Free Spirits Rowing

The site is up again, Barbara, Fred and Seb please update your score, Sébastien hasn't done it, sorry!

If I counted correctly all of the 8on8 team beside Kirsten rowed the 4'. calalli, fkoene and plummy did row, but got no open slot.

Then I propose that those in contact with Sebastien ask to edit Kirsten's entry such that she is off the team as we have not heard from her nor did we see any score. That will free up one spot for the three mentioned. It is important to have 10 committed people during the IRL season due to injuries etc.

As I am not fully in shape myself and not sure when I will be, I can swap place if someone really wants to get in, just tell me how and when.

Due to the downtime of the website entries for September can be made until Oct 3rd 12:00 UTC.

It's online again, just entered my result of last Saturday.

After a somewhat bumpy start into this year‘s IRL the team for the 8on8 team competition has finally been set:

Barbara
David Plumb
Ralf Achenbach
alan wisniewski
Paul Gould
Peter Weiss
Felton Humble
calalli
Fred
Tako

Good luck to all Free Spirits competing in this season‘s IRL!

Thanks Peter

I'd like to join in and wish the team all the best in this year's competition too

I scraped in by about 30 minutes! I find it highly un-intuitive as a website to drive but given the amount of work it probably takes to set up and run I'm happy to accept whatever is presented. So this month I have:

As many metres as possible for the FTC
1609m as fast as possible for the IRL
250/1250/500 as fast as possible for the CTC
60 minutes as far as possible for the Lightweights Facebook challenge
The meterboard...

No wonder I'm always knackered!!

Plummy, good luck this month. You can do it!!

Go for it Dave!
I am with you, except for this Lightweight stuff

Happy to see that we have managed to establish a crew of ten to account for injuries, travel etc.
Although struggling with the fact that my result (although having rowed the 3rd longest distance this month) will be one of the two not counting.

I had missed that there are only 8 per month really participating. Sounds logical though, considering the name of the competition. I've also missed the boat last month, let's go for it this month then, Tako.
As for Dave's goals, I'm not on Facebook, so no lightweight challenge for me this month. Otherwise I would have dropped 20K and participated with that as well offcourse.

I'm pleased to see that we have a full team. I thought I had put my name down, but I obviously screwed it up somehow. Anyway, it's probably just as well given my current lack of fitness and doubts about whether I'll ever be able to get back into proper training.

I think it was made by the sitekeeper, the decision who were participating this year. First I wasn't in the team, then suddenly yesterday I saw myself present as well.
I'll try to uphold the honour of the Free Spirits and at least enter a score every month.

To clearify how the team was built: I was in contact with the sitekeeper in order to set up a proper team for Free Spirits. Proper in the sense that we would have ten members willing to participate in each round of the challenge.

Monday night (so 12 hours before the deadline) he asked me how the team should look like and gave me two options:

1) The ten members in the 8on8 list at that time (which included two no shows and Paul)
2) The top ten members scorewise of Free Spirits at that time

For the sake of the team (and Paul's back ) I decided to have option #2. Option #1 would have included you Paul, but with two no shows it would also have included a 100% pressure on the remaining eight and specifically on you to participate in every round. Given your current back problems I think the last thing you need right now is yet another challenge including the expectation to compete in it every month (until May that is).

Thanks Peter. That explains it. I agree with your reasoning about my inclusion. But I hope to be back in action for next season, so the rest of you better stay on your toes!

Thanks for getting that sorted Peter; I'll do my best to live up to the pressure I had accepted the idea I would not be on the team and decided not to try for a better mark, regretting that decision now.

Nearly chickened out of going to the gym today. I have not really got back in the habit and was not sure how well the mile would go for me. Happily I haven't lost too much fitness and managed a pb over the distance of 5:23.3 (previous best 5:26.. Admittedly not a true pb as I have done a 2k at a faster pace but will use this as motivation for more regular training

Well, great rowing Felton. I had a go as well after work. Wanted to do that yesterday, but was feeling to feebly. My aim at the beginning was my SB pace of the 2K, finished in a pace 1.2 sec faster then that pace, 1:48.4. Finished after 5:49.1 . Considering it was done at the end of a workday I think the 2K can be done a bit faster as well, perhaps.

After 30min (7200m) and a CD of 9min (2k) I thought I put in an easy marker to have a score in to aim at. Went better than expected, but still too slow: 5:53.4 @ 1:49.8

Couldn't enter my result to the IRL page. First it asked for only hours, then hours min sec, but no tens of a second. Then it crashed and has not come back. Probably thinks it ain't worth registering snail speed....

Tako, maybe the site is being switched over from September result format (meters) to October result format (minutes:seconds.tenth). Just wait a couple of days and it should be fine (or have a second go in the meantime ).

Just read the confirmation in the FB group of the IRL that the result form will come up tomorrow.

Result entry form for October is online now!

I managed a respectable mile last night which by default was an SB as it was my first with a 5:54.4. When I looked at the pace needed to get under 6 minutes my heart sank a bit as it had to be sub 1:51 and I was kind of hoping for 1:53~1:52 ish. The handicapping seems quite generous as I ended up with 5:15 (unless that changes as more scores pour in??). I may have another go or two and see if I can dip under 1:50.0 average

Don't worry Dave, the handicapping won't change, it's based on the world records for the age and weight classes.

Very nice row by the way, puts on the top spot (until Barbara comes along ), like in the previous round!