Last Thursday the Curtin Boat Club hosted one of its Learn-to-Row events at the Manning clubhouse.

On O-Day, this past Wednesday, more than 60 people handed their contact details to the club, said 2024 Captain of Boats Ellie Madin.

Although the conditions were nippy, windy, and “sub-optimal,” she said, Thursday evening provided a valuable opportunity for 25 of the club’s newest members to craft their rowing skills.

“When they get here, we pop them on an erg [rowing machine] and teach them basic sequence, so they’re not going to get injured once they are in a boat,” she said.

“Then we get a few of our singles out, which is one human and two oars, and then they continue to learn that sequence but now put into play with having the oars up in the air.

“We pop them on the water and their coach will hold the boats so they can’t float off. 

“They kind of just get the feel for the wobble of the boat which doesn’t go away no matter how long you’ve rowed.”

One of the club’s newest members learning the ropes. Photo: Noah Oska O’Reilly

According to Ellie, it hasn’t taken long for some of the club’s newest members to wrap their heads around things.

The club’s novice squad rowers first attended the Learn to Row event less than a month ago, and according to Ellie, they are looking “really strong.”

The Curtin Boat Club was initiated in 1969 by a small group of rowers at the Western Australian Institute of Technology, now known as Curtin University.

The club was one of Curtin’s first to welcome female members and encourage disabled athletes to participate. 

Curtin Boat Club staff committee members Conall Hansford and Ellie Madin. Photo: Artemisia Blythe.

Club member since 1970 Jo Boserio attended last Thursday’s event and welcomed the club’s newest members wholeheartedly.

Jo is an avid rower and has been for more than 50 years. In the eyes of the Curtin Boat Club, she has earned her title as a Life Member.

In fact, the club proved its respect for Jo when it named one of their Boats, The Jo-Anne Green (her maiden name).

At the 1962 Perth Commonwealth Games Jo had watched the athlete’s stride through the Swan River in awe. She was inspired and had been waiting for an opportunity to kickstart her rowing career ever since.

“I’ve never been anywhere else,” she said.

“When I went to uni, the first day at uni they had something like O-Day, well in those days it was called George James week.

“I saw the rowing and I thought, oh that looks like fun.”

Through the club, Jo said she met her dearest friend, and the two of them have been rowing alongside each other since 1975.

“It’s like a family,” she said.

Last Thursday evening 25 of the club’s newest members met at the Manning Boat House for the Learn to Row event. Photo: Noah Oska O’Reilly

If you would like to join the family, the Curtin Boat Club is expected to host a couple more Learn to Row events over the coming months.

Picture yourself slicing oars into a water face smoother than glass and effortlessly gliding across a pristine river in a well-polished vessel glistening in the evening sunlight. This could be your reality at 5pm on Thursday February 29.