Rowing

a bear jumped on our back phr. lack of energy at the end of a race. “We were fine, then a bear jumped on our back and the other crew won.”

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blade n. part of oar that goes in water.

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catch a crab phr. when blade gets caught in the water after a stroke. “We slowed when our stroke seat caught a crab.”

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cox abbr. short for coxswain, a smallish cheerleader-type who steers the boat and calls out the stroke rhythm.

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crew n. sport of rowing; team of rowers.

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hammer n. strong rower with no finesse.

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luggage n. rower who doesn’t pull his/her weight. “We gotta lose that lazy guy, he’s total luggage.”

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stroke seat n. rower who sets pace for the boat.

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sweat run n. exercise done before lightweight rowing events to make weight cut-off. “I knew we’d regret that extra keg last night! It’s time for a major sweat run!”

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swing n. state achieved when crew moves in unison. “We had awesome swing yesterday.”

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timezoned v. finish far behind another crew. “Ouch! We timezoned in that Olympic qualifier.”