Cassandra Cunningham, founder of P3 Physical Education, and coach with Endeavor Racing Alliance, has lived by the philosophy of "prior proper planning." So she knew it had to be the driving force behind her coaching, too. From walk-on at Sacramento State University, to National Team rower, to coach of all levels, Cassandra believes in the power of curiosity to drive success. Our wide ranging conversation for rowers and coaches, touches on the power of sport, positive mindset, being present, trusting the process, and blending with your teammates.

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QUICK LOOK

00:00 - Intro 02:43 - The Huddle 03:32 - The Hot Seat Q&A 06:19 - Rowing origin story: To keep her life from unravelling, Cassandra walked on at Sacramento State 09:23 - Navigating her way to success in college came by way of being curious 12:14 - Finding and needing sport 17:00 - Cassandra was inspired to become a coach by her dad who was a coach, and her mom who installed her with common sense 19:04 - Strengths and struggle buses of new coaches, and setting the tone for the team 23:14 - Coaching, connecting with, and being present for the whole athlete 26:49 - Founding P3PE to bring her philosophy of prior proper planning through communication, organization, and professionalism 29:33 - The perfect stroke doesn’t exist 30:54 - Trusting the process: consistency, growth, awareness 33:22 - Cultivating a positive mindset starts with self-care, showing up, and reading the room 37:34 - Endeavor Racing Alliance: creating good humans and less chaos, thinking outside the box to “race up” 41:11 - From camp to club and back: sharing ideas, curiosity, and blending 46:18 - Evolution of positive planning mindset 49:04 - Steady State Network news and notes

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To see photos of Cassandra, and get links to the people, clubs, 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, 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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Connect on FB and IG with Rachel at @RowSource, and Tara at @CmonBarber

Holding an old canister in his hands, rower and documentary film producer Lenny O’Donnell’s heart skipped a beat when he read the hand-written note “Berlin 1936” on an old piece of athletic tape stuck to its lid. After years in storage, unseen for several decades, Lenny was entrusted to restore and digitize it, along with boxes full of other historic photos, film, and ephemera documenting the University of Washington crew in the early 20th century. To share it all, he created RowingArchives.org and wonders who the next generation of historians will be to carry on the work.

QUICK LOOK 00:00 - Intro 02:40 - The Huddle 03:20 - Rowing Week on a scale of 1-10: 7 because of time spent with the Ancient Mariners 05:25 - Tara and Lenny crossed paths in Seattle years ago at Pocock Foundation 07:21 - The Hot Seat Q&A 09:50 - Rowing origin story: Title IX encroached on wrestling, so he walked on to the UW crew 11:45 - After 25 years off the water: carbon fiber oars! 13:05 - Erging + walking the dog = keeping healthy 13:50 - A life in teaching made for an easy transition to coaching 18:35 - Rowing Archives began with research into the 1958 UW crew - the first American athletes to compete in the Soviet Union 24:13 - Working towards a future national rowing museum 26:57 - Holy Grail of archival rowing footage 28:31 - Lucy Pocock competed in coxed singles 29:34 - T & R post-interview banter worth keeping. 30:45 - Steady State Network news and notes

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To see photos of Lenny, and get links to the people, clubs, events, and organizations 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, 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.

.

SHOP SSN GEAR: www.steadystatenetwork.com/shop

SIGN UP FOR THE SSN NEWSLETTER: www.steadystatenetwork.com/newsletter

MAKE A DIFFERENCE BY DONATING TO ALLIES WITH OARS: www.steadystatenetwork.com/allieswithoars

Check out more Steady State Network here:

FB - /SteadyStateNetwork IG - @SteadyStateNetwork

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BLUESKY - steadystatenetwork.bsky.social

Connect on FB and IG with Rachel at @RowSource, and Tara at @CmonBarber.

When Kate Lindgren and award-winning coach Peter Forrest met at Peterborough City Rowing Club, it came with more than a few firsts for these two Brits. While they were both self-proclaimed “late onset rowers" – learning to row later in life – neither could have expected the partnership and bond they’ve forged.

Inspired by Kate, whose blindness doesn’t even come close to impeding her rowing in a single, together they are the brains and brawn behind Row the Rhythm, a ground-breaking initiative designed specifically for visually impaired rowers across England.

