Rowing

Bonus: Eric Murray on Hamish Bond’s Famous Mid-Race Hand Dip

In [S3] Ep20 we interviewed New Zealand Olympic gold medalist Eric Murray, known for dominating in the men’s pair with partner Hamish Bond. The wide-ranging conversation covered his terrible novice season, impressive U17 erg splits, World Championship and Olympic training and racing, and a lot more. So much more we couldn't get it all into one episode.
In this 15-minute bonus episode, Eric tells us about racing in the 2014 World Championships when Hamish dipped his hand in the water at 38spm, and the preparation necessary to have the confidence to pull that off.
He also shares a story about an Amsterdam World Cup race nearly sidetracked by an errant water bottle; hydration and chronic sweating; and dialing in heavy pre-race warmups on land.
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Just a heads up: Eric does swear a bit in this episode ...
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This bonus episode is made possible in part by the Breakwater Realty Group, Concept2, Lake Washington Rowing Club, and our Patrons.
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www.steadystatenetwork.com/podcast
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Steady State Podcast is a production of Steady State Network.
This episode was written, produced, and edited by Tara Morgan and Rachel Freedman. Rachel also manages our website and social media.
Our theme music is by the Free Harmonic Orchestra.

S3E18 - Brothers Dick and Pete Dreissigacker: The Innovators Behind Concept2

Concept2 oars and indoor rowing machines are nearly synonymous with rowing. But did you know that it all started in the early 1970s with brothers Pete and Dick Dreissigacker? They were just a couple of grad students messing around with carbon fiber and fiberglass in a kitchen hoping to develop a better oar - their “secret weapon” for finding more speed on the water.
And to keep training through cold winters in Vermont? Nail an old bike to the floor and pull on the free end of a chain. Voila! The mass market indoor rower was born.
Pete and Dick open up about:
getting hooked on rowing
how Title IX expanded the demand for oars
being champions of rowing in the 1980s fitness market
hoping to get it all together by the time you reach the HOCR start line.
GUESTSDick DreissigackerPete Dreissigackerwww.concept2.com
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TIME STAMPS[00:00] Episode lead-in[03:04] Rapid Fire Q&A[08:20] In preparing for another run at HOCR (which they’ve done every year since 1979) working on disappearing into the row, and sharing memories about their coxswains[15:28] Dick left football for rowing, and persuaded Pete – a discuss thrower – to get in a 1x[19:00] Getting hooked on teamwork and getting it all right[25:06] Starting to experiment with making composite oars[30:38] Oars: early prototypes, manufacturing, and what made them unique[33:55] Tackling innovations: split handles, big blade controversy of 1992[39:29] Growing a business, hiring staff, driving innovation[44:05] Success of C2 oars around the world[46:55] Listener question: Who has a faster 5k?[48:10] Listener question: How does the monitor calculate its data?[51:10] The Model A origin story, and what the indoor rowing market looked like in the early 1980s[55:00] Best screen display for learn to row students[56:50] The impact of COVID on Concept2 production and staff, and the explosion of indoor rowing around the world[1:00:30] What expectations Dick and Pete had for the business[1:04:11] Favorite coxing commands
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This episode was made possible in part by our Patrons, Concept2, and Lake Washington Rowing Club. Subscribe on your favorite podcast app.
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EPISODE MENTIONS
CAMPSCraftsbury
CLUBSLake Washington Rowing ClubVesper Boat Club
COACHES Albin Moser
EQUIPMENTGamutSpeedBoss (Bart Gullong)
EVENTSC.R.A.S.H.-B.sErg SprintsHead of the Charles
RESOURCESScience of Rowing
ROWERSMeredith BreilandLarry GluckmanJudy GeerSusan Kinne
UNIVERSITY PROGRAMS Brown UniversityDartmouth CollegeTrinity CollegeStanford University
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To see photos of Pete, Dick, early oars and ergs, and to get links to the people, clubs, and events mentioned in this episode, check out the show notes on our website.

S3E9 - Isaac Kenyon: Seeking Connection, Finding Purpose

Isaac Kenyon just set his third ultra-distance world record on the Concept2 indoor rower. This follows on the heels of other huge achievements, like rowing the Talisker Whisky Atlantic Challenge, climbing Mt. Kilimanjaro, and swimming the English Channel. We dive into the philosophy and motivation that helped him break free of the lure of screen time, and the coping mechanisms necessary to take on audacious challenges. Through it all, Isaac's advocated for the environment and Autism awareness.
TIME STAMPS
00:00 - Introduction
01:53 - Rapid Fire Q&A
04:04 - Rowing Week: Scale of 0-10 
04:54 - World record for C2 tandem longest continual row (2 person) Male 20-29 LTWT to raise awareness of Autism
06:40 - Tandem partner Jordan Williams: From novice to world record holder in 5 months. Training, self-care, technique triggers
11:24 - Finding motivation, getting out of dark places, the importance of a support network, coping mechanisms
17:44 - An invitation to row the Atlantic was Isaac's introduction to rowing
22:25 - The tipping point from “outdoorsy guy” to seeking audacious challenges, exploring, and honing new skills
24:35 - The way into adventuring: start small
26:55 - 2018 Talisker Whisky Atlantic Challenge: training, nutrition and communications, losing sight of shore, and swimming with whales
36:55 - 2019 Ted Talk: Seeking a balance between outdoor time and screen time; how the Atlantic row changed his relationship with technology
39:45 - Regulating brain chemicals, substituting outdoor time for technology
45:24 - Being a part of the first digital generation, FOMO, and never seeing people again
50:50 - Up next: Setting a speed record for swimming the 7 biggest seas in one year
53:25 - Flying the flag for the outdoor time in exchange for screen time
58:15 - Letterboxing
See the full show notes at www.steadystatenetwork.com/podcast

