Lowell Caylor
UCanRow2 Certified Indoor Rowing Instructor
Lowell discovered the Concept2 indoor rowing machine in the late 1980’s while living in Denver. Once he started to row, he quickly became hooked and it has been his primary form of exercise since that time. As of this writing, Lowell has rowed more than 61 million meters on the Concept2 indoor rower and plans to continue forever!
Lowell played football and ran track in college at Miami of Ohio and then played a few years in the NFL before injuries cut his career short. He was a safety and special teams player on the 1964 Cleveland Browns team that won the NFL World Championship. Due to his competitive athletic background, he eventually started competing in indoor rowing races. He has won his age group category at the Tennessee Indoor Rowing Championships in Chattanooga and at The Atlanta Erg Sprints. In 2008, he qualified for and competed in the CRASH-B World Indoor Rowing Championships in Boston and placed 5th in the 65-69 age group. In 2012, he again qualified for and competed in the CRASH-B World Indoor Rowing Championships in Boston and won the Bronze Medal in the 70-74 age group. The same held true for 2013, as he qualified for Boston again and again brought home the Bronze Medal for the 70-74 heavyweight age group. In 2017, he once again qualified for and went to the CRASH-B's, but upon arriving in Boston, came down with an upper respiratory infection and was unable to compete.
Lowell became a Certified Indoor Rowing Instructor through Concept2. When he retired from the software sales business in May of 2008, he and his wife Laura decided to open Greenville Indoor Rowing so that they could share his passion for indoor rowing with as many others as possible. Since that time, many new people have been introduced to indoor rowing and have made significant improvements in their health and in their lives as a result - that is the most satisfying part of the job for him.
Yoga Alliance Registered Yoga Teacher / Thai Yoga Certified / SSQ Level III Qigong Instructor /
UCanRow2 Certified Indoor Rowing Instructor
Laura Caylor
Laura Caylor, Co-Founder of Greenville Indoor Rowing, has long been interested in fitness to keep excess weight and disease as far away as possible! Having battled with my own weight, in early years, I grew to know that I had to stay focused on a healthier way of living through nutrition and exercise. When I turned 50, I knew I needed to take extra good care of my health, my joints and my stability; I found myself focused on YOGA! Happily, after an in-depth, year-long Teacher Training program I became certified as a yoga instructor in March of 2010. I remain hungry for knowledge of all life-transforming, holistic sciences and practices which integrate the mind, body, heart and Spirit connection.
Debbie Busbey
UCanRow2 Certified Indoor Rowing Instructor
Debbie Busbey competed in age group swimming in Georgia, Texas and Ohio and then swam for Miami University of Ohio - just a couple years after Lowell attended there. Growing up with the discipline of swimming she developed a lifelong exercise habit. After the births of her three daughters, she found Jazzercise (which had childcare) to be a good way to stay in shape and decided to become an instructor. After several years of teaching Jazzercise (and meeting some fantastic people like Laura Caylor), she moved on to running with her husband and competed in many 5k’s. She enjoyed the competition immensely but found that the impact was taking a toll on her body. To help alleviate some of the wear and tear on her body, she began doing Row-ga classes with Laura and discovered the many benefits of practicing yoga. After a little coercion, she tried rowing and found a sport that has everything she needs: excellent cardio and core work, low impact, a different challenge everyday, competitions and most of all, it’s filled with great people.
Jennifer Campbell
UCanRow2 Certified Indoor Rowing Instructor
Born and reared in the Upstate. Two degrees from Clemson. Two beautiful daughters. One spoiled dog. Rowing since July of 2012. Love my 6am rowers who make getting up so early worth it. Shout out to Leslie Melcher who introduced me to this great place.
Mark Dease
UCanRow2 Certified Indoor Rowing Instructor
In 2008 I found GIR and the awesome sport of indoor rowing by a recommendation from a friend. I have always been active and willing to try new activities, but usually I get bored and move on to something else; not with indoor rowing. The challenge with the erg keeps bringing me back 3-4 days a week. I have now started also using the SkiErg regularly; another great complement to indoor rowing and an awesome machine produced by Concept2.
I currently lead the Friday, 6am class regularly, but you will also find me there on other days as part of the early morning crew. When I am not rowing, I am working my real job, spending time with my family (wife and two daughters) and following anything Clemson. Go Tigers !
EK Flanagan
I grew up in Saratoga Springs, NY and attended Rochester Institute of Technology for a degree in Industrial Engineering. My first week there I was approached by the crew team and asked if I had any interest in rowing. Being from Saratoga, a hub for rowing, I was familiar with the sport and figured why not give it a try. I tried and was hooked and competed at the varsity level for all 4 years of college.
In the boat I sat stroke seat, where I worked to set the pace of the eight. With the RIT Women’s Crew team, I was able to compete all over the northeast at large regattas such as Head of the Charles, Head of the Fish, Dad Vail Regatta, NYS Championships & NIRCs. In 2017 our team won our conference and received a bid to compete in the NCAA D3 National Championship in West Windsor, NJ. It was RIT’s 1st appearance at the championships and we walked away with 5th place.
