Introduction

Our BioRow Biomechanical video analysis service allows many rowers and coaches to get professional advice on their rowing technique. It takes minimal time and effort from the customer and offers the best value for money in this area.

There are two types of this service:

1. Written feedback delivers a report with biomechanical analysis of your technique and recommendations for its improvement.
2. Audio-visual feedback allows you to communicate with us during an online session, where your video will be played frame-by-frame and commented on regarding the rowing technique. Also, basic biomechanical principles of effective technique could be explained and illustrated by using videos of the World’s best rowers, and your questions will be answered.

Both types of this service can be ordered independently, so you can book either written, audio-visual feedback, or both together.

How it works

After you purchase this service, you’ll receive a link, to which you can upload several videos of your rowing (see a guide for video formats below). Alternatively, you can send us a link to your online video storage. Optionally, you can also upload some brief information about the crew: age, height-weight, racing speed and erg scores, rigging numbers, etc. You can mention name(s) and nickname(s), if you want to see them in the report, but this is not compulsory (in the absence of a name the seat number will be used). Please send us a note after you’ve completed the uploading, indicating a suitable time(s) for an online session if you’ve ordered it.

After several days (usually, within 1-3 days, maximum a week) you’ll receive an e-mail with the report and/or a link to the online audio-visual session.

What you get in written report:

After we analyse your video using our biomechanical knowledge and experience, you will receive a report which explains the positive points of your technique and points to be improved. The volume depends on the boat type: usually, one page for small boats, two pages for big boats. The focus is on the following areas of your technique:

1. Rowing geometry: your body positions at the catch/finish and related stroke length, oar and body segments angles, etc.
2. Dynamics of your stroke cycle: drive and recovery rhythms, qualitative indication of your Catch and Finish Factors, etc.
3. Sequence of body segments during the drive and recovery, indirect indication of your Rowing Style Factor, etc.
4. Quality of your blade work: Catch and Release Slips, blade depth during the drive, squaring/feathering, “skying” the blade, etc.
5. Dynamics of your boat movement and overall efficiency estimation would tell you how much faster you can row with technical improvements.
6. Recommendations for your rowing technique improvement and advice on technical drills with references to videos of them, possible adjustment of your rigging numbers, etc.

Not necessarily all the above areas will be covered in each analysis, if some elements of your technique do not require specific attention (they may not be exceptional, but not a big problem either).

What you get with audio-visual feedback

During the session, video(s) of your rowing will be played in various modes (full speed, frame-by-frame) through a shared screen, and comments will be given on the key points of your technique. Basic biomechanical principles of effective technique could be explained and, if needed, illustrated by videos of the World’s best rowers. The online session has a flexible format, so you can ask your questions at any time you want. Finally, we give you a few recommendations on your technical improvement, the most appropriate technical drills, rowing gadgets, etc. The usual time of the online session would be up to half an hour for small boats (1x, 2x, 2-) and up to one hour for big boats (4x, 4-, 8+).

Prices for BioRow Online Video Analysis

Written Feedback

Report for a 1x                  £60

Report for 2x or 2-            £80

Report for 4x or 4-           £100

Report for 8+                   £120

Audio-visual Feedback

On-line feedback for a small boat (30 min)            £80

On-line feedback for a big boat (60 min)              £160

Data privacy statement

BioRow Ltd. treats all personal data you provided to us as strictly confidential. It will not be disclosed to any third party unless you give us written permission to do so. BioRow Ltd. may use it for our internal statistics and research, where no personal details will be used or published.

More information:

Guide for video formats & examples

Your video at racing stroke rates is the most essential for the analysis. Training stroke rates 18-24spm can also be useful for a complete picture, but not compulsory.

It is recommended to use a camcorder to take your video rather than a smartphone, because the first has better optical zoom and image stabilisation. The main and compulsory part is a side-view video from a position perpendicular to the boat axis (Fig.1-2). You can also send us an optional front-view video from the stern position (Fig.3) and/or 45deg angle, or similar. Please keep the number of clips up to 2-4 with no more than 5-6 strokes each. If you took a longer video, use a video editor to cut the most essential part of it.

Please hold your camera horizontally, when you take the video. On-screen guidelines (grids) may help you to do this: align them or screen borders with the water level or the boat lines. Zoom your camera to see the blades at both the catch and finish close to the borders of the screen, do not zoom too close or too far. You can take video either from a launch or from the shore. In the latter, try to be not too close to the rower, at least 30-50m away, to make viewing angle more consistent, and pan the camera to keep the rower in the frame. Slightly elevated point of view would help to observe more details and to see both blades, which is especially helpful in sweep rowing.

Video specifications:

Acceptable video formats:

MP4 (preferable), AVI, MPG, MOV, WMV, FLV, 3GP, MKV, VOB, MOD, TOD.

Video codecs

DV, DivX, Xvid, H.264, MJPEG, Theora.

Image properties

Deinterlace, 4:3 or 16:9

Frequency: from 25 to 60 fps

Resolution: from 640x480 to 1920x1080 ppf

See examples of video frames below:

Fig. 1. Example of side-view video at catch

Fig. 2. Example of side-view video at finish

Fig. 3. Example of front-view shot

Example of the report