But how do you really know your rigging is good?

You’ll never really know for sure, however there are warning signs that you might have an issue. In fact, more than just an issue, there are warning signs that your rigging may just down-right stink.

A warning sign is a simple piece of information that speaks loud and clear and says “Hey you, there is a problem here!” Often rowers and coaches miss many of the warning signs until it is too late, choosing instead to ignore or discount them. If any of the following warning signs are prevalent in your rowing it might be an indication that your rigging stinks, and you need to clean things up a bit:

1. You spend more time at practice fixing things than rowing

Practice time is rowing time, not fixing-broken-things-time. Yet that is what many rowers end up doing during practice.

Yeah, yeah I know—you don’t have time to pay attention to the equipment and row. But guess what? You will be paying attention to the equipment soon enough, during the time that you scheduled for rowing. So stop whining and aside time for the equipment. It will be a good investment and will save you time and energy, and keep practice time for practice.

2. Broken things just don’t get fixed

If your rigging is good then broken things get fixed. Quickly and correctly. I don’t mean in weeks, but in hours. Broken equipment leads to broken people, and it is certainly an instance of pay me now or pay me a lot more later.

3. Repeat and prevalent injuries

Compared to contact sports rowing is basically injury free. However, injuries do happen, mostly from overuse over a period of time. Keep your eyes open for the following, especially if you see them from more than one rower in the same boat:

• hands getting infected
• lower back injuries
• significant blistering of hands, butt, feet
• track bites on back of calves

Yes, these could happen due to technique, but also from the rigging. Check it to be sure.

4. You are always borrowing stuff from other rowers at races

At races do you have all the stuff you need? I’m talking about all the little stuff like nuts, bolts and bow numbers. You’re using checklists, right? If not you’re wasting time and energy looking for stuff at the last moment, not to mention annoying the heck out of folks.

5. You replace equipment every year

I’ve written ad nauseum about taking care of your equipment. Are you replacing things left and right? Does a boat or set of oars only last two years? Do the boat makers know you by name and know every time you call they will be making money? If so, your maintenance plan stinks, but at least you’re making the builders happy.

6. You’ve held up more than one race start due to broken equipment

Are you the one that race officials know by name—because of how often they have had to delay a race due to your equipment breaking? That’s a warning sign you need to pay attention to. Listen—broken equipment at races happen. But so many equipment issues can be prevented with a decent maintenance plan.

Get on a plan, and keep your equipment in top shape.

7. Your boats are rigged perfectly but you are as slow as molasses in the winter

Rigging is one of the critical components of what makes a boat fast, but do you know the other 5, and where rigging sizes up compared to the others? Too often I’ve seen folks go rigging-crazy and miss the top things that can make them fast.

If this is your case then you’ve got things backwards, and although we love to go backwards, we want to do it fast. And you are not.

8. Your oar’s grips are bloody and torn up

There are three places rowers are in constant contact with their equipment: hands, butt, and feet. Bloody, torn up grips and handles are a travesty and a sure sign your rigging stinks.

Here’s why: the grips are one of the most important pieces of rowing equipment and if you are not paying attention to them then all the little things are probably going unattended. It is not hard to take care of them, but it sure is important.

9. Nobody asks you for rigging advice

Do people flock to you at regattas, ask how you rig, and go home and make sure that they never do what you do?

Rigging is art and science combined, which means that nobody has it all figured out. But if rowers use you as an example of what NOT to do, then you’ve got a big issue.

10. You spend less than an hour rigging, per year

Yeah, you can rig a boat in about 20 minutes—but not well. Most successful rowers and coaches invest a significant amount of time on their rigging and equipment. If you are not doing then you are missing something.

11. Your rigging numbers don’t change for different seasons

Head races and sprint races are very different critters, and they demand different rigging numbers. If you aren’t changing your numbers accordingly then you are handicapping yourself, and rowing slower. Now why would you want to do that?

12. Vise grips, hammers, and duct tape are your rigging tools of choice

Those are all solid tools, but they are tools of last resort in the world of rigging. Rigging doesn’t require a great deal of finesse, but it does require knowing how to use a few specific tools and when to use them.

If your riggers are covered with tape residue, bang-marks, and scratches you either need to hire someone to rig for you, or invest some time and learn how and when to use the proper tools.

