In 2024, Rebel Strength and Rowing was named to Entrepreneur magazine’s list of the top 150 independently owned and operated small businesses in the United States. Then in late September – like hundreds of other businesses in Asheville, NC – it was inundated by the flood waters of Hurricane Helene.

In this episode, we talk with owner Adam Smith, and member Jason Mogen, about founding a small business, growing meaningful community, and sustaining it all through incredibly challenging times.

EPISODE QUICK LOOK 00:00 - Intro 02:00 - The Huddle 04:23 - The Hot Seat Q&A 12:15 - Rowing Week: 1-10 14:32 - Brain surgery, a new perspective on life, and founding Rebel Row 20:03 - Growing the Rebel community and the non-sales pitch pitch 19:55 - Processing the reality of Hurricane Helene 33:45 - Post-hurricane recovery 39:21 - Training non-rowers to use the erg as a conditioning tool 42:56 - Looking forward to getting back to Rebel Row 45:20 - How you can help small businesses in Asheville

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To see photos of Adam and Jason, 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 Breakwater Realty, iCrew, 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.

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