Featured Product

Bumpers!

All of our rowing electronic devices are high quality precision instruments. Protect your investment with custom-fitted rubber bumpers in an assortment of colors. They help to protect from everyday abuse while leaving all buttons, contacts, and the lanyard hole exposed. All new purchases of any NK electronic device will come with a protective bumper to match the color of the device, however we now have a wide variety of fun colors to customize your gear. Check out the full line of colors below - every bumper available is only $5!

• Personalize your gear — bumpers are available for NK's full line of rowing electronics.
• Protect your investment — bumpers protect against everyday boathouse abuse.
• Clean up your act — is your old bumper a grubby mess? Clean it up with a new bumper!
• Don't be naked — get a bumper for your equipment today!

*New additions to our line of colors are baby blue and maroon. They are now available for the SpeedCoach XL and will be available later this month for all other devices. Additionally, our pink bumpers benefit Breast Cancer Research, and for every purchase NK will donate $1 to support that organization.

Monthly Promotion

Free Shipping

This month at NK we're offering FREE SHIPPING on all orders of at least $199! Enter coupon code (case sensitive) JUNEFS when you check out from our web store or mention it when you call in your order.

Offer applies to any order placed between June 1 and June 30, 2009. Must enter/mention code to receive offer.

Guest Column

Wake Up… to the Danger of Wakes:

A Coxswain (and Sculler's) Guide

As a coxswain or a rower, we generally know what dangers await us on the water. Lightning storms rank high, as do motorboats. High wind can affect our safety, as can debris.

We worry about getting swamped by a wake, and most of us have experienced the cold splash of a too-high wave coming at us. Determined, we try to keep rowing through it, despite the blurring drops in the eyes and the water-greased grip on the oar handle. We groan and keep going. But what if it the danger of a wake is worse than that?

Wakes are potentially VERY hazardous for crew shells and rowers. If deep enough, the wake can snap a boat into at least two. The boat can be suspended in air, held at both ends by the water, with only air underneath. With no support, the boat cracks. Boat repair shops all over the US have gotten boats in two or even three pieces, as a result of a wake.

All coxswains and scullers need to know how to handle a wake. First, you need to be able to identify the potential for danger. Whether caused by weather or a motorboat, there are two parts to a wake: the crest (the top) and the trough (the bottom). If you can see both the trough and the crest at the same time and they are close together, you don't need to worry too much about the wake; it will likely roll through without seriously disrupting your row. Alert your rowers to prepare if they are about take a small wake.

If you see the trough is deep, you need to stop the boat and prepare to take the wake. You should not take a large wake perpendicular to your bow or stern: if the wake is large, the distance between two crests can snap a boat in half, as the middle of the boat will be suspended between the crests. You need to stop the boat immediately and turn the boat parallel to the wake if this is the case. If ever in doubt of the potential danger to crew or shell, stop and get the boat parallel to the wake.

Beginning in the late spring, through summer and extending into the early autumn, there is an increase in pleasure boat traffic. Other boaters often have little understanding of the impact their wake can have on your boat. It is imperative, as has been mentioned, to obey the traffic patterns and to consider staying closer to shore than powerboats can usually go. When you do get waked, the faster the boat is moving, the smaller the wake. Trouble can come from the boat that is going fast and suddenly slows down, but not quite soon enough, when they see you. This is more than likely to produce a much larger wake. If this happens, stop your crew as soon as you can, assess from which direction the wake is approaching, and get your boat parallel to the wake.

Row Safe. Cox Safe.

Laura Simon and Stew Stokes - Authors, The Coxswain Encyclopedia, (From the Rack to Racing) by Foundation for Rowing Education

Training Tip

Water Water Everywhere, But Not a

Drop to Drink

Socks? Check. SpeedCoach? Check. Butt Pad? Check. Hat & sunglasses? Check & check.

