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Walton Rowing Club has over 100 junior members, boys and
girls from beginners to national champions and GB representatives. The junior programme is committed to teaching
the rewards of rowing and what it means to be a part of a crew. Rowing is one of the best sports for building
endurance, co-ordination and all-round physical conditioning. Our rowers come from all over Surrey and enjoy
great team camaraderie in addition to dedication, hard work, and the thrill of
making a boat move or making a crew “click”.
At the top levels, rowing is physically and mentally very
demanding, and Walton has many junior athletes who do achieve the highest
standards of personal and athletic excellence. But for younger participants it is important to develop watermanship
skills and enjoyment in a relaxed and safe environment, and this is what we aim
for.
Most juniors start at between twelve and fourteen years old;
of course you can start later, while some eleven-year-olds can take it up
successfully. New junior members are assessed and given a
training programme that suits them and their time. All of our coaches are volunteers and have
appropriate coaching qualifications; we try to maintain low ratios of junior
rowers to coaches, particularly in the early stages, and incorporate safety and
capsize drills at appropriate points. We
do not over-stretch young people, but we are a successful racing club and do
encourage juniors to race as soon as they are able.
It is usually best to start in the spring or autumn, ideally
on one of our beginners’ courses which are run in the Easter and summer
holidays. In winter rowing is often
disrupted by bad weather and this can be frustrating for beginners. We run a waiting-list for our courses (which
are usually over-subscribed) and so it is good to contact us early if you are
interested.
Junior beginners will usually start on a Saturday or Sunday
morning (one morning a week initially), but can then move on to more sessions,
including evenings in the summer. In
addition we offer indoor rowing and supervised circuit-training.
Juniors who already row at school can join as holiday
members, for a reduced rate; they will receive less coaching but will be able
to maintain their fitness and join in with other members in racing and
training.
Contact team@ waltonrowingclub.co.uk to arrange a time to
visit or for more information about our junior programme.
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Training Squads 
