GB Row Challenge Returns In 2013

2013 may sound like a long way off at this point, but lets face it, 2011 is all but over and 2012 will come and go before we know it too. With that in mind, its never too early to start planning for a big adventure the year after next. And if your dream has always been to compete in an incredibly tough rowing race, I've got just the event for you.

The GB Row Challenge is gearing up to return in 2013, and teams will want to start planning and preparing now. The 2000-mile lone race begins and ends at the Tower Bridge in London and consists of a non-stop, unassisted circumnavigation of Great Britain. The teams of four rowers will face harsh winds, rough seas, crowded shipping lanes, and unexpected storms, as they attempt to join the very exclusive club of people who have finished this race. To date, only eight have done so.

The 2013 edition of the race will begin on June 1st and will pit teams against one another in three categories: pairs, fours, and eights. The entry fee is set at £4,000 (roughly $6250), with a prize of £15,000 ($23,466) going to the winners. Cash prizes are also awarded to the second and third place teams as well, and a special bounty of £30,000 ($46,960) will be paid out to any team that sets a new speed record in the race as well.

So just how long will it take to complete the GB Row Challenge? The current record for a men's team is 26 days, 21 hours, and 14 minutes. The ladies have taken a bit longer to row around Great Britain, covering the same distance in 51 days, 16 hours, 42 minutes. Remember, those are the record times. Be prepared for it to take longer.

So, if you're up for a little fun on the water in 2013, and have a penchant for punishment, you may want to consider entering this race. All you'll need is a little determination, some physical preparation, and a good boat!

London2London Update: Sarah Completes Stage 1

British adventurer Sarah Outen arrived in Tokyo a few days back, successfully bringing to a close the first stage of her London2London expedition. This leg of the journey was 11,000 miles in length and lasted for 227 days, but puts her only halfway to her goal.

As you probably recall, Sarah is attempting to make a completely human powered circumnavigation of the planet. She got underway in April, setting out from London, and paddled her way down the Thames River and across the English Channel. After that, she climbed aboard her bike and started pedaling east, passing through 12 different countries before arriving at her temporary stopping point. Along the way, she  has had to deal with bad weather, trucks that wouldn't share the road, dehydration in the Gobi Desert, and choppy seas on her paddle from Russia to Japan.

For now, Sarah will enjoy some down time in Japan as she rests and prepares for the next major stage of the expedition. In the spring of 2012 she'll start a 4300 mile solo crossing of the North Pacific, which will begin in Choshi, Japan and end in Vancouver, Canada. If she is successful, she'll become just the third person to make that journey.

After that, Sarah will return to the bike and ride from Vancouver to New York City, where she'll return to the water once again, and row the North Atlantic. If all goes according to schedule, she'll return to where she started – London – in late 2013.

Congrats to Sarah on reaching the end of this incredibly long first leg. Now take a break and getting ready for the next adventure.

Rowing Team Preps For Arctic Ocean Crossing

A team of American adventurers is preparing to take on the Arctic Ocean next year, and if successful in their venture, they will become the first group to row non-stop across that body of water. That aptly named Arctic Row 2012 is scheduled to get underway in July of next year, and if you're looking for something to do next summer, maybe you can join the expedition.

The team of rowers currently consists of Paul Ridley, Collin West, and Neal Mueller. All three already have some impressive credits on their adventure resumes. Ridley, for example, has already rowed solo across the Atlantic Ocean, while West is a top adventure racer, and Mueller has climbed the Seven Summits and swam the English Channel. They're hoping to add a fourth member to the squad before they embark and interested parties are encouraged to e-mail team@arcticrow.com for more information.

The row will begin in Olafsfjorour, Iceland and end in Longyearbyen, Svalbard, Norway. The team will cover approximately 1100 miles and expect to be done in 20-30 days depending on weather conditions. To accomplish that goal, the four-man team will row non-stop, 24-hours a day, with two-man rotations spending two hours on the oars at any given time. Their specially designed boat has been built to take on the rigors of the Arctic Ocean and features two cabins – one for the crew to sleep in and one to store their gear.

