Earning the right to be considered a Master

I was talking to a friend who does not row… yet! (yes, I still have some of those…. more recruiting work needed). I had just mentioned that I was training for a “Masters” rowing competition. Her eyes opened big; “Oh, I did not realize that you were THAT good!” I smiled (yes, I could remember making the same assumption before I knew better), and after taking a brief moment to bask in the glory of that comment, I clarified to insure I was given the proper credit: “you know, being called a Master it’s actually a matter of age, anybody who rows past the age of 26 is called a Master Rower”. I just learned from other competitive athletes that different sports bestow the Masters “title” based on other specific age limits. So, this made me think, is being a Master really just a matter of age? Upon further reflection, I think that I might have needed to add something else to my previous statement.

Among many things I learned during my rowing years is the appreciation for “aging gracefully”, which for me is not so much about acceptance of aging, but about living at its fullest no matter what your age is. When registering for a competition we all have to disclose our age, which may feel uncomfortable in the beginning. Then, if you look around, you will most likely think: “wow, are these people really the age they said they were?!?” They all look so much younger and fitter than what you would normally expect for someone at that age. You may think: why would anybody in their right mind say they were older?!? Well, when competing, being older has its benefits. There are different age categories or, if needing to compete directly against younger people, one’s age is recognized by awarding them a time handicap.

I still remember one particular 5 km head race. In such races, rowers are released through the start ("chute") one by one, like beads on a string. Each one seems to compete only against themselves, although if people who started after you are catching up and passing you, you can pretty much expect that their time will better than yours. So, in this race, I passed several people and by the time I finished I could still not see on the horizon any of the rowers who started after me. I pretty much expected to win the race. Yet, when the results were posted, I saw that my time (of twenty something minutes) was bettered by a tenth of a second (!!!) by a woman significantly older than me. And I never saw her or this coming: her handicap was of almost two minutes… My initial shock turned into awe. I actually felt very inspired by it: wow, she really deserved to win! I could only hope that I would pull a race like this in twenty years! She actually looked for me to congratulate me, then she said smiling: “well, a tenth of a second it’s less than a breath. Next time, don’t you waste even a second thinking before you pull your oars because…. I’ll be right behind you!” We became instant friends.

So, yes, you may need to be of a “certain age” or experience to qualify for being called a Master, but in sports as in life, you have to stay on top of your game to earn the right of actually being considered one.