Wiggins on the Concept2 erg

[ltwtsculler91]

At the end of the day a 6:22 gets you into the Freshman or 3rd boat (maybe) at any top collegiate programs. Erg times have gotten much faster for younger kids over the last 5 years as junior programs have begun to focus more on times to get kids recruited into college.

At 100+ KG he needs to be 5:55 or better to make any kind of noise. Over on the rowing forums everyone puts this up as a publicity stunt, and a bit of a joke.


If I were him, I think it would've been smarter to bulk less and shoot for around 6:00 at 80-85kg

[earlfoss]

This said on a cycling forum cracks me up

Originally Posted by ColonelJLloyd

With apologies to beeatnik, rich white people sports are so weird.

[cp43]

Originally Posted by mcteague

He says he thought he had a false start, backed off a bit, and then never really got back in gear. Of course, as a friend used to reply, “that’s what he would say”. Also, being good on the erg is not the same as good on the water.

Tim

Said another way, "Ergs don't float"

Chris

[seanile]

Originally Posted by ltwtsculler91

At the end of the day a 6:22 gets you into the Freshman or 3rd boat (maybe) at any top collegiate programs. Erg times have gotten much faster for younger kids over the last 5 years as junior programs have begun to focus more on times to get kids recruited into college.

At 100+ KG he needs to be 5:55 or better to make any kind of noise. Over on the rowing forums everyone puts this up as a publicity stunt, and a bit of a joke.


If I were him, I think it would've been smarter to bulk less and shoot for around 6:00 at 80-85kg

kind of hilarious now thinking about how proud we were of our times in high school eh?

[ltwtsculler91]

Originally Posted by seanile

kind of hilarious now thinking about how proud we were of our times in high school eh?

For sure! We had no idea. Kind of how I ended up 30 seconds faster and 10lbs lighter in college.

That said, kids have REALLY dropped what a "good" time is now versus when we were in HS. The target for lightweight recruits used to be sub 6:50 and now its closer to 6:30. Kids are just training more and focused on ergs these days. It also means there's much more burnout when they get to college

[thegunner]

Originally Posted by ltwtsculler91

At the end of the day a 6:22 gets you into the Freshman or 3rd boat (maybe) at any top collegiate programs. Erg times have gotten much faster for younger kids over the last 5 years as junior programs have begun to focus more on times to get kids recruited into college.

At 100+ KG he needs to be 5:55 or better to make any kind of noise. Over on the rowing forums everyone puts this up as a publicity stunt, and a bit of a joke.


If I were him, I think it would've been smarter to bulk less and shoot for around 6:00 at 80-85kg

lol to make this even clearer, 6:22 would be a good score for a lightweight in a collegiate program (and you definitely wouldn't be the fastest guy), not someone who's pushing 190 pounds.

[batman1425]

6:22 isn't anywhere near close for an elite heavyweight male. Not even a guarantee of a student level seat in the 3V or 4V at an EARC school/Cal/Wash, let alone an olympic boat. Even at around 6:05 at the elite level, you are going to need impeccable technique and efficiency. Most of the guys at the sharp end of the elite spear on the HVY side are sub 6 and have the miles and muscle memory to support technique at that level of power application - lots of people can pull hard on the ergo, not all can get that power to the water effectively with 1, 3, or 7 other people.

Going from 6:22 to say sub 6:10 with a year of dedicated training isn't unheard of, particularly for someone who is familiar with elite level sport. However, the differences between 6:10, 6:05, 6:00, and 5:55 are not linear. Once you dip below 6:10, the scale turns exponential and chasing seconds gets much, much more difficult. Wiggo has a lot of work to do. Team GB already has some of the biggest ergs and most successful oarsmen in the world with years of focused training under their belts. Frankly, they don't need him to continue hauling in WC and Oly medals.

[Mikej]

I believe it's still "Sir Bradley" if I'm not mistaken...

