Meet Your fellow Rower...Sebastian Cohn

Capital Crew Masters has grown tremendously over the past two years—and with so many new faces joining our boats, you may occasionally find yourself thinking, “Wait…who is that person?” 😄. Well, let’s get to know each other!

When did you join Capital Crew Masters, and what inspired you to give rowing a try?

I joined Capital Crew Masters with my wife Taryn in March 2022, for the last couple erg practices (outdoors because of Covid!) before going back on water for the Spring. We were both experienced rowers from college but hadn't been on the water consistently since about 2015. Erging never stopped being a huge part of my life though and so I was looking forward to coming back to the water and a competitive team atmosphere

What do you enjoy most about rowing?

My favorite part is the focus it requires - If you want to do well you can't let your mind turn off, but also have to let go of everything in your mind that isn't what you are feeling in this exact moment.

Second is the physical sensation - there is no other sport I've experienced that makes you feel as effective in producing power as rowing, while also being something that can be sustained for as long as you need.

And finally the shared experiences - rowing is the ultimate team sport, because you know that by definition every person in the boat experienced the exact same challenges and pain that you did, and so even though you may not have seen them in the moment, when we come off the water we're all connected by that.

What’s one memorable rowing moment you’ve had so far?

Masters Northwest Championships, 2025.

As we're coming to the startline in a mixed 8 the heaviest gust of weather I've ever experienced on the water came through. You could see the wall moving toward us across the water and all we could do was hunker down as it hit and blasted us with wind, water, and hail... for about 4 minutes, then the worst passed through. It was still raining, windy, and the water was a mess but all the boats survived and were able to line up and race, with us all laughing at the absolute insanity of what we were doing. There's nothing quite as special and joyful in masters rowing as competitors and teammates all being able to connect in the shared love of the sport and the crazy situations you're going through together.

When you’re not rowing, what do you enjoy doing?

Much of my time does go to rowing, for better or worse - competitions on the erg and water, leading erging classes, and most recently coaching the Sac State Club team. But in the time I have outside that I'm largely a homebody, spending time with Taryn and our three cats. I do love to cook, I devour fantasy books, and I definitely nerd out with our movie-watching setup. When I want to get out of the house most often you'll find us on walks around the neighborhood and along the American River

What’s one thing your fellow rowers might be surprised to learn about you? 😄

I was very much NOT athletic before college - I didn't do any sports in high school and even found a workaround to the school PE requirement of playing ultimate frisbee with friends at lunch a couple times a week. Instead most of my time went to theater tech and playing video games with friends.

Freshman year of college I was wandering the activities fair looking for the theater tech group when I was pulled aside by some rowers and agreed to go to their info session on a whim. Zero plans for it, and to say my parents were surprised is an understatement, but it couldn't have turned out better.

Sebastian and Taryn