13. You haven’t washed your boat’s hull since the last presidential election

When is the last time you washed your boat? Not just sprayed it with water, but gave it a nice sudsy bath. If you see grease marks on the back of rower’s legs and the boat makes sounds-from-hell when you row it, then you need to grab a sponge, bucket, soap and get both you and the boat wet.

And this needs to happen about every 5 to 10 times the boat is rowed. Inside and out.

14. You own two straps, and they are as old as dirt

Straps are worth their weight in diamonds—I’m talking about a good healthy strap. An old and worn strap can be a hazard to you, your rowing, and anyone who is driving on the highway near you. Check out your straps and get good ones if they are lame.

And do it right now!

NOW!

15. You don’t put a flag on your boat when you transport it

There are a few manners we expect others to use, like: using your blinkers when you drive, saying please and thank you, and holding a door open for others. You could include using a flag in that category—but don’t. Using a flag is not a case of manners, it is a case of safety and social responsibility.

Flagging a boat is critical to safety, and in many states if you have more than 3 feet of overhand a flag is mandatory. If you’re not using a flag then there will probably be a whack of trouble waiting out there for you, somewhere. And will probably include a police officer.

16. You think rigging is a waste of time

First, that’s not true, because you wouldn’t have read this far if you thought that. Second, whether you think rigging is a waste of time or not a waste of time you are right.

If you do think it is a waste of time then by your simple involvement with one of the most equipment-intensive sports known to man, you are not connecting the dots. Rigging can save you time, save you money, save you energy, and make you faster. So, uh, why exactly would someone think it is a waste of time?

17. Rowers bend down and kiss the dock as soon as they land.

The row is over, the boat has landed, and the rowers crawl out and kiss the dock (even with goose-poop on it). And they only rowed 100 strokes. Do you see something wrong with this image? I would bet it is the rigging.

The two critical reasons you rig your equipment is for efficiency and comfort. If your rigging is off, then so are these two really important things.

So What?

Wouldn’t it be great if rigging was easy, simple, and quick to do. I hate to tell you this, but it isn’t. It takes time, effort and energy. However, it certainly is something that you will be rewarded for if you do it, and do it well.

And there are ways to get better. Grab a good book on it. Go to a clinic. Get a video from USRowing. All can help.

Especially if you think your rigging might stink.

17 Warning Signs That Your Rigging Stinks is a post from: Max Rigging

For instance, you’re driving your trailer full of shells to an important race. The race site is only 1 hour away, you’ve got plenty of time . . . and then your trailer gets a flat. And then another. And one more.

Arggh—three flats.

Your Plan A just went down the tube. What do you do?

Or you’ve got this fantastic (and killer) workout planed. You’re going to be practicing 3 X 1500 meters, in eights, at race pace. This is going to be great. And then you learn 8 minutes before practice that three athletes are not coming to practice due to illness.

Plan A shot to heck. What do you do?

Sitting in your easy chair, reading this, the answer is easy: You give it another try.

Yup, that is what we do as rowers and coaches. We come up with another plan and try again. And what we commonly call that next effort is Plan B (aka Backup Plan).

And a while ago I got thinking, “Just how often do I use Plan B?”

So I started to keep track. And I found the following:

I’ve found that, on average, I tend to find success with Plan A 70% of the time, have to use Plan B 15% of the time, and fall back on Plan C 5% of the time. And 10% of the time I just don’t get it done.

Like I said this is on average. Some things I’m batting about 100% (like getting up in the morning) and others I’m doing pretty poorly (like workable ideas to stop the BP oil leak). But this made me realize that Plan B, prepared ahead of time, could be a pretty important secret weapon.

And what if this graph held true all the time, for everyone?

Would you be more willing to have a Plan B? Maybe even a Plan C?

Could Plan B be your secret weapon?

A new weapon for your coaching and rigging arsenal—Plan B. is a post from: Max Rigging

I’m in the midst of my editorial planning for the upcoming year. Trying to figure out what to post. What videos and articles would be good to put up.

You read this blog. You’ve got problems. (Come on, admit it . . . you know you do.) So tell me.

