Club Spotlight: Ann Arbor Rowing Club
As part of our semi-regular club spotlight series, we head to Michigan to spend some time with Ann Arbor Rowing Club. Masters rower Francine McBride reflects on balancing being a rower Mom with her own rowing life and shares stories from the Club’s early days in the 1980s. Fundraising and marketing chair Andrea Danz walks us through helping AARC build a thoughtful approach to fundraising, while Coach Mary Giacobbi explains how the club manages to support both recreational and competitively driven rowers – often in the very same practice.
GUESTS:
Andrea Danz | AARC masters rower, Fundraising and Marketing Chair
IG: @annarborrowing
Mary Giacobbe | AARC evening sweep coach
IG: @annarborrowing
Francine McBride | AARC masters rower, Allies with Oars Ambassador
IG: @FrancineRae14
This episode was made possible in part by RowSource and our Patrons
QUICK LOOK
00:00 - Introduction
01:50 - Welcome and rowing week on a scale of 1-10
02:43 - The Huddle
04:02 - The Hot Seat
07:55 - Rowing origin stories
11:41 - Francine: rower and rower mom
13:47 - Coach Mary on adults learning together
15:15 - Andrea’s rowing pitch
16:43 - Rowing on the Huron River
18:24 - AARC origin story
21:16 - The AARC boathouse and leadership in the rowing community
23:45 - When you fundraise for a new dock, and then it gets destroyed by a fireworks accident…
28:02 - Andrea’s grant-writing and branding toolkits
32:13 - AARC programs: balancing novices and experienced rowers; providing opportunity for adaptive athletes
43:16 - Hosting the Michigan Club Invitational and supplying volunteers for RowFest
46:54 - Steady State Network news and notes
Episode Mentions
🎧 = Listen to a Steady State Podcast episode
CLUBS & TEAMS
Ann Arbor Rowing Club
Indianapolis Rowing Club 🎧
Rockland Rowing Association
COACHES
Sara Nevin 🎧
INDOOR ROWING EVENTS
Concept2 Holiday Challenge
ORGANIZATIONS
Friends of the Huron River
Huron River Watershed Council
Organization of Ann Arbor Rowing
REGATTAS
Head of the Charles 🎧
Head of the Cuyahoga
Michigan Club Invitational
USRowing Masters Nationals (RowFest)
SCHOLASTIC & YOUTH PROGRAMS
Ann Arbor Huron High School
Ann Arbor Pioneer
TRAINING PLANS
Wolverine Plan
UNIVERSITY PROGRAMS
University of Michigan
WORKOUTS
Pure Barre
Steady State Podcast is hosted and edited by Rachel Freedman and Tara Morgan. Tara provides additional audio engineering, books show guests, and is our sponsor and donor coordinator. Rachel writes our scripts and e-newsletter, and manages the website and social media. Our theme music is Open Mind by Soundroll.
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