Rowing the Atlantic

Considered the “Worlds Toughest Row”, this is far more than an Atlantic crossing.

John is returning to the challenge with a new crewmate, following in the wake of his previous four-man Atlantic crossing. Their journey begins in La Gomera in the Canary Islands, the same island from which Christopher Columbus set sail westwards in 1492, before taking them more than 3,000 miles across open ocean to Nelson’s Dockyard in Antigua.

And there will be nothing resembling a cruise.

Their entire world for the crossing will be ‘Memento’, a 24-foot ocean rowing boat with barely enough room to sleep, eat and shelter from the elements. Day and night, they will row a relentless rotation of two hours on, two hours off, potentially for six weeks or more.

Along the way they could face towering 20-foot waves, violent Atlantic storms, extreme heat, exhaustion, sleep deprivation and even marlin strikes. Hundreds of miles from land, there is nowhere to stop and nowhere to hide. Every problem—from broken equipment to injury—has to be dealt with on board.

Their mantra will be simple:

Trust the training. Trust the team. Trust the kit.