Born and raised on Vashon Island, Washington, Jacob Plihal wasn’t super excited to start rowing (ugh, spandex!), but in 2012 a knee injury prompted him to give up his basketball dreams. With prodding from his physical therapist, and then motivated by friend, classmate and Jr. National Team rower Mia Croonquist, he climbed the ladder to Northeastern University team captain, then the U23 National team, and most recently was named to the 2024 U.S. Olympic team in the men’s single. At 6’10”, Jacob has a clear view of the world’s biggest rowing and athletic achievement: Paris 2024.

We really appreciated his honesty about working for over a decade through both success and disappointment. About turning down opportunities because funding wasn’t available. And about having to work around limited mobility in his knee. He credits sticking to the grind and figuring out what works (and what doesn’t) to being stubborn.

For all these reasons, we’re rooting for Vashon Island’s hometown kid this summer at the Olympic Games Paris.

QUICK LOOK

00:00 - Episode Lead-In 01:22 - The Huddle 02:13 - On a scale of 1-10, Jacob’s rowing week was a 7 02:37 - The Hot Seat Q&A 03:53 - Growing up with freedom to explore on Vashon Island, WA 05:21 - Rowing origin story: A serious knee injury as a teen changed Jacob’s athletic path 08:42 - Rehabbing an injury while you’re still growing, and working around limited range of motion today 10:23 - Being a member of the Green Racing Project at Craftsbury Outdoor Center 12:28 - Playing it safe before the big show 14:10 - The idea of making a national team was planted very early 16:55 - What the heck is the Regatta of Death? 21:06 - What’s on your mind on the starting blocks in Lucerne? 23:30 - Rowing Fillipi’s biggest single and testing out various Concept2 blades 24:15 - Hometown response to qualifying for the Olympics 26:00 - Making the most of being an Olympian in the community 27:47 - Olympic race date/time and getting a new Fillipi in Paris 29:27 - Jacob explains the perfect stroke and a Kris Korzeniowski drill to help you get there 31:50 - Tara and Rachel’s move into sculling in 2024 for Race Around the Rock 34:57 - Rowing with Isaiah Harrison (6’9”) vs Don Williams (6’2”) 36:00 - SSN Events & Announcements

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To see photos of Jacob Plihal, and get links to the people, clubs, and events mentioned in this episode, check out the show notes on our website.

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This episode was made possible in part by Live2Row Studios, Breakwater Realty, RowSource, and our Patrons.

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Steady State Podcast is written, produced, hosted, and edited by Rachel Freedman and Tara Morgan. Tara provides additional audio engineering and is our sponsor coordinator. Rachel manages the website, social media, and e-newsletter. Our theme music is by Jonas Hipper.