Q & A With Beth Smith
5/20/2005 12:00:00 AM | Women's Rowing
May 20, 2005
EAST LANSING, Mich. - Beth Smith (Wahroonga, New South Wales, Australia) has the task of keeping eight other members of the women's crew on the same wavelength as coxswain for the first varsity eight, but she has plenty of experience doing so. While in Australia, Smith coxed her way to a captaincy for her crew in 2001, as well as participating in the Australian National Championships in 2000 and 2002.
Smith was also coxswain for the second varsity eight in last year's NCAA Rowing Championships. Her experience in championships helped the MSU first varsity eight win a Big Ten Championship on April 30, and she will be coxing the first varsity eight in the NCAA Rowing Championships May 27-29.
Q: What are some characteristics a coxswain must have?
A: Organization. I think you have to be as motivated as your crew, because you can't tell people what to do without their being able to trust that you could do it as well.
Q: How do you get eight other girls on the same wavelength?
A: By getting to know your crew and what makes them tick. You also have to have one focus, one goal together - one thing you all agree on and everyone knows what they're pushing for.
Q: How do you approach a race differently than a rower would?
A: I like to be really prepared by knowing who else is in the race, knowing what some of their previous times have been, and knowing all the possibilities for the race, knowing everything that could possibly come up. Just making sure you're on top of things, not just with your crew, but with everything else, so your crew doesn't have to worry about anything but rowing.
Q: How would you explain your role to someone without a rowing background?
A: I'm like the driver of a race car.
Q: What are some things you are focusing on in practice leading up to the NCAA Rowing Championships?
A: We're doing some of the technical things that we did earlier in the season, so we're sort of getting back to fundamentals.
Q: What are some keys to the varsity eight's success at the NCAA Rowing Championships?
A: Staying focused on the things that matter and not getting distracted by the things that don't. Keeping it simple, because we don't need to complicate things that we know how to do right.
Q: How does your previous experience at the NCAA Rowing Championships help the first varsity eight prepare this year?
A: I know what to expect, and I can anticipate any complications that will come up.
Players Mentioned
