Reaching the top is hard; staying there is harder. Lightweight scullers Peter Taylor and Storm Uru fell victim to that truism last year and readily take the blame for their fall.
Taylor admits that a degree of 'paralysis by analysis' was a contributing factor towards a disappointing end to 2010, where they failed to defend their world title on home waters. After a stirring gold medal in Poland in 2009 the events at Lake Karapiro were anti-climactic, with the Kiwi duo having to settle for bronze, trailing winners and 2008 Olympic champions Zac Purchase and Mark Hunter by almost five seconds.
Although injuries disrupted their preparation - Taylor had wrist surgery two months before the event - the die had been cast earlier as the team made changes to a previously successful approach.
"After 2009 we became too picky," reflects Taylor. "We started to worry about little details - we were analysing everything to find a few extra seconds instead of looking at why we had got to the top."
The 27-year-old Taylor says things became over-complicated. There was a lot of time spent on style over substance and they became controlled and rigid.
"We went away from the core principles of rowing that had served us so well," says Taylor. "We thought we had to find more improvement - and searched everywhere to find it - instead of just sticking to the basics. I guess we lost a bit of that raw aggression and dogged determination that we had always had."
Then when Taylor did return to the boat after his surgery, the truncated buildup meant they lost precision.
"We tried too hard to push the boat instead of working with it," says Taylor. "Things never clicked and it never felt smooth. I guess we lost our touch a little."
Taylor and Uru reverted to a back-to-basics approach last summer. They spent a significant amount of time in single sculls, pushing each other to the limit in heavy endurance sessions along Lake Karapiro. Taylor describes "hellish" 15km races, where the duo took themselves to breaking point.
"It is normal for us to bash each other in training," says Taylor, "and grind each other into the ground. You are hoping the other person breaks before you do and it definitely makes you tougher."
Taylor estimates that they will have just three days off over the next three months as the New Zealand squad compete in World Cup events in Hamburg (concluding tomorrow) and Lucerne (July 8-10) before the world championships in Bled, Slovenia (August 28- September 4).
Taylor and Uru race in one of the most competitive classes, with the weight restrictions (their combined weight must be 140kg or less) meaning the power output across the crews is similar and the margins are extremely close. The British pair of Purchase and Hunter will again be the ones to beat in Europe, while Taylor is also wary of the Italian, German and French combinations.
"We are very positive," says Taylor.
"We have turned things around since the world champs and are ready to get back to the top."
Taylor and Uru were set to race in the semi final last night.
Rowing: Pair fight for the top
Men's lightweight double scullers Peter Taylor and Storm Uru. Photo / Christine Cornege
