On June 7, 2025, Oar the Rainbow will be one of just five teams losing sight of shore for an unsupported, human-powered, 2800-mile row from Monterey, CA to Kauai, HI. The team, – including the first out transgender person to row across the Pacific – are about two years into their planning and training.
Members Taylan Stulting, Julie Warren, and Courtney Farber have inclusion, joy, and kindness at the heart of the team, with the belief that representation in sports matters, while pushing the limits of endurance.
We talk about the love of rowing, having something to prove, what to expect out there, and fundraising for Athlete Ally and Doctors Without Borders. Stick around for a bonus Q&A with ocean rower, author, and adventurer Jordan Hanssen.
QUICK LOOK
00:00 - Podcast Series Introduction 01:45 - Episode Intro: Rachel and Tara’s take on taking on an ocean 08:57 - The Huddle: A quick get to know you 10:39 - Rowing week on a scale of 1-10 11:26 - The Hot Seat Q&A 13:58 - Rowing origin stories: For Courtney the stars aligned in her 30s; Julie got handed a flier as a college freshman; Taylan sought out a college LTR program 19:20 - Most recent training/practical session together 21:09 - The dream of rowing an ocean 26:05 - How Oar the Rainbow came to be 28:40 - Commitment and family sacrifices 30:30 - About the World’s Toughest Row 31:20 - The boat named Emma 32:30 - Training 33:37 - Extrapolating personal skills to make the teamwork work 38:03 - The “why” 42:42 - Charities and support 44:14 - Intro to Q&A with ocean rower, author, and adventurer Jordan Hanssen 44:55 - What is so exciting about rowing on the ocean? 45:56 - What piece of equipment or personal gear do you wish that you had with you? 48:25 - How did you feel hitting the halfway point and in the days following that milestone? 49:44 - What was the transition back to life on land like for you? 51:38 - How to plan for something unexpected? 53:10 - Lovely nuggets 56:10 - Steady State Network news and notes
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To see photos of Oar the Rainbow, 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 and donor coordinator. Rachel manages the website, social media, and e-newsletter. Our theme music is by Jonas Hipper.
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