Forest Hills
Central Rowing
Grand Rapids, MI

Rowing vs. Paddling:  This may be one of the most important things to know first!  The difference between paddling and rowing is in the mechanism that is used to propel the boat. 

• Paddles are used in paddling. 

• Oars are used in rowing. 

• Paddles propel boats in the same direction as the paddler is facing. 

• Oars propel boats in the opposite direction from the way the rower is seated.  

​This is Crew. We use Oars. We Row.

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Why Row?

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• Rowing is one of the original sports in the modern Olympic Games.

• Baron Pierre de Coubertin, founder of the modern Olympics, was a rower.

• Rowers are the third largest U.S. delegation (48 athletes) to the Olympic Games.

• Eight-oared shells are about 60-feet long - that’s 20 yards on a football field.

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• Rowing was the first intercollegiate sport contested in the United States. The first rowing race was between Harvard and Yale in 1852.

• Physiologically, rowers are superb examples of physical conditioning. Cross-country skiers and long distance speed skaters are comparable in terms of the physical demands the sport places on the athletes.

• An eight, which carries more than three-quarters of a ton (1,750 pounds), may weigh as little as 200 pounds. The boats are made of fiberglass composite material.

• Singles may be as narrow as 10 inches across, weigh only 23 pounds, and stretch nearly 27-feet long.

• The first rowing club in the U.S. was the Detroit Boat Club, founded in 1839.

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