Mixed Ability at Ross Rowing Club
One in Six people live with a disability.
Some rowers and non rowing members have disabilities at RRC, and we are proud that everyone is welcome and enjoys our sport, our club and our environment.
Interested?
Email our coordinator at marsstars@rossrowingclub.co.uk
Health inequalities related to disabilities remain stark . Removing barriers to physical activity has physical and mental health improvements for everyone involved and there are many benefits offered by MIXED ability (rather than disability) sport.
Rowing has a strong club culture where members support each other and regularly connect off the water, reducing loneliness, improving self-esteem and a sense of belonging. Beyond providing regular healthy exercise, rowing on the River Wye in our Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty, improves mindfulness and mental health, while interacting with crew mates provides lasting social bonds.
The Wye is a natural watercourse which rises and falls. This means boats are carried up and down steps. These concerns focus on mobility impaired people, whereas in reality, there is a broad spectrum of (dis)abilities that can be accommodated.
Club members include those with:
• Cerebral Palsy
• Hearing impairment
• Visual impairment
• Diabetes
• Chronic musculoskeletal problems
• Immunological disorders
• Cancer
• Depression, anxiety and bipolar disorder
We also have club members dealing with other inequalities:
• Economic hardship
• Bereavement and isolation
• Minority ethnicity
For those who do not want to row on the water there is the gym, and non-rowing roles such as boat maintenance, driving launches, towing trailers, serving drinks, making cakes or mowing lawns.
Mixed Ability Rowing at Ross-on-Wye
Mixed ability sessions will be twice a week, including people with and without disabilities, beginners and old hands.
This is not hard competitive training, although people that wish to extend themselves physically can do so in other sessions. This is about having fun, making friends, enjoying supporting others and feeling welcome in a club and sport that you might not have considered before in order to improve physical and mental health.
The standard of rowing is less important than the level of satisfaction and health improvement.
In the case of poor outdoor conditions, Mixed Ability team training in the club gym.
We started by forming a small team of people with and without disabilities in Sept 2022, and we have gone out into the community to meet other people with disabilities, and invited them to join us.