Miriam Payne and Jess Rowe are rowing across the Pacific Ocean, from Peru to Australia, to raise money for charity
The physical and mental challenges have been immense, the setbacks numerous. The pair have endured searingly hot days and chilly nights and dealt with debilitating blisters and salt sores.
They have been faced with a series of equipment failures (using a pair of underpants to fix one crucial bit of kit) and there was a pretty tense moment when they feared a pair of curious marlins swimming under their boat might pierce their hull.
Miriam Payne and Jess Rowe, who are two-thirds of the way through an 8,000-mile row across the Pacific from Peru to Australia, are weary – but relishing the experience.
Speaking to the Guardian via satellite phone at a dawn shift change – they do two hours on, two off during the night – Rowe said: “I’m very tired, I won’t lie. It’s just so hard to wake up for your shift. We’re both not even hearing our alarms any more. They go off for 10 or 15 minutes and then whoever’s rowing has to wake the other. It’s pretty tough. Apart from the sleep deprivation, we’re loving it.”
