“The Past is the determined, the Present is the moment of ‘becoming’ when events become determined, and the Future is as-yet undetermined”.
Enjoying life at sea.
The Past
‘How on earth did you succumb to the challenge of crossing the ocean in an 8-metre rowing boat’, says a friend?
Let’s go back 3 years…...
The idea had been bouncing around friends for the last few years but the main influencer came from watching the documentary ‘Losing Sight of Shore’, which chronicles the journey of four British woman nicknamed ‘The Coxless Crew’ rowing across the Pacific Ocean. The simplicity of the documentary captured almost every emotion and exposed a true reality of life at sea. I also remember hearing about Sarah Outen, who was the first woman and youngest person to row the Indian and Pacific Oceans. I thought ‘that is impossible’ but then fast forward 10 years and I hear my phone bleep and on opening it up, I can see a message from Captain Scott Pollock, aka ‘Cap’ saying ‘Now then Vicky, a little birdy told me you’re interested in rowing the Atlantic?’ and the rest, shall we say, is history.
As a person, I am not a risk taker, nor am I impulsive, I would class myself as a relatively steadfast individual, who has had a wonderful upbringing. As a sibling of four, our mum was extremely supportive of our active lifestyles and although I was removed from ballet lessons (apparently the teacher said I was like an elephant), I was fortunate enough to play netball, compete for the local athletic club, attend karate lesson, trial dance lessons and even willingly compete in the local cross country competitions. We even got personal swimming lessons and the reason I can remember this, is down to my unwillingness to cooperate on my first lesson, basically I refused to get in!!! Although a swift push from mother dear who was meant to be spectating on the side-line got me learning pretty fast.
Have you done anything like this before?
As a girl who loves the outdoors, I can categorically say I have not stayed out in the wilderness for more than seven days at a time, albeit I have been on some rather dull exercises that have lasted what feels like a lifetime. I have participated and competed in several endurance events that have required a certain level of planning and expectations management and I hope to tailor some of my own expectations from these.
The Present
‘You must be crazy’, a friend says, I chuckle and reply, ‘I must be but hopefully no different to most’.
Then came the million-dollar question, ‘but why’?
This should have been a relatively straightforward question to answer, but then the more I thought about it, the more I then started to realise that my answer to their question was fluctuating between two parallel motives.
My first motive, was encased around actualising potential; can I improve my cerebral self, what limitations do I hold, how do I adapt to challenging situations outside of my daily pattern and can I remain steadfast when placed under extreme pressure? My second motive was driven by my passion for the outdoors and less for the chaotic, information driven world that we live in.
And then I thought, why can’t it be both???? Surely you can learn to be challenged and enjoy the vastness of the open waters whilst surrounded by an awesome team!!! In fact, I believe that is three reasons, nature, people and a mammoth challenge!!!!
‘What about the build-up training, are you rowing for hours’?
It may come as a little shock but sitting and rowing for hours on end is not the only key ingredient to a successful rower. When you consider that we will be in a confined space, performing repetitive movements over an undulating sea mass, it is important to factor all of the components of fitness, including strengthening the core, improving mobility and increasing your strength.
As a team we will also be taking steps to test and assess our own mental resilience. We will need to consistently adapt to the changes in the weather pattern, the physical exertion, the lack of nutrition and any injuries (blistered / scabbed hands and feet). Understanding our stretch capacity will help us grow and reach our full potential.
The Future
With an almighty force behind the oars, the Force Atlantic team have been working tirelessly to ensure no stone has been left unturned in order to get the campaign off to a good start. Over the coming months, we have a lot to look forward to and as future plans lead, I am enjoying liaising with the wider ocean rowing community, manufacturing ideas, overseeing the scheduled events and most of all making friends and memories along the way. The next three months is an integral part of the journey and I am buzz buzzing away checking dates, time, places and costs for all of our future ventures. Although this is all very new to me, the thought of knowing that in just under 13 months we will be crossing the Atlantic makes it all worthwhile.
Victoria Blackburn