British rowers break 114-year-old transatlantic crossing record
By ANISunday, August 1, 2010
LONDON - A British-led rowing team broke a 114-year-old record for crossing the North Atlantic from New York to the Isles of Scilly on Saturday.
During two months at sea, the team battled 10-metre waves, a bout of food poisoning and narrowly avoided crashing into fishing boats in 35-knot winds, The Telegraph reports.
The team, skippered by Leven Brown, 37, from Edinburgh, crossed the finishing line at St Mary’s Harbour in the Scilly Isles at around 4 p.m. on Saturday after almost 44 days at sea on the 3,246 mile journey.
Their time - 43 days, 21 hours, 26 minutes and 48 seconds - knocked 11 days off the 55-day record set by Norwegian fishermen George Harbo and Frank Samuelson in 1896.
Brown said: “I’m absolutely over the moon, exhausted, elated, ecstatic to be here in the Scilly Isles. It’s a great, great day. I’m very proud of the lads and everybody involved in the boat and proud of the boat, she’s taken a hammering. I’m just really proud to be a part of it.”
The new record-holders are the Artemis North Atlantic Rowing Challenge team which also includes Ray Carroll, 33, from Galway, Don Lennox, 41, from Bellshill, Glasgow, and Livar Nysted, 39, from the Faroe Islands. (ANI)