QUICK LOOK

00:00 - Intro 01:55 - The Huddle 04:35 - Rowing Week: 1-10 05:45 - A brief history of PCRC’s purpose-built rowing lake 07:45 - The Hot Seat Q&A 09:16 - Rowing origin stories: Pete needed a knee-friendly sport; walking and cycling no longer “cut the mustard” for Kate 13:15 - Kate’s retinitis pigmentosa and learning to feel the stroke 17:00 - Mind mapping your stroke 22:35 - Developing the logistics, trust, and respect for a successful blind rower/coach partnership 27:17 - Pete’s philosophy: coach the rower in front of you 30:43 - Row the Rhythm, with support from Love Rowing, is bringing rowing to visually impaired athletes across England 39:41 - Pete:  British Rowing Inclusive Coach of the Year 2024 40:48 - Advice to clubs on integrating visually impaired athletes 43:36 - Describing the perfect stroke 44:24 - Steady State Network news and notes

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To see photos of Kate and Pete, and get links to the people, clubs, and organizations 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, 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.

.

SHOP SSN GEAR: www.steadystatenetwork.com/shop

SIGN UP FOR THE SSN NEWSLETTER: www.steadystatenetwork.com/newsletter

MAKE A DIFFERENCE BY DONATING TO ALLIES WITH OARS: www.steadystatenetwork.com/allieswithoars

Check out more Steady State Network here:

FB - /SteadyStateNetwork IG - @SteadyStateNetwork

FB - /AllieswithOars IG - @AllieswithOars

Connect on FB and IG with Tara at @CmonBarber, and Rachel at @RowSource

In 1997, just 36% of adults went online. Websites from this era were known as "Web 1.0." Google didn’t exist yet. And a guy with information to share about Eastern Sprints decided to cobble together some HTML and get the word out. And so, row2k.com was born.

Twenty seven years later, founder and owner Ed Hewitt joins us to talk about how his own rowing journey – from Atlantic CIty High School, to Columbia University rower and coach, to 7x National Team member – influenced the development and success of Row2k, one of the most visited rowing-related websites in the world.

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QUICK LOOK

00:00 - Intro 01:45 - Rowing Week on a scale of 1 to 10 02:10 - The Huddle 03:13 - The Hot Seat Q&A 09:05 - Rowing origin story: Football player convinced by “clowns” to row 13:01 - Walking on at Columbia 14:27 - Being young and driven: developing the new women’s program at Columbia in the 1980s 21:31 - Launching Row2k with HTML and chutzpah 24:33 - Row2k as archive, scrapbook, news source; and the people behind the scenes 28:34 - On being a Row2k photographer 30:30 - Row2k galleries mold rowers perceptions of themselves, their crews 34:06- Brutal Row2k message boards of the 1990s 35:54 - The necessity of watermarks on photos (aka stop stealing from Row2k) 38:10 - Just how many shots do Row2k photographers take at a regatta? 39:20 - Surviving the dot.com bubble 40:50 - Supporting, engaging with, and being a part of the rowing community 44:22 - Steady State Network news and notes

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To see photos of Ed, 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, 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.

.

SHOP SSN GEAR: www.steadystatenetwork.com/shop

SIGN UP FOR THE SSN NEWSLETTER: www.steadystatenetwork.com/newsletter

MAKE A DIFFERENCE BY DONATING TO ALLIES WITH OARS: www.steadystatenetwork.com/allieswithoars

Check out more Steady State Network here:

FB - /SteadyStateNetwork IG - @SteadyStateNetwork

FB - /AllieswithOars IG - @AllieswithOars

Connect with Tara at @CmonBarber, and Rachel at @RowSource

Like many athletes sidelined by injury, Cassi Niemann turned to rowing to see what her body could handle. After walking on as a freshman, she found strength in the community her Georgia Tech crew provided.

Cassi never could have known then that her trajectory was about to drastically change. Nearly 30 years later, Cassi’s resume is packed with coaching experience and training certs. She's the lead UCanRow2 Master Rowing Instructor with Concept2. She’s also a competitive power lifter and the owner of CASstrong, where she blends rowing with her expertise as a strength coach.

Cassi not only helps indoor rowers improve their skills and confidence on the machine, but also trains other coaches to effectively integrate rowing into a variety of fitness settings.

We got to talk to Cassi about indoor rowing, lifting, and creating sustainable training habits for health, confidence, and community.

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Want a training program that combines strength and rowing? Check out BarbellMedicine.com and use code CASSI10 for a discount.

