Is your program ready for spring rowing, racing and travel?

If you are located in the north, ice still may be covering your docks. A little further south, open water may be waiting for you. But in either case, now is the time to take care of spring cleaning and maintenance at the boathouse. If you do some maintenance and planning now, it could prevent problems before they occur and save you both time and money. Every program has different concerns that have to be dealt with each spring, but here are some common issues for most clubs.

Boathouse -- Are all the winter projects at the boathouse finished and out of the way? Is the boathouse clean or does it look the same as it did when the last person walked out last fall? Have you checked the docks since last fall? Are they ready to go?

Staff -- Does your staff have all of the certifications required/recommended to coach, such as CPR and First Aid? Do the coaches have all the proper clothing, a megaphone and a tool box? New coaches may not know what they need to stay warm or what they should take out in the launch with them. A stroke watch is a great coaching tool, but it is really hard to tighten down a rigger with one.

Boats -- Have all the repairs been made to the rowing shells and oars? It is a horrible feeling to have a team ready to go but not have the equipment ready because you forgot to fix a puncture. Do all of the boats have the proper equipment like lights, bowballs and heel ties? Heel ties get neglected. They are out of site and out of mind but are very important. If the boat goes over, you or the team will need to get out of those shoes fast. Are your boats rigged for spring rowing? First rows in the spring are awkward enough; don’t make it any more difficult with a rig that is not right.

Motors -- In rowing, few things are sadder than a group of athletes having to sit on the shore or wait out on the water as a coach pulls frantically trying to start the launch motor. We know a new motor and motor maintenance is not cheap, but if you calculate the cost of each practice (especially if you are traveling for spring break) and then add up how much time/money was lost due to bad motors, you will see that having a tuned motor is money well spent. After the engines get the spa treatment, you might as well make them really happy with some new gas.

Launches -- Are your launches seaworthy? It is amazing what some coaches claim are coaching launches. These coaches can never put in the drain plug because they are trying to drain the water as the drive. Rowing equipment always seems to be the first priority when it comes to boathouse purchases; this can be a mistake. Coaches are more effective coaching from a safe and well functioning launch and will be able to provide better support in an emergency.

Safety Equipment -- Do you have all the life vests, communication, medical and other emergency equipment you need for the entire program? Every safety kit needs to be taken apart and checked to make sure that it is still dry and in good shape.

Trailers -- When was the last time the wheel bearings, lights and brakes were checked by a professional or knowledgeable person in your club? Driving with a trailer is difficult enough, but having a wheel come undone or not having all the lights working makes travel more difficult and considerably less safe.

Trucks -- Oil change, air in the tires, tires rotated, radiator fluid, brake fluid, -- when were these and other general maintenance procedures last performed? Truck problems rarely come at a convenient time; usually something goes wrong when you are on your way to a training trip or regatta. As I mentioned earlier, if you estimate the cost of each practice or race that might be missed because the truck broke down, it makes a lot of sense to get general maintenance done on your towing vehicle now.