A Brief History

By 1976, composite racing shells had been successfully manufactured for several years, but no one had made a composite oar. Several attempts failed to meet the criteria of performance and economics. Nonetheless, we felt there were significant advantages to be gained if a good composite oar could be developed. In 1977, after a series of prototypes, we produced our first composite oars. They were quickly accepted by the rowing world, and have become a standard for the industry.

From the beginning, one of the key features of Concept 2 Oars has been our component system of construction. This has allowed us to offer a wide range of specifications using a small number of standard parts, each of which is manufactured in optimal fashion. It has also allowed us to make improvements in oar design without making our older oars obsolete because improvements in individual components such as blade, sleeve or handle can be retrofitted. The ability to change parts is also useful when repairing damaged oars. Our design objective, from the start, has been to minimise the energy losses associated with oars. The four primary losses are: wind resistance, acceleration of oar mass, handling losses (i.e. crabs, poor releases, blade dragging on recovery), and work lost to the water through propulsive inefficiency. Features of Concept 2 Oars which help reduce these losses are:

Tubular shaft for decreased wind resistance
Low total weight and, more importantly, low rotational inertia
Ease of handling achieved by means of blade design and precision moulded sleeve and oarlock
Blade designs including Big Blade and Smoothie for improved propulsive efficiency
The Vortex Edge
New sleeve, collar and blade