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2012 Erg Marathon, complete
Sep. 16th, 2012 10:40 amThe 2012 Erg Marathon is complete, thank goodness. I posted photos over on Facebook because FB is the primary form of communication for the team, so if you want to see them, go here.
This was Erg Marathon number six for me. Due to travels in August, plus issues with my left hamstring, I couldn't fit in much/any erg training for this marathon. In that respect, I'm pleased just to have finished it. In other respects, I wish I'd been able to take off a couple more minutes from my finish time, as I was just a few minutes shy of first place for marathon rankings on Concept 2, beating the slowest of the men, and beating the fastest woman. But it's over, and I'm unlikely to do another one just to try and make those points. I might be crazy, but I'm not that crazy. I've got other things on the agenda, including a head race in Oklahoma City, and the Head of the Charles. At this point, I hope to save up spending money to get my own erg. It would make my life a lot simpler, and would spare me from the horrible Fluid Ergs at the Rec Center. I don't think I'd wind up in the same situation as people who have exercise equipment in their homes, where the equipment turns into a clothes-hanger or dust-collector. You never know, but I want to try and see. It would also make the completion of the Holiday Challenge so, so much easier, if I could just get up, put on spandex, and erg a 6k, instead of having to saddle up the bicycle and ride in to campus to use the Fluid Ergs.
It was good to get the erg marathon out of the way. The other nine people who completed it had never erged or rowed a full marathon before, but have all wanted to go to Louisiana to row the marathon on the Cane River in November. I agree with my Arizona Outlaw teammates, that some preparation is in order if one goes to the effort of traveling somewhere to row a marathon. And erging a marathon is fantastic preparation. Everyone who started the erg marathon finished it, and everyone managed to finish in under four hours, which was cool to see.
We only had five ergs, so we had to run things in two waves. I stuck with the first wave, so I wound up rowing with the four guys who signed up for it, and then five women erged in the second wave. I stuck around to help fix shoes, open GU packets, refill water bottles, point fans, pick out DVDs, and cheer everyone on. I really like this aspect of coaching - pushing people to do things they wouldn't do otherwise, and encouraging people when they're trying to get through tough spots. It feels like a good way to give back. And I also know, all too well, how hard it is to do one of these without support; K and I did one in my living room, where I had to swap out DVDs while we erged.
I missed K during the marathon. This is the first one I've done without her. She had a hard time managing her back problems during the previous erg marathon, and barely finished it, in pain and with great difficulty. Hard to watch. Between that and her bike accident this year, I just don't know if she'll be in good mental/physical condition to do one of these again, which makes me sad, because getting to row with her has been a big part of my life over the past six years. I wish I could send her some more Arizona Outlaw teammates, because I know how hard/impossible it is to get up and out to the lake to go and row in a single.
This was Erg Marathon number six for me. Due to travels in August, plus issues with my left hamstring, I couldn't fit in much/any erg training for this marathon. In that respect, I'm pleased just to have finished it. In other respects, I wish I'd been able to take off a couple more minutes from my finish time, as I was just a few minutes shy of first place for marathon rankings on Concept 2, beating the slowest of the men, and beating the fastest woman. But it's over, and I'm unlikely to do another one just to try and make those points. I might be crazy, but I'm not that crazy. I've got other things on the agenda, including a head race in Oklahoma City, and the Head of the Charles. At this point, I hope to save up spending money to get my own erg. It would make my life a lot simpler, and would spare me from the horrible Fluid Ergs at the Rec Center. I don't think I'd wind up in the same situation as people who have exercise equipment in their homes, where the equipment turns into a clothes-hanger or dust-collector. You never know, but I want to try and see. It would also make the completion of the Holiday Challenge so, so much easier, if I could just get up, put on spandex, and erg a 6k, instead of having to saddle up the bicycle and ride in to campus to use the Fluid Ergs.
It was good to get the erg marathon out of the way. The other nine people who completed it had never erged or rowed a full marathon before, but have all wanted to go to Louisiana to row the marathon on the Cane River in November. I agree with my Arizona Outlaw teammates, that some preparation is in order if one goes to the effort of traveling somewhere to row a marathon. And erging a marathon is fantastic preparation. Everyone who started the erg marathon finished it, and everyone managed to finish in under four hours, which was cool to see.
We only had five ergs, so we had to run things in two waves. I stuck with the first wave, so I wound up rowing with the four guys who signed up for it, and then five women erged in the second wave. I stuck around to help fix shoes, open GU packets, refill water bottles, point fans, pick out DVDs, and cheer everyone on. I really like this aspect of coaching - pushing people to do things they wouldn't do otherwise, and encouraging people when they're trying to get through tough spots. It feels like a good way to give back. And I also know, all too well, how hard it is to do one of these without support; K and I did one in my living room, where I had to swap out DVDs while we erged.
I missed K during the marathon. This is the first one I've done without her. She had a hard time managing her back problems during the previous erg marathon, and barely finished it, in pain and with great difficulty. Hard to watch. Between that and her bike accident this year, I just don't know if she'll be in good mental/physical condition to do one of these again, which makes me sad, because getting to row with her has been a big part of my life over the past six years. I wish I could send her some more Arizona Outlaw teammates, because I know how hard/impossible it is to get up and out to the lake to go and row in a single.
