THE SPORT OF ROWING To the readers of www.row2k.com Many thanks to everyone who has al- The following .pdf is in the format in- ready reserved a copy of the limited collec- tended for the final printed book. It is from tor’s edition of The Sport of Rowing, Two the third of four volumes. Centuries of Competition. The response has been very gratifying so far. Each person I need you! who pre-purchases a collector copy prior to publication will be listed as a subscriber in If you find any typos in this chapter, or both the regular and collector editions. if you have any questions, comments, sug- I encourage everyone to visit gestions, corrections, agreements, disagree- www.rowingevolution.com, read the blog ments, additional sources or illustrations, if and sign up for the newsletter. Those who you would like to add your own perspective, wish to reserve a low number or a special etc., please email me at the address below. number for their collector edition should Your input represents an essential contribu- hurry and email me directly at pmal- tion to what has always been intended to be [email protected]. a joint project of the rowing community, so please contribute. If you and I end up final- Those of you who have been reading ly disagreeing on some relevant point or these excerpts on www.row2k.com during other, I will be thrilled to present both alter- the last five years might get the impression natives so the readers can decide for them- that the book is just about rowing in the selves. United States. That is absolutely not true. This latest excerpt on row2k is a celebration Incidentally, many thanks to all who of Harry Mahon, the legendary globe- continue to write and thank me and to make trotting New Zealand coach during the last th corrections and add comments, photos, quarter of the 20 Century. The tenth anni- anecdotes, etc. to the recent postings on the versary of his passing is this coming May, 1984 U.S. men’s scullers, on Ted Nash, and and it is a fine time for a whole new group on women’s rowing during the 1970s, ‘80s, get to know him. ‘90s and ‘00s. Drafts with all the updates This chapter is a great example of how are gradually being posted for you on fortunate I have been to have athletes and row2k. coaches collaborate with me to write their You can always email me anytime at: chapter. I never got to meet Harry, but I feel like I know him thanks to his many devoted [email protected]. friends. Many thanks. TThhee SSppoorrtt ooff RRoowwiinngg bbyy PPeetteerr MMaalllloorryy VVoolluummee IIIIII NNeeww WWoorrlldd OOrrddeerr ddrraafffttt mmaannuussccrriiippttt FFeebbrruuaarryy 22001111 THE AGE OF ENLIGHTENMENT 133. Harry Mahon New Zealand 1982-84 – Zeno Müller – Rob Waddell – Greg Searle – Great Britain 2000 Peter Spurrier Harry Mahon The Age of Enlightenment was marked Mahon,6231 who worked his magic on four by the free flow of ideas across borders and continents. the emergence of coaches able to approach rowing technique with a fresh set of eyes. 6231 For Americans, Mahon rhymes with “Ron” One such man was the late Harold Thomas with a satisfied “ah” sound, as in “mahn.” As spoken by Brits, Aussies and Kiwis, you might also detect perhaps the hint on of an “r” sound before the n. “Harry might be quietly amused 1745 THE SPORT OF ROWING According to his 2001 obituaries in invincible East German crew and only London‟s The Times, The Guardian and narrowly missed the Gold Medal.”6237 The Independent, Mahon was born in Tony Brook, bow-seat on the 1982 New Wanganui on the North Island of New Zealand World Champion Eight: “In 1979, Zealand in 1942. His uncle and grandfather his under-23 NZ Colts eight took shape, and had been rowers, and Harry joined the local many of this crew rowed in his later World rowing club at an early age. He studied Champion eights.”6238 geography at Victoria University.6232 Quarrell: “In 1981, Mahon took charge Journalist Rachell Quarrell: “He of the New Zealand national men‟s played rugby and rowed as a lightweight in eight,”6239 this in a country used to school and college.”6233 improbable success in rowing , thanks to his After graduation, he moved to the small famous predecessor, Rusty Robertson.6240 North Island town of Hamilton to teach geography at Melville High School, a state- New Zealand Men funded day school. He soon joined the newly founded Waikato Rowing Club. Tony Popplewell, a member of the