Fast Row West
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| The proposed route changed from Geraldton to Exmouth |
On 30th June 2014 at 12 midnight, Tiny
Dancer, a small row boat, 7m x 2m, was towed around the north west cape from
Exmouth to Tantabiddi where her crew, four young British boys, average age of just 22 years, boarded her to
commence a crossing from Australia to Mauritius, 3140 nautical miles across the
Indian Ocean, in an attempt to break the world record. To do this they will need to make
Port Louis in Mauritius in less than 57 day and 15 hours and 45 minutes
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| Preparing to leave from Tantabiddi |
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| And they're off and rowing! |
Jeremy and I had the privilege of briefly meeting and watching the preparation of these four young men, who if they complete the crossing, will be the youngest team to do so. They will also have raised thousands of dollars for disabled people in Britain.
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| Preparations under way at Exmouth Marina |
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| The test run |
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| Smile for the camera lads! |
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| Letting off steam or man overboard drill in Exmouth Marina |
For the crew, Jamie Sparks 22, Alex Simpson
22, Angus Collins 24 and Hamish Khayat 23, it will be a gruelling exercise in
physical and mental strength. They
will face 2 hour rotation shifts, severe weather, hot and cold extremes, shark
infested waters, weight loss and sleep deprivation, navigate busy shipping
lanes and face the psychological impact of just such a gruelling challenge.
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| The Crew |
It has a water maker which produces 30
litres fresh water per hour, and has state of the art electricity to power the
built in water maker and operate the navigation systems, coming from solar
panels on top of the large cabin and an Efoy fuel cell located in the forward
cabin.
It has a Raymarine autopilot and Lewmar
ocean standard hatches
Jamie Sparkes (22) already has one
successful row under his belt as last year he rowed the Atlantic and now
currently holds the world record for the youngest rower to cross any ocean. His crossing of the Atlantic raised $500,000
for breast cancer.
Hamish Khayat, (23)– successfully completed
five marathons. He has never rowed before.
Both Angus Collins (24) and Alex Simpson
(22) are keen sailors and have taken part in many competitions around the
world. Angus also designs and
builds state of the art rowing boats and has worked on Tiny Dancer in the
building phase. Alex has been
around the world for rowing competitions and just returned from New York after
a successful sailing season there.
Jamie, Angus and Hamish all met whilst at
school before heading to University in Bristol. Alex is the newest recruit to the team who they
contacted via Facebook after hearing about his competition success.
To complete the journey in the allotted
time they will need to row non-stop and to achieve this they have organized a
shift pattern. Two crew will row
at one time whilst the other two rest and eat. This row rest cycle will run for 24/7 for the entire
duration of the crossing
If they hit 40ft+ swell they will have to
retreat to the comfort of two tiny cabins.
There is no support boat, they will not be
resupplied and they will have to rely on satellite technology and assistance
from friendly passing freight ships should they find themselves in any trouble
Prior to leaving they spent many hours in
the gym and needed to consume 5000 calories a day up until the day they
left. On the crossing they
will burn more than 10000 calories per day and this will need to be replenished
with dehydrated rations made up with desalinated seawater
In an interview following his crossing of the
Atlantic, Jamie stated he was very ambitious and always searching for ways to
push himself, looking for challenges so taxing physically and mentally that
after finishing he would know his strengths and weaknesses and be well educated
to make decision as to where he should head next in his life.
“Life is short and precious” he said, “and
although it doesn’t seem like it as we go about our everyday business, our time
on this earth is limited and with so much that we want to do, we should try and
do it as soon as we can, as soon as we are ready. Its all part of our development for the
person we eventually want to become, When it is my time to go, I want the big
man on judgment day to go through my CV and say you have been busy you have
pushed yourself and you have made a difference.”
Jeremy and I would like to congratulate the
boys and wish them luck on their journey.
We have met them and they are a credit to their families and their
peers.
Their progress can be followed, and
donations can be made by going to www.fastrowwest.com
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