Weight-adjusted ERG Scores and Scholarships?
When rowing, speed is not everything, and power is very important. Typically, larger, heavier rowers have the capability of producing more power. On the water, a heavier person contributes to a boat that sits deeper in the water, which creates more drag. Drag is a resistant force that the other rowers in the boat need to overcome. The ERG has no way of adjusting for this weight difference, and a larger rower can seem to have more potential than their lighter peers. So when evaluating ERG times, coaches will create a weight adjusted score, using a specific calculation. Here is a link to the Concept II Weight Adjusted ERG Calculator.
So the real question is "How does the weight-adjusted ERG come into play in Rowing Scholarships?"
Coaches will evaluate the weight-to-power ratio for their recruits. So for women, typically D1 coaches will look for weight adjusted scores below 7:00.
Here are some other great links about the topic:
Weight adjusted calculations for rowing
Weight adjusted ERG discussions
Weight adjusted Scholarship ERG discussion
Rowing Scholarships at DI, DII and DIII Schools: A list
Rowing Scholarship Statistics
Please comment.