In 1966, Mahon began coaching 1964 New Zealand Eight: “I was the students from Melville and from nearby manager for the NZ team when Harry came Fairfield College. Harry soon transformed on stream as coach of the very successful Waikato R.C. into “one of the most 6234 Colts eights in 1979 and 1980, and then after successful clubs in the country.” the eight that year failed to qualify for the British Olympic Champion rower final at the World Championships in Munich Martin Cross: “He left New Zealand in in 1981, Harry was moved up to Coaching 1969 for a geography and environmental Coordinator. studies teaching post at Ridley College [in “A big learning experience for Harry St. Catharines, Ontario], Canada. He was 6241 6235 and for the crew.” there for five years,” taking a lightweight Dudley Storey:6242 “I had been thrown coxless-four to the 1974 World Champion- 6236 in the deep end in „82 as team manager, and ships, after which he returned to New I didn‟t know Harry very well at all. The Zealand. year before for the first time in sixteen The Times of London: “[Mahon] came years, New Zealand had not made the A to national prominence at the World final in the men‟s eights, and I was Championships in Amsterdam in 1977 mouthing off, saying stuff like, „All the when, in a David and Goliath struggle, his work that we did in the „60s, you guys have unrated coxless-four took on an apparently stuffed it all up,‟ that sort of thing, and I was able to give a lot of this to Harry, and he today at any difficulty in the pronunciation of his listened to a fair bit of it and very seldom name.” – Mark A. Shuttleworth, South Africa did he ever argue with anything I had to say. 6232 Obituary, The Guardian, May 24, 2001 “I was really only the manager, but I had 6233 Rachel Quarrell, Obituary, The Independent a lot of input into what he was saying and of London, May 25, 2001 6234 Obituary: Harry Mahon - Rowing coach who trained the victorious British VIII at last year‟s 6237 The Times of London, op cit. Olympics in Sydney, The Times of London, May 6238 Brook, personal correspondence, 2008 24, 2001 6239 Quarrell, op cit. 6235 Cross, p. 47 6240 See Chapter 120. 6236 Mary Stevens, Magic Mahon Harry, Regatta 6241 Popplewell, personal correspondence, 2008 Magazine, May, 2001, p. 15 6242 See Chapter 120. 1746 THE AGE OF ENLIGHTENMENT what he was doing. Some of it he did “„Of course it was. It‟s what it‟s all reluctantly, and some of it he took on board. about!‟ “Prior to us leaving New Zealand, I had “„Well, Harry‟s chewed our ears, and the whole schedule from the first day we he‟s told us we‟re a bloody disgrace to the started rowing, right through to coming back bloody New Zealand blazer and all sorts of on the plane, and of course we called it an stuff.‟ Entebbe Raid, because we were really only “And I thought bug this, so I grabbed there a month, because we didn‟t have the Harry, dragged him into the dining room, sat money, so in „82 I had all these things laid him down and said, „We had an arrangement out. One of the things I had in there was a before we left New Zealand that this was big party a fortnight out from the heats. „If what we were going to do. You cannot you‟re going to get drunk, that‟s the only change the bloody rules half-way through, chance you have to do it.‟ not without giving people advance notice, so “I went and found this place right up in the best thing you can do, Harry Mahon, is the bloody hills somewhere, away from to get off your ass, get across to those two everybody so the guys could make as much guys particularly but the whole eight noise as they liked. If they got drunk, I‟d generally, and apologise!‟ drive them back, and of course it was “And he did. Harry was man enough to something for the people to look forward to say, „I did make a mistake. We did say we as well. were going to do this. I‟m sorry.‟ “„Time out just for us! Don‟t have to do “They won the race right there and then, nothin‟ for Dud, nothin‟ for Harry.‟ a fortnight before the man even said go.”6243 “So up we go. A few of them got drunk. Most of them didn‟t, but they all came back. The 1982 World Championship Two of the boys got back about 5 o‟clock in the morning, and those two actually needed Cross: “In 1982 and 1983, I watched to do this. One wanted to fight all the time, from the sidelines as his eights took the but he also was the best racer that we had.