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All-female ocean rowing team embarks on 2,000 mile challenge around Great Britain

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A team of female ocean rowers will set off on a 2,000 mile rowing challenge around the entire coast of Great Britain on Sunday 4 June, and they’re aiming for a world record. 

The crew of six includes a cyber security expert, an Army nurse, a mountaineer, a former international rugby player, a fitness instructor and an RAF Air Cadets ambassador. 

They’ll be competing in the GB Row Challenge, a sporting event with a powerful sustainable purpose: the rowers collaborate with scientists from the University of Portsmouth to collect data on microplastics, temperature, noise pollution, and biodiversity. 

‘Team Ithaca’ will navigate complex tidal streams, shipping lanes and volatile weather to row in the world’s toughest rowing race.

Crew member and cyber security expert Amy Wood is no stranger to sport and adventure. She rowed the Atlantic at the age of 25, has represented England at karate and competed internationally in gymnastics. 

Amy currently works hard to ensure that planes are safe and secure from cyber threat attacks. She also played a part in establishing the UK as Europe’s first launch site to send satellites into orbit.

She said: “The GB Row Challenge is the icing on an already pretty incredible sporting career cake for me and I can’t wait to take it on! Much of my work life is focussed on aircraft, so I’m looking forward to spending some time on the water for a change.

“What makes this challenge so worthwhile is the wider purpose, which is more than just rowing. The data we collect on the way around will help scientists understand how our seas are changing and enhance our understanding of the many challenges facing British coastal waters.”

The team has completed over 200 hours of ocean rowing to prepare for the event, which sets off from Tower Bridge, London, at 3pm on Sunday 4 June.

They’ll be rowing continuously and unsupported, taking turns to row for two hours on and two hours off. They’re aiming to finish the row within 50 days or less. If successful, they will break the world record becoming the first team of six to have ever completed the feat. 

The team has also been trained to use specialist equipment to gather scientific data.

Dr Fay Couceiro, expert in biogeochemistry and environmental pollution at the University of Portsmouth, said: “Ocean pollution is one of the biggest challenges of our generation. The data collected by last year’s teams found that microplastic pollution was up to 100 times worse than previously recorded but what is really valuable is to see how fast the problem is changing.

“This unique collaboration between GB Row Challenge and the University aims to produce an annual map of ocean pollution and biodiversity, which will give a great baseline for the entire UK and show any changes happening year on year. This data will give a clearer picture of the environmental damage and long term impact of these pollutants on our seas.”

Jim Bastin, GB Row Challenge Director of Operations, has been working hard to ensure the team have the best possible chance of successfully and safely circumnavigating Great Britain in a rowing boat.

He said: “Team Ithaca is a fantastic group of ordinary people taking on an extraordinary challenge. They are a determined team who came together last year because they are passionate about adventure, but also about the environment.”

Jim was part of a rowing team that completed the challenge in 2005 setting a world record by completing it unsupported in 26 days 21 hours and 14 minutes.

He added: “Our entry lists are open for 2024, 2025 and 2026, so please get in touch if you want to take on an epic row across the English Channel, Celtic Sea, Irish Sea, the Western Isles, North Atlantic Ocean, North Sea, and the Thames Estuary. 

“This challenge is not for the fainthearted. We’re looking for people with a spirit of adventure and a love of the ocean. Having completed it back in 2005, I can certainly vouch for it being the world’s toughest rowing race, but it’s a hugely rewarding challenge.

“Crossing the Atlantic might be a 3,000 mile row, but the GB Row Challenge is a much more technically complex and challenging event, requiring good navigational ability to negotiate complex tidal streams, very variable weather systems and a challenging, but spectacular coastline.

“And unlike the Atlantic, it’s an event that not many teams have completed. It’s the rowing equivalent of climbing K2 instead of Everest. If you think you have what it takes please get in touch.”

Image shows L-R: Emma Wolstenholme, Amy L Wood, Clair Fennessy, Sandra Gates, Maggie Hodge and Emma Haxell

Pairing of sport and science is perfect opportunity for ocean-loving PhD student

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A student with a passion for scuba diving and science has just started her dream PhD at the University of Portsmouth. 

