Rowing · Body Angle at Legs-Down

Why this matters

This is the bum-shoot detector. The single most common rowing technique fault — across novices and intermediates alike — is the back swinging open before the legs finish driving. Visually, the hips travel back faster than the shoulders rise, so the body angle looks the same at legs-down as it did at the catch (good), or it has already opened past vertical (bad).

For a clean sequence, the body angle here should be the same as the catch — give or take 5°. If it has opened more than 5° toward vertical, the back has started its swing too early. The power has been transferred to the lumbar spine instead of staying in the hips, and the next thing to fatigue will be the lower back.

What good looks like

The torso is still pivoted forward, almost identical to the catch body angle. The arms are still straight. The handle is between knee and hip height. The hips have travelled back, the shoulders have travelled back at the same rate, and the body angle has been preserved.

Common faults

• Early opening (body angle < 10° from vertical) — bum shoot. Hips outran the shoulders. Often paired with the shoulders being noticeably ahead of the hips at the catch (slumped), with the back then snapping open to "catch up" during the drive.
• Body never opens at all (body angle still 25°+ at full layback) — the opposite fault: the back stayed locked through the entire drive, the finish will lack layback, and power was left at the back of the slide.

Coaching cues

• "Hold the body, drive the legs." A clear instruction that maps directly to this checkpoint.
• "Send the seat first." Gives the leg drive a target without letting the back come along.

Related measurements

• Body Angle at Catch — the reference value. Bum-shoot is best detected as a delta between these two.
• Shin Angle at Legs-Down — partner checkpoint. Both flag bum-shoot from different angles.
• Trunk at Handle-Past-Knees — the next sequencing checkpoint after this one.