Rowing glossary
This glossary covers the terms a spectator is most likely to hear at a British regatta or read in a result.
The boat and equipment
| Term |
Meaning |
| Blade |
The oar, or strictly the flat end of it |
| Bow |
The front of the boat. Also the rower in the seat nearest it |
| Stern |
The back of the boat |
| Shell |
A racing boat |
| Rigger |
The metal frame that holds the oar away from the side of the boat |
| Gate |
The swivel on the rigger that the oar sits in |
| Slide |
The rails the seat rolls on |
| Stretcher |
The plate the rower’s shoes are fixed to |
| Bow ball |
The rubber ball on the tip of the bow, used to judge the finish |
The crew
| Term |
Meaning |
| Stroke |
The rower nearest the stern, who sets the rhythm |
| Cox |
The coxswain, who steers and directs the crew |
| Bow side |
The right-hand side of the boat as the cox sees it |
| Stroke side |
The left-hand side of the boat as the cox sees it |
| Sculler |
A rower using two oars |
| Composite |
A crew made up of rowers from more than one club |
The stroke
| Term |
Meaning |
| Catch |
The moment the blade enters the water |
| Drive |
The part of the stroke when the blade is in the water |
| Finish |
The moment the blade leaves the water |
| Recovery |
The return to the catch, with the blade out of the water |
| Rate |
Strokes per minute |
| Crab |
A blade caught in the water at the wrong angle, which can stop a boat |
Racing
| Term |
Meaning |
| Head |
A time trial rowed in procession |
| Regatta |
Side-by-side racing |
| Station |
The side of the river a crew is drawn on |
| Stake boat |
A moored boat from which a crew is held on the start |
| Free start |
A start in which crews line up without being held |
| Push |
A planned burst of harder strokes |
| Washing down |
Steering so an opponent has to row through your wake |
| Clash |
Contact between the blades of two crews |
| Row over |
Completing the course alone when the opponent has withdrawn |
| Verdict |
The official winning margin |
| Canvas |
A winning margin equal to the covered bow section of the boat |
| Pot |
A tankard or mug given to the winners at a regatta |
Categories
| Term |
Meaning |
| Open |
Events any eligible rower may enter. Men’s events are usually listed as open |
| Lightweight |
Events with an upper weight limit for the crew |
| Junior |
Rowers under 18, grouped by age as J14, J15, J16 and so on |
| Masters |
Rowers aged 27 and over, grouped in lettered age bands |
| Novice or beginner |
Rowers in their first season or two of racing |
The river
| Term |
Meaning |
| Stream |
The current in a river |
| Reach |
A stretch of river between two locks or bends |
| Tideway |
The tidal Thames through London, below Teddington Lock |
| Flood and ebb |
The incoming and the outgoing tide |
| Towpath |
The path beside a river, where spectators and coaches follow races |
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