Tip of the Blade

Book excerpt: Tip of the Blade: Notes on Rowing is a collection of over 100 articles by sculling coach and Rowing magazine columnist, Marlene Royle. Each piece offers a hands-on, practical approach toward improving your understanding of the sport of rowing. Ranging from your first outing in a shell to steering a perfect race, the topics covered in nine chapters include: flexibility, breathing, posture, core strengthening, coordination, skill development, aerobic conditioning, recovery, oarsmanship, sweep and sculling technique, rhythm, boat stability, bladework, performance drills, self-coaching, mental training, event planning, starts, sprinting, head-style events, marathoning, rigging, erging, and coaching. Whether you are a trainer planning the fall season for your novice squad, a competitive sculler who needs to improve stroke length, or a recreational rower looking to gain more fluidity, this anthology has valuable information to help you develop your technique, methods, and results.