After last week's plea for Top Tips, one came winging its way all across the Pacific. David C. Ireland from the USA came to our rescue this week with a Tip entitled Heart-Pace Match Point.There's a little game you can play on the rower if you have a heart rate monitor that's easy to read while rowing (like the one that connects to the monitor). It will also give you a measure of fitness that you can then work to improve.Not really a game, it's more like an observation. It seems there are certain conditions where your pace (seconds/500m) and heart rate (beats/minute) readings look a lot alike. For me, at various stroke rates, my pace looks the same as my heart rate. 1:58 pace at 158 beats/minute.A little reflection shows that the lower this match up occurs, the better shape you're probably in and/or the more efficiently you're rowing.This only makes sense under steady state conditions where you can see the same numbers for 5 minutes or more. If they don't match, lower your pace (go faster), and your heart rate is bound to rise. Ease off a little and down comes your heart rate. When they match that's your 'Heart-Pace Match Point'. Over the long term, this number should come down as your conditioning improves.Not everyone can do an under 2:00/500m pace at a heart rate of under 160. I can't always, either. So, you play around with the numbers a little, subtract or add 10 or 20 and just get the last digit to match. Most people can find a combination within their aerobic range that works.And then work it down. If you've got a Top Tip, don't hide it under a bushel, send it to [email protected] and let it roam free for the world to see.