Some coaches like to see a long catch angle and others feel a particular finish angle is more important and an inexperienced coach of course may not really consider either method when setting a crew in the boat.  It’s difficult to build a clear picture of how you wish your crews to row from crew to crew and year to year if you do not have a standard to work to  so it’s wise for an  inexperienced coach to become familiar with what these measurements really mean and how they impact on a crews technique.

We see ‘back choc’ measurements on boats ranging from 52 to 66cm which cover schoolgirls up to National men’s crews which would suggest a very varied finish angle to the stroke is being rowed by some crews. It’s most likely an emphasis on catch angle is being followed, in line with present day thinking, by the crews who cannot achieve the desired  90 degree arc length for them to be working to a 52cm ‘back choc’ setting. The coach may have determined this works well from experience but it does have implications on technique and oar handling in certain conditions.