Head Coach – Ted Riedeburg
2016 to present
Ted Riedeburg arrived in Little Rock, Arkansas through RowAmerica in the fall of 2016. As the new head coach of RowAmerica in North Little Rock, he was put to the task of growing a youth program which, at the time, had no members. In addition, he was expected to increase participation with the adult masters team. Soon after he began coaching on the waterway, he realized the team needed to relocate away from the Arkansas River, which experiences frequent high flow events. After discovering an area in West Little Rock, known as Two Rivers Bridge & River Mountain Park, Ted worked with the city’s Parks and Recreation department, the Army Corps of Engineers, and city officials to move the boathouse there, to its current location.
Since then, the team has grown to over 50 youth and adult members. The team was rebranded Rock City Rowing after the departure from RowAmerica in 2017. In 2022, Episcopal Collegiate School added rowing as one of its sport offerings at the school, and now two teams are coached by Head Coach Riedeburg and his staff. Prior to moving to Little Rock, Ted coached for 16 years in Florida. Most of that time was spent with two programs located in Jacksonville: The Bolles School (1999–2010) and Stanton River Bank Rowing (2010–2014), now known as First Coast Rowing Club. He then spent one year with Sarasota Scullers before moving to Arkansas. During his time as head coach of these programs, Ted led these teams to a combined 15 State Championship titles. In addition, he led his boats to several top three finishes at the state and regional level. While in Little Rock, he has coached members of the youth and master’s team to top finishes at the Head of the Hooch, Music City Head Race, USRowing Central Youth Championships, and Master’s Nationals, including a National Championship in the Women’s B double in 2021. Coach Riedeburg received a Level III Coaching Certification with USRowing in 2004 and has continued to further his proficiency as a rowing coach at seminars and conventions. Ted is also a Certified Personal Trainer through AFAA (Aerobics and Fitness Association of America) which is recognized as the world’s largest fitness educator, and is a Certified Concept2 Indoor Rowing Instructor. In 2003 Coach Riedeburg initiated Row for the Cure in Jacksonville, in memory of his mother, who had lost her fight against breast cancer in 2001. By 2009, with the help of student athletes, parents and business donations, the Row for the Cure in Jacksonville became the largest national event of its kind, raising over $143,000. In honor of this achievement, the 2008 Olympic US Women’s National Team gold medal 8+ visited Jacksonville and rowed in the same event held the following year in 2010.
Ted is a graduate of Poughkeepsie High School in New York, where he began rowing as a freshman. In his senior year, he was selected for the local crew All-Star Team by area coaches. Riedeburg graduated from the University of North Florida in 1998 with a degree in Jazz Studies. Coach Riedeburg has assisted in furthering students’ education and rowing careers with placements at elite colleges including Columbia, Cornell, Drexel, Duke, Georgia Tech, Harvard, The Naval Academy, Princeton, University of Alabama, Yale, Vanderbilt, Oregon State, and Clemson.
Yates Phillips
From competitor to coach to regatta director and formerly part of the ABC board, Yates has worn many hats at the Arkansas Boathouse Club since it was re-established in 2006. He led the ABC masters to compete in many regattas throughout our region. After obtaining his USRowing Coaching Certificate in 2010, he helped develop and coach our first fledgling junior crew program at ABC from 2011-2014, some of whom went on to row competitively for NCAA crews. He became a Level II Certified Coach in 2015, and has assisted Coach Ted Riedeburg with the adult team since then. A native Arkansan, Yates attended LR Catholic High and the University of Central Arkansas. He has served on the Grande Maumelle Sailing Club Board of Directors since 2014 and earned many first place seasons among their highly competitive racing program. An adept boatman, he has successfully completed many long distance boat repositionings. He has also worked in the fields of technology and communication. Yates and his wife, Jessica, raise their three-year-old daughter in North Little Rock.
Tessa Kingsley
Tessa, our newest coach, has been rowing for 4 years, and has quickly become one of the strongest rowers on the team, winning a dozen medals so far in regattas spanning from Waco, TX to Sarasota, FL. She became interested in coaching because she wants to do what she loves every day, and is a certified level II coach. She will be assisting Ted with workouts at the gym and on the water for our youth team members. She is thrilled to be coaching this year!