Coaching the single

It’s my belief that as you become a more skilled single sculler you will also improve your understanding, ‘feel’, and skills as a crew sculler.

Susan, June, Clare, and Carole in their quad, “Quintessence” competing on the Tyne. Having come through ‘Learn to Row’, they all learnt to single as well as competing in the quad.

With the right approach you will grow in confidence, and rather than feel intimidated or anxious in the single, will come to love the freedom and joy of movement it offers. And a few individuals will be crazy enough to want compete in the single. It’s not for all, and that’s fine

Whatever level you are at, what is most important is that you feel a sense of development, enjoyment, and growing confidence.

Boat handling is important to build your ‘water-manship skills’, for dealing with varying conditions of wind, stream and tide, and just so that you can manoeuvre your boat, to get yourself out of trouble, on the Wear, which can be a dangerous and crowded river for single scullers. (See the ’Boat-handling skills’).

It is important to develop this awareness of safety issues, and the skills to watch out for yourself, and warn other scullers, when on the river.

The other aspect is developing sound sculling technique. We will break down sculling into ‘the 5 parts of the stroke’, and demonstrate and practice drills for each part. Whilst this focus is necessary to develop and perfect the parts, it is not the end objective. Sculling is not five mechanistic parts welded together. The nirvana for all of us is “Flow” and Shell Run (see ‘Flow Sculling’)

See Sculling Programmes for different options depending on your level of experience:-

Learn to Scull (Glide singles)

Intermediate 1 (fine) single sculling

Intermediate 2 – From proficiency to faster sculling

Advanced & Racing