1 definition by Molectin
Crew is a sport that involves most of the participants pulling on oars that are twelve feetlong and movign them trhough the water to move a racing boat called a shell as quickly as possible. In high school crew, there are two kinds of shells: fours and eights. Fours only have four rowers, each one holding one oar. Eights have the same arrangement but double the number of rowers. The shells themselves are quiet fragile and expensive. Each one easily costing $30,0000 in the low end. New boats are made of carbon fiber, and are unrepairable. The boats themselves are quite narrow, only about two feet wide and had a 2 by 3 foot area of space for the coxswain. The coxswain controls and steers the boat by means of giving commands and using the rudder. The rudder itself is very small and only effective at about racing speeds. It is encased by the skeg which keeps the shell controlable. If your skeg is MIA, you'll know in half a second. Training is intense, an drowers typically are immensely strong, with the average high school varsity being able to bench 130 pounds. Coxswaisn are typically weaker, but some attend the winter conditioning. Crew has diferent sets with its people. The rowers from diferent levels hang out together. The new guys hand with each other, the second years will do the same, and the elder varsity, who are often juniors or seniors hang with each other or some second years. The coxswai also hang separately from the rowers, and are often despised in one way or another. The coxswain gives orders by talking into his microphone which connects to his cox box which connects to the ship intercom system. The box also displays stroke count, strokes per minute, and time. Coxswains are the unsung heroes which actually make the boat. The diference between first and DFL is a good cox. The cox's job is a herculean effort of concentration similar to finding a parking space in the middle of a busy city. He has to keep a shell, which is moving at about 14 miles per hours in periodic bursts of energy on course in a lane with only five feet of error on either side while trying to mind stroke rates, his location, and what the other boats are doing as well as communicating with his stroke what to do. The boats do not turn very well, and once they start turning they are hard to divert, making a powerful mind neccessary for coxing. Rowers have a very hard job since they have to act like one entity with may brains and bodies of varying sizex while tired and rushed often with cold and blisters. In crew, timing is everything. A mistake for one decisecond can be failure, and misjudgement a very costly mistake. Coxswains are often not bad guys, but stay one their goods sides, or they can decide to make you row extra, or some other nasty scheme to humiliate you while you sit powerlessly at your oar. Coxes are also in need of discipline, especially on four shells. These shells are much less stable than eights, and the cox seats are never comfortable. The coxes often have to put up with being very cold, and confined in an uncomfortable position for prolonged periods. After all, they don't make any heat because they are sitting still in a tucked position. Fours have better and faster steering than eights, but are slower and less stable. They are often prefered by more advanced crew members. A lot of animosity can build up between rowers and coxswain, particuarly if the coxswain is an INTP. INTP's are usually not liked by people, and have the misfortune to arouse people's hatred unintentionally. Be good to coxes, or you might end up rowing the whole practice. A crew needs to at least be able to work as a unified whole without killing each other to win. A very bad thing to do to your cox is to say shut up when he has something to say, or to call him an idiot, or to go against his orders. Rowers need to remember that while they are in a boat, they are practiaclly the slaves of the coxswain.
by Molectin April 5, 2009