Noise at Finish

Question
My crew is making a lot of noise at the finish. It seems like they're slamming into everything, shaking everything and producing a solid "thunk". I was always taught to have a quiet stroke, there was no need for excessive noise, it only slowed the boat down. Is it alright to have such noise, or is it better to be quiet? What downfalls could be associated with the noise? Thanks.

Answer
Hi Doug:  I once coined a saying: "The Harvard crew looks graceful and regal when viewed from the banks of the Charles.  But from inside the boat, it can be quite ugly."
I've witnessed crews who leaned out of the boat, splashed like Niagara Falls, and made noises that sounded like the shell was goint to snap into two.  That said, some of these crews compensated for these shortfalls and were fairly fast.  I don't think you can correlate boat noise with boat speed, unless there is something mechanically wrong with the boat (but you would know that).

I don't know how good your boat is, but my guess is if the banging was the result of a rower's slide slamming into something (like the stops at theback of the slide, it would be noticeable because it would slow the boat down).  Some boats have inherent noise.  Maybe it's the oarlock, or the rigger is a tad loose, or something up with the rudder.  Some boats (especially older wooded ones) get warped and weird things start to happen.  It could be your rowers.  Maybe they are pulling hard (a good thing), but not controlled.  Maybe a combination of both.

The simplest solution is to put them in another boat and see if the noise persists.  If there's still banging, break them down into fours and see if one boat is noisier than the other.

Perhaps, the coxswain is banging the side of the boat to exhort the crew.

Regards/AP