At noon today, 58 rowers finally got underway in the
Atlantic Rowing Race 2005.
Starting from St Sebastian de la Gomera, Canary Islands, they are heading for English Harbour, Antigua, West Indies, and expect to spend the next 40 - 60 days at sea.
As the crow flies, the distance between the two ports is 2931 miles.
Amongst the 58 rowers in 26 boats, there are four teams of four, 20 doubles and two solo competitors, including four
all-girl teams.
I also noticed that one, Franck Bruno, is competing but this is not Frank Bruno the former World Heavyweight Champion but Frenchman Franck Bruno, who is competing with fellow amputee Dominique Benassi; yes, they are both amputees and are the first ever amputees to attempt to row across an ocean.
Franck runs his own diving school and is also the goal keeper for Formula 1 Racing Car driver, Michael Schumacher's celebrity football team. Dominique is an accomplished marathon runner and cyclist and
both have successfully climbed Mount Kilimanjaro!
