At the mercy of hurricanes, shark infested waters, medical emergencies and no support vessel – why would you row across the Atlantic Ocean?
Two brothers: Jude Massey, 18, a trainee ski and sailing instructor, and his brother Greg Bailey, 27, a junior doctor in A&E, are both from Hampshire. They are on a mission to row unaccompanied across the Atlantic Ocean in honour of their Dad/Step Dad, Peter Massey, whom they lost to skin cancer in 2015 after a horrendously long fight and facial disfigurement. They aim to raise £100,000 for the British Skin Foundation and are supported and endorsed by adventure heroes Bear Grylls and Sir Ranulph Fiennes.
We at New Forest Cottages have joined the crew of sponsors. In addition to sponsorship, we are providing complimentary PR, and designated our offices in Lymington High Street as an information centre and cash collection point for those not donating online.
Read on and you’ll understand why we felt it was so important to support these local lads.
In his younger years, their father Pete was a tall, fair skinned, handsome family man. He was an accomplished windsurfer and keen fisherman with his own small motor boat. He lived life simply but to the full, spending as much time outdoors in the sun as he could. At 49 he was diagnosed with skin cancer. Over the course of the next 16 years the cancer ravaged his face and body – rendering a once confident, happy man into a shy recluse. Jude and Greg vowed to do something to raise funds and awareness to help fight this hideous disease, working with The British Skin Foundation.
Forward to October 2016, Greg suggested to Jude they could do a sponsored swim across the English Channel. However, Jude had a much bigger idea in mind: to row across the treacherous and challenging waters of the Atlantic Ocean. Jude pointed out that in terms of human endurance, whilst 536 individuals have been to space, only 317 crews have successfully crossed the Atlantic, 153 crews hadn’t made it and 6 crew members had died trying to attempt it. However, both brothers agreed they felt an exciting connection to the Atlantic Ocean option, it allied with their dad’s love of the sea and boats, plus it would generate more interest and consequently more vital funds.
Like their dad, both brothers are keen sportsmen, but neither had any rowing experience nor undertaken any endurance sports. They needed help. The physical and psychological training programme has been designed by world record breaking ex-ocean rower, endurance athlete and adventurer: Angus Collins. Angus has overseen the brothers’ training in the UK and will ramp up their ocean training when they get to Gran Canaria in the New Year. Jude and Greg will depart Gran Canaria on 15th January 2018 and take approximately two months to cross the ocean, arriving in Barbados mid-March.
The pair expect to each lose 2 stone during their 3000-mile journey. Greg is vegetarian and Jude has been vegan for the past year. The brothers have decided to eat a pure vegan diet whilst at sea, not only for ease of storage, but also for the valuable, rich nutrition the vegan food will provide. They will each need to consume 6,000 calories a day to help replace some of the 8,000 calories they’ll be using by eating 3 meals of beans, grains, legumes, nuts and oils, plus hourly snacks. It will be a rigorous regime to keep their 23 ft, one tonne vessel from Rannoch Adventure moving, taking turns 2 hours rowing and 2 hours sleep.
Once at sea, they will be completely alone. Onboard the brothers are keen to be energy efficient and will rely on solar power to heat their food and desalinate the 5 litres of water each will need a day. Onboard equipment also includes a GPS for communication with the base team and radar – to alert them of nearby ships and vessels to avoid collision. Their boat has a water-tight cabin and para anchor to provide some protection in the event of bad weather. However, if the winds reach storm force / hurricane level, the boat will be akin to a human washing machine – something Greg and Jude aren’t keen to dwell on! They’ll also have to maintain the vessel. Scraping barnacles off the hull in waters frequented by sharks and large marine life is just one of the potential dangers they face, as well as medical emergencies, equipment and electrical failure.
Alongside friends, family and sponsors, Jude and Greg have already raised an amazing £28,915 which will all go to The British Skin Foundation. Specialist skincare providers AproDerm® are working with the Ocean Brothers’ partners/sponsors such as Waitrose in their home town of Lymington, who are suppling vegan food for the trip.
Furthermore, a host of local companies, small and large, have come onboard to offer their support; New Forest Cottages for free PR, Everton Garage who have donated a car and the world famous 5* Chewton Glen Hotel who will be hosting a Gala Charity Auction on 25th November.
Take a look at the Ocean brothers’ website for more about Greg and Jude’s Story. It’s packed with photographs, videos, information and how you can donate and get involved. You can also visit their JustGiving page by clicking here.
