'Beech Boys' set to conquer the Atlantic

22 December 2009

Father and son will row, but hopefully not fall out!

Credit: WaterAid

While we are all recovering from Christmas over-indulgence, two fantastic WaterAid supporters will be taking part in the Woodvale Atlantic Rowing Challenge. They will begin their voyage on 4 January 2010.

You can follow their progress on Twitter here.

Norman Beech, manager of the outdoor pursuit centre at the University of Birmingham, and his son James, will cover over 2,500 nautical miles from La Gomera in the Canaries to Antigua in the West Indies.

The 'Beech Boys' want to break the trans-Atlantic world record currently held by another father and son team at 78 days. Norman and James hope to complete it in 65 days or less.

James also aims to be the youngest rower to cross the Atlantic, hoping to cross the finish line just before his 19th birthday.

They are raising money for WaterAid by selling their £30,000 24ft boat when they arrive in Antigua.

Norman said: "That amount of money would be enough to give 2,000 people in Tanzania water for the rest of their lives, so that will be a strong motivation for us." 

He continued: "We felt that being surrounded by undrinkable salty water during the row would provide an ongoing connection to the importance of having safe water."

WaterAid's Charlotte Archer says: "We hope that Norman and James' journey across the Atlantic will help raise awareness of the 884 million people that don't have clean, safe water to drink. We are delighted that Norman and James Beech have decided to support WaterAid and wish them the best of luck on their journey."

Norman and James have been preparing for the race for over two years. Originally planned for early December, the race has been delayed to 29 December after a disagreement with Customs Officers. The weather has also contributed to the delay, with the wind blowing from the South instead of the North.

Ahead of their row across the Atlantic, Norman and James have been thinking about possible dangers that may await them:

James: "We might come across the occasional whale or shark, but as long as the whale doesn't bump into the boat and as long as we are not in the water while a shark is around they are quite easy dangers to avoid."

Norman: "You are looking at 25-30ft waves. While it isn't the whole height of the wave that's breaking, it's a pretty big lump of water that is breaking and turning over."

James also points out: "For 60 days or so, we will only see each other and over time our relationship will develop and be challenged. At the moment we are good friends - and I'm hoping it will stay that way!"

Their progress can be followed via a satellite tracker at www.atlanticrowingrace09.com, and they will also keep their blog, which can be seen at www.sport.bham.ac.uk/transatlantic, updated throughout the journey.

Sponsor Norman and James at www.justgiving.com/beechboysatlantic

Notes to Editors:

• At least 4000 children die every day as a result of diseases caused by unclean water and poor sanitation. 
• 884 million people in the world do not have access to safe water. This is roughly one in eight of the world's population.
• 2.5 billion people in the world do not have access to adequate sanitation, this is almost two fifths of the world's population.
• Just £15 can enable one person to access safe water, improved hygiene and sanitation.