Equipment Terms

• blades – the wide, flat section of the oar at the head of the shaft, also known as the spoon; term often used when referring to the entire oar
  
• button (or collar) – a plastic or metal fitting tightened on the oar to keep the oar from slipping through the oarlock
  
• foot stretcher (or boot stretchers) – an adjustable bracket in a shell to which the rower’s feet are secured in some sort of shoe or clog
  
• gunwale (or gunnels, sax board) – top section on the sides of a shell which runs along the sides of the crew section where the rowers are located; the riggers are secured to the gunwale with bolts
  
• keel – the center line of the shell
  
• oarlock (or rowlock) – a U-shaped swivel which holds the oar in place; it is mounted at the end of the rigger and rotates around a metal pin; a gate closes across the top to keep the oar in
  
• pitch- the angle between the blade (on the drive when the blade is ‘squared’) and a line perpendicular to the water’s surface
  
• rigger (or outrigger) – the device that connects the oarlock in the shell and is bolted to the body of the shell
  
• rigging – the adjustment and alteration of accessories (riggers, foot stretchers, oar, etc.) in and on the shell; examples of rigging adjustments that can be made are the height of the rigger, location of the foot-stretchers, location and height of the oarlocks, location of the button (or collar) on the oar and the pitch of the blade of the oar
  
• rudder – steering device at the stern; in turn is connected to some cables (tiller ropes) that the coxswain use to steer the shell
  
• scull – term used interchangeably when referring to one of the oars used in a sculling shell, the shell itself or to the act of rowing a sculling shell
  
• skeg (or Fin) – a small fin located along the stern section of the hull; this helps to stabilize the shell in holding a true course when rowing; all racing shells have a skeg, not to be confused with the rudder
  
• slide (or track) – the track on which the seat moves
  
• slings (or boat slings, or trestles) – collapsible, portable frames with straps upon which a shell can be placed