Information for Juniors and their Parents

Rowing is a fantastic sport for all round fitness. It uses many different muscles in the body. It also develops co-ordination, concentration and confidence. We currently have about 30 junior members who have come together from around the county, with many becoming good friends. They range in age from 12-17years old.

Junior Squad - Currently FULL

After the success of our Junior Rowing Week held in August the junior squad is currently full to capacity.  To register your interest in joining the squad and to be put on our waiting list please Contact Us.

Junior Membership

Club membership runs from 1st November for 12 months and represents good value when compared to other sports clubs.

For under 14’s membership works out at under £1.50 a week, 14-18 year olds membership is under £3 a week.

We do not charge for individual training sessions but ask that once your child is a member of Leicester Rowing Club they join ‘British Rowing’. This is currently free for under 14’s in their first year of membership and £22 for under 18’s. British Rowing membership provides insurance, a monthly magazine and a licence to compete in races.

You will also be asked to pay for any race entries at the time of competing. The price varies from £8 to £12 a race depending on the type of event and trophies provided.

Coaching and Training

We run 4 junior training sessions a week.

Saturday morning 9.30am – 11.30am (on the water)

Sunday morning    9.30am – 11.30am (on the water)

Tuesday evening   6.00pm – 8.00pm (winter training is indoors, summer training on the water)

Thursday evening 6.00pm - 8.00pm (older juniors only by invitation)

We expect everyone to attend 2 training sessions per week, rising to 3 sessions at J15 (School year 10).

Water training takes place is in a variety of boats, but we aim to put juniors of similar ages together and over time they will have the opportunity to row in different boats. The less experienced and younger rowers will be accompanied by a coach on the bank.  Indoor training includes the use of rowing machines, circuit training, and core stability exercises. Older juniors may also use the gym equipment.

What to Wear

For normal training sessions we suggest a pair of old trainers, joggers or shorts, t-shirt and a hoodie.  In winter a hat and extra top layer are a good idea. It is difficult to row in gloves so these are not recommended. Pogies can be worn (these are special rowing gloves that go over the hand and oar).  In summer a cap, sunglasses and sun cream are recommended.

The only essential kit is the racing All-IN-ONE for wearing at competitions. These cost between £45- £50 and can also be worn for training.  We also sell club hoodies which the juniors like to wear as this shows club identity.

Competition

We encourage the juniors to compete regularly at competitions suited to their age and ability. These include Head Races throughout the winter and Regattas during the summer months. A Head Race is a basically a time trial ranging in length from 1500m to over 4 miles. A Regatta is the more exciting side by side racing.

Our juniors enjoy competing and enter events approximately once every 4 weeks throughout the year. This can be demanding on time with early starts on either a Saturday or Sunday and boat loading the night before. The occasional event will be for the whole weekend and may include camping.

Over the past few years we have had some very successful junior crews. They have competed at both small and large events. The most prestigious of these include ‘National Schools’ and ‘JIRR’.

Trophies for juniors have included medals, glass goblets and pint pewter tankards. Normally only 1st place will get a trophy.

Parental Help

All of the club coaches are volunteers giving up their own time. We therefore expect parental help and support to get boats, additional equipment and children to competitions.

To go to any event we have to de-rig boats and load the trailer.  This can mean a very early morning or preferably giving up time the evening before.

Once at the event we have to rig boats, organise children who are wandering in different directions and get them into their boats on time. This can get very hectic. At the end of a tiring day we have to reverse the process and return all of the boats back to the club and unload the trailer.

Fund Raising/Maintenance

The club is run by its members for its members. We do not receive outside assistance so we therefore expect all members and in the case of juniors their parents to do their part for maintenance and fund raising.

The main fundraising activity that involves juniors and their parents are football car parks. As close neighbours of Leicester City Football Club we operate a football car park on match days. This is manned for the 2.5 hours before a match by 3 people.

We also run an annual regatta in April. This takes a great deal of organising and we do ask parents to help on the day in a variety of roles when their youngsters are not racing.We also have various maintenance days on both equipment and the grounds when we expect everyone to help.

Interested?

For more information and to register your interest in joining please Contact Us