After taking a few years off rowing & erging, I settled down in Greenville to work as an engineer in the manufacturing industry. When I am not exercising or working, I enjoy competitive horseback riding with my horse George, reading and playing co-ed flag football (poorly).
Susan Ward
UCanRow2 Certified Indoor Rowing Instructor
After an entirely unathletic youth, Susan stepped out of her comfort zone and onto the tae kwon do mat at the age of 39 in 2009. Later she also began attending yoga classes, where she met Laura Caylor who in 2014 became her teacher. It wasn't long before Susan added indoor rowing to her fitness regimen. When she attained the rank of second degree black belt, she retired from TKD and made rowing her primary sport.
Following the death by suicide of her teenage son in 2017, Susan found that rowing and the community at The Oarhouse became a crucial part of her grief support system. Loving the GIR family and wanting to "make it official", she attended the UCanRow2 certification course in May of 2018 and then taught her first class less than a month later. Now age 51, Susan has rowed over 7 million meters and completed two rowing marathons. She enjoys teaching a couple of classes a week, coming up with creative playlists and encouraging her rowers to "work hard and have fun!"
When she's not teaching class, she serves as the director of the Rader Ward Foundation, offering suicide prevention, mental health and grief support resources and scholarships for creative kids in need to attend local Montessori elementary schools.
Helen Ingram
UCanRow2 Certified Indoor Rowing Instructor
In 2009 at 39, Helen joined a Couch to 5K program. Not because she thought running would be fun, but because she really hated her muffin top. What a surprise when she figured out that regular exercise was addictive. After the program ended, she decided to train for a 10K. That’s when she figured out that not only was regular exercise addictive, but group exercise gave her another reason to smile. When she heard about Greenville Indoor Rowing from a friend she thought. “Hey, that sounds pretty cool”. She signed up for her free class and the rest is history. Coach Caylor’s energy, the camaraderie of the crew and interval workouts are now her jam. Leading classes is a joy and a privilege for Helen. At age 50, she achieved her 10 million lifetime meter goal. She tells anyone who will listen about her rowing family and the reward and challenge rowing brings.
An Upstate SC native and UGA grad, Helen writes marketing copy when she’s not rowing or hanging with her family.
Born and raised in Ohio. Earned two degrees and met my future wife (Lynda) at Kent State University. Found my way to Greenville in January 1984 working in sales for Xerox Corporation. Greenville has been home ever since to our family, which includes two children and two grandchildren (for now). Worked in sales my entire career, currently employed in the telecommunication industry.
I’ve always been fortunate to participate in various outdoor activities. Basketball officiating is also a favorite; officiating in the SC High School League since 1999 and also in the Women’s NCAA Division 2 since 2003. Staying fit and in shape has always been important. Weight training was fine, but would eventually lead to some sort of injury from my experience.
I met Lowell Caylor through the local Cleveland Browns Backers group and decided to give this rowing thing a try in the summer of 2018. I was hooked from the start. Rowing works more muscle groups than any other type of exercise and it is excellent cardio as well. It is low impact, which is great for staying injury free. Rowing really is an excellent total body exercise and Greenville Indoor Rowing has great people from all walks of life.
Hope to see you The Oarhouse! Row Strong and Live Long !!
Ken Pelanda
Ulrike Bonn
Born and raised in Germany, my husband Thomas and I moved to the US in 2010 and have dual citizenship now. I hold a Master’s Degree in Psychology and IT and have worked in this field until retiring five years ago.
I have always loved movement, working out and pushing myself to the limit (like when I took part in 2K indoor rowing competitions in Atlanta and Boston). During my teen years I enjoyed competitive swimming and picked up hiking and road biking later in life.
In 2010 I also joined GIR for rowing and for yoga and have been hooked since. Being outdoors, spending quality time with family and friends, traveling, reading, the Fine Arts, theater and enjoying good food define a huge part of my life, apart from working out.
Melissa Gooch
Born and raised in South Florida, I ran in multiple 5k’s and Half Marathons. After moving to South Carolina in 2015, I continued to run for fun and exercise.
South Carolina brought Boy Scouts to my son, and through Boy Scouts I met a man who would later become my husband. Marrying him, I became a bonus mom to three additional children, whom I love as much as my own. In 2019/2020 I was diagnosed with bone spurs in my feet which sidelined running for me, even after surgery.
Then in 2022 I was a part of a Master Gardener class where I met a dear friend who would constantly talk about her rowing class. It took a while, but in April of 2023 my husband and I decided to try rowing as a team effort to better our health. I immediately loved it and found myself fully immersed. Instructing a class for me is to encourage others to push themselves towards their exercise goals and support them in their own health journey.
Terri Cvetko
I starting rowing in 2019. I have always wanted to row on the water and I found Greenville Indoor Rowing as an alternative. When I starting realizing the true fun of rowing I wanted to know more. I watched videos and then told Lowell I wanted to be an instructor. I signed up for my class and got my instructors education.
Tony and I have two awesome young adults, Morgen Charette and Dr. Jared Cvetko. Life is full. I am honored to be part of such a fantastic family and am blessed to have the ability to instruct.