URGENT: Sunday 9.25.11 GMH Dock Help Needed at 9:00 a.m.

The Green Mountain Head is next weekend . . .

Of course we will see you there helping next weekend!

BUT tomorrow ~ Sunday, September 24 ~ we need folks at 9:00 a.m. to help move GMH docks . . .

We are committed to the GMH, so please show up to help move docks Sunday a.m.

Thanks!

GMH is Upon Us! Step up to help!

Folks,

The regatta is upon us. The Dummerston Landing has been cleared of the mud and debris left by Irene (see photos),  an excavator will come the beginning of the week to dredge the channel of the inlet, and Farmer Mike Barrett will cut the corn by the end of next week.  We have 259 entries and, Lord willin' and the crick don't rise, it will be a great regatta. 

The various flurries of activity have already begun, and many of you have already stepped up.  But not all the tasks have enough volunteers to do them.  We need your help. 

1. This Sunday, Kendall is organizing a final Scrambles (I think it's at 7:00 AM), and immediately afterward we will be making necessary repairs on the GMH docks and ramps.  Please let us know if you will help with that.  The docks are heavy, and many hands make the work go easier. (Also, we need to do this, even if it's raining, which I hope it won't. )  
Email him: kendallg@sover.net

2. We need people to help launch the docks, on Saturday October 1. Please let us know if you will help with that. We try to schedule these tasks for the morning, so the whole day doesn't get taken up.  If enough people show up, it won't take more than an hour.  
Email me: obrody@sover.net

3. Food preparation and serving require another couple of hands.  This takes place Sunday during the regatta.  Please let us know if you can help with that.  
Email Liz: bourne.liz@gmail.com and Beth: bspicer1@gmail.com

4. Pulling up the docks after the regatta.  Big job, gets done fast when there are enough people. Please stick around and help with that, and let us know if you will.  

5. Clean-up after the regatta. This is a task that for some reason never attracts a huge turnout, I have no idea why.  The sense of camaraderie and good will just cannot be beat.  The work gets done in a flash when there are a lot of people doing it.  Please let us know if you will help with that.  

6. I don't know if Sally has recruited enough people yet, but the barbeque at the boat shop Saturday night is another task that goes more smoothly and quickly if enough people pitch in.  sally.newton123@gmail.com
This BBQ is a lot of fun, great food, and a chance to meet rowers from around the country.  Plan to come.

7. Peter Cortes could use one or two more people to assist with timing.  
Email him: pmc@blueilex.com

8. Kendall may need one or two more people to help set the course.  
Email him: kendallg@sover.net

9. Elizabeth Bissell may need additional help with parking and setting out signs.  
Email her: ebissell@myfairpoint.net

10.  Saved the best for last: anyone who loves to get up at 3:00 in the morning could make the coffee and hot chocolate.  People will truly love you for doing this. -
Email then:  bourne.liz@gmail.com, bspicer1@gmail.com

I expect I've forgotten to mention one or two (hundred) tasks that need to be done.  My sincere apologies if anyone feels slighted by the omission.

Nowhere in the by-laws does it say you can't volunteer for more than one task. 

Remember - Putney Rowing Club is a volunteer organization.  We all (most of us anyway) have enjoyed rowing all summer. The regatta is our primary source of funding. The club would not happen without it.  So now is the time to step up and participate and help make this a success.  Let us know what you will do to help.

Please reply to me: obrody@sover.net, kendall: kendallg@sover.net, liz bourne: bourne.liz@gmail.com, beth spicer: bspicer1@gmail.com, and sally newton:sally.newton123@gmail.com

Start/Turn/Finish Green Mountain Head course this Sunday at 7:45

Sunday any club member 

will have a chance to row a buoy marked 

Start/Turn/Finsh 
Green Mountain Head course.

Participants may be timed, privacy concerns will be honored.

We need at least one volunteer to help with timing as well

GMH Competing members may use this as a tuning prep for race day . . .

the rest of us can just sample what it is like to row our own Head race. 

Show up at the PRC docks SUNDAY at 7:45. 

We will start promptly at 8:30 down at the lower landing
the official GMH Start site.

After the event we will have a work session spreading
 the GMH docks out for repair. 

OR

 You can just show up at 9:00 on Suday to help move docks 

~ but you might as well come early and watch!

