Rowing as a Small Heavyweight

Question
QUESTION: Hi, My son is a 16 year old sophomore, is 6'3" and 162#.  He has been rowing for about 6 months and had a successful indoor season as a lightweight novice, rowing 6:57 at the last competition.  While we don't expect him to grow much taller, one can only assume that he will fill out a bit and be one of the lighter heavywieights.  His mother and I are not interested in his taking measures to control his weight as we feel they are unhealthy for such a young person.

With this recent success, he is starting to think a bit in terms of rowing at the collegiate level.  He is receiving excellent on-water instruction at a local club and we believe that his on water results will probably parallel his indoor results.  This said, how much of a "break" would he receive as he is evaluated by universities, when being compared to heavier athletes?  I don't expect that he will get much above 180-185# before graduation, as he has a rather thin build.

ANSWER: Hi Brian: Your son seems to have a lot of potential: good height, a very good erg score, and a willingness to learn.  However, it sounds like his high school does not have a rowing team.  That's kind of a setback.  But club rowing, especially in the summer, is just as good.  Of course he will fill out in weight; how much he gains is hard to determine.  Is he lifting weights? That might help him put on some muscle.

College teams do not give "breaks" to candidates when it comes to weight.  You are either a lightweight rower or a heavyweight rower.  The only compensation I know of is during ergometer testing.  The ergometers used in college are different from the Concept II (they use those too) and look like a heavy flywheel with a brake mechanism.  Weights are added to the brake mechanism based on body weight.  But that's about it.

All things considered, if your son enters college weighing 180, he could still be a very competitive rower.  Weight can be raised or lower with a disciplined regimen; height cannot.  Many factors, experience, conditioning, attitude, as well as size, will determine his placement a boat.  

Regards/AP

---------- FOLLOW-UP ----------

QUESTION: Thanks very much for your prompt response

A bit of clarification...Actually the high school has a very competitive rowing program. He prefers the club astomsphere for now as it allows more flexibility to participate in other activities.  He may move to the HS team at some point later.  

I was not trying to imply that there is some kind of "middleweight" rowing program.  I was just asking if there is some kind of correction factor applied to erg scores which corrects for weight variances among heavyweights.  Is a 6:40  at 180 lbs quivalent to a 6:35 at 210 lbs, or is it simply a "horsepower" calculation that among equally skilled rowers, the lowest erg times are best, regardless of rowers weight.

Answer
Hi Again, Brian: Yes, there is a correction factor based on weight.  Per the Concept II website, Your son's weight factor is 0.893 and his weight-adjusted time is: 06:12:17.6.  A 210 pound athlete would have to pull a 6:34 to get the same weight-adjusted time.  You can read more about it here:

http://www.concept2.com/us/interactive/calculators/weight_adjustment.asp

Due to laws of physics, a heavier rower (assuming both are in equal physical condition) will have a better time than a lighter rower on a Conept II ergometer. I think that is the reason most crews use a different type of ergometer to evaluate rowers.  

That said, once again, there are so many factors that will determine how well a rower will fare in on-water crew competition.  I've seen people pull incredible times on the ergometer; but put them in a boat and they became a liability due to technical flaws like crabbing or not being in synch with the rest of the crew. The ergometer is an important tool for determining seatings, but NOT the only tool.

I think on-water experience and success, especially in tight races with good competition, is also very important -- just from the standpoint that this rower is proven to respond under pressure.  I am on board with your son's decision to row this spring at the club.  He should take advantage of having the opportunity to try sculling, especially single sculls, which is one of the greatest ways to train for rowing.  However, if he is seriously committed to being recruited at the college level, he should row for the high school crew NEXT year.

Regards/AP