[THE FOLLOWING MATERIAL IS UNDER DEVELOPMENT AND PROVIDED FOR COMMENT ONLY. IT IS NOT FOR USE OR ATTRIBUTION.]
The term “scholastic rowing” refers here to rowers under the age of eighteen, in racing shells, rowing with school or club teams, and is intended to embrace the legal connotations of underage minors.
In this context there are two distinctly different areas of risk associated with scholastic rowing. The first involves the physical and emotional development of young rowers; the second regards the social, ethical, and legal implications of rowing coaches and adult supervisors for scholastic rowing activities.
Elementary & Middle School
Pre-teens often develop the physical strength and coordination to row and in some states can also be licensed to drive motorized boats before the age of thirteen (which raises obvious safety issues.) Few among us would argue that they have the same experience and judgment of older boaters.
It is important to note, however, that pre-teens may have the physical skills to row and that their safety depends largely on their adult supervision.
Junior and Senior High School
At junior and senior high school levels, many teens have the basic physical capabilities of adults. However, a growing body of research in neuropsychology is emerging on the underlying science of increased risk-taking during these developmental years. Teenagers, particularly boys, often take risks with a cognitive sense of the illogic of their actions. Some risks may be taken because of inexperience: the odds, or the consequences, aren’t fully understood. Other risks may be taken, however, with a cognitive appreciation that they are stupid; i.e., at odds the person’s understanding of the decision. An example of this might be a person who dives into a lake not knowing the depth of the water, while they might argue (under other circumstances) that one should never dive into a lake without knowing the depth of the water.
This developmental attitude towards risk-taking coupled with the physical development of many teenagers creates a particular environment of risk which is enhanced by the drives of competition.
Collegiate Rowing
For the most part, collegiate rowing lies outside the technical boundaries of this discussion both because teenagers who would be regarded as legal minors if they were rowing in high-school are regarded as “emancipated minors” when the enter college, and because we presume that colleges maintain a higher level of safety awareness than schools and clubs (although we also recognize there are glaring exceptions on both sides of this equation.)
Legal Considerations
In general, there is a legal distinction between adults and minors; those of age to assume the adult responsibilities of participation in public affairs and the ability to enter into contracts, and those under the age of consent and responsibility. The details vary widely from state to state and in different applications, but there general concept is virtually universal: adults must be responsible for the safety and well-being of underage minors under their care. This creates a substantial, if ill-defined, responsibility for any adults supervising scholastic rowers, regardless of whether they are university faculty, high-school coaches, or volunteers are youth rowing clubs.