While the team does plan to row the Arctic Ocean in the July, that doesn't mean that the conditions will be all that easier to endure. Even in the height of summer, temperatures will hover around freezing and the water will be colder still. High winds, choppy seas, and unexpected storms will all conspire to thwart their progress, which is why no one has ever made this journey before now.

I'll follow-up on the expedition as we get closer to the launch next July and follow along with the team as they make their crossing. It should definitely be one adventure to keep our eyes on.

Australian Rower Hopes To Become Youngest Across The Pacific

While we're on the topic of ocean rowing today, here's another story of interest. Australian Ben Turner hopes to become the youngest person to row solo and non-stop across the Pacific Ocean when he sets out from Peru next year. He'll also undertake the journey to raise funds and awareness for a cure for Cystic Fibrosis as well.

Ben expects his voyage to take approximately 275 days to complete, covering 13,000 km (8077 miles) in the process. He'll start at Lima Peru and make is way towards the Marquesas Islands, before turning in a more southerly direction, traveling to Fiji, and then on to Australia, eventually rowing home to Sydney. He intends to make this a non-stop journey however, which means that while he will pass within a short distance of a number of South Pacific islands, he won't be pulling into shore on any of them.

No word on exactly when he'll set out, but this will certainly be an impressive journey. The Pacific is the largest ocean on Earth and to row across it non-stop and solo will be an amazing feat. Stay tuned for updates as Ben gets closer to his departure.

All-Woman Team Preps To Row The Atlantic

An all-woman team is preparing to row the Atlantic this December as part of the Woodvale Challenge and to help raise awareness of the horrible crime of human trafficking – something that is still all to prevalent, even in the 21st century.

The expedition has been dubbed the Row For Freedom and it will get underway in December when the crew sets out from Canary Islands in an attempt to cover the 3000 miles required to reach Barbados. They estimate it will take about 40 days to cross the Atlantic, rowing in two-hour shifts, 24-hours per day. As mentioned, they'll be rowing as part of the Woodvale, which is an annual ocean race that has earned a reputation as being amongst the most challenging in the world.

The Row For Freedom team includes Julia Immonen, Andrea Quigley, Debbie Beadle, Helen Leigh, Kate Richardson, and Katie Pattison-Hart. Each of these ladies has dedicated their efforts towards stamping out slavery and human trafficking across the globe, and as a result, they're working with ECPAT UK to call upon the U.K. Government to provide safe harbor for child victims of trafficking in particular.

You'll be able to follow the progress of these ladies on their website once they get underway in about six weeks or so. Good luck to the whole crew, who are not only embarking on an amazing adventure, but they're doing so for an incredibly important cause as well.

Want To Row Across The Caribbean In 2012?

Have you ever wanted to row across and ocean but didn't know how to go about it? Have you read about Roz Savage's experiences on her expeditions and wished you could do something similar? If you answered yes to those questions, then I've got some good news for you.

Expedition Manager Margaret Bowling is currently recruiting rowers for the first ever Caribbean Sea rowing expedition, which will take place early in 2012. The expedition will be conducted in two stages, the first running from Port St. Charles in Barbados and ending in Montego Bay, Jamaica, and the second departs Montego Bay for Cancun, Mexico. The journey is set to begin on March 10th and is expected to run until April 28th.

The crew will consist of 14 crew and 2 skippers, with the team taking shifts of two hours on, two hours off throughout the voyage. They'll be rowing a specially designed rowing catamaran called Big Blue, which I'm told is the largest  ocean rowing boat in the world. As you can imagine, a reasonable level of fitness is required, as is a basic knowledge of rowing as well. Applicants will be vetted by the skippers before they are approved to join the crew.

If you're interested in being a part of this adventure or want more details on how you can join, send an e-mail to WhereFewDare@yahoo.co.uk.

This is going to be a physically and mentally challenging expedition, but for anyone who wishes they could go on a grand ocean adventure, it sounds like it is going to be fantastic.

Another Team Preps To Row The Atlantic

A team of Slovenian and British adventurers are planning to row the Atlantic in early 2012, making the journey along the Trade Winds Route between the Canary Islands and Barbados. The crew plans to set out in January, when conditions in the Atlantic are best for such a crossing.

