Team Force Atlantic have been together now for approximately 15-months and coupled with the Covid-19 environment we have all found ourselves in over the last year or so, the team have had plenty of time and opportunity to plan and prepare for our participation in the TWAC 2021. We have been fortunate enough to able to grow organically, not just as individuals, but as a team too. Without being rushed or feeling any pressure to ‘Row’ before we can even walk!
Planning
How do you plan to row an Ocean?
‘’Plans are nothing, Planning is everything’’ – Dwight D Eisenhower
From the beginning, our planning phase began with a virtual team meeting every Tuesday evening, which naturally guided each team member to their own lead role for the campaign. Our decision to use virtual meetings was not just Covid-19 related, but also due to each team member working in different locations across the UK. As our team meetings started to progress, a week became month and a month became 2, we started to invite past teams along to our meetings to assist us with helping us move forward with our plans for the TWAC 21. Although every team we spoke to had a different experience from the last, just by listening to their personal experiences and little tips, enabled us to plan meticulously and hopefully leave no stone unturned, even when it comes down to the music we are going to select.
Each team member started to read and listen to Ocean Rowing books and blogs, or watch videos and podcasts. Not just to increase the excitement of being part of such a massive event and let the reality sink in, but to try and take away any little golden nuggets of information we could gather and add them to our very own Force Atlantic plans which were discussed through our virtual meets!
Another vital part of the planning process was looking how we should best prepare the team professionally for such an event. What mandatory courses we had to attend and what training we’re required to conduct as a pre-requisite set by Atlantic Campaigns.
Preparation
How do you prepare to row an Ocean?
‘’By failing to prepare, you are preparing to fail’’ – Benjamin Franklin
A big part of preparing for such a challenge like the TWAC is to try and prepare yourself and your body, both physically and mentally. As ‘Cap’ discussed in his latest blog (To erg or not erg – That is the question) it’s not just about countless hours sitting on the rower. A carefully constructed physical training programme (PTP) containing a fine balance of strength, mobility and core work, with some supplementary accessory work is recommended. The Force Atlantic team members are currently following their own individual PTPs and are covering approx. 3-400,000m on cardiovascular training alone each month. This training includes: Rowing (both on the erg and OTW) and accessory work; with Running and Cycling the preferred choices.
Thanks to our platinum sponsor Made to Measure Mentoring, we’ve also been able to focus on improving our mental resilience too. Each team member has been assigned a personal mentor to work with on a monthly basis. Combined with group sessions to help tie it all together and assist with preparing the team from the top down ‘Mens Sana in Corpore Sano’ ‘A Healthy Mind in a Healthy Body’.
Another vital component of our preparation was completing our mandatory courses through Aurora Sea School, Burnham-on-crouch. All race entrants must hold certain qualifications prior to taking part in TWAC: RYA Essential Navigation & Seamanship, RYA Sea Survival, RYA First Aid at Sea and a Short-Range VHF Radio Licence. The Ocean Rowing Course is the final mandatory course which is delivered by the Atlantic Campaigns safety officers; Ian Couch and Fraser Mowlem.
The tip of the Iceberg effect is a great analogy and can be used in relation to the success of our planning and preparation. Our successes can be seen as the competition of our mandatory courses, our mental or physical training outputs, or the success of our OTW training serials. Our success is always outward facing and something that is viewed or read on our social media platforms. These things don’t just happen by chance, no one sees the dedication, hard work or the countless hours our team has to put in, it’s just the tip of the iceberg. Or the discipline and sacrifices of getting up at 0500 in the morning to fit in or complete a planned training session prior to going to work to prevent disappointment or failure, again, it’s just the tip of the iceberg and the success you will all see!
Execution
‘’Genius is when an idea and the execution of that idea are simultaneous’’ – Albert Einstein
Our plan is to complete 3 practical training blocks to prepare the team as best as we can prior to embarking on the ‘ultimate endurance row’ and the adventure of a lifetime. Our vision is to execute our practical training sessions with the concept of Crawl, Walk, Run! The hypothesis of this concept is to enable the team to get as much as we can out of each block without putting too much pressure on making mistakes early and to hopefully build on the last block.
On the water training phase one - Isle of Skye
The primary aim of our first OTW training phase was to get together as a team, get some practical OTW training complete on-board an R45 and put all our thorough planning and preparation from the last 15-months to the test! The secondary aim was to look at the pre-requisites that are required to take part in the challenge and start to tick off as much as we can. All rowers entering the TWAC must achieve a minimum requirement of 120 hours (including 24 hours in darkness) of qualifying rowing experience. As Vicky discussed in her latest blog (On-board a R45 Elite Ocean Rowing Boat), during the first OTW phase, we needed to get it right and ensure all crew members experienced: training together as a team of four, and drilling and rehearsing all the on board procedures. Understand the operation of all the equipment on board and have knowledge of how to fix these items of equipment if or when needed. As well as understanding any risks or likely problems that may arise and what can be done to prevent them and how to act should they occur.
Some might say that planning to row and navigate around the North West Coast of Scotland and the Isle of Skye is very ambitious for an experienced team of rowers. Let alone a team of novice rowers who had never been on an Ocean Rowing boat before, never mind had the opportunity to row in one! But the perfect combination of 15-months of thorough planning and preparation, and the right blend of team ethics and determination, enabled us to turn the most ambitious idea, into the perfectly executed training serial. One down and 2 to go….
As a team, we’re not naive to the fact that no plan usual survives first contact, we are very open-minded to this fact and if or when this happens, we will adapt our plans, reassess, prepare and execute again! We are still very new to Ocean Rowing and we’ve still got a long way to go until we arrive on the shores of English Harbour in Antiqua.
Training Lead
SSgt Phillip Welch