WAY TO ROW!
Duo win gruelling 3000-mile pairs challenge
A SCOTS dad has triumphed in a daring rowing challenge across the Atlantic which saw his boat capsize in mammoth waves.
Robbie Laidlaw, from Gullane, East Lothian, and pal Chris Mitchell spent 38 days at sea for the 3000mile Atlantic Challenge – known as the World’s Toughest Row. The duo finished first in the pairs race, having battled weeks of sleep deprivation and exhaustion to reach Antigua in the Caribbean at the weekend. Robbie, 34, who became a dad six weeks before setting off, said: “I couldn’t actually put into words how crazy it was. It was absolutely mental.” They started planning the race three years ago when their catering business Genuine Dining was in the grips of the pandemic. They wanted to raise funds for the hospitality industry. It set off from San Sebastián de La
Gomera in the Canary Islands on December 14 and the dads spent Christmas at sea, updating supporters on their journey.
In a recent message on their Instagram page, Chris, 41, said: “We had an interesting 24 hours… we capsized. We were flying along, probably going too fast to keep our advantage and a wave blew up and nicked us on the side and pushed the boat up. Robbie ended up in the water and I ended up upside down in my cabin.
“Maria [the boat] was great – she flipped back over and we were all back on.”
The pair documented the more pleasurable moments, like being visited by a pod of dolphins on New Year’s Eve. But the race is notoriously dangerous, with the threat of huge ocean swells and severe dehydration all adding to the risk.
Former Australian spy and war crimes investigator Alisdair Putt died skippering a boat in the race. Putt, who had planned to spend his 62nd birthday at sea, suffered a fatal heart attack on January 4.
Robbie and Chris, who have raised more than £160,000 for Hospitality Action, had an emotional reunion with their families as they hit dry land on Saturday.
The World’s Toughest Row was won overall by a team of five Royal Navy submariners known collectively as “HMS Oardacious”, who arrived in Antigua on Wednesday.
Currently rowing solo in the event is mum-of-two Leanne Maiden, who has lived in Scotland for more than 20 years. The 42-year-old, from Bearsden, near Glasgow, hopes to become the first South African woman to achieve the feat.
i couldn’t actually put into words how crazy it was. robbie laidlaw on 3000-mile atlantic challenge