The four-man team consists of three Brits, Nikkie Brown, Simon Osborne, and Stephen Bowens, as well as Marin Medak, who is the lone Slovenian on the squad. They hope to complete the 2500 nautical mile journey in about 60 days, braving the vast and open ocean along the way.

You can read more about their plans on the team's official website TransAtlantic20212.com, where you'll find info about each of the men, their specially designed row boat, and more.

London2London Update: Sarah Reaches Japan

Sarah Outen has reached a major milestone on her attempt to circumnavigate the globe under her own power. You may recall that Sarah set out in April on her round-the-world adventure, by paddling down the River Thames and across the English Channel. From there, she climbed on her bike and has spent months peddling across Europe and Asia. Now, she's made it to Japan, where she plans to take a break before attempting to row across the North Pacific in the spring.

Sarah, and her companion Justine Curgeven, were not allowed to paddle out of Russia, but were instead put aboard a boat that would take them out to sea where they could drop into their kayaks for the crossing to Japan. Once that happened however, the ladies actually paddled back to the Russian coast, where they tagged Sarah's last waypoint, before turning towards their eventual destination. This added an additional  24 miles to the trip, but ensured that Sarah stayed true to her goals to cover all the miles under her own power.

Now, she's safely in Japan where she'll travel some parts of the country by bike, before taking a much deserved rest. In the spring, she intends to climb aboard her row boat (Sarah once rowed across the Indian Ocean) and row across the Northern Pacific to Vancouver, where she'll once again take to the bike and begin a long ride across the U.S. and Canada, before the rows across the Atlantic, and back up the Thames, to end the expedition where it started, back in London.

Congrats to Sarah for closing off this leg of her journey and good luck in the spring. Hopefully for now, she's enjoying a warm bed, good food, and plenty of rest.

Epoch Expedition: 10,000-Mile Human Powered Adventure

A few days ago I received a note from Chris Crane, a member of Team Epoch, which is about to launch new expedition that will send the four person team on a 10,000-mile long odyssey completely under their own power. Chris, and his teammates, will mix in some of our favorite activities along the way, including rowing, cycling, paddling, and hiking.

The journey will begin with a row across the Atlantic Ocean as part of the Woodvale Challenge, which gets underway in early December. That race begins in the Canary Islands and ends in Barbados, roughly 2933 miles.

That would be enough of an adventure for most folks, but at that point, Team Epoch will be just warming up. From there, they'll get on their bikes and ride to Alaska, which they'll follow up by kayaking the Inside Passage. Finally, they'll cap the entire expedition with a thru-hike of the Pacific Crest Trail, which is considered one of the true classics of long distance trekking. The PCT is more than 2600 miles in length and can take months to complete on its own.

All and all, a very ambitious adventure to say the least. Be sure to stop by the Team Epoch website to read about their preparations leading up to their departure and following their progress along the way.

Good luck!

Ocean Rowing: Roz Is Done!

As predicted last week, Roz Savage has completed her solo row across the Indian Ocean, arriving in Mauritius earlier today. By completing her 5000+ mile, 5 month long journey, she has become the first woman to row solo across the Atlantic, Pacific, and Indian Oceans.

Reaching this finish line will be particularly bittersweet for Roz, as she announced that she is hanging up her oars after this trip. She had very tentatively planned on rowing the Atlantic again, this time from New York to London, in 2012, but those plans have now been shelved in favor of other pursuits.

While Roz may have rowed her last ocean, something tells me we haven't heard the last of her. She is a tireless advocate of protecting the Earth's environments, especially the oceans, and I'm sure she'll continue to spread that message where ever she goes.

For now, I just want to extend a hearty congratulations to Roz on another amazing accomplishment. You have been an inspiration to us all and  I hope you are enjoying some relaxation back on land, good times with friends and family, and plenty of fresh food as well!

Ocean Rowing: Roz Nears The Finish Line

Today marks the 150th day on the Indian Ocean for Roz Savage, who set out from Australia in April and at long last is closing in on Mauritius, her finish line for yet another epic ocean row. She is expected to make landfall on Tuesday, October 4th, and when she does, she'll become the first woman to have rowed solo across the Atlantic, Pacific, and Indian Oceans.


