Speaker Series 4: Cold Water Immersion
By: Janice Mason
To hear the recording: https://drive.google.com/file/d/1XlkuVSMnqqjDnTU-8xbzvO1ftymrOQ3D/view?usp=sharing
Join Janice for a discussion about the perils of rowing on cold water and ways to mitigate your risks and help others.
About Janice: Janice is a retired physician and long time rower. She was selected to represent Canada at the 1980 Summer Olympics in Moscow but did not compete due to the country’s boycott of the Games. At the 1984 Summer Olympics in Los Angeles, Janice placed seventh in the women’s coxed quadruple sculls event. Janice won gold in the lightweight women’s double sculls at the 1987 World Rowing Championships in Denmark. Beyond rowing, Janice is a former kayak guide and 2 time finisher of the Yukon River Quest. She is also a 4 time finisher of the “Race to Alaska”. To add to her cold water experience, she is also an avid cold water swimmer.
Speaker Series 3: The places that coastal rowing takes you
By: Ruth Marr
When: Sunday, March 15, 2026 @ 5pm PDT
To hear the recording: https://drive.google.com/file/d/1SwUXmrYmZ-X7TP1g5WsVm56KSJP3aWjJ/view?usp=sharing
Coastal rowing offers more than thrilling Beach Sprints and other racing. Coastal boats open up opportunities for rowing impossible for most other rowing shells. Join Ruth on a virtual trip through coastal rowing locations in North America, Europe, Africa and Asia.
About Ruth: Ruth Marr is the founder and President of Rowing The World and Travel2Row. She writes the blog: The Thoughtful Rower. Ruth started rowing as a graduate student in Saskatoon and has been a long-time member of the Prairie Fire Rowing Club in Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada. She loves to row and she loves to travel. She has enjoyed rowing in dozens of beautiful destinations around the world, both on the trips that she operates and on other rowing travel experiences such as FISA World Rowing Tours and private tours organized by friends. With Rowing The World she has organized and guided rowing trips in 20 different countries. She has been a speaker at Rowing Canada and US Rowing conferences, as well as tourism conferences and workshops.
Speaker Series 2: Tales from the Beach
By: Katie Bahain-Steenman & Carling Zeeman
When: Sunday, March 1, 2026 @ 5pm PST
To hear the recording: https://drive.google.com/file/d/1iEy-NvtpZ6Naj6gNivMyWg7VrN4NlQjX/view?usp=sharing
Katie Bahain-Steenman and Carling Zeeman gave an excellent and informative presentation on the new rowing sport added to the LA 2028 Olympics – Beach Sprints. You can catch up on the information they presented by clicking on the link above.
About Katie … Originally from the Netherlands, Katie worked as a Paediatric and Sport Physiotherapist and represented the Dutch National Team as a Junior & U23 athlete. After moving to Canada in 2014, she began coaching at Victoria City Rowing Club. She was part of the Organizing Committee for the 2018 World Rowing Coastal Championships held in Sidney, BC, and is the co-owner of West Coast Rowing Adventures.
Katie has coached athletes to success on the international stage, including a bronze medal in the Junior M2- at the 2021 World Rowing Junior Championships, a silver medal in the U23 W2x at the 2022 World Rowing U23 Championships, and a gold medal in the W8+ at the 2023 Pan American Games. Most recently, she coached the bronze medal-winning U23 Women’s Eight at the 2025 World Rowing U23 Championships and served as a coach at the 2022 and 2025 World Rowing Beach Sprints Finals.
About Carling … Carling competed at several World cups, international events, along with the 2015 Pan American Games. Carling is a former world championships silver medallist in the women’s quadruple sculls event. She won gold in the women’s single sculls at World Rowing Cup I regatta in Varese, Italy, and a silver at the 2017 World Rowing Cup 3 regatta in Lucerne Switzerland. In June 2021, Zeeman was named to her second Olympic team. In 2025 Carling competed in the Mixed Double Sculls at the World Rowing Beach Sprint Finals in Turkey. Carling really honed her coastal rowing skills in June of 2022 by rowing in a womens double with Michelle Choy the 1,207km of the ‘Race to Alaska’.
Speaker Series 1: Rowing Across the Atlantic Ocean
By: Julien Bahain OLY
When: Sunday, February 8, 2026 @ 5pm PST
To hear the recording: https://drive.google.com/file/d/1Oo6fldNiQEfUIkSygyn1h0wGDPjHjO9D/view?usp=sharing
Julien gave an entertaining and sometime eye opening presentation on his row across the Atlantic. Don’t miss all the great stories. Click on the link above for a recording of his talk.
About Julien … Julien is a 3-time Olympian and bronze medallist in the quadruple sculls. He is a former World Champion (2018) in coastal rowing (double scull). In 2013 Julien successfully rowed across the Atlantic Ocean in 49 days.