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QUICK LOOK

00:00 - Intro 01:38 - Rowing Week: 1-10 02:42 - The Huddle 03:20 - The Hot Seat Q&A 04:53 - Rowing origin story: walking on at Georgia Tech brought community and a focus for success as a student athlete 09:45 - First coaching gig: Georgia Tech novices 12:30 - Developing a coaching style, influences 16:13 - Transition from collegiate rowing to masters rowing 18:18 - Bootcamps, powerlifting, and CrossFit 21:37 - UCanRow2 training verification, coaching other coaches, and talking about indoor rowing without talking about rowing on the water 29:18 - Setting yourself up for winter fitness success with: BAM (bare ass minimum), RAD (really awesome day), auto-regulation 33:58 - Barbell Medicine rowing + strength training program 39:29 - Cassi’s “original domino piece” - the thing that's gonna catapult someone into making more changes with just one change 42:15 - Outro

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To see photos of Cassi, 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, 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.

.

SHOP SSN GEAR: www.steadystatenetwork.com/shop

SIGN UP FOR THE SSN NEWSLETTER: www.steadystatenetwork.com/newsletter

MAKE A DIFFERENCE BY DONATING TO ALLIES WITH OARS: www.steadystatenetwork.com/allieswithoars

Check out more Steady State Network here:

FB - /SteadyStateNetwork IG - @SteadyStateNetwork

FB - /AllieswithOars IG - @AllieswithOars

Connect with Tara at @CmonBarber, and Rachel at @RowSource

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.

.

SHOP SSN GEAR: www.steadystatenetwork.com/shop

SIGN UP FOR THE SSN NEWSLETTER: www.steadystatenetwork.com/newsletter

MAKE A DIFFERENCE BY DONATING TO ALLIES WITH OARS: www.steadystatenetwork.com/allieswithoars

Check out more Steady State Network here:

FB - /SteadyStateNetwork IG - @SteadyStateNetwork

FB - /AllieswithOars IG - @AllieswithOars

Connect with Tara at @CmonBarber, and Rachel at @RowSource

Ever dreamed of rowing on the Nile? Climbing Mount Kilimanjaro? Competing in the World Rowing Indoor Championship?

Egyptian Nermine Khenefar found rowing in her 40s when, winded on her ascent of Mt. Kilimanjaro, friend and explorer Omar Samra suggested she take up the sport to increase her aerobic capacity. After just a few years, Nermine is an avid masters rower and indoor rowing competitor who is seeking to row everywhere she travels and welcome visitors to row with her on the Nile in Cairo.

EPISODE QUICK LOOK

00:00 - Episode intro 01:38 - Nermine's rowing origin story 03:35 - Rowing Week 1-10: training for the 2025 World Rowing Indoor Championships 05:39 - The Hot Seat Q&A 09:24 - Competitive horse riding came to end with a knee injury 11:00 - Rowing as spiritual and sacred time 13:36 - Rowing provided renewed body confidence 14:31 - Climbing Mt. Kilimanjaro on her 40th birthday 17:23 - Challenges of racing when there are so few masters women rowing in Cairo 22:53 - Flat water rowing on the River Nile, coastal rowing on the Red Sea 27:53 - Rowing bucket list

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To see photos of Nermine, 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, 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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Follow us on Facebook and Instagram at @steadystatenetwork

Head of the Charles Regatta in Boston, Mass. is one of the jewels in the rowing crown. In our annual homage to this mega rowing event, we meet the leadership that makes it happen – new HOCR Executive Director Tori Stevens, and Director of Racing Brendan Mulvey.

We find out their personal stories of involvement in sport, and what about this regatta attracts 12,000 athletes and a few hundred thousand spectators each year to the waters and banks of the Charles River.

EPISODE QUICK LOOK

00:00 - Intro

1:26 - Rachel and Tara talk personal HOCR histories

4:40 - Welcome to Tori Stevens and Brendan Mulvey

5:40 - Rowing Week on a scale of 1 to 10 05:57 - The Hot Seat Q&A

07:02 - Brendan's rowing origin story

08:05 - Tori’s life has always been infused with sport, including spectating HOCR as a college student

10:45 - HOCR is about racing, as well as community, tradition, reunion, and celebration

12:25 - What makes HOCR so unique?

14:50 - The importance of volunteers, from local regattas to HOCR’s 2000+ volunteer crew

19:45 - Tori’s onboaring as HOCR Executive Director, and continuing Fred Schoch’s legacy of balancing innovation, growth, and tradition

23:06 - Finding a new audience for HOCR using storytelling, the media, and technology to showcase rowing and help increase engagement and understanding for spectators

27:57 - Survivor Rowing Network and the exhibition Survivor Row

28:50 - Creating an inclusive envionment

30:38 - What’s not to be missed at HOCR: everything *else* to do at HOCR

33:52 - Getting Boston, and spectators, prepared for race weekend

35:54 - Brendan’s Race Director tip for all crews

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To see photos, 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, 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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Follow us on Facebook and Instagram at @steadystatenetwork