This guide describe how participants should sign up for events and what events they are eligible to sign up for. RowPorty uses a web-based system called Spond to organise events. Guidance for rota makers is covered elsewhere.
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Getting Started
If you are using a web browser initially, send an email to a RowPorty administrator Miranda Harvey – with your name and contact details. Miranda will welcome new rowers / members, inviting them to join PSKC (if they haven’t already) and the Spond system (necessary for club communications). MC Somers ad/or Michael Allsop will then do the necessary to add them to Spond.
Important FAQs
Why am I on the Waiting List?
The rota maker, not Spond, decides who is in a crew taking account of factors like experience as well as order of sign-up. For some reason, Spond randomises the order of the Going list, but preserves the sign-up order in the Waiting List. In order to preserve the sign-up order, the rota maker will have set the number of places to 1 or 5, after which people goes onto the Waiting List. However the number of potential boats and crews may be significantly more than this, so please ignore the “event full” message.
App or Web Browser
Spond is available either via a web interface or via an app (Android and iOS). If Spond thinks you have the app, it sends notifications – otherwise it it sends emails. As a user, you can’t configure this behaviour, although you can switch off notifications.
Personal Data
Every user must have a Spond profile, much of which is visible to every other user. The only data that must be entered are your name and email – everything else seems to be optional, although it’s wise to enter a birth date which indicates you are over 18 (there’s no requirement to be truthful though).
Eligibility
- Non-members and members – one free trial Sunday Social Row (T)
- Members – R1-3 Sunday Social Rows only
- Members – R4+ any social or training row
Please use the web-based self-assessment document to help you decide on your readiness to progress to other social or training rows. You are welcome to row on Sunday mornings for as long as you wish and please ask advice from your cox/coach if you are unsure about moving on.
Self-assessment document can be found here.
Signing Up for an Event
To sign up for an event, select the event from the list. Then select “Going” or “Waiting List” – either may be displayed.
It is likely that the event will state there are only 5 places available or even only 1 place. This does not correspond to the actual number of places available, which might be 5, 10 or 15 depending on the number of boats going out. (It is necessary to impose an artificial limit to work around an unfortunate “feature” of Spond, which randomises the sign-up order on the Going list.)
Members of PSKC and Newcomers to RowPorty should indicate this using the codes R1 (first row after trial row) through to R5 (fifth row). When signing up to an event, they should put this information into an event comment.
If there is some important information that needs to be taken into account, e.g. you cannot row after a certain time, you should indicate this in the comments under the event. Please note that when you sign up for an event, whether on the Going List or the Waiting List, you are committing yourself to row and if you don’t turn up there will be four disappointed people on the beach.
At some point before the scheduled date/time, e.g. the night before, the rota maker will publish the rota as a comment under the event. It is your obligation to check the rota to see what time you are rowing.
Changing Your Sign-up
If after signing up you find you must drop out, then you can change your RSVP to “decline”. If the rota has been issued, you must contact the rota maker, e.g. by posting a comment on the event thread.
Duplicate Threads
Spond allows anyone to create new posts and to comment on existing posts. New posts can be useful but create the risk of duplicate threads carrying information, some of which will inevitably be overlooked. Therefore always, if possible, post comments on the event thread, not a new thread.
Notifications
If Spond thinks you are using the app, you will get notifications in the app – if not notifications are sent as emails. The defaults cause a large number of notifications, so it is best to tuen some or all notifications off.
You can change the general notification settings in your Spond profile, but it my be more useful to set notifications on an event by event basis, e.g. you can say you do not want any notifications about 50+ race training if you are not in that age group. To do this, open the event, select “More” and select “Stop push notifications”.
Further Informtion
Further information on using Spond is available at https://get.spond.help/
For help specific to RowPorty, then contact an admin, e.g.
- Larry Foster
- Michael Reville
- Malcolm Stewart
Prospective members and novices should contact:
Last updated: 27 April 2021
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