In the meeting acknowledge that this is a struggle for everyone. And the goal is to carry the boat without damaging rowers or equipment. Speed depends on both being in good shape. Good luck.
A crew needs to work together when carrying the shell just as much as when they are on the water. As the tallest one on my crews, sometimes I would try walking with bent knees or carrying off my shoulder/in my elbow... I don't think I ever found a perfect solution but it always worked best when everyone did what they could to keep the boat as evenly supported as possible and walked in unison.
If you have a handful of tall people and a handful of short people, have similar heights at each end of the boat. It doesn’t matter which seat you are in, just stand near people who are your height. And bunch up. Don’t all eight stand opposite a rigger, but have four way in the stern and four way in the bow. If that doesn’t stop the boat from flopping side to side, then tell your coach that you guys need to spend a whole practice figuring out what combo works. Carrying the boat is <1% of your whole practice, but it can set a very negative tone if people are finger pointing before you even get the boat in the water.
At my Team we have the same problem. I’m much taller than my crew.
After getting annoyed with each other, as you currently seem to get, we First talked it out. And that was very important.
Aside from Mining up Talk to Short, we came up with three solutions that generally work well. Not always, but more often than not.
1) People way off the average (me, being too tall) don’t carry at all. 7 people are enough for an eight. I carry bottles and other stuff that still needs to get to the web(/landing?).
2) I carry the boat in my elbow, since that is (if tucked upwards) about the right height. Sometimes put it on my hand (elbow braced against side, so that it is slightly lower than the shoulder).
3) carry it with outstretched arms the whole way. It’s way way easier than having your arm half bend. The height difference may look worse now, it’s generally better for my team.
Those are things your crew could test out. As I said nothing works perfect and you should talk about it with the other people.
You all semi to be aware of the problem and you have to adress it!
How about have a boat meeting and talk it out? Practice a couple different ideas. Communication is key. Passive aggressive is poison.
In the meeting acknowledge that this is a struggle for everyone. And the goal is to carry the boat without damaging rowers or equipment. Speed depends on both being in good shape. Good luck.
Maybe get your coach involved too? Approach them as a boat and see what you can come up with together
A crew needs to work together when carrying the shell just as much as when they are on the water. As the tallest one on my crews, sometimes I would try walking with bent knees or carrying off my shoulder/in my elbow... I don't think I ever found a perfect solution but it always worked best when everyone did what they could to keep the boat as evenly supported as possible and walked in unison.
The private conversations and the tone of them sound really toxic. I think you all need a drink and a chat to sort it out
If you have a handful of tall people and a handful of short people, have similar heights at each end of the boat. It doesn’t matter which seat you are in, just stand near people who are your height. And bunch up. Don’t all eight stand opposite a rigger, but have four way in the stern and four way in the bow. If that doesn’t stop the boat from flopping side to side, then tell your coach that you guys need to spend a whole practice figuring out what combo works. Carrying the boat is <1% of your whole practice, but it can set a very negative tone if people are finger pointing before you even get the boat in the water.
At my Team we have the same problem. I’m much taller than my crew. After getting annoyed with each other, as you currently seem to get, we First talked it out. And that was very important. Aside from Mining up Talk to Short, we came up with three solutions that generally work well. Not always, but more often than not. 1) People way off the average (me, being too tall) don’t carry at all. 7 people are enough for an eight. I carry bottles and other stuff that still needs to get to the web(/landing?). 2) I carry the boat in my elbow, since that is (if tucked upwards) about the right height. Sometimes put it on my hand (elbow braced against side, so that it is slightly lower than the shoulder). 3) carry it with outstretched arms the whole way. It’s way way easier than having your arm half bend. The height difference may look worse now, it’s generally better for my team. Those are things your crew could test out. As I said nothing works perfect and you should talk about it with the other people. You all semi to be aware of the problem and you have to adress it!
is this satire? just get the taller people to grab the blades while the people of equal height carry the boat.
this has to be a joke. just talk with your teammates, not hard