[Dude]

Rather than going up to 100kg he should go back down to whatever 155lbs is in kg (70 something?) and race there.

As has been much discussed 6:22 isn't that good.

But, I think it's great he's putting himself out there and trying other things, also, 6:22 isn't bad at all. There are many, many, many people who could never touch that time. He's held to a different standard because...you know...he's got a sword and a horse and helmet and protects the queen or some s h * t.

[thegunner]

Originally Posted by Dude

But, I think it's great he's putting himself out there and trying other things, also, 6:22 isn't bad at all. There are many, many, many people who could never touch that time. He's held to a different standard because...you know...he's got a sword and a horse and helmet and protects the queen or some s h * t.

i mean, 6:22 is pretty bad if you're representing a rowing powerhouse at the olympics. if he were trying to row against college kids, sure that'd be pretty good, but even then he wouldn't be in the short list of the best collegiate lightweights in america.

[Lovetoclimb]

If he never makes a better time I can continue saying I was faster than Sir Brad! You know, in the "good old days".

[Climb01742]

Originally Posted by ltwtsculler91

It also means there's much more burnout when they get to college

My daughter, a junior, is spending this fall doing an overseas study program, as much, I suspect, to take a break from crew as to study abroad. The training load, pressure, and almost hermetically sealed nature of an elite college crew team can really wear on a kid--on top of dealing with a pressure-cooker of college itself--all tossed into growing-up at the same time.

[batman1425]

Originally Posted by Dude

Rather than going up to 100kg he should go back down to whatever 155lbs is in kg (70 something?) and race there.

As has been much discussed 6:22 isn't that good.

But, I think it's great he's putting himself out there and trying other things, also, 6:22 isn't bad at all. There are many, many, many people who could never touch that time. He's held to a different standard because...you know...he's got a sword and a horse and helmet and protects the queen or some s h * t.

From a pure strength perspective he will have a much easier time making the lightweight international standard. Though the best elite lightweights are no slouches and in the 6:15-6:05 range at sub 70kg, and generally the most technically sound rowers out there. The other problem is the dearth of lightweight events in the olympic program along with some very well established players in the GB lightweight system. Losing the light 4- in the olympics leaves just the light 2x. I would be SHOCKED if he could make a seat in that boat with the current sculling talent in GB along with the displaced guys from the 4- now trying to get into the olympic program.

He'll have more seats to compete for on the HVY side (14 sweep and 7 sculling + spares) and more leeway with his technical abilities (or lack there of, remains to be seen) but will need to ramp up the watts to get any kind of notice from GB rowing with guys like Mo Sbihi and Will Satch in the mix.

My prediction - he carries on this charade un till he doesn't get selected by GB for the first WC he's eligible for and then he makes some kind of excuse to stop (injury, other health reasons, some other focus du jour, etc) and fades into the background.

[eippo1]

To pile on to what others are saying, I'd like to see what he can do in the water.

I remember being super-intimidated at the Dad Vails in our division 3 freshmen boat going up against huge guys from Navy, Georgetown, Auburn, Purdue, etc. And then shredding them with much better technique and a boat that trained together for months.

It's even more evident in with sculling. Being out there with 2 oars and crap technique makes for a very long day in any head race.

[CaptStash]

Read the article; he actually let go of the erg handle when he thought there was a false start. That would cost oodles of seconds. We have a lot of rowers here on the forum, and I’m surprised that nobody has voiced thought to the fact that athletes don’t go into an erg race without having previously done plenty of 2K tests. Clearly Wiggins had a good idea of what he was capable of. If he is closing in on 6:02, then he is making excellent progress. I don’t doubt that he will achieve sub six times.

The big question, is how is he progressing as an actual oarsman? So far I haven’t been able to find anything online on that front, although there is a photo of him in a double. I have seen rowing “savants” pick up the sport very quickly, but it’s also very very rare. How he moves a boat will be illuminating. I would expect to see him on the water this spring. That’s when it’ll get interesting.

CaptStash....