sick of rowing, sick of racing, sick of camp. Getting on the water, my legs felt completely tapped out before we started even pulling hard. For a moment, I even questioned whether I wanted to make the boat or not. There is a lot of appeal to the idea of going home and lounging around for a few weeks.
Fortunately, there is a lovely thing called HardRock. HardRock is a type GU, but is pumped up with overdoses of caffeine, amino acids, and citrates to act as a lactate buffer. It is designed to get you click-clackin and ready for racing, though it often results in a pretty big crash afterward. The HardRock got me amped for racing, although if I had known I was seat-racing, I would have taken more. Anyway, the first piece went down, and we (the A-ish wisconsin boat) doored the other boat pretty good, something like 5 lengths. Immediately after the piece ended, I realized I probably had gone a little too deep in the well. HardRock does that; you go balls without realizing you are going balls. When the coaches called the switch, I was filled with a sense of dread. My legs were gone; they felt like they were just some bones attached to marionette strings. I switched into the other boat, intentionally avoiding eye contact with Glenn, not that I had the energy to focus my eyes very well. The paddle in my new boat felt pretty bad; no rhythm, a bad set, and no pop in the drive. I was scared.
The next piece went down, and although I thought my boat held on a little longer than before, the margins were big enough that I really couldnt tell. It is incredibly frustrating to have your neck on the line, and not know how you performed. There is also an unspoken code among rowers that after a seat-race, you dont ask about the margins until you are off the water. It wasnt until afterwards, on the dock, that Osborne told me the margins were significantly smaller after the switch. Hooray! I win! The coaches called for another switch, bringing Glenn back into my boat (the slow boat). I think we hung on for a bit longer that time, although its kinda fuzzy in my memory.
This was undoubtedly one of the toughest workouts I have ever experienced, and all my previous complaints in this blog about being tired seem petty now. Oh, I also should mention that after the workout, we have a 5k paddle back to the docks. This paddle is some of the most miserable rowing at camp; everyone is completely exhausted, our butts are sore, and nobody wants to focus on rowing for another 20 minutes after a tough workout.
All in all, it was good to win a seatrace, though my body is paying for it now. My ears are popping incessantly, which usually only happens after a tough race. Anybody have an explanation for why this happens? I'm all ears. I think we will do this workout again tomorrow, which I dont want to think about right now. But, with any luck, I won't be seatraced, which means my neck won't be on the line, and I probably wont go as deep in the well.
Rowing is about all I can wrap my brain around right now, but I had some nice phone conversations and emails yesterday; I enjoy hearing from people, and it was nice to talk to some folks, so if your bored, give me a call or shoot me an email. I am going to try and go to Ottavio Siani's family's cabin this weekend or next, depending on rides and practice schedule. Ive been cooking a lot, which is fun, and it makes me eat much more healthfully than I do in the dining halls.
Pain locker.
ReplyDeleteI bet Helen will search up and down to find out why your ears are popping. Perhaps you are a freak of nature?
ReplyDelete