Most of us go through a quick checklist in our heads before we hit the water to make sure we've got everything we need. But as the summer creeps in and the sun beats down with increasing intensity, there's one key item that becomes critical in preparation for a good row: a good water bottle.

Proper hydration plays an enormous role in athletic performance. Yes, being severely under-hydrated can be dangerous - even deadly - but we should all know the dangers of the extreme cases by now. The more 'regular' impact of improper hydration is diminished athletic performance. Whether you're out for a recreational row a few mornings a week or you're training intensely for 5 hours a day, your performance is strongly dictated by how well hydrated you are.

The body's cells are predominantly water, and muscle fibers rely on water for proper acquisition of electrolytes and ATP (energy), and proper clearance of lactic acid. When you are even mildly dehydrated, your body's engine, so to speak, isn't firing on all cylinders and your performance suffers dramatically. A water bottle is a critical addition to every row, no matter how short or easygoing it is. The level of your workout should dictate the volume of the bottle you carry. The average person can lose upwards of 3% of their body mass in water over the course of a hard two hour practice. For a 200lb man, that's around 6 pounds, or 3/4 of a gallon. A 12 ounce bottle of water is NOT going to make up that difference!

Unfortunately, water is only half the story as far as body maintenance during a row. Sweat contains a significant amount of electrolytes, meaning minerals like sodium (Na+), potassium (K+), calcium (Ca+), and chloride (Cl-). These electrolytes are as critical as good old H2O in keeping the muscles firing at peak performance. In fact, intense sweating combated with water alone can lead to severe muscle failure. As a result, it's important to supplement your water supply with some form of electrolyte replacement. That can be in the form of a sports drink, an energy bar or gel, or even a granola bar between pieces.

The moral of the story is, as the summer heat revs up, so should your attention towards proper hydration. That means not only replacing the water lost by sweating, but also the critical electrolytes that your muscles need to function properly. Take a second to consider the workout length and intensity, the time of day and temperature, and your body size; all of these factors should dictate how much water and electrolyte replacement you carry with you. In the long run, it's a lot more important than a butt pad!

Patrick O'Dunne - Patrick has a degree in biochemistry and molecular biology and is an avid proponent of proper nutrition and hydration as a performance tool in sports.

And one final note from the green proponents at NK — Please get a BPA-free reusable water bottle and fill it each practice. The statistics on the environmental harm of disposable water bottles are staggering - roughly 1.5 million tons of plastic are expended in the bottling of 89 billion liters of water each year. Besides the sheer number of plastic bottles produced each year, the energy required to manufacture and transport these bottles to market severely drains limited fossil fuels. Significant amounts of precious water — the water you drink and row on — is being permanently trapped in partially full water bottles tossed into landfills, never to return to the natural water cycle. Aluminum, stainless, polypropylene or new-formula polycarbonate are all safe for you and better for the environment.

Introduction

Who is Patrick O'Dunne?

Patrick joined the NK family in May of 2009 as the Rowing Sales Manager. Patrick was on the Penn State rowing team from 1999-2003 and then trained at PennAC and the Princeton Training Center from 2003-2008. His national team experiences include rowing the pair at the 2005 World Championships, the 8+ at the 2007 World Championships, the pair and 8+ at the 2007 Pan Am Games, as well as representing the USA in numerous other international races.

Patrick graduated with a degree in biochemistry and molecular biology from Penn State in 2003 and quickly realized that research was not his passion. While training on the national team, he started a contracting/remodeling company and employed other teammates and Olympic hopefuls. He eventually happened into a sales and marketing position with a small company and helped to develop it into a nationally recognized entity. The sales experience he gained there along with his passion for rowing make him a great addition to the NK team.

Patrick and his trophy wife Ashley had their first child Maggie in 2008. He hopes that she'll eventually become involved with a sport that is more professionally lucrative than rowing - perhaps women's tennis, or maybe curling. Patrick loves the outdoors, physically challenging activities, carpentry, and cooking. Give him a call with questions about NK electronics or scratch-made biscuits!