I figured I would start by telling you a little bit more about me…
Clearly, I love physical training, but I’m also a crazy dog lady. My dogs come before anything else in my life, my husband even jokes that they are more important than him (he isn’t wrong). So, my little family is made up of me, my husband Chad and our two cocker spaniels, Summer and Tolly. I love being outside, most people like to rest on holiday, I head straight for the mountains to go exploring.
What started as a chore turned into a love.
In 2017 I was introduced to the world of Indoor Rowing. I can hear you asking “is Indoor Rowing even a thing?” Well, the answer is yes, there’s a whole community out there of people who are passionate about Indoor Rowing. Initially I got dragged kicking and screaming onto the rower to take part in a monthly league (normally it was the last day of the month). Fast forward a year and I met an Indoor Rowing enthusiast, his life revolved around Indoor Rowing and he didn’t stop talking about it. Long story short, he’s now one of my best friends and together we don’t shut up about rowing…
But Ocean Rowing…
Everyone that knows me knows that I like a challenge, and I’m definitely not one to say no. I can’t actually remember the last time I said no. With the completion of my Exercise Rehabilitation Instructor course in December 20, I always thought 2021 was going to be a quiet year. Having not really lived at home for a while, I thought it would be a year of living at home and learning my new job with nothing crazy going on. Then the question was asked… for me it was a simple answer, YES.
So 2021 is now going to be a hectic year of learning my new job, learning to row a boat, completing the mandated courses and doing everything else that comes with getting to the start line of the Talisker Whisky Atlantic Challenge. It’s going to be crazy and chaotic but I can’t wait!
But I had to think why, why do I want to do this.
One of the key aims of our challenge is to highlight the opportunities that exist to everyone regardless of gender.
The Army has recently opened up all of its roles to everyone, male, female, no one cares. We have females in the Infantry, they’ve passed the Commando Course and the first female has now completed P-Coy.
Having only joined the RAPTC two years ago the opportunities that have been given to me so far have been amazing. I’ve spent 9 months as the Female Physical Training Mentor for the Afghanistan National Army Officer Academy, completed a Level 6 Advanced Diploma in Rehabilitation Within Defence alongside completing my Exercise Rehabilitation Instructors Course. I’ve also been lucky enough to represent the Army, achieving podium finishes at the British and World Indoor Rowing Championships and I even made my debut appearance in the RAPTC Female Cycling Team (definitely not my strongest sport).
But let’s be honest as a female in a man’s world, life isn’t always simple.
I’ve lost count of the number of times I’ve been told you CAN’T do that because you’re female, or you WON’T be able to do that because you’re female. Deep down though, the one that hurts the most is being told you only passed that or got awarded that because you’re a female. It happens all the time, but slowly as an Army we are getting better at recognising the strengths and weaknesses of our personnel and where they fit into service life.
Rowing across the Atlantic is another one of those incredible opportunities that has been offered to me. No military teams have included a female in their crew, but we are taking on this challenge as equals. We will share the rowing, share the tasks and get across the ocean as a team. For us, gender has nothing to do with it.
It’s a chance to learn.
It can be tough to learn from experience. Experience may frighten us, weaken us or make us self-doubt, but it may also make us stronger. What all experiences have in common is that they shape who we are.
Simon Moesgaard
On a personal level, this is an opportunity for me to learn, grow and develop. This is the ultimate challenge of physical and mental robustness. They say that you are a different person when you come back from rowing an ocean, I hope to be a better person. No doubt there will times that I will be scared, frightened, anxious and nervous but there will also be times of happiness, excitement, enjoyment and exhilaration.
Being part of such an incredible team, I can’t wait to see how our journey develops over the next 14 months. It will be full of adventures and challenges with amazing experiences, whilst creating some unimaginable memories.
Laura Barrigan
Media Lead, Team Force Atlantic
