As the four of us sit floating on the water in the eight-meter row boat, there’s an impatient ardour among our team to get underway.
Our coach Ash Davis adjusts the length of our foot rests and casually mentions that the team will have to do all the pre-rowing preparation without his help next week.
So far our team, consisting of Bunbury Mail receptionist Ebony Jones, Donnybrook journalist Matt Lau, South West editor Jeremy Hedley and myself, has been babysat along the rowing journey.
Babysitting that is going to have to come to swift end if we want to win.
We often take time in our newsroom in the morning after rowing to discuss the Zero to Hero competition and how we’re shaping up for comp day.
As usual the discussion is about what we can be doing better and what we should be doing to improve.
Current rower in the stroke seat and essentially team leader, Ebony raises the difficulty experienced by us and other beginner rowers to keep proper time.
Our own shortcomings have given us a greater admiration for rowers who have perfected the art of rowing quad scull.
“I have gained an immense appreciation for the joys of rowing and the skill, a lot of concentration goes in to make rowing look easy,” Ebony said.
To keep proper time relies on proper teamwork – the only way we have a shot at winning this competition.
It’s not new information to anyone that without teamwork we could have James Tomkins himself on our team and we’d still sink in the Leschenault Quay – hopefully within swimming distance of the Parade Hotel.
Our rowing journey has been an interesting one and now with only two training sessions left before D-Day I can feel my competitive streak fueling an intense desire in myself to win.
I’ve been noted as saying and I will stand by my comment that the winner of this armature race will be the team that can get off from the start line with the cleanest departure.
A strong start will support a strong finish as long as the team can rally together and stay in time.
Our teamwork issues aside, the experience with the Bunbury Rowing Club has had a vastly positive influence on us all.
My editor and third seat in our boat isn’t the picture of athletic ability but he assures me that wasn’t always the case.
“As someone who lived a much more active life in the past this has really shown me you’re never too old, too out of practice or too unenthusiastic to exercise.”
The competition kicks off on Sunday, November 20 – why not get down and cheer on the teams giving it a red hot crack and see if it sparks the competitive streak in yourself for next year?
Blayde Grzelka
Journalist for the Bunbury Mail, Australian Community Media, and Fairfax Media.
Journalist for the Bunbury Mail, Australian Community Media, and Fairfax Media.
