Rowing?

[Par Four]

So what's going on for rowing on the lake? Who's doing what?

I see some TV commercial on lately with the guy who rowed single handed to Europe. It got me to wondering about rowing at the lake.

I recall a few years back that there was a specialty shop in Center Harbor but I'm not sure I know of anyone else focused to rowing.

I've only rowed a small aluminum row boat back & forth across the bay a couple times a summer. It's great exercise and harder to row efficiently than i expected and rowing in a straight line is apparently not possible.

I like the whole thing of man and simple basic tools, combined with the natural beauty of the lake. Might even look into sailing! But first things first.

So just wondering who here might be doing any rowing, casual or otherwise?

[NH_boater]

Almost every morning. In my kayak. Usually to get to my fishing spot of the day.

[Diana]

Per suggestion of FLL, my husband put oarlocks on an old aluminum canoe and made some lightweight oars. He rigged a seat that sits low in the middle of the boat. It works great, has a totally different feel than paddling a canoe or kayak. That navigating around the rocks thing is kind of tricky because you are going backwards though.

[SIKSUKR]

Just an fyi...Though they might use similar tools,rowing is quite different from paddling.

[upthesaukee]

"I can row a boat, canoe? Not yacht!"

[fatlazyless]

...oopsie...... that should read.....22' recreational rowing shell

....ok....so yesterday I drove over to Bristol, NH, above Newfound Lake, to take a look-see at a craigslist ad for a 22' rowing shell with outriggers and oars for just $275. At that price, it sounded like a steal, but of course one never knows until you actually inspect the boat. A 22' Alden ocean scout like this with oars, outriggers, and sliding seat costs something like $2500-3000 when new.

What's wrong with this one was damage done to the bottom of the hull while left outside all winter under the weight of the snow. The thin fiberglass needs some holes repaired. This 22' shell weighs just about 50-lbs, not including the VERY impressive oars, which is pretty danged lite for a 22' long boat.......doncha think!

Here's a fixer-upper for someone that wants a fiberglass repair project; posted in craigslist on July 24 titled "Recreational Rowing Shell," and located in nearby Bristol, NH.

....say-hey....looks like the seller has lowered the price down from $275 to 225.


....and, by the way......I am extremely pleased with myself for NOT buying this.....but it could be a steal-of-a-deal for rowing the Big Lake, or to repair and re-sell.....if u know fiberglass repair on very thin fiberglass! ...doing repairs on aluminum is just a heck of a lot easier than with fiberglass!

[Aguamenti]

So not really an answer to the question you asked, but if you are interested in the topic, I did some website work for a woman named Roz Savage. She's rowed solo across the Atlantic and the Pacific. Her book was a fascinating read.


http://www.amazon.com/Rowing-Atlanti...rds=Roz+savage

[ApS]

Originally Posted by fatlazyless

"...Here's a fixer-upper for someone that wants a fiberglass repair project; posted in craigslist on July 24 titled "Recreational Rowing Shell," and located in nearby Bristol, NH...say-hey....looks like the seller has lowered the price down from $275 to 225...and, by the way...I am extremely pleased with myself for NOT buying this.....but it could be a steal-of-a-deal for rowing the Big Lake, or to repair and re-sell.....if u know fiberglass repair on very thin fiberglass! ...doing repairs on aluminum is just a heck of a lot easier than with fiberglass!"

• As to working with "fiberglass", the entire field was revised years ago with West-System© epoxy, and its many options. Safe, comprehensive, wood-friendly, and easy to work with, the Goudgeon brothers revolutionized fiberglass repair ~50 years ago in iceboats and catamarans.

It's carbon-fiber that I wouldn't want to repair, although West-System© epoxy might work!

• Although there are a dozen "sculls" just a mile from my location, I'd leave a rowing shell for quieter waters: they're just "not enough boat". The few around are seen only minutes after sunrise on rough-and-tumble Lake Winnipesaukee.

• What has made rowing an aluminum boat difficult is that oftentimes, the provided (or selected) oars are too short: spend a few bucks, and get oars that are longer than what you have been using.

• But a rowing canoe is certainly an improvement: there's even a device that converts canoe "rowing" to the desirable forward-facing concept.

