Crystal Blue tour rowing in Austria

In 2016, the World Rowing Tour was held in Austria’s Salzkammergut region, a UNESCO World Heritage Site, from 25 June to 3 July. The region stretches from the City of Salzburg eastwards along the Austrian Alpine Foreland and the Northern Limestone Alps to the peaks of the Dachstein Mountains, spanning the federal states of Upper Austria, Salzburg, and Styria.

“The theme of the tour was Crystal Blue,” explains Warwick Marler, member of FISA’s Rowing for All Commission. This reflected the different hues of the six lakes of the Salzkammergut that the tour participants rowed on, including: Altaussee, Wolfgangsee, Traunsee, Attersee, Mondsee and Hallstättersee. The average rowing distance covered each day was 26km, with the longest stretch being 50km on the Attersee.

On one of the days, the participants visited Halstatt village, known for its production of salt that dates back to prehistoric times, and instead of rowing, visited its salt mine and ice cave.

“The food and hospitality were outstanding, and, as always, the camaraderie was very special,” says Marler. On one evening, many of the participants donned traditional dress.

“The 2016 World Rowing Tour in Austria was a great success,” says Marler, member of FISA’s Rowing for All Commission. “We had 63 participants from 14 countries.” The country with the most representation was Switzerland, with 14 participants, followed by the United States with 11 participants.

The average age of the rowers taking part was 63 years of age, with a nearly equal representation of both men and women. Many of the participants had already taken part in more than one Tour, with some celebrating their tenth participation.

It is protocol during the tour that that all participants row with a different crew every day. Apart from the captain, they should not row in the same boat as anyone else from their country and everyone in the boat should take turns coxing. Going on the world rowing tour is, in large part, socialising with the world through rowing.