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.

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.

Head of the Charles Announcing Committee co-chair, USRowing Para High Performance Director, and Massachusetts native Ellen Minzner. From walk on at Villanova to 5-time National Team member, to her transition into coaching and program development Ellen saw the long game: changing the status quo of her clubs, organizations, and communities. She also gives a peek behind the curtains at the world’s premier annual rowing competition - the Head of the Charles - from her vantage point in the announcers booth on top of Cambridge Boat Club.

Growing up the daughter of immigrant parents, Donna Pili didn't have time for sports. She watched the '84 Olympics rowing on TV but it wasn’t until nearly 30 years later, in an effort to retake control of her life, that she learned to row. Since then, Donna’s found community at ZLAC and San Diego Rowing Club, and has traveled the world as a member of Endeavor Racing Alliance. 

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 so much we couldn't get it all into one episode.

New Zealand Olympic gold medalist Eric Murray is known for dominating in the men’s pair with partner Hamish Bond. From humble beginnings as an awkward teenage athlete, Eric quickly discovered that being 6’5” translated into impressive erg splits. Coaches noticed too, and it was a one way ticket to the national team, World Rowing Championships, and the Olympics.

Concept2 oars and indoor rowing machines are nearly synonymous with rowing today. But it all started in the early 1970s with brothers Dick and Pete Dreissigacker 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.

This special bonus episode was recorded live at Deer Apple Farm on Vashon Island, WA. After a long day – and a couple of local hard ciders – we started swapping rowing stories. So of course, we recorded it.

In our first-ever fan feature episode, Koen Elbers talks exuberantly about rowing in the Netherlands, parties with Alkmaar’s sister city and club, long distance events, rowing tours, and generally finding enjoyment in your rowing life beyond competition.