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Frequently Asked Questions

How do you steer with the FrontRower?

Why do people row backward?

Why is the FrontRower frame made of wood and not some other material?

How did you come up with this idea?

How does the automatic feathering work?

Where can I try a FrontRower equipped row boat?

How do you steer with the FrontRower?
You take longer strokes on one side.  This makes the boat turn gradually.  Each oar and pedal is completely separate from the other, so you can stroke forward on one side while stroking rearward on the other.  This makes the boat turn very sharply, enabling you to turn around in your own boat length.

Why do people row backward?
Rowing is done primarily as a "sport".  The rules of the sport of rowing require the participants to row backwards.  Rowing clubs that promote the sport of rowing use regulation (rear facing) equipment.  If you go to a rowing club, you will be taught rear facing rowing as the proper way to row.  But the rowing of work boats is often done in a forward facing position (for example: the gondoliers of Venice, Italy).

Why is the FrontRower frame made of wood and not some other material?
The wood we use (cherry) is the best material for the job.  It is lightweight, strong, rot resistant, and it floats.  Wood is a natural "fiber composite" which is hard to improve on synthetically.  Each piece of the frame is tank dipped in marine quality varnish, sealing every pore and making it very stable.  Varnished cherry is pleasing to look at and to touch.  No other material has better qualities for the purpose.  Our cherry is sustainably harvested in upstate New York and does not endanger the forest.

How did you come up with this idea?
I've been a paddler since I was 16 and bought my first wood and canvas canoe (which I still own).  Eventually I began taking long solo voyages in this canoe.  I moved to Cambridge, Massachusetts, where I worked as an engineer, and saw scullers on the Charles River every day.  I could see the advantages of using a pair of oars and getting leg power into the stroke, but the idea of going backwards in the unfamiliar waters I liked to explore did not appeal to me.  Just for fun I built an experimental rowing system using a pair of oars with the handles and oarlocks reversed so the motion of each oar was similar to that of paddling (giving forward motion while pulling on the handle).  The results were better than I expected.  With some refinement to this system, I was outperforming canoes with two expert paddlers aboard.  This was using arm power only.  Then I experimented with sliding seats to get leg power.  I found that they wasted a lot of energy, so I experimented with and perfected moving pedals, which are more efficient.  With this system I could outperform expert single scullers in identical boats.  And the FrontRower was born.  From then on it was refinements to this system, including automatic feathering and hands free rowing.

How does the automatic feathering work?
The oars are free to rotate 1/4 turn.  The springs that pull the oars forward are connected off-center to the top of the oars.  As they pull the oars forward, they rotate the oars 1/4 turn into the feathered (flat) position.  Likewise, the handles are connected off-center to the top of the oars.  As you pull the handles rearward, they rotate the oars 1/4 turn into the squared (vertical) position.

Where can I try a FrontRower equipped row boat?
You can make arrangements to try a FrontRower at our location in Warren, RI.  Email or call for an appointment. 
 

 
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Ron Rantilla Rowing Systems, 30 Cutler Street #207, Warren, RI 02885   Ph:401-688-3132   email: ron@frontrower.com

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