Laura Fantuzzi will spend the next three years analysing ocean pollution data collected by rowers during the GB Row Challenge, a 2,000-mile event that circumnavigates Great Britain’s coastline. 

She said: “I’m excited to be part of such an exciting and unique collaboration, which pairs sport and science. Citizen science projects like this are so important because they show how scientists can work with members of the public to elicit real change.”

GB Row Challenge partnered with the University of Portsmouth last year with the long-term aim of collecting data on microplastics, temperature, noise pollution and biodiversity between 2022 and 2025. 

Laura’s PhD will involve analysing this data, which is collected by rowing boats carrying specialist equipment. 

Laura, who is originally from Belgium, has a lifelong love of the ocean. She said: “I was fascinated by dolphins from a young age and discovered scuba diving when I spent eight months in Malta learning English at the age of 18. 

“I felt completely in my element when I was in the water and knew that I was destined to study marine biology at university, so I applied to do a Master’s in the subject in the UK.”

This grounding in marine biology led to an interest in microplastic pollution more generally and a holistic approach to the health of the environment, which set her on the path to a PhD opportunity she considers to be the perfect fit. 

She added: “This PhD combines so many things that are important to me - ocean pollution, biodiversity, citizen science and sport. It’s the perfect fit for me and couldn’t have come at a better time. 

“I knew I wanted to continue doing research into plastics pollution in particular because the scale of the problem is so alarming. Plastic pollution is everywhere - in the air, in lakes, rivers, the sea, the deep sea, in fish. It’s something we need to draw attention to and engage with if we want to solve the problem.

“What’s so exciting about this PhD is there is also the opportunity to study noise pollution, which is another major pollution problem in our oceans. I’ll be using analytical methods typically used for space science, which is very cool!”

Laura will also be reporting on biodiversity, creating a picture of what species are living in and around different areas of the coast and how these might be changing over time.

The results from last year’s challenge have already given an important contribution to the knowledge of UK seas. But Laura believes the strength of the project is how combining these datasets can be used in future. 

“By gathering data each year, we can build a valuable picture that will help preserve marine environments and wildlife”, she explained. “I really hope this will serve as crucial baseline data, which can eventually be used by policymakers to tackle pollution.”

GB Row Challenge Founder William de Laszlo said: “The data collected last year has already demonstrated the power of a project like this. By combining ocean rowing with science, we’ve gained greater insight into the state of our waters, which is fundamental to ensuring we can ultimately protect them.”

Laura was also a keen rower at university, but thinks she’ll be too busy in the lab reporting on the science to embark on the world’s toughest rowing race.

Dr Fay Couceiro, Reader in Biogeochemistry and Environmental Pollution at the University of Portsmouth, is one of Laura’s PhD supervisors. She said: “Laura is an excellent addition to this exciting collaboration between the university and GB Row Challenge. We’re thrilled to have her on board. 

“Now we need more rowers to join GB Row for the upcoming years, collecting data and information about what’s happening to our ocean, so we can have a clear picture of the environmental damage and long term impact of pollutants on our seas. If you’re interested in taking on an epic endurance challenge, please get in touch!”

Laura will be presenting the 2022 Impact Report at the University of Portsmouth’s PlasticsFuture conference next month.  

Female ocean rower determined to complete toughest race after two failed attempts

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A female ocean rower with an appetite for extreme adventure who has twice faced dramatic rescues on the high seas is hoping it’ll be third time lucky on her next challenge.

Emma Wolstenholme, 40, is picking up her oars to race around Great Britain’s coastline in June.

If her team succeeds, they’ll be the first crew of six to have ever managed the feat.

Emma, from Burnley, Lancashire, said: “With every unsuccessful attempt comes the opportunity to learn and grow, and to become stronger.” 

Emma is no stranger to bravery in the face of danger. Last year she attempted a gruelling transatlantic race rowing solo and unsupported, but due to catastrophic electrical failure on her 20 ft rowing boat she had to be rescued 500 miles off the coast of Africa in strong wind at night by the crew of a vast 210m cargo ship carrying 70,000 tonnes of paper.

