Justin Rodriguez started rowing for our Manhattan program as a high school freshman. Justin’s childhood friend was a Row New Yorker and urged him to try out so they could become teammates. Like many of our athletes, Justin had never seen a rowing shell, didn’t know what a stroke looked like, nor had any idea that he was about to make a years-long commitment. But he trusted his friend so he tried out. Unsurprisingly, Justin fell in love with the sport and the team!
Now you’ll catch Coach Justin leading the Manhattan Varsity team alongside his former coach, Ricky. To this day, Justin’s former V8+ crew supports each other by staying in touch almost daily. That this support system is still as strong as ever is one of Justin’s most powerful takeaways from his experience at Row New York. Now as a coach, Justin strengthens the teams’ bonds so they love and respect each other as much as Justin’s former teammates still do.
Justin instills love and respect as fundamental team values, but growth and progress are also a huge priority. Coach Justin insists that he learns just as much from his athletes as they learn from him. He believes that each practice is a learning experience and an opportunity to become a better coach.
Without a doubt, Justin’s athletes have absorbed this attitude. Justin describes one of his first rewarding “coach moments” as one when an athlete expressed his appreciation for a technical change that Justin pointed out. The young man told Justin that he felt so much stronger and faster after he made the small suggested change. After the interaction, Justin was proud of the athlete’s attitude and proud of his own ability to directly impact his athletes’ speed.
Justin knows motivation can be hard to muster, especially now in the thick of winter training. He teaches his athletes that it’s just fine to take a step back if they need to. But, when they’re ready to step up, they have to remember that their teammates are training hard right alongside them, working together to become better rowers, students, and teammates.
