INTRODUCTION: Hannah Glucksman analyzes information in her work as a biomedical engineering major. She does a different type of analysis when she settles into the racing shell. She is the coxswain, the person who communicates strategy and other information to the rowers.

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When did you first become involved in rowing?
I started rowing in eighth grade. 
 
What attracted you to it?
I started rowing because my family is athletic, and my parents really wanted to me do a sport.  I tried a whole bunch of different sports in elementary and middle school, but never found one that I stuck with for more than a few months.  My mother wanted me to start running with her, but I did not have the knees for that.  So, I decided to try a sport that I could technically sit down for. 
 
There was a boat house down the street to the school that I went to middle and high school and one day they were having an Open House where you could come and try out rowing in their large training boat.  As soon as we left the dock, Brown University's rowing team came racing down the river.  Watching all their boats racing next to each other, feeling that exciting energy, seeing how cool it looked with all the members of the boat moving together is what got me hooked on the sport.
 
At home in Cranston, RI, did you usually row on the Providence River? Where else?
In high school, I just rowed at the Narragansett Boat Club on the Seekonk River in Providence. 
 
With the Narragansett Boat Club how often did you go to Cambridge to row on the Charles River?
I only raced in the Head of the Charles Regatta once during my senior year of high school, but I have gone to watch the race and support my teammates for many years.  I raced at a few other smaller races on the Charles River throughout high school. 
 
When you rowed with the Novice 8s at UR and then advanced to the Varsity 4, were you a rower or a coxswain?
I rowed in both the Novice 8 and Varsity 4 during my freshman year. Counting high school, I rowed for six years, and then I started coxing my sophomore year (at UR).  I had an injury that forced me to stop rowing but since I wanted to stay with the sport, I started coxing. 
 
What skills do you need as a successful coxswain?
I think that one of the most important skills would be communication.  I need to be able to communicate with the rowers in my boat on what the drill is, what they need to work on, and to be the point person between coaches and the rowers. 
 
The steering in boats also can take a while to get used to.  How fast the boat is going effects how long it takes to turn or come to a stop, and for me, it just took time and experience to figure those out. 

As the race proceeds, what tactical decisions are you making and how do you communicate those to the rowers?
Like in NASCAR Racing, you want to get the inside turn, so in some races there is some strategy to the steering.  If we are trying to pass another boat, I will usually call out what seat I am passing in the coxswain seat.  This lets the rowers know how well we are doing against the other boat and helps give the motivation to keep up the power to get past the competition. 
 
In any rowing race, it is a moving start, isn't it? That puts more responsibility on your shoulders to time the arrival at the starting line just as they blow the horn to begin.
For most Spring races, you get lined up with the other boats and someone at the sidelines makes sure that everyone is in line.  It can be a stressful time because if someone is taking too long, it is likely that other boats will then get un-aligned. You get all hyped up to race, to then just sit there to 10 minutes while everyone gets ready. 
 
If this was another sport, it might be called a 'game plan'. What kinds of strategic decisions are made before a race?
During different points in a race, like at the sprint finish at the end, that it is important to kick it to a higher gear.  There are many different types of calls that help the boat get fast for those parts, and before a race I talk with all the rowers in the boat to know what they want to hear to finish the race strong. 
 
The races in the Fall are longer (5k meters) than Spring races (2k meters long), and the strategy for the different lengths is very different.  For Fall races, it has a rolling start, so it feels like just your boat vs time.  Since these races can take 20 to 30 minutes depending on conditions, the rowers need to apply enough pressure throughout the race to go fast enough, but also need to keep enough energy to finish strong.  It is import as a cox to keep the rowers motivated throughout the long race.  For Spring races, it only takes about 6 to 8 minutes.  Since those races are so much shorter, rowers must put pressure on for every single stroke.  The Spring races are also more competitive because you are right next to the other boats and you can see how well you are doing compared to the competition.   
 
Are there course markings that tell you how close you are to the finish? Or do you have to calculate that based on how quickly the shell is moving and how long you have been on the water?
Most races have buoys at the ¼, ½, and ¾ marks.  In high school, I mostly raced in boats without a cox and those buoys were the main way that I could tell how much more I had left in the race.  Now as a cox, I have a device called a cox-box that hooks up the boat that tells me exactly how many meters are left, and how fast the rowers are moving which helps me give accurate information to rowers about how much they have left in a race. 
 
When you are home, do you work with any youth programs – coaching, counseling, working behind the scenes, etc.? What do you like about doing that?
I have not had the opportunity to formally coach.  However, as a cox with a lot of rowing experience, I have help coach the novice rowers.  At indoor practices, the other coxes and I lead most of the pieces and drills, and for practices on the water, we make sure all the supplies are out the ready to go while the rowers are warming up. 
 
What led you to the University of Rochester?
In high school, I knew what I wanted in a college.  I wanted to study biomedical engineering at a small-medium sized school in the Northeast with a town or city nearby that also had a serious Division 3 rowing program.  There are not very many schools that fit that description, and out of all the schools I visited, the UR was my favorite and had the best BME program. 
 
Why did you choose Biomedical Engineering as your major?
I did two engineering camps at Brown University and was on the robotics team while I was in high school and I really enjoyed those experiences.  My favorite classes in high school were art and science, and I think that engineering is a combination of those two subjects.  I then chose BME because biology was my favorite science class.
 
Are you involved in any campus groups tied to your studies?
I am a member of the Society of Women Engineers, and I am helping to start a BME Undergraduate Journal Club that will formally begin next year.