She didn’t stop there. 

A few months later, she embarked on a race to circumnavigate Great Britain in a five-person crew, but was hit by the worst storm in the Irish Sea in 38 years, which meant the team was forced to abandon the challenge half-way round.

This year, the former RAF Squadron Leader and ex-Air Cadet, is attempting the GB Row Challenge again, skippering an all-female crew of six who’ll navigate complex tidal streams, shipping lanes and changeable weather to race 2,000 miles around Britain’s coastline.

Emma and her crew ‘Team Ithaca’ will row continuously and unsupported in shifts of two hours on and two hours off.

She said: “I’m determined this will be third-time lucky and believe that with all the ocean rowing experience under my belt, I’m in a better place than ever to finish this challenge. I’ve also just completed my Coastal Skipper and Yachtmaster Offshore theory qualification. 

“Contending with fast-turning tides, unpredictable UK weather, a rocky coastline and busy shipping areas, this is a greater test of navigation, seamanship and skill than trans-ocean rowing.” 

The GB Row Challenge isn’t just about ocean rowing. It’s a challenge with a powerful sustainable purpose: Emma and crew will be collaborating with scientists to collect data on microplastics, temperature, noise pollution, and biodiversity. 

The aim of the research is to build a picture of the many challenges facing British coastal waters. Gathering comprehensive and crucial data that will help preserve precious marine environments and wildlife.

GB Row Challenge Founder William De Laszlo said: “We had a vision to not only host the toughest rowing challenge in the world, but to also add a powerful sustainable purpose to the event, leaving a legacy in the sport of ocean rowing for our environment.”

Last year’s teams collected invaluable scientific data, which found microplastics pollution around Great Britain’s coastline is up to 100 times worse than previously recorded. 

William added: “Each year we gather data, our scientific partners will be able to compare the data to track any trends or changes, which will strengthen our understanding of conditions in the seas around the UK. Our aim is that this real-world research will ultimately preserve Britain’s coast.”

Emma is no stranger to adventure. She served in the RAF for 16 years and was the last woman out of Camp Bastion, Afghanistan, in 2014. After raising £91,000 for the RAF Air Cadets in 2022, she was made an honorary ambassador for the organisation. 

She has also taught kitesurfing in the Western Sahara, taught women how to march in the Middle East, climbed Kilimanjaro in the rainy season in five days and represented Great Britain at Skeleton Bobsleigh in the Europa Cup. 

As well as working on the future nuclear submarine programme and sailing from Iceland to Greenland in an all-female crew making a documentary about climate change, which was shown at COP26.

Team Ithaca will depart from Tower Bridge, London, at 3pm on Sunday 4 June for the GB Row Challenge 2023. The team is raising money for the CanRehab Trust. 

Data collected by last year’s ocean rowers found record levels of microplastics pollution

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The data collected last summer by teams competing in the GB Row Challenge has found microplastics pollution around Great Britain’s coastline up to 100 times worse than previously recorded.

The significantly higher concentrations of microplastics than recorded on a national survey six years ago have been reported by scientists at the University of Portsmouth.

Research also showed the presence of a species of shrimp not normally found this far north, which could be an indicator of climate change and warming seas.

The data was collected by teams competing in the 2022 GB Row Challenge, a 2,000-mile event that circumnavigates Great Britain. The aim of the research project was to build a picture of the many challenges facing British coastal waters.

Using specialist equipment, the rowers gathered data on microplastics, temperature, noise pollution, and biodiversity. Samples were brought back to researchers at the University of Portsmouth for analysis. Three rowing teams gathered comprehensive and crucial data that will help preserve precious marine environments and wildlife.

In 2017, Cefas (Centre for Environment, Fisheries & Aquaculture Science) published microplastic data from many of their offshore trawls. It found just 0 - 1.5 microplastic particles per m3 (MP/m3) that were bigger than 0.3 mm in size. The samples collected during the Challenge event show much higher concentrations, with almost 100 times more microplastics in some areas. Scientists say the main reason for the big difference is the smaller sizes of particles that were captured in special steel filters. Nearly all of the microplastics collected by the GB Row teams were smaller than 0.3 mm.

