Latest news on the formation of the main boat crew...
Several distinguished oarsmen who were absent last term due to their academic work loads have expressed desires to return for this Torpids season. These guys are all very experienced and quite athletic, as well as having the advantage of previous rowing experience together in Hertford's past. That means that the available seats in the first boat is steadily decreasing.
The coaches have thus raised the bar for any oarsmen wanting one of the few remaining seats in the main boat. However they have still made me an offer. If I can continue the physical progress I've made in the last few weeks then I will be offered a spot. This means knocking at least another 10 seconds off my 2k time while maintaining a consistent split. Although this task seems daunting, I am incredibly excited for the opportunity.
Proving oneself is an essential aspect of the human experience. Whether it be intellectually (which I am used to) or physically (the new game). Moreover, I relish the chance to show off the illimitable scope of my will to succeed despite any obstacle.
I am also happy with the way this Torpids boat is coming together. Being the 'weakest' link on a team of monstrously powerful competitors is where I prefer to be. I learn from them, emulate them, and use the displays of their respective talent to inspire and drive me to their level. I can't wait to earn a spot among such oarsmen. Due to my height and leg length I will most likely be placed somewhere in the middle of the boat, in the engine, so to speak. After years of being bullied in grade school for being one of the tiny kids, I like embracing the newer, bigger me. The attention from the ladies is pretty good inspiration to continue too :p
Further updates as the term progresses...
Sunday, January 16, 2011
Friday, January 14, 2011
The 2k Test
ERG results!
Eleven of us from Hertford were in attendance and we did it in two groups so that we could all benefit from having some coaching and cheering behind us as we tormented ourselves.
I didn't quite get my time down into the 6:50 area like I wanted. My problem was consistency.
For the first 500m I was good, setting a split at 1:43.
Second 500m I slowed down a bit, which was ok, 1:45 split.
But in the third 500 I cracked and my time rose up to about 1:47
I kept that 1:47 split through the last 500m also.
Total time: 7:04.7
At first I was upset that I wasn't able to break into the sixes like I had planned and wanted. However, in appreciation of the broader picture I must say this time is pretty damn good for a former lazy computer nerd. Its a new personal best - a full ten seconds under my previous record which was set a mere three weeks ago. I'm proud of that improvement. That time was also the third best of all of us there that night. I was beaten by the men's captain and a former lightweight Oxford v Cambridge, "Blues" oarsman. It's hard to stay mad at yourself when that's the company you keep. I was only 14 seconds off their times and I have two months to catch them. No problem.
I find out if I made the first boat sometime next week when the coaches/captain finish their decisions.
Eleven of us from Hertford were in attendance and we did it in two groups so that we could all benefit from having some coaching and cheering behind us as we tormented ourselves.
I didn't quite get my time down into the 6:50 area like I wanted. My problem was consistency.
For the first 500m I was good, setting a split at 1:43.
Second 500m I slowed down a bit, which was ok, 1:45 split.
But in the third 500 I cracked and my time rose up to about 1:47
I kept that 1:47 split through the last 500m also.
Total time: 7:04.7
At first I was upset that I wasn't able to break into the sixes like I had planned and wanted. However, in appreciation of the broader picture I must say this time is pretty damn good for a former lazy computer nerd. Its a new personal best - a full ten seconds under my previous record which was set a mere three weeks ago. I'm proud of that improvement. That time was also the third best of all of us there that night. I was beaten by the men's captain and a former lightweight Oxford v Cambridge, "Blues" oarsman. It's hard to stay mad at yourself when that's the company you keep. I was only 14 seconds off their times and I have two months to catch them. No problem.
I find out if I made the first boat sometime next week when the coaches/captain finish their decisions.
Wednesday, January 12, 2011
A New Term Begins
Although this is still nought week, or zero week, which is the week before Oxford term begins, our Shimer capstone course, IS 6 has begun. We've already finished reading the Canterbury Tales and moved on to Luther's essays on the Reformation. The Tales were interesting from a historical perspective as well as being beautifully written. I don't think they belonged in the curriculum though, they don't speak to anything about the human condition and experience that we haven't already gotten from other sources. Yes, the Tales highlight social and cultural issues that are still relevant, but so does the Bible, and Dante's Inferno, and Christine de Pizan's Treasure of the City of Ladies, and a host of others. Anyway, the Luther is incredibly interesting, especially given Aunt Ruth's genealogy research which places branches of our family tree in Wittenburg, the place of Luther's ascendancy.
I've also started reading Hume's Enquiry Considering Human Understanding - the work that was so extravagantly misunderstood that Hume was deemed a heretic for unseating the foundations of all morality and for removing God as the prime cause of everything (as if a scholarly paper could possibly accomplish that unless the readers allowed it to!) Anyway, its one of the hardest bits of philosophy I've ever encountered but the fruits of its proper understanding are nothing short of amazing. Hume answers the questions that I threw at teachers in grade school about the sources of all knowledge, only to be told I was being disruptive and that they didn't matter. Um, pardon me teach', but they matter, big time. Hume is quickly becoming a favorite.
