steady state podcast

From indoor rowing, to flat water masters, to coastal and ocean adventurers - together we explore rowing culture.

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SPECIAL SERIES

heart health & Emergencies

Only a handful of rowing clubs around the world cater specifically to the lesbian, gay, bi, transgender, questioning and ally community. In Part 1 of our Pride month special, we introduce you to leaders at DC Strokes Rowing Club and the Melbourne Argonauts Queer Rowing Club who talk with us about rowing and the gay rights movement in the 1990s, safe spaces, and why this part of the diversity issue is still relevant today.
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Chicago Rowing Union (CRU) is the Midwest's only LGBTQ+ rowing organization, and one of just a few such clubs in the world. CRU member and social media manager Michael Toutloff talks with us about the importance of safe spaces and being yourself, finding community and competition on the water, and proudly flying the flag at regattas.
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GENDER INCLUSION POLICIES

Dr. Mary O’Connor was a member of the influential 1976 Yale women’s rowing program that sparked big changes following the passage of Title IX. Today, she’s a member of the Independent Council on Women’s Sports – an advocacy group “seeking to elevate and empower female athletes by protecting safety, fairness, and opportunity for girls and women.”
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In this second episode in a special series on gender identity policies in rowing, we talk with Ann Strayer, OLY, Varsity Women’s Coach at Oakland United Rowing. Together with fellow OUR coach and Olympian Erin Cafaro they have written a letter in support of USRowing’s gender identity policy, highlighting the importance of welcoming transgender and non-binary scholastic athletes into the boathouse, and allow them to row as the gender they identify with.
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Gender Identity Policies series, part 3. Kevin Harris’s coaching career began in the early 1990s and culminated with 20+ years at the helm of the University of Tulsa women’s rowing program. Harris offers an in-depth and thought-provoking perspective on DEI, the importance of boathouses as welcoming spaces, the prevalence of transgender and non-binary rowers in the United States, and gender inclusion policies.
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Gender Identity Policies series, part 4. The current USRowing gender inclusion policy leaves transgender, non-binary, and other gender nonconforming rowers with very few opportunities to race. Non-binary rower Dr. David Scherzer, and transgender rower/coach Bobbi Kizer, PhD explore their personal journeys with the sport and what policies and petitions mean for the future of rowing.
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pride

Willamette Rowing Club couple David Setter and Sarah Copeland are enthusiastic about having learned to row as adults and use the word "fun" to describe their rowing life way more than anyone else we've can think of. But one day in 2018, David had a heart attack. Together, David and Sarah recount that day and why he survived, and delve into recovery and returning to the boat. We also come to terms with erg splits going up as we get older and talk about learning to enjoy rowing for the sake of rowing.
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A member of the first U.S. women’s Olympic team and a longtime masters rower, Sue Hooten has a lifetime of rowing memories. She learned to row in California in the early 1970s, really appreciated the boathouse sock box in Philadelphia, and has raced around the world. In March 2018, her husband, former National Team and Vesper Boat Club coach John Hooten, had a medical emergency on the water while training in his 1x. He was out with his training partner, without a coach, and – like most rowers – was not wearing a PFD.
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Peter Kermond has been the face and voice of Burnham Boat Slings since purchasing the business in 1999. When he's not in the shop, or out rowing, he is probably manning a Burnham booth at a regatta. That’s where we met him – at Head of the Charles – in 2022, just a month after he survived a widow maker heart attack. Peter and his wife Carin Reynolds are both successful national team and masters rowers and high school coaches. They are a testament to teamwork, as they navigated Peter’s health emergency and rehabilitation, and his return to racing.
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Damion Winship had only been coaching for the Ancient Mariners Rowing Club for a short while the morning his coaching life changed. A masters rower new to his program had a heart attack on the water. Hear how Damion worked through his emergency checklist, how his CPR training kicked in, and how the crew worked together to try to save a life.
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Rachel Freedman 1/7/22 Rachel Freedman 1/7/22

[S3] Ep. 1 - Maurice Scott: Making a Name for Himself

Born and raised in Philadelphia, Maurice Scott was just a kid when he noticed that no one else looked like him at regattas on the Schuylkill River. Today he’s a lightweight sculler with championship titles, multiple corporate sponsors, and a personal mission to be a face of positive change in the world of rowing.

Rachel Freedman 7/15/21 Rachel Freedman 7/15/21

[S2] Ep. 8 - Filmmaker Eamon Glavin: Behind the Scenes

Eamon Glavin is a former high school and collegiate rower who started experimenting with cameras in boats and drones overhead to capture video of rowing unlike anything else we’ve seen in mainstream rowing media. In February 2021 he began following lightweight Olympic hopefuls through training and trials in order to produce a rowing documentary about the journey to the Tokyo Olympics.

Rachel Freedman 6/30/21 Rachel Freedman 6/30/21

[S2] Ep. 7 - 12 Months. 1 Pandemic. Endless Stories.

Take a look back at the launch of Steady State Network, go behind the scenes of the podcast, get updates on our Changemaker Scholarship initiative, and listen in as co-founders Rachel Freedman and Tara Morgan go unscripted to talk about our own experiences as rowers and coaches.

Rachel Freedman 6/1/21 Rachel Freedman 6/1/21

[S2] Ep. 5 - Tracy Falkenthal: Paying it Forward

An introduction to rowing as a teen in California completely changed the trajectory of Tracy Falkenthal's life, offering a way up and a way out. She has spent the years since paying it forward.

Rachel Freedman 5/5/21 Rachel Freedman 5/5/21

[S2] Ep. 3 - Indoor Rowing: A Community for Fit, Fast, Fun

Sarah Fuhrmann, CEO of UCanRow2 wants to flip the script and reshape the way people think about indoor rowing. She is passionate about sharing the sport with people who can benefit from its total body workout no matter their fitness or competitive athletic goals at any age.

Rachel Freedman 4/6/21 Rachel Freedman 4/6/21

Rowing Reimagined: Coastal is a fun challenge

Coastal rowing is coming to the Olympics in 2028. To get ready, USRowing is developing a framework to adopt and embrace coastal rowing. Plus coastal just looks plain fun and offers up exciting opportunities for new and experienced rowers. We sat down with four coastal rowers and coaches to talk wetsuits in winter, beach sprints, buoy turns, boat design, green waves, and running in the sand.

Rachel Freedman 3/26/21 Rachel Freedman 3/26/21

Ep. 17: Rowing Podcast Roundtable

On March 21, 2021, for the first time, we brought together some of the biggest names in rowing podcasting at one big virtual table to talk rowing past your blades, the quest for the perfect stroke, podcasting, surprising answers from guests, and whether to drink coffee before or after a row.

Rachel Freedman 1/30/21 Rachel Freedman 1/30/21

Episode 11: Changemakers

Daniela Nacházelová was just 10 when she learned to row on the Vltava River in Prague, Czech Republic. She went on to row at Washington State University and collected medals at World Cups and world championships, and chased an Olympic dream. She fell in love with rowing, but also ended up hating it. We talk with her about her new book Women’s Voices in Rowing, and are joined by two of the women featured: Michelle Carpenter, CEO of Rowing Ireland; and Judy Geer, 2x Olympian and part of the owner-operator family at Concept2 and Craftsbury Outdoor Center.

Rachel Freedman 1/26/21 Rachel Freedman 1/26/21

Episode 10: Women’s Voices in Rowing

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