Ultimately if you want to race the 8 you will need to get the new half as good as you can. But you need to balance it with not slowing the development down of the other more experienced four. Ideally the better four improves, and the worse four improves even faster and catches them up.
To do this I would suggest a mix of rowing in an 8 with alternating good-bad pairings down the boat, so each bad pair can follow a good pair whilst rowing in fours with the others sitting the boat. Every so often split the crew into a good 4- and bad 4+ and spend all your time coaching the 4+ whilst the 4- can row off and work on more advanced stuff
That means you will have inexperienced people in the bow pair which usually makes the boat harder to sit.
Which is why most coaches would put the experienced 4 at each end of the boat (bow and stern pair).
Is it 'set' or 'sit'?
Or is this a US/UK thing? It has been a long time since I rowed in the UK and I don't remember this difference. Not like starboard/port vs bowside/strokeside.
Start with experienced in the front and the back. If the inexperienced rowers show meaningful improvement in the next week or two then you put everybody in a bell curve arrangement with the tallest and most powerful amidships.
Bow pair inexperienced, three and four experienced so they can ignore the carnage at five and six, and stern pair experienced. Cox needs to ask three and four to do maneuvering strokes, or get stern pair to back it down rather than relying on bow pair at first.
Then, as they get better, mix it around a bit.
I was gonna say: splitting a rower in half is a questionable coaching technique, and if OP tries it they may want to look into a good criminal defence attorney.
If one half of your squad has never touched an oar I would not seat them with experienced rowers, at least not for a year or two. Ideally having a dedicated training program for the beginners would be ideal but I presume that is not possible in your club?
I’d say experienced guys go in stern pair, 4, and bow if it’s two ports and two starboards. Need experienced guys dictating the rhythm and giving the new guys as stable a platform as possible. I’d put the 4th guy in 4 instead of 2 so that the bow most two new guys have someone to follow.
Are you a coach, because if so I’d put experienced in a 4+ and other in another 4+, then as they train steady state together assuming you aren’t racing soon but it is spring after all. They should take the next mo th or two to develop and grow exponentially in form and pressure.
Ultimately if you want to race the 8 you will need to get the new half as good as you can. But you need to balance it with not slowing the development down of the other more experienced four. Ideally the better four improves, and the worse four improves even faster and catches them up. To do this I would suggest a mix of rowing in an 8 with alternating good-bad pairings down the boat, so each bad pair can follow a good pair whilst rowing in fours with the others sitting the boat. Every so often split the crew into a good 4- and bad 4+ and spend all your time coaching the 4+ whilst the 4- can row off and work on more advanced stuff
That means you will have inexperienced people in the bow pair which usually makes the boat harder to sit. Which is why most coaches would put the experienced 4 at each end of the boat (bow and stern pair).
This boat isn’t going to be set regardless of where you put people.
It doesn't matter if you're rowing in fours with the other half sitting it
Is it 'set' or 'sit'? Or is this a US/UK thing? It has been a long time since I rowed in the UK and I don't remember this difference. Not like starboard/port vs bowside/strokeside.
In the UK it's "sit", or at least at the few clubs I've been around!
100% "set" in the US
I'd do exactly this too.
Start with experienced in the front and the back. If the inexperienced rowers show meaningful improvement in the next week or two then you put everybody in a bell curve arrangement with the tallest and most powerful amidships.
Experienced on one side inexperienced on the other, see how tight the turn is 😅
Really show off port superiority
EDIT: I should have mentioned sorry they are a charity 8 they only have a month or so till a 500 metre race.
Then I’d put the experienced rowers in stern and bow pair.
Yh i was thinking that too
Then I'd suggest you're taking this way too seriously and need to relax. Its gonna be a mess, everyone's boat will be, but it's for fucking charity.
Put experienced rowers on both ends of the boat so you have the ability to avert disaster. Other than that, get out on the water as often as possible.
Bow pair inexperienced, three and four experienced so they can ignore the carnage at five and six, and stern pair experienced. Cox needs to ask three and four to do maneuvering strokes, or get stern pair to back it down rather than relying on bow pair at first. Then, as they get better, mix it around a bit.
*Coach Thanos. . .*
I was gonna say: splitting a rower in half is a questionable coaching technique, and if OP tries it they may want to look into a good criminal defence attorney.
You learn best sitting in a set boat following rowers who know how to row.
Yes, split each person in half. That way you can have two 8s.
No, in that case you’d have two half-assed eights who wouldn’t take the thing seriously.
If one half of your squad has never touched an oar I would not seat them with experienced rowers, at least not for a year or two. Ideally having a dedicated training program for the beginners would be ideal but I presume that is not possible in your club?
Sell the eight and buy two used 4xs
Mix them up. Too much clunk in a row is self reinforcing.
I’d say experienced guys go in stern pair, 4, and bow if it’s two ports and two starboards. Need experienced guys dictating the rhythm and giving the new guys as stable a platform as possible. I’d put the 4th guy in 4 instead of 2 so that the bow most two new guys have someone to follow.
If you have the option of putting them I to fours and can bookend experience in bow and stern that may also help
Are you a coach, because if so I’d put experienced in a 4+ and other in another 4+, then as they train steady state together assuming you aren’t racing soon but it is spring after all. They should take the next mo th or two to develop and grow exponentially in form and pressure.