S3E6 - Embracing Chaos: Coastal Rowing in New Orleans

Ask most any rower about the perfect rowing conditions and they’ll wax poetic about  glassy calm water and zero wind, when a blade can quietly drop into the water at the catch, release clean, and the boat glides across the surface undisturbed.
But ask a coastal rower about great conditions and the answer will be completely different. It’ll involve navigating waves, executing turns around buoys, and end with a sprinting dive to the finish line on the beach.
We invited John Huppi, Kats Siemens, and Will Kuckro from New Orleans Rowing Club to tell us about The Big Easy – a city with a rowing history that stretches back nearly 200 years – and their vision for the future of coastal rowing in the Gulf South. 
TIME STAMPS
00:00 - Intro and welcome
02:30 - Rapid Fire 
04:22 - Mardi Gras is more important than rowing
07:42 - Recruit by looking outside standard flat water pipeline/training/racing 
11:40 - How Will and Kate as “coastal outsiders” are contributing to NORC’s success
12:30 - With fewer flat water LTWT opportunities, smaller rowers are finding success in coastal 
13:45 - How is coastal different?
16:55 - On-water problem solving and the importance of finesse
21:24 - The thrill of mixed boats and beach sprints
21:24 - The time John was a boat handler for Norwegian Olympians
28:44 - Throw “the perfect stroke” out the window, prepare for chaos
31:30 - What makes a great coastal rowing venue?
34:35 - Hurricane Ida's impact on NORC and training
38:04 - On coaching: helping people overcome challenges
40:39 - Rowers take ownership and redefine rowing training
42:58 - To grow coastal in the Gulf South, NORC is hosting development camps and experiential opportunities, and developing an endurance race on Lake Pontchartrain
44:38 - In a tourist town, coastal touring could thrive
48:58 - Coastal bucket list locations 
52:23 - Turning coastal boats and historic stake races in New Orleans
52:45 - NORC is the only boathouse in the Louisiana with juniors and masters programs
54:40 - LA2028 Olympics: perfect for building audience engagement, race coverage
58:50 - The year ahead at NORC
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www.steadystatenetwork.com/podcast

S2E11 - Coach Rachel Le Mieux, Martha‘s Moms

As a 5’1, 108lb freshman at Western Washington University, Rachel Le Mieux was literally picked up and placed in a coxswain seat. Thirty five years later she’s the head coach of Martha’s Moms, a competitive masters women’s team in Seattle, WA. She’s also a USRowing referee and FISA umpire.
During her years in the cox seat, coach’s launch, and chase boat, Rachel’s seen her share of sketchy situations. Today, in her role as the Chair of the USRowing safety committee, she wants to make sure that rowers, coaches, and coxswains have the knowledge and skills to stay safe around the boathouse, at practice, and during regattas.
We talk boat feel, coxing commands, flipping a four at the dock, nearly losing your lunch after a race, the rich history of rowing in Washington, and a whole lot more.

S2E5 - Tracy Falkenthal: Paying it Forward

An introduction to rowing as a teen in California completely changed the trajectory of Tracy Falkenthal's life. She has spent the years since paying it forward as a member of the Army National Guard, a firefighter, a personal trainer, health coach, and rowing coach.
Today she's a member and coach at Texas Rowing Center in Austin, and is working in lock step with the Center's owner to develop and lead DEI initiatives to get "butts in seats."
Her rowing story is one of finding a way up and a way out through rowing and sport, and we’re honored to talk with her.
 

S2E3 - Indoor Rowing: A Community for Fit, Fast, Fun

Part erg review, part coaching advice - this episode is what you need to get connected and get moving on your rowing machine.
If you’re a rower – in a boat, with oars – it’s likely that your introduction to the erg was by way of supplemental workouts for race training and the dreaded 2k test. Most on-water rowers (aka oarsmen) roll their eyes at the mere mention of spending time on the erg.
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.
Lisa Weise was a recipient of the Steady State Network Changemaker Instructor Scholarship in April 2021. With the scholarship, Lisa was able to attend a UCanRow2 online instructor certification course.
A note: UCanRow2 founder – and Sarah’s business partner – Terry Smythe, passed away from mucosal melanoma, a rare form of the skin cancer melanoma, in November 2018. While recording this interview it was clear that telling the story of UCanRow2 and indoor rowing was impossible without telling Terry’s story, too. Terry’s legacy lives on through Sarah and Lisa, UCanRow2/Concept2 instructors, fitness professionals, and enthusiasts they have worked with around the world.
GUESTS
Sarah Fuhrmann: CEO, UCanRow2
Lisa Weise: Founder, Rower’s Dream

S2E1 - Rowing Reimagined: Coastal is a Fun Challenge

Steady State Podcast hosts Rachel and Tara together have more than 50 years of rowing, coaching, and coxing experience. That’s all been flat water rowing on rivers and lakes. So what do we know about coastal rowing? A little, but not a whole lot, so we sat down with four coastal rowers to talk wetsuits in winter, beach sprints and endurance races, a groundbreaking new coastal 1x boat design, surfing green waves, and running in the sand.
Coastal is slated to be a part of the 2024 Junior Olympics, and 2028 Olympic Games. USRowing established a coastal rowing committee in 2020 and is looking to identify U19 and U23 athletes for USRowing's upcoming 2021 Beach Sprints National Team Trials scheduled for June 19 in Sarasota, FL.
Besides ALL of that, coastal just looks plain fun and offers up exciting opportunities for experienced rowers and new rowers alike.