PRC’s Annual River Cleanup 9 am October 1, 2011

The PRC’s Annual River Cleanup, done in conjunction with the Connecticut River Watershed Council,  is being held this year at 9 am on October 1.  This is a very important event that spans four states, so please come down to the boat club and bring family and friends to join in a cleanup. We’ll pick up trash around the boat house and Dummerston Landing.  Bags and gloves will be provided.  Contact Elizabeth Macalaster if you’ve got questions.  See you there! 

Use Caution when on the Connecticut River!

from
David L. Deen River Steward 

Connecticut River Watershed Council


Our best considered advice at this time is to stay off the main river and its tributaries until they clear and are no longer running brown. The tributary rivers are falling as is the main river but the real issue is that the main river has not yet cleared of mud and silt. Many of the tributaries would be clear now under natural conditions but where there is in stream repair work going on they continue to run cloudy and brown making the main river cloudy and brown. The Black River the Williams, the West and Saxtons River all run muddy 7 a.m. to 7 p.m. while the work is going on rebuilding roads and other infrastructure.

That is an important consideration because a huge amount of debris floated into the main river from the flooded tributaries creating new sweeps and snags from trees, parts of houses, bridges, cars etc. If the water is muddy you cannot see into the water to avoid the snags and because of the washed out septic systems, oil drums and other nasty stuff swept into the river you do not want to tip over into the water.

I know that is disappointing news but I have delivered it to several groups. We want people to love  and enjoy the river but we just need to wait for the river to clear up for safe transit, heal itself of the pollutants and for ongoing clean up efforts to remove the most damaging of the stuff from the river.

Sunday's Big Boat and Long Row CANCELLED

Due to flooding . . . 

the following has been CANCELLED

Sunday, September 11, 2011

Big Boat and Long Row, 

10 miles 

Bag lunches “to go” & Bubbly back at the dock

Flooding, Fish and Recovery By David Deen

Irene was in a bad mood when she deluged her way into the Connecticut River watershed. Based on information sources tracking river flows the Saxtons River that went two feet above its all time record flow and the main Connecticut River that witnessed flows rivaling the legendary 1927 flood are just two examples of the magnitude of the event. For anyone who witnessed the devastating power of the floodwaters firsthand it is hard to imagine how any fish survive.

If two feet of flowing water can move a vehicle what happened to fish during this epic flood given that fish have float bladders within their bodies to maintain neutral buoyancy so a fish is virtually weightless in water and they have streamlined shapes designed to minimize resistance to water and are equipped with an epidermis that secretes slimy mucus causing less friction in water?

All of this was likely not enough to protect them during these flood conditions.

Fish instinctively move away from increasing flows into areas where the speed of the water is not so strong. They find eddies caused by stream obstructions and quiet pockets along the stream edges that are protected from the main force of the current.

For the most part fish have a tendency to swim close to the bottom. The velocity there is lower and calmer by a factor of 3 then the water at the surface but this haven is reduced when a raging stream begins to move its own bottom downstream. Some fish actually migrate temporarily into the floodplain areas for the duration of the high water. These are escape zones that all fish use but there unquestionably was damage to the fish population during this flood. Small fish in particular can be decimated during floods and probably most were washed away during Irene’s wrath. Numerous studies show that juvenile fish and earlier life stages are particularly vulnerable to heavy losses during extreme floods especially in high-gradient streams like the tributaries to the Connecticut River. There have been no obvious fish kills because whatever the loss, it occurred underwater and any dead fish were swept away like everything else in the path of the flood waters.

Fish gill injury from exposure to high suspended sediment loads would be a source of injury to larger fish. Suspended sediment in streams can induce gill flaring (fish coughing) and decrease respiratory capabilities of fish through gill abrasion. The sediment particles act as sandpaper against the gills causing damage and making breathing difficult.

Lacerated gill tissue provides an entry for toxic chemicals into the bloodstream either bound to sediment particles or in solution.

Although it has been documented t hat thick stream sediment like the conditions in this flood can and do cause direct gill damage that may lead to death, no one has quantified the overall impact on any single fish population, mostly because flood events are so unique in location, water amount, timing and duration.

