Hello FRA Members,
Congrats to all at this past weekend's Quaker City Regatta! A great culmination to a great training year.
I will not be down this week, and will be going to the shore for my vacation from 8/12 to 8/20th (hopefully sneaking back to practice on Sunday the 20th).
This was BEST summer I have had since the summer of 2009. That was the year I finished my first year at UPenn, and coached and directed my first summer camp at Penn AC.
For the last 8 years, I have always been away from FRA directing/coaching at a rowing camp or another program. This is the first summer that I have been able to coach at FRA for the full summer. On top of that, being able to race with everyone has been wonderful, and I have enjoyed it immensely. I have missed competing, and I am grateful to be able to represent our club and row alongside everyone.
"FAIRMOUNT 4-LIFE" - FALL ROWING (training standards)
As a club, we really have built up training momentum since the start of the Spring Season. Tuesdays and Thursdays practices have grown tenfold, and the rest of the Schuylkill Navy has taken notice of all the Fairmount rowers on the river.
This Fall, I hope to continue this momentum, and look ahead to our club competing at all the Fall Regattas. If you have been training, you will feel that your speed will REALLY begin to show this fall, because I have trained you to be fast, and the Fall will seem EASY.
Fall Training will begin in September, therefore, the next few weeks athletes should focus on re-building their aerobic capacity (long easy Steady State) and anaerobic capacity (Bursts).
FALL TESTING - 4K and/or 2 x 2k (2 minutes rest)
Because we have so many new members, it will be important to get a baseline on every athlete/every age. In order to be considered for large TEAM boats, athletes will need to submit testing scores in the FALL. The fall Head Races are between 4k and 5k, and some of you will want to race more than one head race at each regatta. Therefore, we need to see what you are capable of.
TESTING STANDARDS
4K Testing will be RANKED this fall. Age, weight, technique, and gender all be examined. Members have expressed interest in creating the FASTEST line ups, therefore I will look at everything. Below I have listed suggested benchmarks. Ideally, your erg should be somewhere between the below scores.
The first testing week will be September 4th to September 9th. Athletes should submit a testing score that week to be considered for racing this Fall.
If you are NOT between the below standards, it doesn't mean you won't race. It just means you have work to do, and you will race with other athletes that are working towards the same thing. EVERYONE should race that wants to.
MEN - 20 to 30
TIME: 13:20 to 14:00 (1:40 to 1:45 split)
MEN - 30 to 40
TIME: 14:00 to 14:40 (1:45 to 1:50 split)
MEN - 40 to 50
TIME: 14:40 to 15:20 (1:50 to 1:55 split)
MEN - 50 to 60
TIME: 15:20 to 16:00 (1:55 to 2:00 split)
MEN - 60 to 70+
TIME: 16:00 to 16:40 (2:00 to 2:05 split)
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WOMEN - 20 to 30
TIME: 17:20 to 18:20 (2:10 to 2:15 split)
WOMEN - 30 TO 40
TIME: 18:20 to 19:00 (2:15 to 2:20 split)
WOMEN - 40 TO 50
TIME: 19:00 to 19:40 (2:20 to 2:25 split)
WOMEN - 50 to 60
TIME: 19:40 to 20:20 (2:25 to 2:30 split)
WOMEN - 60 to 70+
TIME: 20:20 to 21:00 (2:30 to 2:35 split)
Please continue to CROSS-TRAIN these next few weeks, and maybe hop on the erg once or twice per week. If you need workout prep ideas, you can always email me.
Be sure to email Captain Ted Villanueva and John Scott if you plan on being at practices on Tuesday/Thursday at 5:30 amand Saturday and Sunday at 6:30 am.
See you all soon!
Coach Pat