Concept2 Authors

A native of Montréal, Québec, Andréanne has travelled around the world with her oars and boats representing Canada. From her early days as a junior rower in Ottensheim, Austria (1998) through two Olympic Games (Athens 2004 and Beijing 2008), Andréanne has visited countries and discovered local cultures from their waterways! She now has her sights set on the London 2012 Games and, with relentless work and commitment, wants to create another chance to achieve that medal that narrowly escaped her in 2008!

As a graduate from Princeton University, and now taking a leave of absence from the Law Faculty at l’Université de Montréal, rowing has often been a complement to Andréanne’s academic endeavours. The months leading up to the London Games, however, are strictly dedicated to training and rowing. Her posts focus on the excitement and thrills experienced during the countdown to the London Olympics with the gruelling workouts and challenges of achieving that ambition.

Chris Wilson, a native of St. Catharines, Ontario, is Concept2's former In-House Coach and Rowing Advisor. Chris previously worked as a national team coach with the U.S. Women's Rowing team leading up to the 2004 Olympics. She has extensive experience coaching scullers and sweep athletes and has also been a successful coach of men's and women's crews at the collegiate (Yale University, Cornell University), junior and elite levels.

Jennie Bender currently skis on a professional Olympic development team based out of the Midwest called Central Cross Country, also known as the CXC Elite Team. A home-grown Vermonter, she graduated from the University of Vermont in 2010 before heading west to explore.

Jennie has skied at the 2008, 2009 and 2011 World Junior and U23 Championships and had multiple top 10 placements at the US Nationals. She podiumed twice at the Canadian Nationals and won the 2011 Classic American Birkebeiner. While skiing for the University of Vermont, she was a three-time NCAA competitor and one year NCAA All-American (top 10). In addition to skiing, Jennie enjoys running, road biking, dancing, riding horses and playing ultimate frisbee.

Kevin came to Concept2 in 2010. He rowed at both Hobart College and Dartmouth College, where he earned a B.E. in Mechanical Engineering. He also holds an M.S. in Mechanical Engineering from the University of Vermont and is a licensed Professional Engineer in the state of Vermont. When not breaking things in the Self Propulsion Laboratory, he can be found backcountry and nordic skiing, mountain biking, rowing, or enjoying his own homebrewed beer. Kevin's wife and dog are kind enough to let him live with them in Morrisville.

Martin started rowing in 1987. After a year as a foreign exchange student in Casper, Wyoming, he started rowing competitively in Hamburg, Germany in 1990 and has loved the sport ever since. Talk about love: when he was coaching at his rowing club in Hamburg, he met his future wife Tina, who—what else?—was one of his rowers. Martin has been with Concept2 since 1998 when he started working for the German dealership. Since 2008, he has been in charge of sales to the Asia Pacific region and South America.

Meredith started rowing her junior year of high school, once her driver's license and little VW afforded her the ability to drive to and from the boathouse in the neighboring town. She quickly fell in love with early morning practices, erg tests, blisters, and track bite.

Meredith continued to row at Cornell University until a shoulder injury forced her to re-think her athletic goals. After graduation, she met some lactic lovin' rowers-turned-triathletes whom she joined in racing marathons and triathlons. She completed the 2004 Ironman Canada and continues to train and race in running and multisport events.

At Concept2, Meredith is a member of the marketing team, tasked with growing new markets for the indoor rower. With her six pairs of skis, six bicycles, five disc golf discs, two ice axes, wetsuit, erg, and a large closet full of footwear, she stays active year-round in the Green Mountains with her furry companion, Baxter (a golden retriever).

Patrick Brown joined Concept2 in 2011 as the Rowing Business Coordinator. Pat brings to Concept2 over 10 years of coaching experience at high school and collegiate levels. He also serves as the assistant coach for the US National Adaptive Rowing team and is preparing for the Paralympics in 2012. Patrick currently lives in Morrisville, Vermont with his wife Anna and his dog Bojangles.

Peter Dreissigacker, along with his brother Dick, founded Concept2 in 1976. The idea for the company grew out of a graduate course they took together at Stanford University, combined with their love of rowing.

In 1976, the two brothers were competing for a spot on the U.S Olympic Team, and they saw a need for a lighter, stiffer, faster oar. After a series of kitchen experiments with carbon fiber and fiberglass, they developed the first viable, affordable composite racing oar to hit the market. In 1992, their innovation again changed the face of rowing with the introduction of the "Big Blade", an asymmetrical hatchet-shaped blade that offered a speed advantage of several percent.

In 1981, they developed the first Concept2 Indoor Rower, known familiarly as the Erg. The indoor rower rapidly became the standard for wind-resistance rowing machines. In addition to his work at Concept2, Peter continues to row competitively both on and off the water, and back country skis for variety in the winter.

He also makes time for painting and drawing, and at 59, is a novice piano student and closet accordion player.

Terry has been a master trainer with Concept2 since 1999, and has focused particularly on applying rowing to adaptive audiences, including seniors, the overweight and obese, and physically and cognitively impaired rowers. Her career in the fitness industry spans more than 30 years in both the United States and Norway, including 18 years as Fitness Director for Aspirus Keweenaw Hospital in Houghton and Laurium, Michigan, where she also serves as race director for numerous events, including the Aspirus Keweenaw Copperman Triathlon.

A former elite level rower, Terry trained for the 1980 and 1984 Olympic Games. She founded the Michigan Technological University Rowing Club in 1995 and remains its head coach today. A passionate advocate of indoor rowing as well, in 2007 and 2008 she led residents of her small community to victory in the month-long World Rowing Challenge. Her community work has been recognized with numerous state and local awards and she has served on a variety of health and fitness-related boards, including the Michigan Governor’s Council on Physical Fitness, Health and Sports.