I do crew!

So I joined my college's rowing team (i.e. crew)! THE cool thing to do in Oxford is row - people here want to be on the rowing team in the same way that guys at UF would kill to play Gator football. All the colleges have rowing teams and they compete against each other (the first race being the Christ Church Regatta next month for all the newbie rowers -- people say it's a disaster, boats ramming into each other, into trees on the bank, because none of the new kids have a clue what they're doing -- I so can't wait!), and the "first team" for each college competes in races around the UK, and then the really good rowers join the Oxford University varsity team (varsity is called "The Blues" here) and they compete against other schools, like Cambridge. It is a BIG deal - like people fly in from all over the world to watch the Boat Race in London on the River Thames between Oxford and Cambridge (which they've been doing since 1829!) Although I'll just be watching that Boat Race (unless it turns out that I'm some kind of crew prodigy, which is highly unlikely given my first few experiences in the water - see below), I will be rowing for Linacre's newbie team, likely ramming the boat into trees.

I got my first taste of rowing this week, and I am now concerned about my longevity on the team. I had to be at the boat house at 7am, which meant waking at 6am, bundling in 19 layers of clothing (to the point that I couldn't keep my arms down), borrowing Will's enormous rain jacket, and hopping on Henry for a dark, wet, scary ride to the river. I kept repeating "this is insane" as I peddled through town, rain seeping in the raincoat from all the massive openings (I've since gotten my own), one hand on Henry's handlebars and the other on my head to keep the raincoat from catching the wind and flying off my head, likely sending me airborn. Once I got there and got on the river though, it was amazing (and so I deleted the "I quit" text I had prepared for the team captain). We watched the sunrise and rowed alongside of swans, with huge (labrador-sized) geese flying overhead. So, I'm gonna try to tough it out, especially since I know competing in the Regatta will make it all worth it. The rowing practices, circuit workouts (some of the "moves" come straight out of P90X, so thanks to Dave lending me those DVD's I'm a pro at the jump squats!), and erg sessions (on the rowing machines, which were gym machines that I always skipped past on my way to yoga) are exhausting, but satisfying, even though I'm waking up each morning unable to move at least one different body part. So many things are creaking on me now that I have to make noise in the library when I move just to drown out the sound of the popping/cracking of my annoyed joints. But again, it will all be worth it. I just better see a lotta freaking swans this week.