Word: strokes
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Dates: during 1940-1949
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Bolles' oarsmen, on the other hand, start each stroke with a gigantic pull which eases off toward the finish, enabling them to finish their stroke smoothly and shoot their hands back into position for the next cycle with a smooth, even motion...
However, shortly before the race, Coach Bolles will go over the course (with his coxswain if it is a strange river) and analyze weather conditions to determine whether the time that afternoon will be fast or slow. He then talks things over briefly with his stroke. There is not much to say, because the pattern for the race seldom varies from a pre-established form...
Once the shell has settled at its regular pace, the main problem is for every man to concentrate on form, power, and timing. The coxswain maintains the latter rudder handles, saving his voice to tell the stroke what beat he is setting and where his boast stands in relation to the opposition...
...stroke does not go up or down on the basis of relative position, because a crew rows against the clock until the final half-mile. Bill Curwen, for instance, would never vary more than one stroke from his usual 31 unless his rivals were hull down over the horizon. Months of experimenting have proved that a Harvard crew works best at that rate...
...until the last two minutes that the stroke oar alters his stopwatch planning to fit the situation. Then, if he is behind, he stakes everything on a final sprint to the finish. This is the most crucial and exciting part of the race, for the oarsmen are already dead tired, and a higher stroke increases the chance of a mistake...