My Kind of Sportsman
Daily Telegraph - Seasick chain-smoker rows Atlantic
AN overweight chain-smoking aquaphobic has beaten an infection and the competition to be the first solo Australian to row across the Atlantic - a 76-day journey across 5500km of open seas.
Pete Collett, 32, arrived at in the West Indies on Saturday night, after rowing the final leg for 30 hours straight to edge out his nearest competitor.
The race began at the Canary Islands off the Moroccan coast of West Africa, and at times Collett battled 8m swells, torrential rain and searing heat.
Now that’s my kinda guy. Doing something completely daft, but doing it to win.
His two-year journey posed many challenges.
“I used to get seasick, I was afraid of being out in the depths,” Collett said.
“I am also absolutely petrified of sharks.”
The English-born Australian citizen piloted one of only two single-person crafts in the field of 25, beating Canadian Paul Attalla by 33km and two of the two-man crafts.
Hurrah!
Curtsy: Aussie Brett McS.
February 19th, 2008 at 9:00 am
Does his being a chain smoker mean he rowed with one hand?
February 20th, 2008 at 4:46 am
Does his being a chain smoker mean he rowed with one hand? No, it means he had an acetylene torch.
Try the veal, I’ll be here all week.