Dr Fay Couceiro, School of Civil Engineering and Surveying and researcher from Revolution Plastics at the University of Portsmouth, said: “Ocean pollution is one of the biggest challenges of our generation. The data collected by GB Row Challenge will greatly enhance our understanding of conditions in the seas around the UK. The equipment used to collect data during the event has enabled us to capture much smaller particles – so we have been able to get a more accurate picture of where and how concentrated microplastics are. Over time it will significantly improve our understanding of the challenging problem of microplastics in our water.”

As well as higher concentrations in coastal waters, the initial research data also showed up to four times more microplastics in the Thames than was collected in October 2017. A previous study found a maximum of 36.7 MP/m3 in Putney. Microplastics samples from the Thames Estuary analysed by Dr Couceiro gave 121 MP/m3. Although this variance in data may be due to the different sampling locations, methods and time of year, it is thought likely that the concentration of microplastics are increasing.

Microplastics are pieces of plastics smaller than 5mm. They may be plastics made that size on purpose (e.g. nurdles) or small pieces of plastic that have broken off from larger pieces (e.g. fragments). Scientists began to notice microplastics in the oceans almost 20 years ago. Since then methods for detecting them have improved and studies have been conducted to determine if they are harmful. However, most of these studies have taken place in sea animals and unfortunately the results are troubling.

Lead researcher, Dr Couceiro said: “There is currently no complete map for the UK concentrations of microplastics in our coastal waters. These comparisons really show the

need for a comprehensive map of these smaller sized microplastics and an annual monitoring method, which we have begun with this University of Portsmouth and GB Row Challenge collaboration. The long-term aim is to collect these datasets for each GB Row Challenge between 2022 and 2025, which will give a great baseline for the entire UK and also show any changes happening over that time.”

From the 2022 samples, a map has been produced which estimates summer microplastics concentration in the seas around the UK. This is currently taken from a small dataset but as the four-year project continues and more samples are taken, the distance between sample sites will decrease and the accuracy of this map will increase. Comparisons between years will also be possible, determining if the problem is getting worse or better.

University scientists have also been analysing samples of underwater marine sounds. Some 376 were examined in more detail - of those, 97 instances were identified as boats, 27 as Cetacea (whales, dolphins and porpoises) and 48 as snapping shrimp. Researchers highlighted the presence of snapping shrimp in Scotland as unusual and concerning. Dr Fay Couceiro explained: “Hearing the snapping shrimp so far north up in the East of Scotland is of particular interest. They are normally found in more southern areas and their movement may be an indicator of climate change and warming seas.”

Environmental DNA (eDNA) samples were also collected by the crews to survey marine biodiversity. This involved filtering 1L of water twice a day to capture the tiny traces of DNA that animals leave behind like fingerprints in the water. From just 77 litres of water, about a quarter of a bathtub, 82 marine vertebrate species were identified. These ranged from critically endangered European eels and endangered undulated rays to commercial fish such as herring, salmon and cod, as well as many other beautiful fish such as wrasse, gobies and garfish. Mammals were also detected (seals, porpoises and dolphins) and even some seabirds such as the vulnerable Atlantic Puffin.

Samples were analysed by eDNA specialist company NatureMetrics. Their founder Dr Kat Bruce - also a member of one of the rowing crews - said: “Making this incredible journey around the coast of Great Britain, you can’t help but be awed by the beauty and diversity of this island we live on. We had many incredible encounters with wildlife, including dolphins, porpoises, seals and seabird colonies, but most of the biodiversity is under the water and we had no idea what species were there until we got home and analysed the DNA we’d filtered out of the water. Even after all these years it amazes me how much biodiversity we can detect in these small volumes of water, and the way it lets us see how different species are distributed in the environment, from tiny gobies up to dolphins and seals. I can’t wait to see how this data develops over the next few years.”

While the observation of southern species moving north is more evidence of warming seas, it also highlights the dangers of losing some of the northern species from UK waters. Scientists believe it is not just climate change that can cause disruptions to species - pollution events and fishing can also negatively impact biodiversity. In contrast, conservation projects can improve biodiversity in an area. Dr Couceiro said: “Mapping the biodiversity of UK seas annually is a great way to monitor these impacts on the species diversity.”