Yet for all the losses in the fish population they will repopulate the streams both through new fish being born and by fish migrating back into the stream. The caution to how quickly nature will take her course depends on how many young fish were lost and whether, how soon and in what numbers the invertebrate life returns. Entomologists agree floods reduce or destroy the insects and other aquatic invertebrates that are the food base for fish. The newly formed structure of the stream bottom and whether it is comprised of silt, gravel, cobble or boulders and the particular mix of each will determine if and when invertebrates will return to that river reach.

There is also the question of fish habitat itself. High flood waters deposit silt, sand, and gravel in pools that turn them into long flat useless reaches of habitat for fish. Shore side vegetation that offered food and shelter get washed away. Fish will adjust to the new watery landscape after the flooding wrought changes by finding new sheltering and feeding lies but unfortunately unless everything goes right, it could be a while before our streams are back to any kind of normal.

One field study reported no changes in an adult brook trout population immediately after a series of flood events despite intense channel alterations - that was the good news.

The bad news was they found that after two years the standing crop of brook trout had been reduced by over 90 percent and showed no signs of recovery. They attributed this severe fish population drop to reduced habitat for and therefore reduced invertebrate populations and the destruction of suitable aquatic habitat including spawn ing habitat for fish in the study river.

So it is the long term effects of a flood like this one that are of real concern from a fishery perspective. Fortunately wild fish are resilient and tend to fare better in floods than their hatchery cousins especially if the flooding does not affect spawning or incubation of eggs. Irene missed most of the spawning seasons for our fish species. The next cycle is for brook and brown trout coming up this fall.

We now enter the wait and watch stage as we hope to see aquatic life in our rivers recover as quickly as we mammals hope to recover from the devastation to the land.
David Deen is River Steward for the Connecticut River Watershed Council. CRWC has been a protector of the Connecticut River for more than half a century.

The Flywheel Times from Concept2 CTS

In This Issue:

1. Fall Team Challenge 2011
2. SWEAT For a VET—Project VisAbility
3. SkiErg: It's a Lot More than Just Skiing
4. What's the Skinny?
5. Indoor Rowing in China
6. CrossFit News
7. Training Opportunities and Schedule
8. Rowers Get A Helping Hand—and Voice—With New App
9. Concept2 CTS on the Road in 2011
10. We Are Here for You!

