ROWING, CANOEING AND KAYAKS

In a sailing boat the wind gives a hand or not. In a powerboat you have a great massive engine but in a rowing boat it is just the paddles and your muscles against the water.

Many cultures developed boats and used the paddles and races were fought then disciplines were put together and set up for international competitions.

WOOD AND CANVAS 
BUILT CANOE 1910

The Canadian or open canoes are open-topped for the part of their length. The North American Indians' canoes are used on lakes and they look like coming out of a Western film. The Canoeist has one paddle and uses it either side which stirs the canoe to the direction it should go. The Canoeist kneels in the boat.

BIRCH-BARK  CANOE

Eskimo peoples developed the kayaks for fishing on the sea. The kayak has a closed top with a narrow cockpit to protect themselves from the rough waves. The modern kayak has a rubber or nylon spray deck over the gap from paddler to the cockpit. The paddle has two plates and the paddler sit in the kayak. Nowadays, kayaks and canoes are made of plastic, fibreglass or aluminium.

KAYAK-- INUIT SEAL HUNTER -- ARMED WITH HARPOON

KAYAKER -- SPORT -- AT THE GREAT  FALLS,  VIRGINIA

The first record of a rowing boat is 5000 years old and shown in an Egyptian wall relief.

From the 18th century, ferrymen held races on London’s river Thames for wealthy gamblers. The oldest rowing race - Doggett's Coat and Badge - was first held on the Thames in 1715 and it still exists. Modern boats are built purely for speed.

ROWERS AND SCULLERS

ROWERS have one oar each. The crew has to be in even numbers.  SCULLERS - another name for ;oar - have two each and can crew a boat alone. They both vary in size but 3.8m long is usual used. When they compete on an international level the blades are painted in the crews national colours..

CANOES AND KAYAKS

Competition for Canadian canoes is marked with a C and the kayaks with a K. The number of paddlers is shown as C4 or K1. Sprint races are held on still waters. For men it is 500, 1000 or 10,000m long. For women 500 or 5000m long. International events held in K1, K2, K4, C1, C2 and C4. Boats start from floating pontoon and the first kayak or canoe gets past the finish flag wins.

Slalom courses can be fought on artificial layouts or on mountain rivers or below weirs. Whichever course, the water is white. They must pass through 20-25 gates, which are made by hanging poles. Each gate is between 1.2 and 3.5 wide. Penalty seconds are given if the paddler touches the poles with the body, paddle or boat. If the paddler only touches one gate, it means 5 seconds penalty and it could be the difference between win or loose a race. The course is 600m and the paddler has a battle between rocks and whirling water on his hand. To crown it all, six gates are one of the worst - they are upstream.  Slalom races are held in K1, C1 and C2 and they done with the same boats as in wild water races.

WILD WATER CANOE

Wild water races are held on a 3km course and the gates show the safest route. The race is a headlong descent and the winner has the best time.

Canoe polo is played in kayaks and very frantic. A team of five trying to get the ball into the opposite team goal net. A player is allowed to stop, move the ball with the paddle but they are not allowed to strike the ball with the paddle.

ROWING BOATS

ROWING COMPETITIONS classed into three. Single, double and quadruple sculls. Then it is divided into five groups. A coxless pairs, a coxed pairs, a coxless fours, a  coxed fours and a coxed eights. The number of single or double or four refers to the people using an oar or scull. Then there is the lightweight competition which demands the crew's weight below 57kg for women and for men below 70kg.

Coxed boats have a coxswain or cox which is an extra crew member. He is doing the steering into deep and fast water by pulling wires linked to the rudder. Sometimes they use microphones with speakers, fitted in the hull. A digital display unit which is called cox box show the crew how many strokes per minute.

The coxless crew have sometimes a steersman who is one of the rowers pulling the wires with his foot.

Other International championships are the regatta, held in the summer. Regattas are held on a 2000m current-free water. Famous regattas are held yearly and they are the World Championships, Switzerland's Lucerne Regatta and the Henley Royal Regatta on the Thames. Each Olympic has a rowing regatta.

In the wintertime there are the ‘head of the river’ races. The boats take turn to set off and are timed over a course on the river. The Tideway Head of the River Race is held each year in London. The other great event is the University Boat Race.  Student from Cambridge and Oxford are competing every spring and coxed eights on the Thames Tideway. The students are men but the coxes are often women. It is a long way with 7km from Putney to Mortlake but the towpath is full of well-wishers cheering them on.T

OXFORD  -- CAMBRIDGE  BOAT RACE

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