Rowing Club Research Articles

Halifax's Northwest Arm: An Illustrated History, and: The Artists' Halifax: Portraits of the Town and Harbour through 250 Years (review)

Reviewed by: Halifax's Northwest Arm: An Illustrated History, and: The Artists' Halifax: Portraits of the Town and Harbour through 250 Years David A. Sutherland Halifax's Northwest Arm: An Illustrated History. Michèle Raymond and Heather Watts. Halifax: Formac Publishing Company, 2003. Pp. 72, illus. $29.95 The Artists' Halifax: Portraits of the Town and Harbour through 250 Years. Mora Dianne O' Neill. Halifax: Formac Publishing Company, 2003. Pp. 128, illus. $35.00 Although disadvantaged in wealth, power, and population, Atlantic Canada is richly endowed in history, thanks largely to having been, for half a millennium, the doorway through which Europeans ventured into North America. Outstanding in this regard is Halifax, which, for over 250 years, [End Page 814] has been the region's principal port of entry. However, except for a few dramatic episodes, most notably the explosion of 1917, Halifax's past has tended to be neglected in traditional surveys of the Canadian experience. Fortunately local firms, led by Formac and Nimbus, have been actively engaged, especially over the past decade, in publishing books that explore multiple aspects of the Halifax story. Two of the most recent works to appear are assessed in this review. Heather Watts (here assisted by Michèle Raymond, heritage activist and provincial politician), has previously written on nineteenth-century cycling in Nova Scotia, historic Halifax houses, and the city's suburbs. Her latest work focuses on the sheltered, three-mile, salt-water inlet that forms the western boundary of peninsular Halifax. Geographically isolated from Halifax's urban core until the post-Confederation era, the 'Arm' was dominated by military and civilian prisons, complemented by an array of quarries, mills, and fishing stations. Then, starting in the 1850s, members of Halifax's gentry, motivated by a yearning for space and tranquillity, built estate houses along the eastern shore of the Arm. Their arrival precipitated a struggle between 'rough' and 'respectable' culture over land-use. By the 1920s, industry, first in the form of a thermal power plant and later an artificial canyon designed to carry trains to a new waterfront pier complex, eroded the Arm's elitist seclusion. As the gentry gradually beat a retreat, their place was taken by middle-class Haligonians, led by members of rowing, sailing, and swimming clubs that, by the First World War, had established the Arm as the leading site for water-based recreation in Nova Scotia's capital. Decline set in during the 1930s, but recent years have brought revitalization: now the Arm bustles with activity, and homes with water access have become prized possessions for a new generation of affluent Haligonians. The Watts/Raymond account of life on the Arm breaks little new ground in evidence or interpretation. Its major appeal lies in the rich array of artwork and photographs that the authors have mustered, particularly for the years between 1850 and 1930. Despite a scarcity of maps and neglect of recent developments, highlighted by quarrels over land-use regulations along the shores of the Arm, this is a worthwhile and visually appealing contribution to the literature on Halifax's past. Diane O'Neill, a curator at the Art Gallery of Nova Scotia, offers a larger perspective on the Nova Scotian capital by way of artistic impressions of the city and its people through the past two and a half centuries. Using inventory from the Art Gallery of Nova Scotia, she has assembled over 130 images by some seventy-two artists to tell the story of Halifax from its founding to today. Complementing the illustrations is a brief general introduction, followed by summaries of the four episodes into [End Page 815] which O'Neill divides Halifax's history: beginnings to 1810, War of 1812 to Confederation, Canadianization up to the end of the 'Great War,' and 'roaring twenties' to the present. The captions provided by O'Neill are succinct and persuasive, although one wishes she had been more specific about when a particular image was created. Most of the illustrations presented for Halifax's pre-Confederation era are familiar, often being the work of such high-profile artists as J.E. Woolford and William Eager. Less well-known images follow, mainly by local artists whose...