Fall Team Challenge 2011 Here's a team challenge that will help build club spirit and loyalty. It's the 12th annual Fall Team Challenge! Create a team at your facility and row or ski your way to fun and fitness. We provide the program and the prizes! Each team needs to collectively row or ski as many meters as they can. There are two goals for participants to choose from: 100,000 meters between September 15 and October 15 200,000 meters between September 15 and October 15 All meters must be entered online at concept2.com/logbook. For complete challenge details and a downloadable poster, visit concept2cts.com/ftc. [top] SWEAT For a VET Concept2 CTS is proud to be a sponsor of the second annual SWEAT for a VET—a 3-hour, all-cardio, all-inclusive fitness fundraising event on November 12, 2011. Hosted by non-profit Project VisAbility, with Sport & Health and diamond sponsor Myzone, SWEAT for a VET 2011 will take place at Tysons Sport & Health Club in McLean, Virginia. In addition, there will be local SWEAT-a-thon events at clubs and facilities around the world. Each event will be linked in through live video, sharing and following the same exciting program. SWEAT for a VET benefits wounded warriors in the Washington, DC area and around the globe in areas where SWEAT-a-thon events are taking place. The goal is to raise money to purchase fitness equipment for VA hospitals and other facilities serving our wounded warriors across the US. Funds raised internationally will support training camps for athletes and others with physical challenges. Unlike many fundraising events, the people who will benefit from the effort will actually participate in it! For more information on SWEAT for a VET and hosting a SWEAT-a-thon, or for other ways to participate, contact Debbie Miller at 301.873.0038 or email her at Debbie@ProjectVisAbility.org. Visit sweatforavet.kintera.org to register, sponsor or make a donation. [top] SkiErg: It's a Lot More than Just Skiing Although the SkiErg started as a training tool for competitive Nordic skiers, it is rapidly gaining fans from a wide range of sports. From wrestlers to golfers, motocross riders to runners and adaptive athletes, people are finding that the SkiErg offers valuable cross-training and conditioning. What are the secrets to its success? People like the downward pull motion, which is rare in other aerobic exercise equipment. They also like that it's a standing exercise that involves so much of the core muscles—while still working the entire body. And it has the same accurate Performance Monitor as our indoor rowers, so it gives you feedback on every pull. The SkiErg can be used in a number of ways. Try some of the following in your facility: Personal workouts: The SkiErg offers a great combination of core strengthening and aerobic conditioning. You can do any kind of workout from intervals to long steady state. Combined training with indoor rower: The motion of the SkiErg complements the motion of rowing. Try alternating intervals between rowing and skiing for a high quality and varied workout. Group workouts: Just as you can run group rowing classes, the SkiErg is suitable for group skiing classes. Participants can pull in sync while still working at the intensity level that suits them. Competition: Take part in the 3rd Annual SkiErg Sprints, November 11–13, 2011. Set the monitor for 1000m and ski it as fast as you can. For more info visit concept2cts.com/ski. [top] What's the Skinny? Skinny shaft (left) vs. Standard shaft (right) This spring marked the introduction of our new Skinny sweep oar that features a skinnier shaft with reduced wind resistance and smaller outer grip options than our standard sweep. The Skinny was specifically created in response to women's crews who desired the efficiency of the Fat2 blade but felt our standard shaft with the Fat2 blade was too stiff for their style of rowing. To create an extra-soft shaft, we build it with a smaller diameter. This allows us to achieve the decreased stiffness while maintaining durability and providing the additional benefit of reducing wind drag. Preliminary testing demonstrates measurable savings, particularly in headwind conditions. Crews like this! For more on the Skinny story visit concept2cts.com/skinny. [top] Indoor Rowing in China Concept2 China had a busy summer with several rowing instructor trainings and education for gyms, companies, clubs and individuals. After putting the finishing touches on the Master Trainer and Personal & Group Trainer courses, we are happy to report that there are now five Master Trainers and 15 Personal and Group Trainers located in Shanghai, Beijing, and Shenzhen, China. Our Master Trainers have conducted six 2-hour "Introduction to Rowing" classes at local gyms and have introduced over 60 trainers to the benefits of rowing and how it can be incorporated into their personal training classes. They have also provided rowing clinics on cross training for the growing triathlon community at triathlon clubs and retail stores. On August 6, 2011, Concept2, in cooperation with the local governments and sports association of Beijing, held the first Beijing Indoor Rowing Race. Approximately 120 people raced the 2000 meters distance. It was a great way to really kick off the sport of indoor rowing in China. For more on indoor rowing in China, visit concept2china.com/en. [top] CrossFit News We are pleased to announce that former US Rowing Team member Anna Cummings has been named a new Concept2 master rowing instructor and the newest CrossFit rowing coach. Anna has an impressive rowing resume having raced with the United States Rowing Team for eight years. She won a gold medal at the 2008 Beijing Olympics and a silver medal at the 2004 Athens Olympics. At the Beijing Games, Anna was the only US athlete to compete in two events, the women's pair and women's eight. She is a three-time World Rowing Champion and won four NCAA titles while competing for the University of Washington. After retiring from elite competition, Anna found CrossFit as the perfect way to maintain her elite level of training. Her favorite part about CrossFit is the camaraderie at her home gym, CrossFit Bellevue, and all the health-focused people she meets in the CrossFit family. Anna's passion is to help all rowers utilize their body's power to achieve maximum results, while maintaining technique and good health. Anna joins our ranks of exceptional rowing instructors who travel throughout the US and Canada delivering jam-packed rowing workshops. Our workshops are the leading educational resource for indoor and group rowing and offer clubs and fitness facilities the opportunity to provide a high level of indoor rowing education and support for their members. Welcome Anna! For a complete list of rowing certifications for CrossFit visit concept2cts.com/crossfit. [top] Training Opportunities and Schedule Rowing is for every body! If you have a rowing machine or machines collecting dust, or you've looked curiously at the one in your gym, wondering how to use it, maybe it's time to bust out of that rut and learn to row like the pros. Using the Concept2 Indoor Rower to help your members get their best results can set you apart from the competition. Rowing is a total-body, non-impact, safe, fun and effective exercise for people of all ages, sizes and abilities. But here's the catch: you have to learn how to use the machine correctly. Concept2 CTS offers indoor rowing instructor trainings in locations across the country. The sessions are taught by a Concept2 CTS master instructor who will show you the ins and outs of proper technique to build strength, improve performance, burn more calories and have more fun. You'll also learn how to use the indoor rower to build workouts that you can do with a group as an instructor, with personal training clients, or on your own at the gym or at home. Visit concept2cts.com/workshops and click Calendar & Registration for a list of upcoming trainings and to learn more about how you can row strong to better health and fitness. Custom trainings are available by request through UCanRow2 for the indoor rower and Concept2 SkiErg. [top] Rowers Get A Helping Hand—and Voice—With New App Wahoo Fitness and Concept2 announce the release of a new fitness and rowing app that literally speaks to rowers and workout enthusiasts—ErgBuddy. ErgBuddy audibly delivers data—such as pace and meters rowed—from the Performance Monitor on the indoor rower. Users can view workouts on the iPhone or iPad via the device, app and Wahoo Key combination. Those who are visually impaired or have trouble seeing while training in a dimly lit room now have a solution to track performance data using ErgBuddy. The display features large, bright digits, which provides high visibility and the ability to easily see all data. ErgBuddy users have the option to activate the voice mode or use visuals only. The ErgBuddy app is available for free from iTunes and is functional when paired with the Wahoo Key. Users will also need any model Concept2 Indoor Rower equipped with a PM4 running the latest Beta firmware. More information is available at concept2.com/ergbuddy. [top] Concept2 CTS on the Road in 2011 Event Dates Location SIBEC 9/22–9/25 Marina Del Rey, California Head of the Oklahoma* 9/30–10/2 Oklahoma City, Oklahoma Head of the Charles Regatta* 10/22–10/23 Boston, Massachusetts New England Boomers & Seniors Expo 10/29–10/30 Boston, Massachusetts The Athletic Business Conference & Expo 12/1–12/3 Orlando, Florida * Our new Dynamic Indoor Rower will be available at these locations. Stop by and try it out! [top] We Are Here for You! We appreciate the investment you make when you decide to purchase the Concept2 Indoor Rower or SkiErg for your facility, and we won't forget about you after the sale! As always, we are available to answer questions, give technical support, offer programming suggestions and motivational challenges that will help keep your members motivated. We also stock spare parts for the SkiErg and all model rowing machines—even the original Model A! Our website is packed with all kinds of great information as well as videos on rowing technique. Make sure you check outconcept2cts.com. Shop Online at concept2cts.com!

