Club Committee
2002 - 2003 Manifestos
Alex Lee - Women's Captain
I am a second year historian with ten years of rowing experience. Having started coxing at
school, I have trained and raced with successful boats at all levels, winning events at twenty
four regattas and serving as Junior Vice-Captain at Worcester Rowing Club in 1999. I have
coxed the Ladies 1 sI May VIII 2001/2 and the CUW Lightweight VIII 2002. Additionally, I am
an ARA qualified coach and umpire.
THE PLAN
The ultimate objective of the Ladies' Boat Club must be to produce winning boats. The
problem is how this should be done. With only a limited amount of time to train on the Cam
between races and given the technical and physiological obstructions provided by vacation
time, the answer seems to be a highly structured and well-organised plan for the year. Each
time a crew goes on the water, it needs to fulfil a direct role in producing a winning crew for
that term and for the whole year. Each outing must lead athletes to a higher level of fitness
and technical ability .Time cannot and will not be wasted. I believe that this can be achieved
in the following way:
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Selection and testing. This is an ongoing process: all people develop their technique
and fitness at different rates, while the abrupt nature of the Cambridge rowing
calendar demands that crews are put out to race at certain key points. At the
beginning of each term, all oarswomen who want to will be invited to compete for a
place in the 1 sI VIII and this will entail close co-operation with the Lower Boats
Captains. No seat is 'safe' and no one will be able to demand a place without having
undergone the selection procedure, which will rely on both aptitude and strength. A
provisional VIII will be selected within the first two weeks. However, it is likely that
many selection choices will be close and the fastest possible VIII at the start of term
may not be the fastest possible at the end. To ensure that we put out the fastest
possible 1 sI VIII every time an outing is scheduled, a series of tests will be conducted
at most every two weeks, but at least every three weeks, bringing technical ability
into close consideration and open to all who wish to participate. Testing will probably
vary, but will certainly include the old favourites, such as 2k tests, 2min split tests etc.
Inevitably, this will involve a degree of change across a term, but should really affect
no more than two seats at a time, and the variation will help to foster a clear club
'style' that allows everyone to grow accustomed to each others' rowing.
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Training plan and training camps. I shall seek advice from experienced coaches,
such as lain those who have trained CUW on how best to structure termly training
plans. However, it is a physiological fact that in order to train efficiently, muscle must
first be developed and only then trained to perform a specialised function. In
Michaelmas, and for the first half of Lent, the training plan will probably incorporate
a high level of land training that is endurance-based, while closer to the bumps the
focus will shift towards more water-work. As far as outings are concerned, I am
firmly convinced that outings achieve most where all athletes know exactly what they
are doing and why. To aid this, I will circulate the training plan for the week, or for
several weeks at a time, together with explanatory notes. Additionally, I would like to
arrange training camps, ideally away from Cambridge, before the beginning of Lent
and Easter terms. A number of clubs on the Severn and Upper Thames would be
willing to host camps and wider, less congested river conditions would do wonders
for pre-term training.
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Coaching and Communication. Coaching, again, is only valuable so far as it is
focused: each coach will be asked to focus, wherever possible, on a single aspect of
the stroke, giving rise to a more intensive approach to the technical objectives of each
outing. Technical objectives for the week will also be sent to crews each week as an
aid to focus and direction. At weekly crew meetings, we will review these objectives
for the past six days and determine how effectively they have been achieved. This
will allow training plans to be amended in line with progress and facilitate
clarification where confusion has arisen.
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Fun. Fast crews generally have fun together. It would be great to encourage
each boat to develop its own identity not only by organising the usual formal
halls, but also by cross-training ( e.g. swimming, cycling etc. ) and more social
events.
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Coxing. The chronic shortage of coxes is a perennial problem. Coxes, however, are
always likely to give up where little attention is paid to them. As a cox, I know how
gruelling the long winter months can be, sitting in the rain, desperately trying to stir a
crew to enthusiasm, and I am keenly aware that a lack of rowing knowledge makes
coxing boring and miserable. To combat this, I will have a coxing meeting at the
beginning of each term. In Michaelmas, for example, this will deal with the
fundamentals of coxing and advice on how best to keep warm. No cox will go on the
water without having had some instruction. I envisage the weekly review sessions
being particularly useful in inviting constructive comments on coxing progress.
OVERALL
Having previously been responsible for the organisation of Worcester Rowing Club, and
having been heavily involved with Cambridge Rowing for the past two years, I have ample
experience of club management and the peculiarities of the Cam. As a cox, I am well
acquainted with the need for clear leadership within a co-operative framework. My time spent
as Treasurer of the Union (for which I raised in excess of £10,000 in Michaelmas 2001) has
given me knowledge of financial planning and an understanding of working as part of a
strong committee structure.
The main priority is ensuring that the club as a whole benefits in the short and long
term from any form of expenditure. This will naturally involve achieving a careful and
studied balance between the Men's and Ladies' Boat Club. Spending will not favour one over
the other, but will be geared to ensuring that both elements of the club have equally good
equipment. In some areas, of course, there are clear priorities, and I believe the provision of
new blades and a new shell for the Ladies' Boat Club comes under this heading. I would also
like to see a new pair purchased for the use of men and women. A new video camera would
be tremendously useful.
Spending, however, needs to be carefully controlled, and a particular area of concern
this year has been the coaching budget. Each paid coach needs to be worth his/her salt, and all
requests will have to be justified. I would like to oversee a co-operative approach to coaching
followed by the Men's and Ladies' Boat Club with equitable sharing encouraged wherever
possible.
Proposed by Sally Painter
Seconded by KAWarren
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