Thinking about the intensive, or already booked in? This guide covers everything the booking page doesn’t need to: how the day runs, who it suits, what to bring and what you’ll leave with. For current dates, prices and bookings, head back to the Camps & Clinics page.
What the intensive is
One day, three sessions, built entirely around masters rowing. You’ll be filmed on the water, sit down with a coach and watch it back properly, then go straight out and apply what you’ve just seen.
It’s a single day with a single fee, so it isn’t a membership and there are no ongoing payments. It runs on a Saturday morning and you’re done by early afternoon, which makes it the easiest way to get serious coaching without rearranging your life around it.
Most rowers who do it come back. Some use it as an annual technical service, others as the step before the 3 Day Performance Clinic.
Who it’s for
Masters rowers with more than twelve months on the water who have raced, or intend to. That’s the honest entry point, and it isn’t about being fast. It’s about having enough technical vocabulary to use the feedback you’ll be given in a single day.
Come solo or bring your crew. Solo rowers are matched into small boats by ability, so you’ll row with people at a similar level. Crews who arrive together can keep their combination and have it coached as a unit, which is often the most useful thing a crew can do for itself all season.
Most of the day happens in small boats, because that’s where technique has nowhere to hide and where a day’s work transfers fastest.
How the day runs
Session one, early morning. A mobility and rowing-specific warm-up, then straight onto the water for technical coaching with video capture. Coaches work with you on boat setup and rigging as well, in small groups and one to one. This is the session that gathers the evidence.
Session two, mid-morning. Brunch with your coaches and the other rowers, and the video goes up on the screen. You’ll see your own rowing analysed properly, then the conversation opens out into training habits, progression and whatever you want to ask. People consistently rate this as the most valuable hour of the day.
Session three, late morning. Back on the water to apply what you’ve just seen, with targeted drills built from your own footage. It finishes with a wrap-up and clear recommendations for what to do next. Recovery in the sauna or on the float beds afterwards is there if you want it.
What you’ll work on
Technique under the camera
Video on the water, then structured review with a coach who tells you what’s actually happening rather than what you think is happening.
Boat setup and rigging
How your rigging is affecting your stroke, and what to change when you get back to your own boat.
Small boat skills
Where the technical work lands hardest and transfers fastest.
Mobility and movement
What your body is and isn’t letting you do, and what’s limiting your length or your finish.
Training that lasts
Honest conversation about load, recovery and how to keep improving as a masters athlete rather than training like a twenty year old and paying for it.
Next steps
You leave with specific things to work on, not a warm feeling.
Where you’ll be rowing
Lake Burley Griffin is one of Australia’s best known stretches of water and home to the National Training Centre for Australia’s Olympic rowing team. It’s flat, protected and has a laned race course.
Red Shed sits on Black Mountain Peninsula in Acton, reached via John Cardiff Close, with parking on site. Rowing lives on the bottom floor: go up the ramp and take the internal stairs down, or come straight down the external stairs when you arrive.
The boats
Our racing fleet is new and race weight: singles, doubles, pairs, quads and fours. You don’t need to bring anything.
Your coaches
The intensive is coached by Red Shed’s rowing team, who work with masters rowers through the year rather than treating masters as an afterthought between school seasons. You can meet our rowing coaches here.
What to wear and bring
Wear fitted, comfortable activewear you can move freely in, and avoid anything loose that can catch in the boat’s moving parts. Socks are essential, as shoes come off in the boats, and slip-on shoes make getting in and out easy. Bring runners as well, plus something you can do mobility work in.
Bring a water bottle, sunscreen and a hat, and a warm layer in the cooler months, since it’s always a few degrees cooler on the water. Canberra Saturday mornings are genuinely cold from May through September. If you use your own kit for rigging or measurement, bring it.
There are bathrooms on site with showers and hairdryers. Bring bathers and a towel if you plan to use the sauna or the plunge afterwards.
Your first hour
Arrive about fifteen minutes early so you can find us, meet your coaches and the other rowers, and get sorted before the warm-up starts. Every session is coached.
Easy Oar, our cafe, is right there for coffee beforehand, and it’s where people tend to end up afterwards.
Frequently asked questions
Do I need to be a fast rower?
No. The day is about improvement, not speed. What matters is that you’ve been rowing long enough to make use of technical feedback, which is roughly the twelve month mark, and that you’ve raced or plan to.
Can I come on my own?
Yes, and plenty do. Small boat sessions are matched by ability, so you’ll be rowing with people at your level.
Can my crew come together?
Yes, and it’s a good use of the day. Bring your combination and we’ll coach it as a crew.
How is this different from the 3 Day Performance Clinic?
The intensive is one Saturday morning: a technical service, a clear picture of what to fix, and a plan. The clinic is three days, which is enough time to actually change something rather than just identify it, and it includes the big boat row and the recovery and afternoons that make it a proper trip. Start with the intensive if you’re local or unsure. Do the clinic when you want the change to stick.
What if the weather turns?
Canberra mornings can be foggy and the lake can get windy. If conditions aren’t safe, the day moves to land: erg work, video review, rigging, mobility. It still runs and the content still lands.
Am I too old for this?
No. Masters rowing is one of the strongest parts of the sport, and this program exists specifically because masters rowers are too often coached as an afterthought. Ageing changes what you should train, not whether you should.
Do I need a membership?
No. The intensive is a program with a single fee, booked on its own. Black Mountain Rowing Club members and Red Shedders, get in touch before you book and we’ll sort out your discount.
Do I need to be a Black Mountain Rowing Club member?
No. It’s open to rowers from any club, and from anywhere.
What if I need to cancel?
Get in touch as early as you can. Cancellations and credits are handled under our terms and conditions, and all requests need to be in writing to info@redshed.org.au.
Is there parking?
Yes, on site and free.
What do I actually leave with?
Video of your rowing, a clear picture of what’s holding your boat speed back, changes to make to your rigging, and specific things to work on next.
After the day
Your coach will finish by talking through where you’re at and what to prioritise. From there, the options are the 3 Day Performance Clinic when you want to go deeper, private coaching to keep working on the same things one to one, or a Red Shedder Membership* if you want to train here regularly.
Plenty of rowers do the intensive once a season and treat it as a technical service. That’s a perfectly good way to use it.
Questions? Email us at rowing@redshed.org.au. If you’re not sure it’s the right fit, tell us about your rowing and we’ll give you an honest answer.