Concept2 CTS, Inc. 105A Industrial Park Dr. Morrisville, VT 05661 877.887.8014 info@concept2cts.com concept2cts.com

Invitation to Row at Lake Sunapee Rowing Club on September 18

Please let Patty Johnson know if you wish to attend this invitation:
( Reply to putneyrowingclub@gmail.com)




Brattleboro and Putney Rowing Clubs

We were all devasted to hear about the impact of hurricane Irene on Vermont and the damage to your sites and waterways. Lake Sunapee was fortunate enough to go unscathed.Because we all love to row we would like to extend an invitation to your clubs to come row on Lake Sunapee  with us on Sept 18. We have two eights, a quad and a double and of course you would be welcome to bring your own boats. We would provide food, and a few of our members to join in the activities. While mornings are the best time for the lake we know the distance is a bit far but would like to propose a 7 or 8 AM launch time with refreshments to follow. It would be a nice way to have our clubs intermingle as well giving you some time on Lake Sunapee. Please let me know if you have members who like to come so we can confirm the number of boaters required to make this event a success. If this date does not work we are open to suggestions and we row until late October.I look forward to hearing from you and wish you all the best in the clean up efforts in Vermont.

sincerely,

Melissa Thompson

Board Member

Lake Sunapee Rowing Club

www.lakesunapeerowing.com

PRC raked, grated and seeded!

We have two HOCR rowing in training for the GMH! We have eager beavers from Connecticut already rowing out of PRC despite Irene and all the mud left behind! They rowed the GMH course this a.m. but there was still lots of debris on the Vermont side, with the NH side pretty clear.

PRC is now raked, grated and seeded due to Michael's leadership on this project. Hay and grass seed was purchased and is now down on the ground.

