“Friend of mine rowed across the Atlantic.” My lunch companion leaned conspiratorially across the white linen tablecloth at the National Liberal Club. “Hasn’t worked since.” And he sat back with a told-you-so look on his face. So when I rang … Continued
Monthly Archives: March 2005
Cashflow Crisis
Got 3000 to spare? It’s 2am, and I’m lying in bed worrying about how I’m going to pay the next instalment on my boat. I’ve been working immensely hard on the sponsorship drive, and I have a good number of … Continued
Money can’t buy you happiness. But it can buy you freedom.
My final word on the rules of expeditions… …As has been highlighted in the last few days, expeditions are subject to rules just like any other area of life. If every member of the community abides by the rules, then … Continued
Pedantic semantics – the saga continues
I’m glad to be an ocean rower (aspiring) and not a polar explorer – apart from the risk of losing minor appendages to frostbite, polar exploration is fraught with hair-splitting definitions that would furrow the brow of the finest legal … Continued
Cunning linguistics
Solo, single-handed, or unsupported? That is the question. Yesterday I read an article on www.theoceans.net which defines the rules on how to describe your expedition (and has a pop at Ben Saunders along the way). It has caused me 24 hours … Continued
What were YOU doing at 4 o’clock on Saturday night?
Or shouldn’t I ask? Maybe on your way home, maybe still partying? Me, I was rowing… I’d woken up at 4am thinking about the 5-hour ergo scheduled for today. It had been looming over me all week, my eyes drawn … Continued
Wholebake Heaven
A surprise delivery 5 minutes ago – a huge, HUGE box full of 9 Bars, from those nice people at Wholebake. The last consignment got mis-delivered to the Blockbuster video shop up the road, and by the time the mistake … Continued
Outboard engine? I don’t think so!
‘Hello, I’m enquiring about keeping my boat in the marina over the summer.’ ‘What sort of boat is it?’ ‘An ocean rowing boat.’ (expecting usual response of hilarity and/or admiration). ‘Sorry, but we don’t allow rowing in the marina. The … Continued

