Arrogance on the water in NY
martin
program at a small college north of the city
I was out coaching on the local stretch of water this morning (to
those who know the area, not the river location :-) ). The water was
quite busy with a number of crews from a local elite (or is it
elitest?) club
I was with a Women’s novice 4 and noted a tall middle aged guy from
said club out in a single. Returning from the furthest point I saw the
guy deliberately paddle into my launch wash and then start yelling as
he then went past me
The girls were not having a great session and as we got close to the
end of our time on the water I noticed the guy waiting.
Then I get lectured about courtesy on the water and that I should have
stopped for a faster boat. I said little to enflame the situation and
we went our separate ways. Close to the guy looked familiar
So the guy deliberately decided to scull in my launch wash
He decided to pass very close, at a point say 500 yards wide
If he paddled 5k, I “ruined” 3 strokes of it
The conversation was in earshot of my crew
On a bit of googling I think the guy in question is a previous US
Olympian
Great ambassador for the sport then
I’ve been warned about the arrogance of certain members of this club
now I’ve witnessed it.
Rant over
SwissSculler
would not consider this little episode noteworthy.
Henry Law
> Then I get lectured about courtesy on the water and that I should have
> stopped for a faster boat. I said little to enflame the situation and
> we went our separate ways.
There are three ways of looking at this:
1. You spoiled his day and he spoiled yours.
2. You actually made his day -- an opportunity to diss a coach from
that irritating little club up the way -- and he spoiled yours.
3. You don't care what kind of a day he had. Your day is better
because he showed himself to be a pedigree turd, which you are not.
The hard part is getting your mind to a state where it's thinking #3:
work on it.
--
Henry Law Manchester, England
Christopher Anton
"martin" <mar...@tokyoleasing.co.uk> wrote in message
news:85ed35e4-7a39-4ad0...@m26g2000yqb.googlegroups.com...
Then I get lectured about courtesy on the water and that I should have
stopped for a faster boat. I said little to enflame the situation and
we went our separate ways. Close to the guy looked familiar
Sound likes Cambridge (Cambs) in the 1980s. God help you if you got in the
way of a (men's) 1st VIII, or even worse a university crew, even if you were
in the right place or doing the right thing. I think the situation is a
little better regulated now
carolinetu
I agree with Henry. Just let the girls know that the guy in question
may be a better rower than they are (at the moment), but that they are
better people. And one day they will be faster than him.
Not completely relevant, but when I was a trainee umpire I got shouted
at by a more experienced umpire who thought I had made an error of
judgement. Next time we met he apologised and said he was in the
wrong as he should have recognised my inexperience and given me
advice. We are now on good terms.
Keep calm and carry on.
Caroline
coach
On the Thames in London, we have similar problems. There are a wide
range of crews, from complete novices to want to be national squad
athletes.
As a way of identifying novice/beginner crews, they are encouraged to
have the cox and/or the bow wearing a reflective "High Vis" top.
All other river users can, from a distance, identify the crew as one
that should be given a wide berth as they may not be in complete
control of their boat. It is also recognised that any coach launch
with such a crew needs to remain with them, in a position to take
command etc if the crew get into difficulty.
Elite level athletes need to remember that they too were beginners
once.
It would do no harm to some of GB's pampered elite international
standard athletes for them to forsake their private little pond and
return to their home waters and clubs a little bit more often. They
might then have a better appreciation of the needs etc of the rest of
the rowing community.
Christopher Shea
range of crews, from complete novices to want to be national squad
athletes.
As a way of identifying novice/beginner crews, they are encouraged to
have the cox and/or the bow wearing a reflective "High Vis" top.
All other river users can, from a distance, identify the crew as one
that should be given a wide berth as they may not be in complete
control of their boat. It is also recognised that any coach launch
with such a crew needs to remain with them, in a position to take
command etc if the crew get into difficulty.
Elite level athletes need to remember that they too were beginners
once.
It would do no harm to some of GB's pampered elite international
standard athletes for them to forsake their private little pond and
return to their home waters and clubs a little bit more often. They
might then have a better appreciation of the needs etc of the rest of
the rowing community.
