Pause Drills: Coaching Timing and Control in the Boat

The Kiwi 8 out for a paddle in Sursee, Switzerland. (2015) Their “gather at the finish” is an uptempo pause at the finish.

Pause at the Finish

Why? To promote a gather at the finish, boat run, and a focus on one stroke at a time.

How: Once the rower has finished the release and brought the handle to the body, they should remain in the layback position with the legs flat, and quads and glutes engaged. The rower waits in this pause position until the coxswains gives the command "Row," and comes out of the pause with quiet controlled hands, and focus on maintaining connection to the foot stretcher.

Pause at arms away

Why? To promote timing at the release, and a controlled (non-rushed) motion out of the bow.

How: As the rower finishes the drive and the hands come into the body, the rower pushes the hands away smoothly and gently, stopping once the elbows are straight. The body should remain in the layback position with the legs flat and quads and glutes engaged. The rower waits in this pause position until the coxswains gives the command "Row."

Pause at arms & body away

Why? To promote a controlled (non-rushed) movement out of the bow after the release, with a focus on the correct order of things. Use this drill to remind the rowers that the arms lead the body out of bow, which bring the body forward over the hips, before the knees come up. Pausing here helps reduce rush and poor body position coming into the catch.

How: As the rower finishes the drive and the hands come into the body, the rower pushes the hands away smoothly and gently, leading the body to rock over the hips. This gets the forward body angle set, with the legs flat and quads and glutes engaged. The rower waits in this pause position until the coxswains gives the command "Row," then retains that body angle all the way into the next catch.

Pause at half slide

Why? To promote the concept of a gathering point for the rowers after they've made their way through arms away and body over. Meeting up at half slide teaches slide control and introduced the concept of relaxation on the recovery to help maintain boat set.

How: Moving out of the finish, the hands should smoothly move away from the body towards stern bringing the arms straight and allowing the body to swing over the hips. As the hands cross the knees the rower should allow boat speed to gently pull them to half slide. The rowers pause at half slide until the coxswain says "row," at which point the rowers continue up the slide to the catch at a controlled speed, gathering again at the catch with the rest of the crew.

Double pause

Why? To promote controlled, non-rushed movements and gathering points for the rowers. It is common to call a pause, for instance, at hands away and then – on the same stroke – a pause at arms and body over. This is a great way to move through the stroke sequence when coaching technique for novices and fine-tuning posture, balance and control for more advanced crews.

How: Pick two pauses. Usually one at the finish or at hands and body, and the other somewhere on the slide: quarter, half, or three-quarter. Rowers use the first pause the gather and set the boat and when the coxing says “Row” they move into the second pause and gather again. To ease pressure on hip flexors, it’s suggested that at least one fulls stroke is taken after the double pause. For example: pause at arms away > pause at half slide > row one full stroke.

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Pick Drill Variations for Coaching Stroke Progression