A Comparison of Rowing Technique at Different Stroke Rates: A Description of Sequencing, Force Production and Kinematics

Low back pain is the commonest musculoskeletal complaint in rowers. Research into the relationship between rowing technique, the forces generated during the rowing stroke and the kinematics of spinal motion are increasing, but to date none have investigated the impact of different rowing intensities on this relationship. A technique has been developed using an electromagnetic motion system and strain gauge instrumented load cell to measure spinal and pelvic motion and force generated at the handle during rowing on an exercise rowing ergometer. Using this technique ten collegiate male rowers (mean age 22.1+/-2.8 years) from local rowing clubs were investigated. The test protocol consisted of rowing on an ergometer at three different stroke ratings; 17-20 strokes per minute; 24-28 strokes per minute; and 28-36 strokes per minute. Each rating was held for four minutes, with a five-minute rest between each rating. Marked changes in the force output curve and lumbopelvic kinematics were observed at the different rowing intensities. Although there was no change in the magnitude of peak torque generated during the different rating, there was a marked shift in when this occurred during the stroke. In terms of kinematic changes, these centred around changes in pelvic rotation at the catch and finish stages of the stroke with significantly less anterior rotation occurring at the catch position at higher rowing intensities. To conclude, this study suggests that rowing kinematics and force profiles do change at higher rowing intensities. These changes may be an important factor with respect to injury mechanisms, however, further work is required at an elite level.

Repetition and the Frame

In his studies of animal locomotion, Eadweard Muybridge inadvertently developed the motion picture. By recombining the photographs extracted from life and projecting them in a rapid sequence, he recreated the motion of his subject. Ed. Note: The project is a boathouse for the Minneapolis Rowing Club, Minneapolis, MN.

The Fiftieth Anniversary Banquet: Messages from Charter Members of the Association of Pacific Coast Geographers

The Fiftieth Anniversary Banquet: Messages from Charter Members of the Association ofPacific Coast Geographers Gary Dunbar* In making preparations for the fiftieth anniversary meetings of the APCG, held at UCLA, 12-15 September 1985, I wrote to the surviving charter members and invited them to participate, either in person or by message. Several had hoped to attend the meetings but could not do so because of other engagements. In the end, only Winnifred Varney Fischer came to the meetings, but several other charter members sent their greetings. We heard taped messages from two of the founding members, John Leighly and Alvena Suhl Storm. There was so much interest in these messages that we are now reprinting them for the benefit of the entire membership. A letter has been added from Dr. Willis Miller, who was not a charter member of the APCG but joined soon after and has always taken a keen interest in the affairs of the Association. Transcript of a taped message from Alvena Suhl Storm, Professor Emérita, San Diego State University Thank you for your invitation to the fiftieth anniversary meeting of the APCG. I regret that I shall not be able to be with you in person. It would be fun to see some of my old friends and meet some of the new people in the field. You ask for some sort of message to the group. You mention reminiscences of early meetings of APCG, * Dr. Gary Dunbar is a professor of geography at the University of California, Los Angeles. 169 170ASSOCIATION OF PACIFIC COAST GEOGRAPHERS memories of early days of geography, or advice to young geographers. The prospect of a captive audience is an irresistible temptation for one who has lectured to college students for forty years and now has been retired for almost twenty. Any modesty disappears. Others can report on the early meetings of the APCG better than I, for, except for meetings in San Diego, I did not attend with any regularity. Of those, however, I do recall some very enjoyable and profitable times. Do you remember the field trip to Tijuana where we visited three plants: one that made mops, another spaghetti, and a third cigarettes? They were a far cry from today's border operations. Another time I took some of the group over our Geography 1 field trip route. And then there was that barbecue on Brennan Island in the Bay on a warm moonlight evening. Alas, Brennan Island and the whole Rowing Club complex have been replaced by a restaurant and a parking lot. Of the early days of geography: if John Leighly has a fifteenminute tape, he has covered those days! However, at the risk of repetition, let me say that at Berkeley in the '20s, we were few in number. We were housed in the basement of South Hall, one of the oldest buildings on the campus. We had very little equipment. We made many of our own wall maps. Most of us were as poor as church mice. We worked long hours and we had little time to feel sorry for ourselves. When we finished the reading of the blue books for the finals, we had a rare party about midnight. Our refreshments: popcorn, pretzels, and a soft drink. I hope someday to get an enlargement of a picture John took at that time, but he may already have made one. John and I are the only ones left of that group. The others were Warren Thornthwaite, Peveril Meigs, Dick Russell, and Lauren Post. Well, that leaves the last suggestion—advice to young geographers . Remember, you asked for this! My advice would go like this: get out into the field and get your students into the field. I know it takes a lot of time, it takes a lot of planning, it isn't always convenient. And then there is always the chance that some student will say, "What's that?" and you don't know. Don't be alarmed. YEARROOK · VOLUME 48 · 1986171 You simply say, "I don't know, but let's try to find out." The students will respect you for your honesty, and they will enjoy the challenge of...