While each of the three ocean rows has had its share of challenges, the Indian Ocean presented one that Roz hadn't dealt with before, namely pirates. Pirate activity in the region has increased greatly in the past few years, and for that reason alone she kept her course and location a well guarded secret. Those of us who have been following Roz's adventures over the past few years have been use to following her progress on the "Roz Tracker," but on this expedition that was disabled on her website, leaving us wondering where exactly she was out on all those miles of open water. That question was answered today with a press release posted to her website.

As of this morning, she has just 104 nautical miles to go until she's done. If conditions stay favorable, she should have no problems completing the row early next week as scheduled, and my guess is that its no coincidence that she's arriving in Mauritius, a place that is greatly threatened by climate change.

After spending all of those days out on the world's oceans, Roz has become a dedicated environmentalist, and has even launched an Eco-Heroes program to create grassroots efforts to take care of the planet. One of the places that could feel the effects of climate change the most is Mauritius, where rising sea levels will have an impact on the island nation.

Watch for an official announcement on Roz's arrival on land early next week and wish her well on the final leg of our journey.

London2London Update: Sarah's In China And Headed Towards The Sea

It has been nearly five months since Sarah Outen set out on her London2London via The World expedition, so we're long over due for an update on her progress. As you might recall, London2London is an attempt to circumnavigate the planet completely under human power, and considering Sarah has already rowed across the Indian Ocean, she knows a thing or two about human-powered adventures.

When she began her journey, Sarah started in London, and paddled down the River Thames, and across the English Channel, making landfall in France. After that, she jumped on her bike and started along ride across Europe and Asia. She's made great progress however, and she's already into China and making her way towards the Pacific Coast, where she'll eventually kayak to Japan, and then row across the North Pacific, eventually arriving in Vancouver.

As you can imagine, it has been a very busy and eventful five months for Sarah, with lots of adventures on her route. Although she has been joined by a few others along the way, she's currently riding alone, somewhere in eastern China. She's well ahead of schedule however, and is likely to take some down time for awhile after this epic ride, as she doesn't expect to start rowing the Pacific until the spring of 2012. In a recent blog post however, she did show off her new boat, the Gulliver, which she'll use in that crossing.

Below you'll find a great video of Sarah riding in China which will give you a sense of what it is like for her on the road day in and day out. The video was shot back in July, but shows her taking on a rather long and tough climb on her bike that is built more for strength than speed.

Stay tuned for more updates from Sarah as she nears the end of her first stage and gets ready to hit the water.

Row To The Pole Team Reaches Destination

A few weeks back I posted a story about the Row To The Pole Team, which was made up of six crew members who were attempting to become the first people to row to the Magnetic North Pole. At the time, they were just setting out from Resolute Bay, Canada and were taking to the icy waters of the Arctic Ocean. Now, more than three weeks later, they are approaching the finish line.

The team, which is led by polar explorer Josh Wishart, has battled cold weather, high winds, and plenty of drift ice on the way to their destination. In total, they will have covered approximately 450 miles on their way to the Pole, which is located in the waters of the Arctic Ocean itself. Reading the updates from their blog, it is clear that his hasn't been an easy trip, as weather conditions haven't been favorable much of the time.

Officially, the team is rowing to the GPS coordinates of 78°35.7N 104°11.9W, which is actually the location of the Magnetic North Pole back in 1996. Unlike the Geographic North Pole, which is located at 90ºN, the Magnetic Pole is moving, and has continued to do so for some time. Now, 15 years after it was recorded at this location, it has now drifted further north and east. In 2005, the Pole was estimated to be located at 82.7°N 114.4°W, and is now believed to be moving towards Russia at a speed of about 35 miles per year. That means that the destination that the team is actually rowing to is nowhere near where the atual Magnetic North Pole is located. This has, as you can imagine, caused a stir amongst some in the adventure community.

So, while I congratulate the team on reaching their destination, as rowing through the Arctic Ocean is never an easy feat, I can't help but wonder what it is they have actually accomplished. They did reach a point on the map, but that point doesn't really hold any kind of significant relevance to any other. I salute their adventurous spirit and attitude, and I commend them for facing the elements to complete their voyage, but I'm not sure that they actually achieved what they set out to do, which is to Row To The Pole.

