What is a good 100m rowing time?

In this reference table, the overall average 100m time is 17.8. The page also shows age-by-ability ranges for male and female rows so you can compare your own log entries.

How should I use the tabs for Finish Time, Split, Watts, and Calories?

All four tabs are generated from the same finish-time matrix. 500m split is derived from finish time, then watts and calories per hour are calculated from that split for consistent comparisons.

How is 500m split calculated from a 100m result?

500m split is finish time multiplied by 500 divided by distance. For a 100m piece, split is five times the finish time.

How are watts and calories per hour calculated?

Watts use the Concept2 relation W = 2.8 / (splitSeconds / 500)^3. Calories per hour then use cal/hr = 300 + (4 x watts / 1.1639). Values are rounded to whole numbers.

What does the WR column represent?

WR in this page is the fastest reference value listed in the source table for each age row.

100m Row Times

Sprint rowing standards by age and ability.

What is a good 100m row time?

A good 100m time is 17.8. This is the average 100m time across all ages and genders. The fastest 100m time is 12.6.

Male 100m Rowing Times

A good 100m time for a man is 16.5. This is the average 100m time across men of all ages. The fastest 100m time rowed by a man is 12.6.

Average 100m row time by age and ability

Age

Age 30

Metric unit: seconds

Beginner

19.3

Novice

18.0

Intermediate

16.7

Advanced

15.4

Elite

14.4

12.7

Age	Beginner	Novice	Intermediate	Advanced	Elite	WR
10	24.0	22.3	20.7	19.2	17.9	15.8
15	21.3	19.8	18.4	17.1	15.9	14.1
20	19.9	18.5	17.2	15.9	14.8	13.1
25	19.6	18.2	16.9	15.7	14.6	12.9
30	19.3	18.0	16.7	15.4	14.4	12.7
35	19.2	17.8	16.5	15.3	14.3	12.6
40	19.4	18.0	16.7	15.5	14.4	12.8
45	19.6	18.2	16.9	15.7	14.6	12.9
50	19.8	18.4	17.1	15.8	14.7	13.0
55	20.0	18.7	17.3	16.0	14.9	13.2
60	20.9	19.4	18.0	16.7	15.6	13.8
65	21.7	20.2	18.8	17.4	16.2	14.3
70	22.6	21.1	19.5	18.1	16.9	14.9
75	23.5	21.9	20.3	18.8	17.5	15.5
80	24.7	23.0	21.3	19.8	18.4	16.3
85	27.5	25.6	23.7	22.0	20.5	18.1
90	30.2	28.1	26.1	24.2	22.5	19.9

Female 100m Rowing Times

A good 100m time for a woman is 21.0. This is the average 100m time across women of all ages. The fastest 100m time rowed by a woman is 15.1.

Average 100m row time by age and ability

Age

Age 30

Metric unit: seconds

Beginner

26.9

Novice

24.1

Intermediate

21.4

Advanced

19.1

Elite

17.0

15.4

Age	Beginner	Novice	Intermediate	Advanced	Elite	WR
10	30.6	27.3	24.3	21.7	19.4	17.5
15	28.9	25.9	23.0	20.5	18.3	16.5
20	27.9	25.0	22.2	19.8	17.7	16.0
25	27.5	24.6	21.9	19.5	17.4	15.7
30	26.9	24.1	21.4	19.1	17.0	15.4
35	26.6	23.8	21.2	18.8	16.9	15.2
40	27.8	24.8	22.1	19.7	17.6	15.9
45	27.5	24.6	21.9	19.5	17.4	15.8
50	27.3	24.4	21.7	19.3	17.3	15.6
55	27.7	24.8	22.1	19.7	17.6	15.9
60	31.1	27.8	24.8	22.0	19.7	17.8
65	32.6	29.2	26.0	23.1	20.7	18.7
70	33.7	30.1	26.8	23.9	21.3	19.3
75	35.7	31.9	28.4	25.3	22.6	20.4
80	37.9	33.9	30.2	26.9	24.0	21.7
85	48.7	43.6	38.8	34.5	30.9	27.9
90	59.6	53.3	47.4	42.2	37.8	34.1

What do the rowing abilities mean?

Beginner

Faster than 5% of rowers. A beginner rower has started rowing and has rowed for at least a month.

Novice

Faster than 20% of rowers. A novice rower has rowed regularly for at least six months.

Intermediate

Faster than 50% of rowers. An intermediate rower has rowed regularly for at least two years.

Advanced

Faster than 80% of rowers. An advanced rower has rowed for over five years.

Elite

Faster than 95% of rowers. An elite rower has dedicated over five years to become competitive at rowing.

More Distances

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Rate Your Row

Use the Rowing Performance Calculator to compare your latest effort and log progress over time.

Calculate Rowing Performance

Appendix: Conversion and Planning Notes

The tabs use one source finish-time table, then derive split, watts, and calories with transparent formulas for consistent logging comparisons.

Conversion Formulas

Split(500m) = Finish Time x (500 / Distance)

Power (W) = 2.80 / (splitSeconds / 500)^3

Calories/hour = 300 + (4 x Watts / 1.1639)

Example (100m finish 16.5)

Finish 16.5 (16.5 sec) to split 01:22.5 /500m to 623W to 2441 cal/hr

100m Finish	500m Split	Power (Watts)	Calories (per hour)
00:25.0	02:05.0	179W	915
00:20.0	01:40.0	350W	1503
00:18.0	01:30.0	480W	1950
00:15.0	01:15.0	830W	3152

Performance Calculator

Compare your result and planning metrics

Speed and Pace Calculator

Convert split, speed, and watts

What is a good 100m row time?

Male 100m Rowing Times

Average 100m row time by age and ability

Female 100m Rowing Times

Average 100m row time by age and ability

What do the rowing abilities mean?

More Distances

Rate Your Row

Appendix: Conversion and Planning Notes

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