THE SPORT OF ROWING In 1958, rowing historians Peter Haig- Thomas and Archie Nicholson wrote a pessimistic review of post-war British rowing,2860 attributing the decline to “the lack of continuity in coaching” caused by the extinction of the gentleman leisure class, previously available to become volunteer coaches,2861 and to “the old struggle of so- called Orthodoxy and so-called Fairbairnism still being waged.”2862 These mid-century historians were proponents of the Classical Technique of the English Golden Age of the 1880s and 1890s, and as they commented on the 20th Century American rowing which had eclipsed the crews from the mother island, they found little to be commended: “Americans rely on their long legs to use the long slide and do not attempt to ‘open up’ from the stretcher like an English-style crew. They are not very quick off the stretcher [Schubschlag rather than Kernschlag], as few large men are, and the constricted position of the legs at the beginning of the stroke on a long slide prevents them from starting the legs quickly [i.e., exploding with the legs]. “To make up for this loss of speed they are taught deliberately to use their arms and shoulders at the beginning of the stroke [concurrency of legs, backs and arms], which demands great muscular development in these regions if the arms are not to tire. “Thus, while the English Style2863 requires extra development of the lower back muscles, the American style demands extra development of the arms and upper back muscles.”2864 This quote represents a stunning misunderstanding of the Conibear Stroke,2865 and it won’t be the last time. Contemporary 2860 See Chapter 15. 2861 Haig-Thomas & Nicholson, p. 22 2862 Ibid. 2863 their name for the Golden Age Classical Technique. See Chapter 15. 2864 Haig-Thomas & Nicholson, p. 122 2865 See Chapter 46. coaches and historians Mike Spracklen and Thor Nilsen regularly describe 20th Century American rowing with inaccuracy.2866 The Lady Margaret Style To Haig-Thomas & Nicholson, the final nail in the British rowing coffin was the emergence in the late 1940s of what appeared to them to be a third branch of English rowing after English Orthodox and Fairbairn. “It cannot be denied that in destroying the last vestiges of unity in English coaching, the ‘Lady Margaret Style‘ has been finally responsible for ruining our post-war rowing.”2867 Roy Meldrum (c. 1900-1955) was the coach of Lady Margaret Boat Club of St. John’s College, Cambridge. This storied team rows with scarlet oars. The Times of London: “In 1932, he published a book entitled Coach & Eight which aroused considerable interest, and in 1936 he succeeded the late Sir Henry Howard as coach to Lady Margaret Boat Club crews. “After the war he was again coaching at Cambridge and suddenly, it seemed, his teaching began to bear fruit. He was the inspiration which carried Lady Margaret to the head of the river in 1950 and has kept them there ever since [1955]. He also coached the Cambridge University crews from 1950 to 1953. In 1950, he published another book entitled Rowing and Coaching, setting out the principles on which he worked.”2868 He also published two other rowing texts, An English Technique in 1932 and Rowing to a Finish in 1955. 2866 Ibid. 2867 Haig-Thomas & Nicholson, p. 25 2868 Mr. Roy Meldrum, The Times of London, February 16, 1955 808
