How To Measure The 5 Critical Elements Of Rowing Leverage (And Why You Need To Know Them)

You-are-jazzed! Time to get out of the house for a few.

Into the car you jump for a quick drive to the store.

You adjust the seat, position the steering wheel height, move the side mirrors, tweak the rear view mirror, heater on, radio volume perfect.

Might as well have everything in the best place—right?

The mechanical adjustments you just made in the car will contribute to how how effectively you drive AND how comfortable you are.

The same happens in rowing.

In fact, mechanical adjustments to 5 critical elements will play a big factor in how effectively you row AND the physical feel of your rowing.

5 Critical Elements Of Rowing Leverage

Those 5 critical elements as a group are commonly called “Leverage” and they are the:

1. Spread
2. Oar Length
3. Oar Inboard
4. Work Through The Pin
5. Blade shape/Oar stiffness

The act of adjusting them is called “Rigging.”

And that feeling I mentioned, well that translates to how light-to-heavy it feels when you tug on the oar. That feel is called the Load.

Yes, yes, and yes…there are other factors, such as shoe size, that play a role in how your rowing feels. However that list is the Big 5 as they are ones that have the biggest impact.

To be effective with your Rigging, and rowing equipment, you need to know about those 5 critical elements of rowing leverage and how to measure them.

How to Measure the 5 Critical Elements Of Rowing Leverage

Following is a brief description of each element, along with how to measure them.

A) Spread. Usually measured as the distance from the center of the pin to the centerline of the boat. To measure spread take the following steps:

1. Find the centerline of the boat by measuring from gunwale to gunwale, and divide that distance in half (use metric to make this easier)
2. With the half way distance identified, put that number on your tape measure on the rigger side of the gunwale, and then extend the tape measure outward to the pin
3. Where the tape measure intersects the center of the pin is your spread

B) Length of Oar. This is the distance from the end (butt) of the oar handle to the tip of the blade. To measure the length of the oar:

1. Hold or attach the beginning of the tape measure to the tip of the blade, approximately where the shaft for the oar would extend to the end of the blade
2. Extend the tape measure the length of the oar, following the shaft up to the handle
3. Where the butt of the handle intersects the tape measure is the length of the oar

C) Inboard. The Inboard is the length of the oar from the butt of the oar handle to the blade side of the oar’s collar. To measure the inboard:

1. Hold or attach the beginning of the tape measure to the blade side of the collar
2. Extend the tape measure toward the butt of the oar handle
3. Where the butt of the handle intersects the tape measure is the inboard of the oar

D) Work through the pin. This is the distance from a perpendicular line through the pin to the front stops (stern most stops) of the tracks. To measure work through the pin:

1. Place a straight edge through the pin, so that it is perpendicular to the centerline or the gunwales of your boat
2. Place another straight edge directly over the bow side of your track’s front stops (the stern end of the tracks)
3. Measure the distance between the two straight edges. That is your work through the pin.
4. If you only have one straight edge, place your tape measure on top of the tracks, directly under the perpendicular through the pin
5. Extend the tape measure out to the bow side of the front stops, and measure that distance. This is your work through the pin

 

DD) Work behind the pin. Some coaches and rowers prefer to make the catch the focus of their rigging, and they will use work through the pin as it helps establish catch length and catch angle. However, others prefer focusing their rigging around the finish. In that case you can use work behind the pin, which helps establish finish length and finish angle.  To use work behind the pin, you can:

1. Place a straight edge through the pin, so that it is perpendicular to the centerline or the gunwales of your boat
2. Place another straight edge directly over the stern side of your track’s back stops (the bow end of the tracks)
3. Measure the distance between the two straight edges. That is your work behind the pin
4. If you only have one straight edge, place your tape measure on top of the tracks, directly under the perpendicular through the pin
5. Extend the tape measure out to the stern side of the back stops, and measure that distance. This is your work behind the pin

 

E) Blade Shape/Oar Stiffness. Blade shape is the design of your blade and includes the blade’s surface area along with any design elements to enhance blade performance. Oar stiffness is an option specific to the amount of flex an oar has when under load. The best way to determine both is:

1. Locate the serial number on the oar (if no number can be found photos of oar and blade can be helpful)
2. Contact the manufacturer (email, phone, website) and ask/discover what design of blade/oar stiffness is specific to your serial number

Why This Is Important

By knowing each of these 5 critical elements of rowing leverage and how to measure them you will gain solid control over both the Leverage and the Load of your rowing equipment.

And in turn will be far ahead of many of your competitors!

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To learn more about Leverage, Load and how to adjust them check out my new online course, Beginning Sweep Rigging. Launching in April!