See, instead of me writing and filming things that I think are *cool* or “Yeah, man, let’s tell folks about this purple wrench holder” I should be posting things that are helpful.

That help you solve a problem.

So here’s the deal—you let me know what your problem is, and I’ll post about it. And maybe if it is a big issue, or effects many folks, I’ll do more than a simple post on it.

Okay, no survey to complete. No forms to fill out. Just drop your problem in the comment box below. And I’ll get on it.

Come on, tells me what’s bugging ya . . .

[And if you're a coach with a problem, you might find help at my new site for coaches.]

You know what? You’ve got a problem. And I’m glad . . . is a post from: Max Rigging

It sold pretty well, and then we stopped printing it, because, well . . . ya know I really don’t remember why, I guess we just got busy with life.

Now 14 years later I would like to re-release it as an ebook because many of the reasons that I wrote the original (such as a lot of rowers having a hard time enjoying rowing) seem to be popping up again.

A Deal

In my mind the book is relevant as is, doesn’t need a whole lot of rewriting. But as some of you know my mind, is well, um . . . different. I want to make sure the book actually is still relevant. That it is good. That it is helpful. That it doesn’t stink.

So I propose this  . . . I’m going to give 15 copies of the ebook out to readers of this blog—free. And all I ask in return is that the reader (1) actually reads the book within 2 weeks,  (2) responds after reading it and tells me if it was good, and what was good, and, more importantly (3) if it wasn’t good, tell me the specifics about what wasn’t good.

That’s it.

Free book.

Just read it and tell me exactly what you think. No holds barred. I’m looking for the down-and-dirty-last-25-strokes truth.

What do you get out of the deal?

What’s in it for you? Hm . .

1. You get the info that a lot of readers say they liked (for free), and can start to use that info now to get more from your rowing
2. You get the chance to change a book on rowing
3. You get a free copy of the final product

How do you get your copy?

Just send me an email with a quick blast on why you want to read it, I’ll pick the 15 best and send the book right out.

This will happen quick, so send an email to me at mike at MaxRigging.com.

Keep it short. Keep it specific, and I’ll get right back to you.

Deal??

A deal for 15 readers . . . is a post from: Max Rigging

Yeah, yeah . . . I know—this is a early riser sport.

But sometimes the little details, in the morning, can just slip right by.

And when they do . . . well, let’s just say that the rest of your day (season) could be shot.

Here are a few thoughts about the little details when you race really early.

Here is a quick checklist for those early am details (actually for racing at anytime).

What would you add to it?

** And want to know how to make those early mornings a little more joyful? Stay tuned for the re-release of my book Finding Happiness Sitting On Your Butt Going Backwards. Coming soon to a computer near you . . .

A few early morning details of racing, and a check list is a post from: Max Rigging

Rowing 2000 miles, with a cigarette, to get to the World’s Fair.

I cannot get the video to embed, so please visit Chris's site.

Rowing, cigarettes, and the World’s Fair is a post from: Max Rigging

Carnegie apparently said, “Take away my people, but leave my factories and soon grass will grow on the factory floors……Take away my factories, but leave my people and soon we will have a new and better factory.”

As I read it, out jumped the A-ha of how relevant that concept is to our sport. A few word substitutions gives us:

“Take away my rowers, but leave my equipment and soon grass will grow on the boathouse floor……Take away my equipment, but leave my rowers and soon we will have a new and better equipment .”

Rowing is a people sport, but unfortunately it is so easy to forget that—to get distracted by the equipment.

As I write this, my team’s trailer is broken down along the interstate in Georgia. That is a drag.

But all my rowers are safe at the hotel—that is infinitely more important.

The People of Rowing is a post from: Max Rigging

Recently I had a long discussion with them about oar blade shapes, and how best to rig them.

Although these notes are scribbled there is one note on the page that is absolutely of critical importance to anyone who rows.

Can you tell which one it is?

It’s in the box toward the bottom.

Yup, *test*.

Probably the most important thing I took away from that discussion. I know, you hear me say it all the time. Well they do also!

