FAQ: Physics of Rowing
Prepared by Dr. A. Dudhia
(dudhia@atm.ox.ac.uk) Dept. Atmospheric Physics, Oxford University, an ARA Silver Level coach
and surprisingly slow sculler from St Catherine's College
BC
Recent modifications:
- 13OCT06 Check Bibliography links
None of the following information is copyright, so
feel free to reproduce any or all of it, credited or uncredited
as you see fit (although I might be a bit miffed if anyone else tried to pass
it off as their own work).
Contents of this page
- FAQ:
Basic Physics of Rowing
- FAQ:
Physics of Weight
& Rowing
- FAQ: Physics of Stream/Depth
& Rowing
- FAQ: Physics of Ergometers
- Bibliography & References
- Credits
- Rowing FAQ (Hannes Hofer) covers a lot of the
terminology used here
FAQ: Basic Physics of
Rowing
- Propulsion
- Why
does the blade have to slip in the water? (when
it doesn't if you push off a solid object?)
- Resistance
- What
causes a boat to slow down?
- Why
don't you go twice as fast if you pull twice as hard?
- Kinetic Energy
- Why
are 'cleavers' a good idea ? (when
you can get the same impulse from smaller blades?)
- Centre
of Mass
- Why
do boats continue to accelerate (and move quickest) after the end
of the stroke?
- Speed
Variation
- Why
is it more efficient to row a piece with constant split-times?
- Why
is it more efficient to keep the hull speed as uniform as possible during
the stroke?
- Why
were `sliding rigger' boats banned?
- Balance
- Why
do/don't boats balance?
- Why
is it easier to balance a moving boat?
- Levers
- What
type of lever is an oar?
- Why
does the boat move forwards although I'm pushing it backwards with my
feet?
- Gearing
- What
is meant by the gearing of an oar?
- Why
is gearing expressed in terms of the span (or spread) rather than the
inboard?
- Why
is changing the span 1cm supposed to be 3 times as effective as moving
the button the same distance?
- What
are CLAMS and why are they used?
- Why
are cleavers shorter than the equivalent
- Newton's Laws of Motion
FAQ: Physics of
Weight & Rowing
- Introduction
- How
do erg scores/boat speed depend on bodyweight?
- Relationship
between Power and Weight
- Why
and how do Aerobic and Anaerobic power depend on weight?
- Power/Weight Ratios
- How
do Power/Weight ratios depend on weight?
- Relationship between Weight and
Erg Speed
- Why
do heavier rowers have an advantage on Erg scores
- Where
does the 2/9 (or 0.222) exponent in erg-conversion scores come from?
- Relationship between Weight and
Boat Speed
- Why
are heavier rowers faster than lighter rowers?
- Why
is this difference less obvious over long distances?
- Speeds
of different Boat Classes
- Why
are boats with more rowers faster?
- How
much faster are they?
- How
fast should an octuple scull be?
- Effect of deadweight
- What
is the effect of deadweight on boat speed?
- How
much does the weight of the cox affect the boat
speed?
- Relationship between Erg Score
and Boat Speed
- How
do you convert erg-scores of rowers of different weights into equivalent
boat speed?
- If
I lose weight, how much faster would I scull?
- If
I lose weight, how much should my erg score be allowed to drop in order
to maintain the same boat speed?
- Effect of Boat Weight on Boat
Speed
- Is
a "lighter" boat necessarily a "faster" boat?
FAQ: Physics of
Stream/Depth & Rowing
- Introduction
- Which
feels `heavier': rowing upstream or downstream?
- Viscosity
- What is viscosity?
- Why
is viscous drag said to be proportional to velocity?
- Boat Resistance
- Why
does boat resistance vary as velocity-squared? (when viscous drag is
usually said to be proportional to velocity)
- River
Flow
- Why
does a river flow quickest where it is deepest?
- Upstream/Downstream
Resistance
- Why
does rowing upstream feel `lighter' than rowing downstream?
- Shallow Water Resistance
- Why
does rowing in shallow water feel heavier than deep water?
- How
shallow does water have to be before you notice?
- Upstream/Downstream times
- Why
is the average time for upstream + downstream pieces slower when the
stream is faster? (when you'd expect the stream effect to cancel)
FAQ: Physics of Ergometers
- Introduction
- What
are the different types of Ergometers?
- Where
can I find more information about each type of Ergometer?
- Mechanics of Rotating Bodies
- How
do
- Power
Dissipation
- Why/how
do ergometers lose speed ?
- Power
Supplied
- How
does power supplied turn into rotation speed?
- How
does power relate to the flywheel speed ?
- Changing the Cog
- What
is the effect of changing the cog (sprocket) size?
- Changing the Damping
- What
is the effect of changing the damper setting ?
- Measuring the Damping
- How
does the ergometer `know' what damper setting
is used ?
- What
other effects are/are not allowed for by the ergometer ?
- Measuring the Power Supplied
- How
does the ergometer calculate the indicated `Power' ?
- Indicated Speed (Splits) and
Distance
- How
does the ergometer calculated the speed and distance ?
- Indicated Power v. Indicated
Speed (Splits)
- What
is the relationship between indicated Power and Speed?
- Power
v. Indicated Calories
- What
is the "Calories" output on the monitor
?
- What
is the relationship between indicated Power and Calories?
- Dynamic v. Static Ergs
- What
is the difference between moving and stationary ergs?
- Why
are `dynamic' ergs better boat simulators
- Why
do you get higher scores using the Concept `slide'
- Effect of Rating
- How
does rating affect the power required ?
- Why
do people erg at lower rates than they row/scull?
- Effect of Altitude
- What
is the effect of altitude on erg scores?
- Glossary of terms used in
Rotational Mechanics
- What
are the various terms used in studying rotational systems?
Web Bibliography
and References
(With
direct links to their bibliography pages)
- Atkinsopht
[Bibliography]
- Concept II
- Durham Boat Company
- Federation
Internationale des Societes d'Aviron (FISA)
- Balance of Racing Rowing Boats (Steve
Kerr)
- Hydrodynamics
Articles (Leo Lazauskas)
- Weight/Sex/Age Adjusted Ergo
Ladder (Jeremy Martin)
- Rowing Physiology and Performance (Stephen
Seiler)
- Physics of Sport (Tom
Steiger, originally from Ken Young)
- Simulation of Rowing (Marinus van Holst)
- Rowing FAQ (Hannes
Hofer)
- RowPerfect
- rowing-x.pert
Rowing Bibliography (Florian Caspari)
- Physics of Rowing
[PDF file] by Chris Pulman,
Credits
I would like to thank
the following for their help in the creation of these web pages:
Paul Blomerus, Carl Douglas, Scott Gordon, Dena Hirchak, Marinus van Holst, Dick Nixon, Hans Lohse.