The video below shows what the conditions are like for them today as they approach the finish. They've left behind much of the ice and the winds have calmed some as well.

Ocean Rowing: Roz Shares Her Top Five Ocean Moments

It has been awhile since I posted an update on Roz Savage, who is now on the 99th day of her row across the Indian Ocean. The famed ocean rower set out from Fremantle, Australia back on April 13th, and after working out a few issues with her equipment, she was soon off to conquer another massive body of water. According to her wonderfully insightful and well written blog updates, progress has been good, although there have been some rough days here and there. Strong winds and ocean currents can make these types of journeys very frustrating, and at times, Roz can row all day just to end up back where she started.

To celebrate her impending 100th day out on the water, Roz made a special post to her blog today. Having already crossed both the Atlantic and the Pacific Oceans, and now well into her Indian Ocean crossing as well, she has accumulated a lot of time out on the open water. During that time, she has also been witness to a lot of amazing things, which she shares in her "Top Five Ocean-Tastic Moments." The list includes such highlights as her encounter with "flying squid" on Stage 2 of her Pacific Row and close encounters with Whale Sharks on that same voyage.

At the moment, it is impossible to know how far along Roz is on her current voyage. In order to avoid pirates in the Indian Ocean, she has elected to not publish her GPS coordinates or report too much on her progress in general. You can read about her decision to do this in a previous blog post, and it makes perfect sense for her to play it safe in these dangerous waters. A few days back however, she did reveal that she is at the half-way point of the journey, which was a call for a small celebration at least.

Extrapolating from that piece of information, we can estimate that Roz will reach her final destination sometime in early November. She is expected to make landfall near Mumbai, India, where she'll enjoy a little time on dry land. At least until she's off on a planned second crossing of the Atlantic next year. Clearly this girl enjoys her time behind the oars.

The Row To The Pole Is Underway!

Over the weekend the Row to the Pole expedition officially got underway when the six-man crew, led by polar explorer and ocean rower Jock Wishart, set off from Resolute Bay in Canada. The team will now spend an estimated six weeks out on the Arctic Ocean, as they attempt to complete the first journey to the Magnetic North Pole by rowboat.

Wishart is joined on this journey by veteran sailors and explorers that include Mark Delstanche, Billy Gammon, Rob Sleep, David Mans, and Mark Beaumont. The team will row in three-hour shifts with the hopes of covering the 450-mile distance in as short of time possible.

According to the dispatches on the expedition website, everything is going better than expected at the moment. The weather has been great for their launch, and the winds have remained low, with temperatures in the 55ºF/13ºC region. That isn't likely to last however, as even in the summer, the weather can be unpredictable in the Arctic. Their latest dispatch reports that they have successfully crossed the Wellington Channel, a leg that they had predicted would be more challenging than it actually turned out to be.

Their first two days on the water have been mostly trouble free, with just a few chunks of floating ice to avoid. The crew has taken that opportunity to get use to their vessel however, and they now feel like they've learned the "personality" of the boat, which will serve them well moving into the more challenging sections of the row.

Not to be confused with the Geographic North Pole, which is located at 90ºN, the Magnetic North Pole is the spot in the Northern Hemisphere that our compasses point to. The location of Magnetic North continues to shift over time and, according to the Row to the Pole website,  is currently located at 78°35.7N 104°11.9W. 


Of course, a journey such as this one is made a bit more manageable thanks to climate change, which has reduced the size of the pack ice and made the Northwest Passage more navigable, particularly in the summer months. Still, this will be a difficult journey for the crew the further they head north, and ice is likely to still be an issue the closer they get to their goal. 


I'll post updated on their progress in the days ahead. Good luck to the team!

Olly Hicks Gears Up For Global Row 2012

Remember Olly Hicks? He was the young adventurer who attempted to circumnavigate Antarctica in a rowboat back in 2009. Ultimately, due to a number of reasons, he was forced to abandon that voyage, but now he is back and gearing up to give it another go next year.

In his first  attempt, Olly set out from Tasmania to challenge the Southern Ocean, but soon found the conditions in that body of water were fickle and conspiring to work against him. The wind and currents made it nearly impossible for Hicks to make progress, and after weeks out on the water, he eventually conceded defeat, due in no small part to design flaws on his boat that made it less than ideal for the waters in which he was traveling.

