Three paramedics from Yorkshire are preparing to row 3,000 miles across the Atlantic – despite being new to the sport.
Ethan Chapman, Tom Dowdy and Ken Bordt will set off from La Gomera in the Canary Islands and finish in Antigua in December as part of the World's Toughest Row
Atlantic Challenge.
The challenge will see the team row across the Atlantic completely unsupported in around 40 days.
They are doing so to raise money for Macmillan Cancer Support, Stroke Association and the Ambulance Staff Charity.
Speaking to The Press, Ethan said they thought of the challenge during lockdown, while training to be ambulance paramedics, to raise cash for the important causes.
On Saturday (September 7), the trio was sent off with a nearly 30 boat flotilla along the River Ouse through York city centre to celebrate ahead of the challenge.
“It was great seeing everyone,” said Ethan of the event, which was organised by York Motor Yacht Club and York Rescue Boats.
The team – called the ParOARmedics – work for the Yorkshire Ambulance Service in Bradford where they also live.
But they keep their boat at York Motor Yacht Club, in Fulford, and train on the Ouse.
The trio has completed the bulk of their sea rowing training in Scarborough.
Team facing challenge is new to sport
Ethan explained how training on the waves was “challenging” but important as they prepare for over a month at sea.
It was particularly important, he said, as none of the team had rowed before.
Tom, 26, and originally from York, even did a rowing trial and was told to play rugby instead, Ethan joked.
On the Atlantic, the team – with Ken as the skipper – will row in three-hour shifts.
The boat is 28ft long and has three small cabins which the team will stay in.
“It’s very small and very cramped,” Ethan said of the conditions.
The boat is being shipped to the Canary Islands at the end of the month in preparation for the challenge.
“After September 24, it’s going to be a lot more chill,” Ethan said. “But we’re also going to be thinking about it a lot.”
Training is now well underway for the team.
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Ethan said this now primarily involves gym sessions and work on a rowing machine.
Aside from the fitness element, he explained that he and Tom have had to grips with one major factor of life at sea: sea sickness.
This was something Ethan became aware of while training in North Yorkshire.
At one point, he said, the team was off the coast of Whitby, enjoying a show of the Northern Lights.
“These were the best I have seen,” Ethan explained. “You could see them from the naked eye.
“But Tom and I were vomiting intermittently which took away from it.”
Despite this, Ethan described the training and challenge “as a great opportunity” and said: “I’m really looking forward to completing it.”
- To support the team, visit the JustGiving Page: https://www.justgiving.com/crowdfunding/ParOARmedicsChallenge
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