The crew of Fred, Laurie, Michael, Patty, Sally, and Basha~who arrived in time to see us leave!, made great progress Saturday morning. The dirt was raked, grass seed was spread ~ a conservation mix of grass seed, and mulch hay was put down to protect the seed, and to make it easier to walk in the dirt. Rain is expected in the next few days, so this project was pushed ahead to get it done before the ground was too wet to work.

The boathouses both have a little hay in them (with no seed) to make it easier to walk and less slippery. 

Thank to all that have so worked hard all weekend restoring PRC after tropical storm Irene.

Three Cheers for Pip and his tireless elves!

So many to thank ~
Fred, Fred, Beth, Graeme, Kristin, Oliver, Michael, Basha, Carrie, Jim, Patty, Laura, Laurie, and my apologies to anyone I have missed!

The mud seemed endless and deep . . . and very sticky! Shoes were lost in the mud and it was hard walking and working!

Riggers were removed for cleaning. Tool boxes and all equipment left in the boathouse was removed to be cleaned or taken to the landfill . . . Now we know to empty everything in the boathouse if we are expecting any major floods!

Laurie's brilliant idea to use the boards for dock repair as a channel to walk on up through the middle of the boathouse, as it was so hard to walk in the mud. Thanks to her Yankee ingenuity the walking went much faster!

Heavy work shoveling the mud from under the racks and into the middle where the backhoe could access it. Many backs made for easier work for all . . .

Michael, Laura and Fred unearthing the small boathouse . . .

And to Pip Bannister for bring his trusty Kobota to dig us out and remove the much! Quite a scene with lots of hard work! What a job this would have been without the use of his Kabota!

Many thanks to all to make this happen so quickly and so smoothly!

 We even have some eager rowers to keep in shape for the HOCR! Go Fred and Laurie!

The docks are back in place; the ramp and docks seem to have weathered the storm! Now to grade and rake and put in grass seed. Join us on Saturday at 10:00 a.m. for this project!

URGENT! SATURDAY, September 3, 2011 from 10:00 a.m. until job is done . . .

CALLING ALL ROWERS TO HELP RAKE and GRADE PRC!

Michael Donahue is arranging to rake and grade the boathouses and green at PRC, and get grass planted.

He is getting the grass seed and hay mulch and will be at the boathouse by 10:00 a.m. this morning.

There is rain in the forecast for tomorrow and the beginning of the week, so, we would like to get the project DONE TODAY before the ground is too wet to work.

SO PLEASE COME TODAY ~ SATURDAY from 10:00 a.m. onwards ~ to help as much as you can.

Please bring:

RAKES

WEAR BOOTS

We are trying to get this area workable for the remaining rowing season. 

The river is down, but the boathouse still needs work.

Thanks Michael for arranging this!

URGENT! Friday September 2 ~ PRC work crew needed at boathouse from 7:00 a.m. onwards!

URGENT!

CALLING ALL ROWERS TO HELP DIG OUT THE Connecticut River MUCK from 7:00 a.m. onwards!

Graeme has arranged a backhoe to move the 4-5" of mud from the PRC boathouse house.

This will be arriving around 9:00 a.m. on Friday morning September 2, 2011.

BEFORE HAND we need to

• shovel the mud out from under the racks . . .

• move the mud to where the backhoe can get to it outside the boathouse . . .

• take out the kayaks from the boathouse . . . 

• move the riggers out of the boathouse . . .

• move the boxes out of the boathouse . . .

EVERYTHING must move out of the boathouses . . .

IF WE DO NOT DO THIS tomorrow a.m. we will have a lot of shoveling to do to clean this area!

SO PLEASE COME TOMORROW from 7:00 a.m. onwards to help as much as you can.

Please bring:

SHOVELS

WHEELBARROWS

WEAR GLOVES

WEAR BOOTS

The mud is 4-5" deep and if we can have the use of the backhoe it will go much more quickly and save us from shoveling all of it ourselves!

We can also put the docks back together!

We will have to take the battle piece off the end and swing it around.

And put the hinge pin back in.

Otherwise PRC is in great shape considering Irene's wrath!

SO if it was good weather you would be rowing!

SO COME TOMORROW A.M to make this happen!

Thanks Graeme for arranging this!

Patty

Patricia Johnson

President, Putney Rowing Club ~ USA

802.365.4111

patty@stillwaterbindery.com