Blade:

flattened or spoon-shaped end of oar or scull; often used as term for oar

Bow:

forward end of boat

Bow (man):

the rower or sculler in the seat nearest the bow

Bow ball:

safety ball fitted to sharp stem of racing boat

Bowside (starboard):

all the rowers whose oars are in the water on the right hand side of the boat when viewed from the stern

Button:

Leather or plastic sheath on oar or scull to prevent it from slipping through the rowlock; adjustable on modern oars

Cadence:

Uniform stroke rate

Canvas:

the canvas on fore and aft decks of a boat; in race verdicts, the distance between the bow ball and the sneak.

Catch:

the part of the stroke when the blade is put in the water

Cockpit:

space for a person in a racing boat

Coxswain (cox):

steers the boat from a seat in the stern or a lying position in the bow

Crab:

occurs when rower fails to get the oar out of the water at the end of the stroke; can result in the rower being ejected by the oar from boat to water

Crew:

rowers who man a boat

Crewing:

American college term for rowing

Deck:

covered-over areas at bow and stern of boat

Drive:

see Pull-through

Feather:

to turn the blade parallel with the water surface at the start of the recovery to reduce wind resistance

Fin:

small flat plate perpendicular to the bottom of the boat to aid steering a straight course

Finish (release):

the part of the stroke just before and as the blade is takenout of the water

FISA:

Federation Internationale des Societes d'Aviron; the International Rowing Federation.

Frontloader:

a boat in which the coxswain lies in the bows

Gate:

bar across a rowlock to retain the oar

German rig:

an eight, rigged so that the outriggers or seats # 4 & 5 are on the same side, while the others alternate

Gig:

inboard-or outboard-rigged pleasure or racing boat with straight gunwales

Gunwale:

horizontal plank at the top of the hull running the length of the boats cockpit

Hands away:

the act of dropping the oar handle at the finish of the stoke so that the blade leaves the water and is feathered at the start of the recovery; sometimes referred to as "out of bow"

Inboard:

the distance between the far end of the handle of an oar or scull and the face of the button. The remainder is called the outboard

Italian rig:

an eight rigged so that the bow seat and stroke seat outriggers are on the same side, with the others alternating from side to side in pairs

Keel:

member running along the centre line of a wooden boat to which the ribs and knees are attached

Knee:

wooden support connecting keel, gunwale, washboard and outrigger

Layback:

the amount of backward lean of the rower's body towards the bow at the finish

Loom:

the shaft or part of the oar between the blade and the handle

Length:

the length of a boat (i.e. "won by a length")

Oar:

a leaver approximately 3800 mm long by which the rower pulls against the rowlock to move the boat through the water; sometimes used as a shortened form of oarsman

Oarlock:

see Rowlock

Outrigger (rigger):

a metal framework or a carbon-fibre reinforced arm to support the rowlock which is placed approximately 760 mm from the centre of the boat

Port:

stroke side, the left-hand side of the boat when facing the bow

Puddles:

whirls left in the water caused by the blade as the rower pulls

Pull-through:

the part of the stroke between the catch and the finish

Rating (beat):

the rate of striking, or the number of strokes per minute that a crew is rowing.

Recovery:

the part of the stroke cycle between the finish and the catch in which the oar is feathered and the seat is returned to the aft end of the slide

Regatta:

a competitive event raced in boats [regata - Venetian; perhaps from riga (line), aurigare (to compete in a race), ramigium (rowing)]

Release:

the finish of the stroke removing the oar from the water.

Repechage:

a second heat to afford another chance of qualifying to those running second best in preliminary heats

Rhythm:

the proportion of time occupied on the recovery to the time taken on the pull through

Ribs:

members between the keel and gunwale for supporting the hull

Rig

see German rig, Italian rig, Standard rig

Rigger:

see Outrigger; Eaton name for a sculling boat

Rowing (sweep rowing):

using one oar or sweep: see also crew

Rowing Ergometer:

A rowing machine to measure the metabolism rate or amount of energy expended during work measured in ergs (unit of work).

Rowlock (rollock oarlock):

a device which swivels on the end of the outrigger to support the oar

Rudder:

steering device attached vertically to the stern or under the huII of a shell

Run:

the distance a boat travels in one stroke

Saxboard:

the top strake of a boat, usually of heavier planking, which carries the outriggers or rowlocks; see Gunwale

Sculling:

using two oars or sculls

Sculls:

a short oar used in each hand for single, double, and quad sculling boats

Shell:

smooth-bottomed racing boat; ((light shells made of wood)) (Samuel Hearne, 1776); ((light narrow racing boat)) (USA 1873); ((the floating part of a racing boat)) (Oxford English Dictionary, 1895)

Shoulder:

reinforcement structure in the cockpit to support the attachment of outriggers

Skiff:

racing boat for single sculler (North of England); clinker pleasure boat for several passengers, sculled by one, two or three persons (River Thames)

Slide:

parallel rails on which the seat which moves on wheels

Standard rig:

uniform alternation of outriggers (and therefore oars and rowers) in the boat; the rower in the seat nearest the stern is usually on stoke side

Starboard:

bow side, the right-hand side of the boat when facing the bow

Stateroom:

see Cockpit

Stern:

the rear or aft of the boat

Stretcher:

a frame with straps or shoes to anchor the rower's feet

Stroke:

the complete cycle of moving the boat through the water using oars or sculls; the rower seated nearest the stern

Stroke side (port):

all the rowers whose oars are in the water on the left hand side of the boat when viewed from the stern

Sweep:

long oars with narrow blades: see also Rowing

Swivel:

a square or round pivoting rowlock

Varsity:

the first crew of an American university

Wale:

rounded piece of wood fixed to saxboard: see also, Gunwale

Washboard:

a narrow strake placed round a boat to keep water out

Washing:

creating difficulties for another boat with waves (wake) from the stern

Washing out:

occurs when the blade comes out of the water during the pull-through before the finish

Wherry:

Thames River ferry powered by oars