26 days 21 hours 14 minutes - New World Record

Latest News About GB Challenge Press Articles Launch Day The Route The Team The Boat Training HMS Illustrious Schedule Charities Donate Friends of the Challenge Sponsors Contact	GB Row Challenge: first week at sea 15 June 2005 By Sarah Bond If there was traffic congestion in the city last Tuesday it might have been something to do with the huge support for GB Row Challenge: friends, family, Grenadier Guards, as well as hundreds of fascinated and slightly bemused tourists all joined in the excitement from the water’s edge. It was the starting day for the GB Row Challenge boys on their quest to set the first world record to row around the British mainland; non stop and totally unassisted. There were smiles all around, as the hot sun reminded us of the fantastic weather forecast for the following week, giving the boys the best possible start to the trip. The Army kindly put on a pleasure cruiser that family and friends boarded to follow the boys down the river, we seemed to attract a great deal of attention to ourselves, as the Grenadier Guards’ brass band burst in to Indiana Jones followed by an stream of rousing theme tunes. As it turns out, the boys were oblivious to the music and vast crowds; they were desperately trying not to get mowed down by Thames barges and cargo boats. We were all eager to see the little red and blue rowing boat, which juxtaposed against the enormity of Tower Bridge and indeed all the other river boats, looked incredibly fragile. However as the caption in the FT reminded me, they were in fact “men”, four men who were very prepared for this challenge, months of severe training consisting of 5 am starts- 3 hours on the ergo then straight into a days work…oh and not forgetting a further 2-3 hours in the gym early evening… so before us, were in fact four men, who were immensely fit, ridiculously strong and raring to get rowing! At 2pm the Guinness World Record reps pushed the start button on their timer and the boys were off, at a “medium” pace. We darted about the river trying to get the best position to see them at close range. At Wapping the pleasure cruiser slowed down to say goodbye, and after three cheers for the boys, the band burst into “The British Grenadiers” as we slowly turned back towards the city and left the boys to get on with their rowing. Anyone who has developed a rather unhealthy obsession with this website (like we have), will realise just how well they are doing. The weather helped them around the south coast in exceptional time -from Tower Bridge to Lands End in under a week! On Friday we went to see the boys in the Solent. The weather was fantastic; with water like glass, it was the perfect opportunity for Will T (on home waters) along with Jim Bastin to set their best speed of 9mph! It was lovely to see them looking and sounding so positive; it was clear that not everything had been a breeze, a broken rudder and splitting shoes… but anecdotes such as fishermen giving them £10 for charity and Will de Laszlo’s friend flying over them in his light aircraft to say ‘hello’ on his way back from France, then smartly being chased away again by RAF helicopters was especially uplifting. However, subsequent video footage of sharks surrounding them off the coast of Cornwall didn’t do much for our nerves! The weather in the past couple of days will not have helped them over to Ireland. As seen in the BBC reports they were not having a great time out in the middle of the Irish Sea. I was delighted though to receive a text message from Will (Turnage) this morning say they were exhausted by glad to have made it to the Irish coast.