CRI first visit

I think I learned a lot on our first visit and got a sense of some of the coach's and client's main concerns. I was surprised by how much specialized equipment they already had, but also was happy that they were open with us about what they needed help with. It seemed like there was a lot to improve, but also a lot to work with. It was difficult to fully understand some of the issues they were explaining, especially since I've barely even been in a boathouse before.


The first thing we looked at were the different sizes of hulls - the "large" and "small". Conveniently, the large paddles were sized for the large boats, and the small paddles for the small ones. The large and small paddles were weighted differently - which makes it difficult to think of a carrying solution for people in wheelchairs. It seems they could easily tip over. One thing emphasized throughout our visit was safety - something I hadn't really though of much. It would be an especially difficult task to create a product to carry oars both safely and effectively.

This is the oar-carrying prototype created by last years class. The ladies at CRI raised a couple of concerns, including stability and safety issues. One of the clients warned that by having the oars at the front of the wheelchair, the wheelchair could become unstable and to tip over.

Last year's oar-carrying prototype

Another aspect of the boat is the clasp that holds the oar to the side of the boat. One of the CRI coaches was explaining the mechanism, and suggested a similar system for the attachment of the pontoon. The pontoon attachment is something that needs a lot of work, and I think the previous class made really good progress with the current prototype.

Clasp that attached oar to side of hull

The previous prototype for an alternative mechanism holds the pontoon up, out of the water, and then it is lowered once the person is inside the boat. The problems they had with the prototype was that the pontoon had to be lowered into the water first, and this caused instability. It was also heavy, so the boat became uneven. I noticed that almost everything going into the boat was either foam or carbon fiber. Also, the mechanism was sometimes clunky and hard to use.

Last year's prototype

After looking around the boathouse, we went upstairs to the ergs. We tried them out, which was great, because it really gives you a sense of the motion. We also looked at the ergs for the adaptive rowing program, and one of their clients demonstrated how it's used. The trainer explained that there are three categories in adaptive rowing: (arms and torso), (arms, legs and torso), and (arms and shoulders). The seat used depends on the category.

We took a good look at the chairs used as well. It seemed they had to create their own chairs based on the circumstance. One chair was specifically adapted for competition, whereas another was for use recreationally. Another one used velcro to stick to the hull of the boat for arm and torso rowing.

Chair used during championship competition. The extra padding was added to avoid injury

The chairs are also difficult to attach to the hull's track and use a pin system similar to the ones used to adjust the height of crutches.

Bottom of the chair, which is difficult to attach to hull. The seat is made of carbon fiber.

Basic seat, without all the padding, used on a daily basis.

Seat that velcros onto hull. The seat looks almost identical to a classic rowing seat.

One thing that really intrigued and excited me, was the one-handed attachment for the ergs. The trainer explained the difficulty of attaching it to the machines. You currently have to remove the old handle entirely from the machine, hold onto the chain, and attach the new one. Also, the handle slides on a track, and they have to bungee cord part of it to stay in place. When rowers come in to train, it's hard to predict what adaptive technologies they will need. If they need a one-handed handle, the trainers are put on the spot to use tools and replace the handle.

One-handed handle

Overall, the visit helped me a lot with understanding their program, what devices they already had, and brainstorming in general. They people there emphasized that they wanted to promote independence, and the entire rowing experience as a whole. I will keep those two things in mind moving forward.