The Critical Note After Talking To C2 is a post from: Max Rigging

In a theoretical world, without all the human factors that affect us, that would be the case. In such a perfect world a simple graph of your speed over a season would probably look like this:

However our worlds are anything BUT perfect, with illnesses, injuries, economy, weather, and a wealth of other things effecting us. A realistic speed graph for an individual might actually look like this:

That graph is just for one person trying to get fast. Add a partner or team mates and suddenly the variations become much more pronounced:

We would love for our speed to come quick, and to see improvements daily. Unfortunately that doesn’t happen. The road to fast is often full of bumps and takes longer than we think it should.

Would love to hear your thoughts on this. Chime in below.

• Rigging Videos
• Post 1: A Hunt For Speed
• Post 2:  A Cheater’s Guide To Making A Boat Go Fast
• Post 3: Coxswain’s Head Explodes. Too Much Speed The Cause
• Post 4: Step 1 of Your Personal Speed System: Fierce Mindset
• Post 5: Step 2 of Your Personal Speed System: Rock-star Athlete(s)
• Post 6: Step 3 of Your Personal Speed System: Mindful Training
• Post 7: Step 4 of Your Personal Speed System: Freak Your Technique
• Post 8: Step 5 of Your Personal Speed System: Rock-solid Equipment
• Post 9: Step 6 of Your Personal Speed System: Real Rigging
• Post 10: Step 7 of Your Personal Speed System: Your Speed Pyramid
• Rowing Slow: The Secret For Going Fast And Getting What You Really Want From Rowing

The Speed of Speed is a post from: Max Rigging

Pyramids

Pyramids of Egypt

When the ancients wanted to construct something strong and lasting they built a pyramid. A pyramid is a structure where the outer surfaces are triangular and converge at a point. These were some of the original large buildings, and have proven themselves to be strong, durable, and very stable. And some of them look pretty darn cool.

Closer to home, on the left hand corner of my desk is a book titled: Coach Wooden’s Pyramid of Success. It details the system that John Wooden used to develop his 10 national championship basketball teams at UCLA. As you can see from the image below Coach invested a great deal of time into the development and perfection of his system.

Coach Wooden's Pyramid of Success

Rowing Speed Pyramid

We can look at speed in a similar view, in fact a pyramid is a great metaphor for how our Personal Speed System operates. I’ll let the image below speak for itself but there are a few points that need to be brought out.

First: simple geometry tells us that if you want a tall pyramid (which you do in this case because the taller it is the more speed you can find) then you need a wide base. In our case the base is your fierce mindset. A strong, wide mindset, include critical component such as vision, failure, giving up control, and finding joy will help you build a taller structure.

Second: the foundation of any pyramid is a critical part of how long the pyramid stands, and how high it can be built. Without a strong foundation all the hard work may be for naught. The Egyptians knew the importance of a strong foundation, and spent a long time working on before they started the main structure. In fact, they built several Pyramids on bases of solid rock.

In our case, the foundation for our Speed Pyrmaimd is built on a foundation of hardwork, a supportive community, and using a system.

Third: pyramids take a lot of time to build. Estimates are some Egyptian pyramids took well over 25 years to build. Yours won’t take that long, but do expect to invest time in constructing yours. [However, keep in mind if you want to be world-class fast you can expect to invest upwards of 10,000 hours building your pyramid.]

Rowing Speed Pyramid for Your Personal Speed System

Take Action Now

Are you in the process of hunting for the speed you need? Then hopefully this helps tie up some loose ends as you go about trying to get faster. See something that needs to be changed, updated, or fixed? Let me know what you think.

• Rigging Videos
• Post 1: A Hunt For Speed
• Post 2:  A Cheater’s Guide To Making A Boat Go Fast
• Post 3: Coxswain’s Head Explodes. Too Much Speed The Cause
• Post 4: Step 1 of Your Personal Speed System: Fierce Mindset
• Post 5: Step 2 of Your Personal Speed System: Rock-star Athlete(s)
• Post 6: Step 3 of Your Personal Speed System: Mindful Training
• Post 7: Step 4 of Your Personal Speed System: Freak Your Technique
• Post 8: Step 5 of Your Personal Speed System: Rock-solid Equipment
• Post 9: Step 6 of Your Personal Speed System: Real Rigging
• Rowing Slow: The Secret For Going Fast And Getting What You Really Want From Rowing

The Final Step: Your Speed Pyramid is a post from: Max Rigging