Some common questions about learning to row are listed below. If you have any other questions, please email enquiries@uwarowing.org.au and we’ll help you out!

What age do I need to be?

Don’t think that learning to row is just for students – you’re never too old to give it a go! In fact, we have current members who learnt to row as a novice at UWA while aged in their 40s, and are still members at the club today.

How do I start?

The best way to go about learning to row is to join the novice intake at the beginning of the training season (February/March). You will be grouped with other rowers of similar ability, and taken through the basics at a nice, steady pace by our patient and well-trained coaches. The biggest step is to brave the early morning and come down to give it a shot – once you sit in a boat we guarantee you’ll be hooked!

I missed the start of the Novice Intake – can I still learn to row?

If you miss the beginning of the season, don’t stress – new members tend to trickle into the club throughout the whole season, and our skilled novice coaches will be able to get you up to speed in no time. In fact, we’ve had new members join the club just 8 weeks before State Champs – they slotted right in, and even won a handful of medals! It depends how full the crews are at any given stage of the season.

I gave it a try, loved it, and now I want to race. But I’m not very fit – will I have to race against superstars?

Races are separated into divisions based on your fitness, ability and age, so you won’t be racing against Olympians if you’re a beginner! Instead, you can race in crews with rowers of similar ability against boats from other clubs at a similar level. This means that everyone gets a fun and competitive go at racing!

So there you have it – Rowing at UWA is a fun sport and available to people of all ages, abilities and fitness levels, so now all that’s left to do is come down and give it a try!

If you have a question that wasn’t answered here, please email enquiries@uwarowing.org.au and we’ll do our best to help you. See you on the water!