1.5 interviews 3

Susie, Iona, Hermione, Alex, and Philippa discuss the strong friendships formed through rowing. They all agree that rowing provides a great opportunity to meet and bond with people. They also acknowledge that the community atmosphere and common goal in rowing can lead to strong friendships. However, they note that conflicts can arise, especially when there are conflicting goals or outside factors affecting relationships. They emphasize the support and understanding that rowing friends provide during difficult times. They also mention that rowing friendships often last beyond the sport and can be maintained even when they are not rowing together anymore. Overall, rowing is seen as a positive environment for forming deep and lasting friendships. Okay, that was Susie, and now this is Iona speaking. So just introduce yourself, like, name, age, if you want, where you row now, what you've done in rowing. So I'm Iona, I'm 25, I'm rowing at ULBC. I started rowing at Leeds Mary University. Cool. And would you say that, like, you've formed lots of strong friendships through rowing, like, throughout the years, or...? Yeah, I think so. Lots of my best friends have been rowing over the years, so yeah, it's a good place to meet people. And would you say that, like, the community atmosphere of the book helps, like, really helps sort of thrive on everybody? Like, when you are all working towards a common goal, do you think it makes everybody work harder? Yeah, I think so. I think at times there's almost a mix of, like, business and pleasure, so actually you're here to both do a sport at a high level and get better, and friendship, and sometimes those things clash a little bit. Yeah. I think I've been really fortunate to only ever row at clubs where there's been a really positive culture, but I've definitely seen no old clubs where it's more difficult and friendships are harder to make or, like, less deep. Yeah. So I think when done well, it can be a great place to make good friendships, but because there's other pressures and there's sometimes, like, two conflicting goals... Yeah. And so would you say, like, when things aren't going so well, that there sometimes can be, like, wasted potential, like, folks that sort of have much more trust in each other tend to go faster, or, like, people are having fun, so that's obviously going to put more effort into it. Like, would you say that when things aren't going so well, like, within the squad, it's more difficult to find the crew to reach their full potential? Yeah, I think we've definitely seen that, that when there's stuff that affects your relationships outside of the boat, it then affects the boat itself. Yeah. And that's only natural. If we were full-time athletes and you treated it as a job and you just turned up in the morning and trained and got on with your teammates but weren't, like, close friends and went home, that's a different vibe, whereas if it's a university club, by its nature, you're going to be better friends with the people you're on with. And when there are relationships in the boat that aren't working, that then does have a huge effect. Yeah. Cool. I think that might actually be... Do you have any other things to say on this topic? No. I think, yeah, women's sport is fab. It's such a positive thing in the world. Yeah. Definitely. I'm really encouraged. Cool. Thank you. Okay, that was Iona, and now that is Hermione speaking. Okay, so just introduce yourself, like, name, age, if you want, where you started rowing, where you row now. I'm Hermione, I'm 18, I started rowing at Peggy's in 2019, and I've been rowing for about six years. I'm now rowing at London Rowing Club. Cool. And have you found that, like, in the time that you've been rowing, that you've formed, like, very strong friendships through the sport? Yeah, I think some of the strongest friendships I have right now, I've formed through rowing through the past six years, and right now some of the best friends I have in London are friends from my rowing club. Cool. And you were the girls' captain boats when you were at Teddy's. Thank you. And, like, how did you see, like, the friendships between the squad as, like, a sort of person that everybody looked up to? How did I see the friendships? Like, what kind of things did you observe from that position, good to bad? So, obviously, when you've got loads of girls rowing together all the time, things can become a bit tense at points, especially in, like, prime points of the season, where we're coming up to races, Germans and I are doing loads of things. They can, like, arguments break out, people get stressed at each other. On training camps, a lot of the time, people need their space, people need, even, like, closest friends. Friendships. People need space from each other when they get tired from training. Although everyone's always there to pick each other up as well. That's what I really love about the whole community, everyone supports each other. Even when somebody's going through a bit of a rough time, your friends or even people in the squad, who you might not be as close with, will still try and pick you up and make you feel better about yourself and encourage you. Yeah. Cool. And when things get hard, are you glad that you've sort of formed these friendships? Because, obviously, rowing isn't a very easy sport to do. Is it helpful that you can form such strong connections and, therefore, lean on these people when you're struggling or when they're struggling, they can lean on you? Definitely. Yeah. Because a lot of the time, your friends would have already gone through some kind of similar situations to maybe what you're going through. And there's even, like, your superiors, people who have rowed for longer than you, people who are older and spend more time in the squad. The bond that you have with them is always very strong. It's really supportive. Like, friendships. So, hold on, let me think about what I'm trying to say. It's definitely a positive thing. Cool. Yeah. Yeah. Do you feel that you'll stay in contact with your rowing friends, especially now you don't row at Teddy's? Do you think it's harder to keep up those connections now we're not seeing each other every day? Or do you think that stuff like that kind of sticks around and we'll sort of always be friends in some sense? I mean, generally, I find it really, like, it's difficult to keep up with everyone because everyone's in different places. But keeping up with rowing friends is definitely easier, especially those who are still rowing because through competitions and all that stuff, you'll be able to keep up with them. But