Solo Atlantic Row 2011

So Friday 7thOctober and the fundraiser dinner has finally come and gone, and what an unbelievable night it was! In all honesty the night was a lot of work to plan and prepare for, especially in the week leading up to it. Whilst I always had more important things to worry about like sorting equipment and getting the boat ready, our projection for the night was over £10k so I was happy putting the work in viewing it as working on a main sponsor for the row. 201 people filled the Mountbatten room in the RAC, Pall Mall and was a huge mix of friends and family along with companies and business contacts there to support the row. The boat was also in the Club for the weekend, a massive asset, so when everyone arrived the first thing they saw was the boat! Getting the boat ready did prove fairly...

So things are continuing to get increasingly busy which is great. I actually finished my work in London a week ago to go full time on preparing for the row which I am very thankful for! With all that there is to do it really does need to have all my attention. I am starting to get some good hours together in the boat. Whilst it’s only been a couple of weeks having it on the water, I am feeling good and comfortable and am starting to take note of everything that I want to change for the race. There is a fair amount of work to do on the boat but not as much as there could have been. I am hoping to start my sea trails in a few weeks so in the meantime it is just hours on the river getting used to the boat. The last...

Morning all! Another busy week here on all aspects of the row, very happy its now the weekend to be able to get some sleep in! I have another training sponsor on board! Sussex Yacht Club, based in Shoreham, West Sussex have given me a temporary membership and are allowing to use all facilities at the club during my on water training. The boat now has pride of place in the boat yard and it now means that I don't need to worry about towing it everytime I head off training, which is amazing. The Club is in a fantastic location, set where the river Adur meets Shoreham harbour so it is protected from the open channel and gives me the provision to head upstream as well as into the harbour and out to sea. A huge thank you to them and if you find yourself in Shoreham pop on down as it...

The last few days have been really exciting with all that has been happening which is great. It has been a quiet month or so which was really frustrating, but now I hope things are moving forward and will continue to do so! Firstly, I picked up the boat I am going to use for the race yesterday. Formerly ‘Roberto Coin’ of the 2009 Woodvale Atlantic race, she completed her inaugural crossing in that race in 67 days, rowed as a pair by Charlie Marlow and Matthew Mackaness. The guys came 4th in the pairs class and considering the conditions, 67 days is a fantastic time. Much more information can be found on the website and I have put up so photos on the gallery. I can’t wait to get her out on the water and start training and will get some more photos up once that has happened. When...