GB Row Founder William De Laszlo said: “Scientific research, adventure, collaboration and endurance are at the heart of this ground-breaking project. At the core, however, is understanding the human impact on our most precious resource - our oceans. With data comes evidence, evidence becomes action and, we hope, behavioural change. We need to keep striving and protect our seas.”

Dr Couceiro added: “In many species, eating large numbers of microplastics has negative impacts ranging from reduced growth, to aberrant development, to cell toxicity. Considering the possible negative impacts, it is essential that we have a better understanding of how many microplastics are in our waters and that we have a way to monitor them.”

The results of the three data sets collected (microplastics, sound and eDNA) during last year’s race each give an important contribution to the knowledge of UK seas. But the scientists believe the real strength of the project is how these data sets are combined going forward. They believe the results seen so far are just the tip of the iceberg.

Ben Green Sustainability officer at Harwin. “We are delighted to be part of this project as Chief Technology Partner. The understanding of our natural environment and how humans impact it, is key to the survival of our planet. Engineering and technology are a vital element in understanding our impact and also coming up with solutions to rectify the problems.”

The next data collection will take place in this year’s GB Row Challenge event starting on 4th June 2023 at Tower Bridge, London.

If you are interested in adventure and science and want to take part please contact Jim Bastin jim.bastin@gbrowchallenge.com.

Read the full GB Row 2022 impact report

Partnership with Harwin

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GB Row is excited to announce a continued partnership with Harwin, whose engineers have been key to designing solutions to bring bespoke scientific onto ocean racing boats.

Harwin are sponsoring two of the boats FOR GB ROW 2022, the first team is Albatross, and the second Sea Legs. The crew name, Albatross https://www.gbrowchallenge.com/the-teams/albatross , not only represents the huge arm spans of some of the crew members (including Andrew Triggs Hodge, triple Olympic rowing champion), but more importantly, the albatross is a species that embodies the critical challenge that sea life is facing due to plastic pollution and environmental change. The Sea Legs crew includes para rower Sophie Harris and TeamGB Olympic bobsleigh pilot LaminDeen.

But for Harwin the partnership goes much further than any normal sponsorship, and Harwin engineers have been key to designing solutions to bring bespoke scientific onto ocean racing boats.

“Sustainability is key for all our futures. A big thank you to the Engineers at Harwin who have got behind this nutty but important project, in measuring the state of our seas around the UK. Working innovatively with the University of Portsmouth to come up with a purpose built, microplastic monitoring system on all 3 boats is amazing….. this is what precision engineering is all about, tackling problems together… this would not have happened without you. Thank you.” William de Laszlo Director, Harwin Plc and Participant in GB Row Challenge 2022.

Alex Mair, Technical Support Engineer at Harwin, commented on the micro-plastic sampling system; "Designing the sampling system has been a different kind of challenge for us, but precision engineering for harsh environments is our specialty. The pump and filters process large volumes of water and must be ultra-efficient to keep within the 100Ah power budget allocated to scientific equipment. As well as being a sustainability project, this event is a race, so size and weight are critical. In addition, the whole system has to be as quiet as possible as the athletes will be living and sleeping very close to the technology."

harwin

Naturemetrics on-board

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GB Row is excited to announce a partnership with world-leading environmental DNA (eDNA) company NatureMetrics to help our crews shed light on the amazing biodiversity that lives around our coastline. eDNA technology lets us discover what species live in the water by analysing the tiny traces of DNA they leave behind like fingerprints in the ocean. Each day during the row, our crews will filter a few litres of water, capturing the DNA traces on the filter membrane. The filters will be sent back to the NatureMetrics labs in Guildford where they will be analysed to read the DNA sequences and identify which species are present in each location. NatureMetrics will then work with the University of Portsmouth team to combine this biodiversity data with the other datasets being collected on noise and plastic pollution, so we can investigate how these factors are affecting the species in our seas.

NatureMetrics founder Dr Kat Bruce is rowing in Team Albatross for GB Row 2022.

kat