also, like, the bond that you've already formed is so much stronger than other, like, friendships that you might have because you spend so much time together that it's just like you can just go and talk to them whenever and it will be like you've never really spent any time apart. Yeah. Cool. I think that's most of what I wanted to ask. Do you have anything else to say? The whole rowing community is great, not just for friendships, but for making connections with, like, people in your working industry. It's also really good to make connections with those kind of people to get you places, to get you into basically anything. Like, it's such a wide community. Through your friends, you'll basically be able to contact anyone you want to somehow. Everyone's with each other. Epitome to the maximum. Yeah. Cool. Thank you. You are welcome. Okay. That was Hermione. And now we're going to hear from Alex Cantwell. Introduce yourself, name, age, where you started rowing, when you stopped rowing, etc. Okay. Now? Yeah. Okay. My name is Alex Jones with Cantwell. I am 19 years old. I started rowing full-time when I was 13. I went back by 15. I started dabbling in it when I was 11. Yeah. I stopped when I was 16. I might have been 17. I think I was 16. Cool. Would you say that when you were rowing, that the friendships that you formed really helped you, like, enjoy the sport? Or, like, were those friendships... Yeah, did those friendships help you to, like, keep turning on to training? Yes, I think they did. I think it would have been very desolate without them. Yeah. Cool. And would you say that these friendships are particularly strong when you look at, like, friendships that you formed elsewhere in your life? I think definitely because two of my current closest friends were friends that I didn't think I would have if I hadn't rowed and made friends with them still. Yeah. So, yeah. Cool. And when things got hard when you were rowing, did you find it helpful that you had close friends to rely on and talk to about it, who knew, kind of, what was going on? Yes, I think so, because they were definitely the only people who understood how difficult rowing was and, like, the toll that it had on the school. Yeah. Cool. Yeah. And your mum was obviously a very good rower. Have you, like, witnessed friendships that she's formed? Like, does she still keep in contact with her friends that she rowed with when she was younger? Yes. My godmother was one of her friends who rowed for my age, and she's obviously still my godmother. And pretty much all of my family friends who I have through my mum were, like, friends from her rowing era. Cool. So, yeah. And do you have anything else to say on this topic? No. Cool, thank you. Oh, OK. Oh, were you going to say something? Sorry. Female friendships in school rock. Thank you. Because of their, I'd say, stylistic female toxicity, which very much exists in female friendships. Cool. Don't think we'll see that in rowing. Anyway. Thank you. Cool. That was Alex, and I see, and now you're going to hear from her mother, Philippa. So, your name, and where you started rowing, and, like, where you have rowed in the past. Yeah, OK. OK. My name is Philippa Graham, and I rowed at Durham University, and I rowed for Cambridge University in the 90s. Cool. And would you say that when you rowed, you formed lots of strong friends, exclusively through the sport? Absolutely, unequivocally yes to that. Would you like me to elaborate? If you want to, yeah. Well, my kids' godparents are rowing friends that I'm still in touch with. I mean, we rowed in the 90s, which is quite, like, 30-odd years ago. Yeah. And I've got about four friendships that are really strong, like besties. Like, when you see them, having not seen them for a long time, it's like sort of yesterday type thing. Yeah. But I also have sort of like a cascading sort of degree of friendship with others. Well, I think when you row with somebody, we're either in the same crew, we're in eights, so there's more of us in an eight, obviously, than a smaller boat. When you row with them for, like, a period of time with a sort of goal in mind, they've got a couple of regattas that you're aiming for, and then you don't remain best buddies. But when you do meet up again, there's a bond that's always in play and constant, never stops, never breaks. Yeah. And you just have so much in common and so many memories that, you know, it's just a bit different to friendships that you forge out with sports, I think. Cool. Perfect. That was actually really helpful. What else? Let me think. Yeah, do you think it's helpful, like, when you were rowing, like, if things weren't going as you hoped that they would, that it was good to have, like, such close friends to lean on and, like, who will go through similar things and, like, knew what was happening? Yeah, I think it's a sort of double-edged sword, that one, because you're all competing for the same thing, and so it's a tricky one, but if someone gets injured, you know, maybe there's, you know, one door shuts, another door opens for another member of the club or another person or whatever. So I guess it teaches you to be humble about what you're doing and to realise that, you know, you are the sum of your parts, especially in an eight, and the coxswain is vital in that, too. And so, yeah, of course, people outside rowing, you know, friends from different areas of university life, they just didn't quite get it. They kind of think they did, but nobody understands unless there's a sort of training regime and they're having to go to bed early and they're not drinking. Make sure your nutrition and hydration and all that is correct, and, you know, working, trying to fit your studies around it. Yeah. It's helpful to have forgiveness in the same day. Cool. Yeah. I think that might be everything. Do you have anything else that you want to say? No, I think women in sport are great. Are you doing it physically rowing? Well, as a whole, but focused on rowing. Yeah. Because now that I'm playing hockey in a master's set-up, which goes from age 35 up to age 65 and beyond, I think it's one of the things that one of our coaches said to us the other day was, you know, this is great because we're all older women and we are still playing a master's sport. And, you know, that is cannot but be a good thing. Yeah. And for girls all the way up, you know, aspiring to be what they want to be and do what they want to do. And that's all I'll say. Cool. Thank you. You're welcome. Okay. That was Philippa. And that concludes the interviews on female friendships and rowing that I have conducted throughout the past month. Thank you.