Ready, Set, Row!

According to everyone I know, I have never been a competitive person. The thought of sports has always been entertaining to me and my family, but I never thought I would actually participate. But once seventh grade rolled around, I got the opportunity to enroll in a sport that I never considered before; rowing. From attending private school and into my transition into a public high school, I was one of about thirty members on the Edgewater High School rowing team. 

During my time being on the girls team, I was at my best physically, mentally, and had a high when the annual regattas rolled around. From waking up at 4 AM to participate in these races all over the state of Florida, being proud of my athletic ability to push myself harder with each practice and race, to even making jokes about how in shape I was just over ten years ago. Living through this “after school activity,” there are many aspects that I do look back on from time to time that I believe have shaped me into who I am today. 

I underwent intense training, requiring significant physical and mental effort through every practice and race. My diet also changed for the better. As a rowing team, our most popular phrase still remains “if you’re on time you’re late.” Therefore, I made a conscious effort to be early for every practice and event. Stepping into the new routine allowed for more resilience to exhaustion and pain due to holding the wooden oar handles; I steadily developed the agility to keep up with the more difficult workouts, including some before we even hit the water, such as the mile-long run from my high school to the boathouse. The mental clarity I gained from these practices also helped me with other things, such as my focus in school.

As for the regattas, they still remain one of the best forms of a competition that I had the privilege of being a part of. After switching from a coxswain to the main bow seat on the women’s team, the thrill of rowing in time with the other seven members is a completely different level of euphoria that I would truly love to experience again. Working together as a fully formed unit with the other boat-mates provided an aesthetic symmetry that, I believe, can only be achieved here. Rowing in time with the others taught me how important it is to work together as a team, regardless of the outcome. 

Unfortunately, the only “medal” I received was during my first year when I was in seventh grade. We earned medals for participation, which were still cool. But for the next three years until the beginning of my sophomore year, I did not win another medal. The disappointment of working so hard and not winning anything eventually became too much to stomach, which led to my disinterest in the sport. 

Going through phases in life, my time with the rowing team came to an end with the very first practice for all of the “returning” rowers at the beginning of my sophomore year of high school. My team of eight was preparing to take the boat out on the water, and most of us were barefoot or armed only with socks. I did not take into consideration how hot the metal floating dock would be, even after it was splashed with multiple pitchers of water. The second we walked onto that dock, I immediately got burned on the soles of my feet through the thin socks. The pain was instant,  and to this day, I can’t believe I kept the boat on my shoulder. 

For the rest of practice, I stayed in the coach’s boat with my feet dangling in the cold water. From then on, I knew I wanted to leave the team and quit the sport altogether. Due to my injury, I had to miss the first week of school and walk on my heels to get around my house. Looking back on my decision, I know I made the right choice by leaving the team. It was rough, but I was ready to move on. Recently, I’ve been trying to get back into working out, and while I have the motivation, I don’t have the “action” step. So reminiscing about rowing has given me the motivation I needed. Also, as I have gotten older, I have found more joy in watching competitions than actually participating in them. The Olympics, Fifa, F1, and even Tour de France are all perfect examples of competition done right; and while I never achieved that level, my time spent on my high school rowing team is something I’d never wish away.