Some Olympians are better mannered than others. The other weekend I was sculling upstream on the ebb approaching Kew Rail Bridge which prohibits overtaking. A fast double was coming up behind and as I was only warming up I pulled in and let it pass before the bridge. As it passed I recognised the Bow as Alan Campbell who said, “thank you”. Others who paddle on the Tideway will recognise this as better manners than many of the less talented locals.
On the subject of Launches it appears to me that Clubs at Putney are much less considerate than those further upstream. I wonder if this is because on the narrower upper reaches it is just so much more obvious you are washing someone down.
Chris
Fordmeister
I actually think the majority of our Olympians are well mannered
reasonable people, its the 'upstarts' who haven't quite made it and
probably never will who lack manners and respect.
As for launch drivers, I haven't got enough space on this and I have
to little time but the coaches who understand and respect the tideway
are fine and doesn't matter which part of the Thames they are from.
Richard at London, Bill, Rusty, Fred even Bobby Thatcher ( a young
un !) know how to drive a launch.
Putney Town ? awful, some of the scullers coaches ? awful, UL
colleges ? should be banned.
Anyway Martin, you should know very well about rude has been oarsmen
and scullers .... ;-)
Tinus
between clubs. It is not strange to see a large difference in sporting
behaviour between members of the same club and members of different
clubs. I don't believe it is unnatural and unwanted for this
difference to exist. However the difference might become such that the
lack of sportsmanship turns into hostile behaviour.
JD
Welcome to New York. Certainly this guy sounds out of line, but it's a
game of one-upsmanship. My guess is that you were in the wrong
according local customs, about which no self respecting New Yorker
would bother to inform you. While that may say something about your
lack of knowledge of those waters, the incident says much more about
the character of the guy you waked. Sounds like you handled it well.
As Swiss Sculler alluded to, there is a hierarchy on crowded rivers in
some places in the US. Heaven help you if you are the Little Sisters
novices and you wake one of the varsities on the Schuykill or Charles.
It's simply not done.
Recently, a local single sculler rowed right up the stern of one of
the college women's launches. The coach, who was working the crew by
4's apparently hadn't seen him coming and was in the wrong spot. He
got so close she couldn't stop or he would hit her motor. The guy
threatened to "beat the sh**" out of the coach, a lightweight woman.
Another real class act.
JD
alister taylor
As a Scullers rower, I reckon there's a lot worse than our coaches.
They spend more time worrying about trying not to wash others off, and
end up washing us off instead!
After this morning, my grudge is a certain Putney club. Particularly
its coaches, one of whom instructed crew to park in the area in which
one would normally overtake whilst working the slacks, and then to,
"trash anyone from Scullers", they shouldn't expect anything but
abuse. Rant over.
But what is the appropriate expression towards launch drivers and
other rowers who hack you off monumentally? I'm that far from perfect
that it's not funny, so I take corrections in the spirit they're
intended to (especially as a novice to the Tideway), but how would you
phrase a legitimate complaint?
I can't be bothered with the TRRC, and would rather do it on the spot.
I'm perfectly prepared to give novices a free run, but their coaches?
coach
wrote:
>
> - Show quoted text -
As the current president of the TRRC is a member of TSS and also has
concerns about launch washes, I would suggest that you are in the best
possible position to make your voice heard.
Make a note of the registration No on the side of the launch, and then
ask your club captain to speak to the captain of the club in question.
Letting fly with a stream of abusive language helps nobody.
Walter Martindale
> Martin:
(snip)
>
> Recently, a local single sculler rowed right up the stern of one of
> the college women's launches. The coach, who was working the crew by
> 4's apparently hadn't seen him coming and was in the wrong spot. He
> got so close she couldn't stop or he would hit her motor. The guy
> threatened to "beat the sh**" out of the coach, a lightweight woman.
> Another real class act.
>
> JD
>
Thanks for the opportunity... If I accidentally wash down a rower and
my apology isn't accepted, I first suggest that if they think I want
to swamp them then they should have their head examined, and if they
won't accept my offer to apologise for a couple of accidental waves, I
can always offer to give them something to REALLY complain about -
such as drive for the next 15 minutes with my wake hitting their
cockpit, or to circle them 10 or 15 times at "jogging" pace.
I've never met a coach who purposely swamped a crew - unless the
crew's full of prats who won't accept a "Sorry" without giving a great
long rant.
Walter - who's not really that evil..