Two friends are rowing across the Atlantic Ocean and they have already completed more than half of the 3,500-mile journey.
George Nelson, who is 56, and Russell Davis, who is 55, have decided to raise money for dementia support.
The “Oar Blimey” team plans to leave Portugal in December and arrive in Sint Maarten in the Caribbean by March.
The two people saw whales, sharks, and really big waves that made the boat flip over two times.
‘Very risky’
After stopping in Gran Canaria for Christmas to fix a solar panel and battery, two brothers-in-law from Mansfield, Nottinghamshire, are now about 1,200 miles away from where they need to be.
Mr Nelson said: “We have seen the different sides of the Atlantic Ocean and it has been really amazing. ” Physically, we’re really tired. What we’re doing is simply eating, sleeping, rowing, and then doing it all over again.
“Sometimes it’s really fun and nice, but other times it can be scary and really dangerous. ”
“If we only get four hours of sleep a day, it’s a good day for us, but we are still a little sleep-deprived. ”
He said it was very humbling when a minke whale followed their boat.
“We’ve seen sharks, fish, and sea birds too. ” Nelson said it was really amazing to see all of them in their natural home.
The couple struggled with strong winds and ended up rowing back to where they started, which made them feel really discouraged.
They had to divide and limit their food, but they believe they have enough to survive.
Because their boat is not new, they have had many problems.
Mr Nelson said that almost everything that could go wrong has gone wrong for us. We had two solar panels and two batteries, but now we only have one. We need to take care of this battery.
This means they can only talk to their team on land for a short time every day.
Mr Nelson got hit in the head by a flying fish. It made his glasses fall off.
He said, “I was very surprised, but I just laughed. ” There is a lot of open ocean here – that’s really unlucky.
The challenge is to raise money for organizations helping people with dementia, inspired by Mr Nelson’s mother who has dementia. This will support Vicky McClure’s Our Dementia Choir and Help at Hand at Ladybrook Community Centre in Mansfield.
He said: “We wanted to do something to help our family understand this terrible disease better. ”
Russ and I are really focused on staying positive and getting on the oars on time, no matter the weather. We are fully dedicated to doing well here.