Iodine intake of Japanese male university students: urinary iodine excretion of sedentary and physically active students and sweat iodine excretion during exercise.

We examined the urinary iodine excretion of sedentary and physically active male university students in order to estimate the iodine intake of Japanese. Iodine excretion in sweat collected during treadmill exercise was also determined in different dietary iodine levels. The mean urinary iodine excretion of 5 sedentary students during 15 consecutive days was 357 micrograms/day (40-3,390). When high-iodine food, i.e. seaweed, was included in meals in only 22% of the total experimental days of 5 subjects, the urinary iodine excretion was high (1,106 micrograms/day, 298-3,390), but was low (153 micrograms/day, 40-441) when seaweeds were not consumed. An unexpectedly low mean urinary iodine excretion of 149 micrograms/day (50-393) was found in 10 rowing club students during 6 consecutive days of their summer training camp, probably being due to iodine losses in sweat; sweat iodine concentrations were about 37 micrograms per liter, regardless of serum and urinary iodine levels modulated by the dietary iodine level. The present data indicate that the iodine intake of Japanese depends on the amount of seaweed consumption and that it is not necessarily as high as expected from the data obtained in the 1960s. Moreover, our findings indicate the importance of taking account of iodine loss in sweat in the evaluation of iodine nutrition for physically active persons working in hot and humid environments.

A TUBERCULOSIS OUTBREAK IN DEAL, KENT

6 people associated with a rowing club had active tuberculosis and 2 of them died. Although an effort to follow standard contact-tracing procedures was made and the connection with the club was recognised when the 3rd case was diagnosed, none of the active cases was detected by contact tracing. Altogether more than 500 contacts were examined; 443 were tuberculin tested and 222 had chest X-rays. 1 death, of a man said to have been an alcoholic, was due to his refusal to seek medical advice. The other death, of a young tuberculin-positive contact, occurred after he missed his appointment for follow up.

Physical fitness of oarsmen and rugby players before and after training

Resting pulse rates and fitness indexes by the Harvard step test were ascertained in 100 healthy male University students. The subjects included members of the University rowing and rugby clubs, who were about to undergo systematic training, and a third group of students not engaged in any such activity. The observations were repeated on 58 of the students after a period of 2–4 months. The mean resting pulse rates of the three groups were not originally significantly different but after training the pulse rate was significantly lower in the athletic groups than in the controls. At the beginning of the training period the oarsmen and rugby players already had higher fitness indexes than the controls and thereafter they showed significant improvement with training. A significant negative correlation between resting pulse rate and fitness index was found only in the athletic groups. Submitted on October 16, 1958

PHYSICAL DATA OF STUDENTS IN CHARGE OF THE FACULTY OF GENERAL CULTURE, UNIVERSITY OF TOKYO

1. Age Distribution.Table 1. Age distribution of the freshmen 1949.The age is as of April 1, 1949.2. Physical Measures.Averages of 1760 male students are as follows:3. Athletic Capacity.The next table contains the average achievements of these students:Table 2. Average athletic records of students of University of TokyoEffect of training is perceived from the comparison of tests in September and November, 1949.4. Scholastic Level.Table 3. Scholastic level of students.According to the result of the Sclolastic Achievement and Aptitude Test, uniformly carried out throughout the country, the values for 26 bestmembers of University Rowing and Athletic Clubs varied between 23 and 47 and averaged 34.5 as compared to the full mark of 60, while 30 thin, slender students scarcely interested in sports, picked up at random, proved to have the results of the test ranging from 23 to 50 with an average at 34.4. Although low scholastic level is sometimes connected with good sport abilities in some Japanese colleges and universities, this is obviously not the case with our students.