STEADY STATE PODCAST
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Jak Kazmarek: The Comeback Before the Crossing
Long before Jak Kazmarek joined Team Moar Than Us for the World’s Toughest Row Pacific, there was a moment when survival – not ocean rowing – was the goal. Years of surgeries and recovery followed as Jak rebuilt their life: from a wheelchair to an erg, from LTR to the Head of the Charles. Now, Jak is preparing for an extraordinary adventure – rowing more than 2,800 miles across the Pacific Ocean from Monterey, California, to Kauaʻi, Hawaiʻi.
Performance and Longevity with Naturopath Megan Roark
When Megan Roark learned to row at 12 years old, she couldn’t have known the sport would one day shape not only her athletic identity, but her approach to medicine. Megan shares with us her holistic approach to caring for the athlete as a whole for long-term health and performance. We talk about habits for deeper sleep, nutrition and hydration, building a strong “therapeutic alliance” with your doctor, and yes — even why showering matters more than we realize.
Martin Helseth on Filthy Fjords and the Future of Stewardship
Martin Helseth is helping lead a movement that connects rowers to the waterways they depend on. Growing up in Norway, he spent as much time beneath the surface as he did on it—free diving from a boat his father built, finding calm and clarity below. Martin shares how early experiences with marine debris shaped his mission today, and how the rowing community can become stewards of the water it calls home.
Crews, Code, and the Rise of RegattaCentral
Before RegattaCentral became the go-to platform for regatta registration, it was an idea sparked by a rower who saw a better way. Founder and president Steve Lopez’s lightbulb moment in 1999 brought rowing and early internet technology together, and his idea quietly reshaped regatta registration, data, and analytics. From fax machines and modems, to mobile-first design and data-driven insights, we trace the evolution of RegattaCentral.
Cillian Mullen: “There’s Always Gonna’ Be a Way”
In 2021, Cillian Mullen was at a pivotal moment — navigating his identity, the college recruitment process, and transgender athlete policies. Five years later, his journey has taken him to the U19 and U23 National Teams, and the University of Washington. We catch up with Cillian to explore what’s changed, what hasn’t, and how he’s continuing to carve out his place in rowing.
Leadership on the Lake: Matt Knifton and Texas Rowing Center
Right in the heart Austin flows Lady Bird Lake, a stretch of the Colorado River that has become a daily gathering place for runners, paddlers, and rowers alike. On its banks sits a true Austin institution: Texas Rowing Center. For owner Matt Knifton, this place isn’t just a business, it’s where his story has unfolded since the 1980s.
Katie Weber: Reclaiming the Athlete Within
After a brain cancer diagnosis and multiple surgeries, the athletic identity Katie Weber had always known felt suddenly out of reach. When she found adaptive rowing at Seize the Oar, Katie discovered a new challenge, rebuilt confidence and independence, and redefined what competition could look like. Through it all, her husband Will has been her gym buddy, race-day cheerleader, and number one fan.
“Quit Last” Says Marnie McBean
Four-time Olympic medallist Marnie McBean is one of the most decorated Canadian rowers of all time, and a driving force in our sport’s history. She’s been a mentor and leader for generations of athletes and now she’s also serving her country as a Senator in the Canadian Parliament, bringing that same curiosity, leadership, and commitment to service to national issues.
Rowfluencers: Expanding the Reach and Impact of Rowing
From his early days rowing in Philly to the launch of Rowfluencers – what he calls the "#1 Rowing Talent & NIL marketing agency in the World" – Maurice Scott has sought to uplift the sport as a whole. He's dedicated to expanding the reach and impact of rowing through innovative marketing approaches. Using the playbook of pro sports, Rowfluencers takes the power of individual storytelling and amplifies it.
SPECIAL SERIES
heart health & Emergencies
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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.
GENDER INCLUSION POLICIES
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In 2021, Cillian Mullen was at a pivotal moment — navigating his identity, the college recruitment process, and transgender athlete policies. Five years later, his journey has taken him to the U19 and U23 National Teams, and the University of Washington. We catch up with Cillian to explore what’s changed, what hasn’t, and how he’s continuing to carve out his place in rowing.
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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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Boat clubs have historically catered to binary athletes, and are figuring out how to put out a welcome mat for trans, and gender non-conforming athletes. Our guests, two trans rowers, talk inclusion, courage, and supportive coaches and teammates.
pride
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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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