Since that time, Olly has been working with two veteran naval designers on ways to overcome the flaws in his original boat design. With those new designs complete, he now feels ready to start planning his next attempt at the Global Row 2012, as the expedition has been dubbed. The new boat incorporates some unique features that will make it better suited for the conditions in the Southern Ocean, and the design team feels that Olly can expect to average 50-60 nautical miles per day. He'll put those estimates to the test when he returns to the water in October of next year, departing from Tasmania once again.

The voyage is expected to take somewhere between 18-22 months to complete, during which time Hicks will cover more than 18,000 nautical miles. The first phase of the journey will take Olly across the Pacific Ocean to South Georgia Island, where he plans to wait out the winter before resuming. That stage is expected to take approximately 160 days to complete. After overwintering and resupplying in South Georgia, he'll take to the Atlantic Ocean and continue around the globe, before arriving back in Tasmania. If successful in his venture, Hicks will become the first person to circumnavigate the Southern Ocean by rowboat.

While Olly loves a good adventure and wants to set the record, he's also making the row for two of his favorite charities as well. He hopes that his efforts will help raise funds for both the Hope and Homes for Children organization as well as the Save Our Seas Foundation.

While October 2012 seems like a long way off at this point, Olly is about to begin the all important search for sponsors for the Global Row 2012. With that in mind, a new website will be launching soon, and you can keep up with Olly's progress on his Facebook page right now.

Stay tuned for more as Olly ramps up for his next big adventure next year.

Mark Beaumont Joins Team Rowing To Magnetic North Pole

Long distance cyclist Mark Beaumont has ditched his bike in favor of a rowboat and oars. The man who once cycled around the world and rode from Alaska to Ushuaia, will set out on six-week long epic rowing expedition to the Magnetic North Pole that is scheduled to begin later this summer.

I first wrote about his row to the magnetic pole last summer, when the team was still being built. The expedition will be led by explorer Jock Wishart and will depart from Resolute Bay and make its way 450 miles north into the icy waters of the Arctic Ocean. If all goes as planned, the team will set off on August 1st, and they are busily finishing up their training now.

According to his website, Beaumont was asked to join the rowing team by the BBC, who will have him film the journey while also taking his part in rowing as well. The expedition hopes to demonstrate how global climate change has impacted the polar regions, and capturing that on film will help with that cause.

In addition to Wishart and Beaumont, the specially designed arctic rowboat will also be manned by Mark Delstanche, Billy Gammon, Rob Sleep, and David Mans, all of whom have extensive experience on the water.

This should be a great adventure to follow when it gets underway in a few weeks time.  Find out more about the expedition at RowToThePole.com.

Vancouver Island Speed Circumnavigation Attempt

Long distance paddler Colin Angus is attempting to break the speed record for a solo, circumnavigation around Vancouver Island. He's hoping to cover the 1150km (714.5 mile) journey in less than 16.5 days. He's now halfway through the attempt, and has passed the 600km mark and is now headed toward the finish line.

You can follow Colin's adventure on his website, AngusAdventures.com, where you'll find daily updates on his progress and a SPOT tracker feed of his current location. As of this writing, the SPOT doesn't seem to be tracking accurately, but hopefully that's just a temporary glitch.

Reading the updates on his progress, it doesn't seem like this has been an easy row for Colin thus far. Not only is he dealing with painful tendonitis in his arm, he has also had to contend with difficult headwinds and turbulent waters. He has also been forced to row further out to sea than you would think was necessary in order to avoid submerged reefs that can create massive waves – sometimes 50 feet high, that could potentially put a premature end to the expedition.

For Colin, and his wife Julie, a rowing challenge like this one is old hat. They once rowed from Scotland to Syria, covering more than 7000km (4350 miles) in the process. Back in 2004, this adventurous couple also set out on a human powered circumnavigation of the planet, covering the land on foot, bikes and skies, while rowing across the Bering Strait and the Atlantic Ocean. They completed that journey two years later, and have continued their pursuit of outdoor adventure ever since.

If everything goes as planned, and his tendonitis doesn't get any worse, Colin should complete his journey sometime early next week. He's setting a pace that should allow him to break the record, but weather and conditions on the water can still play a role. Stay tuned!

