When the Connecticut River where the Dartmouth men's crew tream trains in warmer months is covered in ice, Big Green rowers take to an indoor machine called the ergometer, or erg, to practice and test their speed. Lightweight rower Josh Konieczny '13 recently broke the Dartmouth record for the 2,000-meter distance the standard distance at indoor competitions on the erg with a time of 6:13.4, according to Konieczny.
"Rowers are notoriously leery of sharing scores and reported scores may or may not be their best," Konieczny said. "But from what is posted, I am the fastest."
Lightweight coach Dan Roock said in an e-mail to The Dartmouth that Konieczny's erg time was "very good," although he said he was unsure whether Konieczny set a new Big Green record.
The winter season allows rowers to showcase their strength on ergs, giving them a chance to post impressive times away from the conflicts of water training and multi-team regattas.
"When I was a freshman so three years ago there were a few under the 6:20 mark, which is a pretty good milestone," captain Phil Henson '11 said. "But no one has been near Josh's record in a while."
Konieczny's time now likely ranks among the best in the national lightweight rowing community, he said.
The top-posted time for a collegiate lightweight rower at C.R.A.S.H.-B an event often regarded as the top indoor rowing competition in the world was 6:15.0, recorded by Harvard University senior captain Will Newell.
The C.R.A.S.H.-B competition was held at Boston University's Agganis Arena in late February.
"C.R.A.S.H.-B is in a big arena," Henson said. "Pretty well attended event, and arguably the biggest indoor rowing event in the country."
Dartmouth hosts its own mock version of the competition called C.R.A.S.H.-D where Konieczny secured his record-breaking time. The event is the one of the few occasions when the entire Dartmouth boathouse the men's heavyweight and lightweight squads and the women's crew team compete together.
The event is similar to C.R.A.S.H.-B 10 to 15 rowers compete in a "flight," each of which has a 15-minute time slot. The flights run for approximately 2.5 hours and are mixed to include members of all three squads.
Dartmouth did not send rowers to compete at C.R.A.S.H.-B because the team believes it trains more effectively at its own event, according to Henson.
"The winter is about physiology, how much power can you produce," Konieczny said. "In the spring more technique goes into it."
Konieczny, who grew up on a farm in Milbury, Ohio, said he was attracted to Dartmouth's rural setting.
Konieczny said he enjoyed the work ethic of rowing, which he said emphasizes the value of hard work more than many other popular sports. Konieczny is in his sixth year of competitive rowing.
"As long as you work hard, you see the results," he said. "This summer I have been looking into the [Under-23] National Team."
Henson and Konieczny said that while Konieczny's erg time is an exciting marker, indoor results do not always indicate success in the spring season.
"In this case, his training is not really a fluke," Henson said. "Everyone on the team has been getting faster and it is really nice to have somebody that fast on the team."
The team will travel to Tennessee during spring break, when it will try different boat configurations to match the best combinations of rowers, Konieczny said.
"I am one guy out of eight on the boat," he said. "The score is only important if it contributes to the speed of the boat."
Henson said Konieczny's erg time is demonstrative of the team's overall improvement.
"[Konieczny] is very hardworking and sets a good example for some of the other guys," Henson said. "Especially the freshmen, who look up to him as a varsity rower."
Konieczny echoed Henson's belief in the team's future success, adding that the Big Green is on an up-swing. The team graduated only a handful of seniors last season, according to Konieczny.
"Especially at the top, it is more competitive now," Konieczny said. "We have people pushing each other."
While sometimes less enjoyable than training in the warm spring weather, the winter season serves as vital practice, Konieczny said.
"It is nice to see things like Josh's great result and it sort of reignites the spark of motivation," Henson said. "The team this year is particularly motivated group of people and it does not take much to get us working hard."
