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Round Britain rowers hit by freak wave 30 June 2005
The 23-foot-long boat, Outward Bound was flipped over, almost throwing oarsmen Will Turnage and Sgt James Bastin into the sea. Luckily, the starboard-side oars acted as stablisers and prevented the boat from totally capsizing. But both carbon fibre oars were smashed to pieces and the stainless rowlock pins bent. The crew had two spare oars on board and managed to repair the rowlocks. This morning (Thurs) the team are approaching the Humber Estuary. They are still on target to complete their 2,000 mile journey at Tower Bridge, London next Monday (July 4). Sgt Bastin, 35, who had never rowed in a boat before signing on for this record attempt, said: “As we were crossing Scarborough Bay the sea wasn’t particularly rough but we were suddenly taken out by a random wave which came from nowhere. “It was ten feet high and just broke over the side and almost turned us over. The bottom of the boat came out of the water and Will and I were almost pitched into the sea. But oars on the starboard side prevented us from totally turning turtle.”
Will de Laszlo said: “I was sleeping when I woke with a start as the boat lurched over to the side. The hatch was open slightly and water poured in. I looked out to see the boat full of water and bits of broken oars floating like matchwood. Luckily the oars had acted like a stabiliser but they had snapped under the sheer pressure of this freak wave.” During their epic voyage, the GB Row challenge crew have survived Force Eight gales and 50 foot-high waves, whirlpools, rip-tides and even a water shortage caused by a lack of sunshine to power solar panels onboard their boat, Outward Bound. Non-stop circumnavigation of Great Britain in a rowing boat has never been attempted before. Because of Britain's treacherous tides and crowded shipping lanes, this is one of the most dangerous journeys ever to be made in a rowing boat. According to the Ocean Rowing Society, rowing round Britain is harder than crossing the Atlantic. As well as setting a new world record, the crew hope to raise £1million for charity. They are supporting The Outward Bound Trust and the Bud Flanagan Fund for leukaemia research. The team – Lt de Laszlo, 26, Lt Ben Jesty, 25, both from London, Sgt James Bastin, 35, from Dursely, Gloucestershire and Will Turnage, 25, from Lymington, Hants, – are rowing in pairs in three hour shifts 24-hours a day. Video clips of the drama off Scarborough can be seen here,  Click here for VIDEO CLIP Freak Wave Click here for VIDEO CLIP Freak WaveTheir position is being up-dated very few hours on the expedition website, click here so anyone wanting to follow them can see there they are. If you have a boat on the East coast, why not go out and cheer them on. You can also make a donation to their two chosen charities, The Outward Bound Trust and the Bud Flanagan Fund for leukaemia research by clicking here, or call 01732 520 111 If the crew manage to complete the 2,110-mile non-stop unassisted journey they will earn a Guinness World Record. They crew are living off Army rations and took over one ton of food with them. They are only drinking cold water, provided by a desalination unit, which turns sea water into drinking water. The desalination unit is powered by solar panels. But for nearly a fortnight after passing Land’s End the skies were overcast which meant the solar units were not able to provide enough power so the crew were rationed to just one litre of water each a day. Support GB Row Challenge and help them raise £1Million for charity Every penny counts ! Click here to Donate |
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