Thanks to Julie for sending me the tip on her husband's adventure!

Ocean Rowing: Indian Ocean Rower Rescued While Roz Stays On Course

The Indian Ocean has been the site of several ongoing attempts for rowers to cross that body of water, and while some are continuing to make progress toward their goal, others have come face to face with the harsh realities of life out on the water.

Take for example Irish rower Keith Whelan, who was forced to abandon his attempt last week after his boat was stuck by a giant wave off the coast of Australia. The 29-year old was below deck at the time, and fell, striking his head on a bolt in his cabin. The bolt cut the side of his head, and while he wasn't knocked unconscious,  he was worried about exposure and possible infection.

With that in mind, Whelan made the decision to end his trip, and called home to the U.K. to let his support crew know he was pulling the plug. They then alerted Australian authorities who put out a call for help, which was answered by a freighter passing through the region. He was then picked up and taken back to land.

Reportedly Whelan was quite upset that he had to end his journey early. He was rowing across the ocean to raise funds for the Keep a Child Alive organization, which works to assist children and families that are struggling with AIDS/HIV, and it was tough for him to give up on pursing that goal. Also, for some odd reason, he was making the row completely naked. Presumably, he put some clothes on before he was picked up by the cargo ship.

Meanwhile, Roz Savage is continuing her attempt to cross the Indian Ocean, despite the fact that her GPS chart plotter died on her last week. She has a back-up GPS device of course, but this one had been with her on most of her journey across the Pacific Ocean, and it was a constant companion that counted down the miles to the her final destination.

In true Roz fashion, she seems very upbeat and happy with her progress, although some days are more challenging than others. When the winds and currents are working against her, sometimes all she can do is row all day just to stand still. As of today, she is 41 days into her journey, and still has a long way to go, but this is old hat for Roz, who has already conquered two other oceans.

The four person crew aboard the Indian Runner 4 are also still out on the water and hoping to complete their objective of crossing the ocean in record time. They've now been rowing for 53 days, and the plann is to reach Mauritius in less than 68 days, which would establish the new record. With 884 miles still to go, that is going to be a tough hurdle to overcome, but it appears that the crew is well on their way to completing their epic Indian Ocean crossing.

Ocean Rowing: One Indian Ocean Row Ends, Another Resumes

It seems the Indian Ocean is the source of all kinds of interesting news at the moment, with a couple of challenging rows just getting underway and another recently coming to an end. This is the season for those kinds of aquatic adventures on that great big body of water, where rowers scheduled their journeys around cyclones and monsoons.

We'll start with the fantastic voyage that ended last week, when Erden Eruç became the first person to row from mainland Australia to mainland Africa via the Indian Ocean. Erden reached Angoche, Mozambique on April 20th after setting out from Madagascar where he took shelter during the stormy season.

Successfully crossing the Indian Ocean is just the most recent step in Erden's great Around-n-Over adventure which is a human powered circumnavigation of the globe. He has been riding his bike and rowing his way around the globe since 2007, and has now crossed both the Pacific and Indian Oceans. Along the way, he is also climbing six summits as well. He has already knocked off Denali and Kosciuszko in Australia, and now that he has made landfall in Africa, he'll make his way to Kilimanjaro as well. Following that climb, he'll hit the road once again, crossing Africa on his bike before rowing the Atlantic.

While Erden's great Indian Ocean adventure has come to an end, Roz Savage's is continuing. As I mentioned last week, Roz was towed into Geraldton, Australia for a few minor repairs and adjustments to her boat before she hits open water, where small issues can become BIG problems. Eager to get back underway, Roz set out from Geraldton again on Saturday and made good progress on her first few days back on the water. Yesterday however, she noticed an issue with her solar panels charing the onboard batteries, which in turn power the boats electronic devices, Roz's laptop, sat phone, and so on. So, she once again elected to pull into shore for a very quick fix. This time, it would be at the very last port of call before facing 4000 miles of open ocean.

With the latest repairs taken care of, Roz can now get down to what she does best – rowing oceans. Hopefully the next time I post an update, she'll be well on her way to adding another big body of water to her resume.