Rowing: Hamish homes in on golden future

Men's pair Eric Murray, left, and Hamish Bond on Lake Karapiro. Photo / Getty Images

Rower Hamish Bond knows the meaning of the word "sacrifice". That can surely be the only reason why he's shovelling in a tin of cold baked beans with gusto on the shores of Lake Karapiro.

The strained look on his face suggests Bond is hardly revelling in the task. But down they go, in heaped viscous orange spoonfuls, before he heads back to slog out another series of kilometres on the water with men's pair crewmate Eric Murray.

Coach Dick Tonks is keeping an eye and a voice out for them, brandishing his trusty megaphone in a boat alongside.

The duo is probably New Zealand's second best medal hope in Olympic class boats at August's world championships in Poland, next to single sculler Mahe Drysdale.

They've emerged from the 2007 world championship-winning men's four who failed to make last year's Olympic final. Previous crewmates Carl "Bootcamp" Meyer and James Dallinger have taken sabbaticals. George Bridgewater and Nathan Twaddle, the bronze medallists in Beijing, have done likewise, thus creating the space.

It's Bond's fourth season with the elite squad and he says while Meyer may have disappeared for the time being, his work ethic remains.

"Carl set high expectations in our training and now they're my own expectations. Eric's much the same. Dick's also big at putting responsibility onto the athlete. Although he'll set the programme there's no cajoling along. You've really got to put in the effort and I think we've responded well."

Tonks knows they're capable, given their training times have been comparable to Drysdale.

"They were the only two sweep-oar rowers left standing post-Olympics really. They've done some exceptional times, especially over 1000 metres, so we're looking at them medalling in their first year as a pair," he said.

Murray agrees it's a realistic prospect when you compare their performances so far to those of Bridgewater and Twaddle who medalled at all but one event they entered in the last four years.

"We're basing our speed on what they were doing and we're going a little bit quicker. We've got to take that confidence into the racing overseas and see where we get from there."

However the season has come with some glitches. Bond has been cross-training out of the boat about three weeks of the last 12, either on a bike of a rowing machine.

"The ribs were getting jammed up around my right shoulder and I had a bit of a stress fracture there for a while - that's the x-word in rowing, I guess. But I've managed it quite well, just learning what limits I can push to - and then I've got to back off and do something different for a few days."

Bond is no stranger to the bike these days after his seventh in the Lake Taupo Cycle Challenge over summer.

"I can train quite effectively on it; I've learnt that over the last couple of years. Obviously it's a similar sort of thing to rowing, being leg based, but it's basically about trying to get my heart rate up to try to match the workload everyone is doing on the water."

Murray's also had his difficulties, like deciding whether he should come back after five seasons in the elite ranks.

"I was wanting a brea ... and my wife was too. Then Bondy came with the offer to do it and I knew we'd gone well when we used to get into pairs at training. "

Training has been more stressful on their bodies under the intensity of Tonks. They say because the pair boat's a bit slower than the four, more effort goes into propelling it.

"We realise the heavier training has worked for Dick's crews in the past, and maybe my niggles are a sign of that, but it's helped get us up to speed and put out competitive numbers," said Bond.

Post-Olympic year, when some athletes opt out for a breather, is also a motivation for Bond to trouble the metal detectors when he checks in his rucksack later in the year.

"The Australian Olympic champions won't be there, they're quite old fellas but the French and British crews have come out of Olympic medal-winning fours, so they'll be competitive. The British just won the first World Cup in Banyoles, Spain. Hopefully we can go over there and give them a nudge. I'd be disappointed if we weren't pushing them come season's end."