I only know this, as I bought an interesting gizmo at a Mirror Lake garage-sale. Not knowing what it was—just one handle —I Googled the 1800s patent date, and it turned up as just that—with the second handle provided in the U. S. patent office sketch.

Alas, what I bought was only the top half; however, the bottom half could still be devised by a clever metals-workman with skills that are today disappearing to foreign markets.

In the below attachment, my garage-sale treasure is photographed from the bottom.

Just where this 2003 revision is going, I don't know—yet...

[Kamper]

Originally Posted by Diana

... my husband put oarlocks on an old aluminum canoe and made some lightweight oars. ...

I did that with an old Coleman freighter. I could make that thing zoom compared to single-handed paddling.

[no-engine]

Friend says very troubling on weekends: too many power boats making waves. They have no respect for smaller boats.
Weekdays in your shell would be great.

[Baja Guy]

I'm a power boater who does what he can to respect paddlers. My approach is give them the least possible wake. Occaisionally I will drop to headway speed, always if within 150' of course.
Sometimes as I approach I will accelerate to flatten out my wake.
There's enough lake for all of us if we just play nicely together.
We do our paddling away from the madding crowds. No need to challenge the Mount for right of way.

[ApS]

Originally Posted by no-engine

Friend says very troubling on weekends: too many power boats making waves. They have no respect for smaller boats.

A few years ago, I took my 12' aluminum rowboat out for some exercise, and was stopped by the NHMP, who asked, "Is everything OK?"

Originally Posted by Diana

Per suggestion of FLL, my husband put oarlocks on an old aluminum canoe and made some lightweight oars. He rigged a seat that sits low in the middle of the boat. It works great, has a totally different feel than paddling a canoe or kayak. That navigating around the rocks thing is kind of tricky because you are going backwards though.

After doing a little research, I found I have the left side of the "reverse-rowing" mechanism—and not the top!



The "substitute handle" in the above photo should have been marked "oar"—as pictured below.



For a mere $700, you can buy a stainless-steel version of the above, complete with oars:



Then, you can watch forward for rocks, work a few different muscles, and make a little bow wave:

[Kamper]

I remember that set up from the second "Fugitive" movie. I thought it was some swamp-rat's stroke (pun unavoidable) stroke of genius. At $700 I'd rather row the boat backwards.

[ApS]

Originally Posted by Baja Guy

I'm a power boater who does what he can to respect paddlers. My approach is give them the least possible wake. Occaisionally I will drop to headway speed, always if within 150' of course.
Sometimes as I approach I will accelerate to flatten out my wake.
There's enough lake for all of us if we just play nicely together.
We do our paddling away from the madding crowds. No need to challenge the Mount for right of way.

Yesterday, I saw a rowboat with "right-sized" oars.





Then, I noticed the navigation lights.

[fatlazyless]

Was very surprised yesterday to see the low low orange tag prices on all their wood rowing oars at Parafunalia in Gilford. Made in Canada; wood oars, varnished light yellow natural finish, maybe maple or birch or ash, very good strong and light weight quality, and apparently being sold at about half price; last year I bought a set in downtown Center Harbor-Moultonborough at Wild Meadow Kayak for about 80-dollars, and Parafunalia has the same exact, Canadian-made oars for just $38, and they had about ten pair in different lengths, all priced with orange mark-down price stickers.......such a row....row....row....row....row.... of a deal at www.Parafunalia.com


.....oopsie-doopsie.....will definitely clean-em-up and try returning my 80-dollar set of 7' rows back to Wild Meadow....dang-it!

[znh]

I have seen one guy rowing a real single scull, coming out of around the Ames beach area. Looks like a great way to row on the lake on calm flat mornings. I am often in my kayak early morning on the weekend rowing from LSP to around Diamond or out to Welch and back to do some fishing. That early in the morning I never have any issues with any power boats, usually just me, some loons and a couple of fishing boats trolling. A month or so ago we both got caught in some torrential rain that came out of nowhere. I lost sight of the rower in the rain but I am assuming he made it back to shore ok. I had to book it to shore from about .5 mile out in the Broads to hide out under some trees until the rain stopped...good times indeed.