Coming together to bring it together

Have loaded up my family into a maxi cab and we are off to the airport. This trip has been a last minute plan. Reason for this is that once things become clearer with Duncan being more established as a core of this possible four. Once this happened he asked if we could get some time together as a group before our next camp in Sydney. Personally it's was going to be easier to take family away than be separated while I trained in Melbourne and my family would be on holiday down the farm. So here we are on the road to enjoy time together and do some quality training with the group.

More about the group then...

I must acknowledge we are not selected yet and as such need to keep proving ourselves to be capable of achieving in this boat. What we are getting is a chance to make it work. Since last year I have always felt we could find a very fast four in Australia to take on the best in the World in the event. My view has always been that given the best chances we can find a great four and the work to shape it further to create some great performances. Thus far we have not performed really. Signs are there of positive things but until we truly stand out there will be questions.

Are we to old? To young? To new? To slow? Not tough enough? Not committed enough? And the list probably goes on. Our continuing selection is obviously about find clearer answer to questions like these. My preference is to think and process in terms of possibilities.

How fast can we be? How well can we row? How smart can we be? How exciting is this opportunity? What are we willing to do to be the best? And my list goes on.

All this involves testing by those responsible for making the selection decisions and test by ourselves to ensure we make our best decisions about the step going forward.

This week we will be in Queensland and I am looking forward to what will be some solid work in and out of the boat. The last two days have provided a chance to recover from some solid work late last week and now I feel ready for more fatigue, discomfort and pain. It's about pushing the boundaries and finding the edge and seeing if we can move it, shift it and become comfortable with it.

With all the has happened thus far in the selection I have enjoyed the feeling of us really starting to understand the rhythm of the boat again. It has take a certain level of physical preparation to allow us the capacity to create the movement. Add to this the confidence and developing understanding for the feel for the boat and sense of excitement for finding easy speed. The combination and mix on the recent camp reminded me of many years gone by and yet new.

This week we are coming together to keep the progress going and to enhance the sensations we are realizing on the water.

The feelings are...

Lightness, flow, drive, speed, harmony, deliberateness, purpose, ease and togetherness. It is edge like and with time the edge becomes less precarious and more well know, accepted and enjoyed. From within we have been working length, sliding the hips, posture at the release, separate hands away and easy, floating recovery before a sharp and deliberate front turn. Let the boat work has been a great reminder as well as don't look for load. This has been where fast, light, dynamic and looseness comes in.

There is a fair bit in all that and yet it is more complex and simple at the same time. For now it's plenty and as such I am very much looking forward to the week and months ahead.