We had an intensive rowing training camp all last week and some of this week. Two outings on the water a day plus core stability circuits and rowing machine pieces. My body was immolated in the intensity of the work. I have never known such complete exhaustion. I very nearly quit because I could do nothing else but eat, physically exert myself during training, and then go home to sleep. It just didn't feel like a life to me. And the work wasn't getting any easier while my energy continued to plummet. After about five days though my body recovered and rebuilt itself seemingly overnight. I was suddenly able to do all the core exercises without much trouble, the ERG work got easier, my times were faster, the boat felt easy and light - it was all gravy. The confidence gained from that experience has fortified me yet further.
I endure this pain and torment and eventual renewal for two reasons. First, I found something invaluable in the realm of agony that rowing brings. Pain is a healing, purifying alembic. It transmutes. It is not easy to describe. I wonder whether a life can be said to be complete that has not pushed itself this far and discovered its own wellspring of vitae. The lesson gets deeper and more personal with every new session, and I won't give that up. Secondly, and this was the reason that arose first chronologically, I want a seat in the Mens 1 boat for the upcoming Torpids competition. Yes, Hertford will be fielding several mens boats, and yes I will certainly be able to race in one of them. It isn't even expected that the first boat will be very successful given how high we are in the standings already - that boat will struggle to do more than stave off attackers and maintain its good position. Yet I want in that boat. Those are the coveted spots, where the eight finest athletes and oarsmen get to sit and pour their hearts into going fast together, for the college, for the old boys who still come down to watch and cheer, for the pure exultation of success at such a high level of competition.
It gets decided tomorrow at the 2k test. At the beginning of break I did one and got a new personal best at 7mins 14seconds, six seconds under my previous best time. That time is nowhere near competitive enough to get me in the boat. I need to get under 7 minutes to have a chance at the main boat. I need to maintain a 500m split time in the 1:42 area for 2000 meters. That will get me there in about 6:50, which should be enough.
Whereas I used to be a nervous wreck around these tests, I have found the impossible zen that comes from knowing that I can deal with pain and keep rowing. We did 6x500s and 3x1000s all this week and my times were excellent, right on target. The true exhaustion didn't start to settle in until the final sets, which are beyond the 2000 meters necessary for the test tomorrow. Moreover, I have some techniques to keep my mind off the distance and the pain and to just keep moving. If I can get myself through the first 1500 meters in good time, my tricks can get me the rest of the way - blind, bleeding, exploding, dying, screaming my triumph with every stroke.
One of those seats will be MINE.
I've also started reading Hume's Enquiry Considering Human Understanding - the work that was so extravagantly misunderstood that Hume was deemed a heretic for unseating the foundations of all morality and for removing God as the prime cause of everything (as if a scholarly paper could possibly accomplish that unless the readers allowed it to!) Anyway, its one of the hardest bits of philosophy I've ever encountered but the fruits of its proper understanding are nothing short of amazing. Hume answers the questions that I threw at teachers in grade school about the sources of all knowledge, only to be told I was being disruptive and that they didn't matter. Um, pardon me teach', but they matter, big time. Hume is quickly becoming a favorite.
***
We had an intensive rowing training camp all last week and some of this week. Two outings on the water a day plus core stability circuits and rowing machine pieces. My body was immolated in the intensity of the work. I have never known such complete exhaustion. I very nearly quit because I could do nothing else but eat, physically exert myself during training, and then go home to sleep. It just didn't feel like a life to me. And the work wasn't getting any easier while my energy continued to plummet. After about five days though my body recovered and rebuilt itself seemingly overnight. I was suddenly able to do all the core exercises without much trouble, the ERG work got easier, my times were faster, the boat felt easy and light - it was all gravy. The confidence gained from that experience has fortified me yet further.
I endure this pain and torment and eventual renewal for two reasons. First, I found something invaluable in the realm of agony that rowing brings. Pain is a healing, purifying alembic. It transmutes. It is not easy to describe. I wonder whether a life can be said to be complete that has not pushed itself this far and discovered its own wellspring of vitae. The lesson gets deeper and more personal with every new session, and I won't give that up. Secondly, and this was the reason that arose first chronologically, I want a seat in the Mens 1 boat for the upcoming Torpids competition. Yes, Hertford will be fielding several mens boats, and yes I will certainly be able to race in one of them. It isn't even expected that the first boat will be very successful given how high we are in the standings already - that boat will struggle to do more than stave off attackers and maintain its good position. Yet I want in that boat. Those are the coveted spots, where the eight finest athletes and oarsmen get to sit and pour their hearts into going fast together, for the college, for the old boys who still come down to watch and cheer, for the pure exultation of success at such a high level of competition.
It gets decided tomorrow at the 2k test. At the beginning of break I did one and got a new personal best at 7mins 14seconds, six seconds under my previous best time. That time is nowhere near competitive enough to get me in the boat. I need to get under 7 minutes to have a chance at the main boat. I need to maintain a 500m split time in the 1:42 area for 2000 meters. That will get me there in about 6:50, which should be enough.
Whereas I used to be a nervous wreck around these tests, I have found the impossible zen that comes from knowing that I can deal with pain and keep rowing. We did 6x500s and 3x1000s all this week and my times were excellent, right on target. The true exhaustion didn't start to settle in until the final sets, which are beyond the 2000 meters necessary for the test tomorrow. Moreover, I have some techniques to keep my mind off the distance and the pain and to just keep moving. If I can get myself through the first 1500 meters in good time, my tricks can get me the rest of the way - blind, bleeding, exploding, dying, screaming my triumph with every stroke.
One of those seats will be MINE.
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