Four women from Wales have finished one of the world’s toughest ocean rows to raise money for charity. How did they deal with storms, salt sores and losing power at sea?
The waves thrashed the sides of the boat rocking it back and forth. The icy spray swept over the deck pooling at the bottom of their feet. The light of the day had been swallowed by the darkening sky and the violent sways of the current were becoming a threat to Janine and her team.
The crew fled to shelter, locking themselves in the confined cabin. All bunched together they spent the night waiting out the weather, being thrown across each other and fighting against the waves. For 70 year old Janine this was a tough night.
“It was quite unsettling, we were in the cabin when the deck hit 90 degrees with the sea,” says Janine Williams, a member of the rowing team. I’d say we were in the cabin for about 10 hours before we came out in the morning.”
Janine made history as the oldest woman to row across the Atlantic. She rowed for 53 days alongside three women, Sophie, Miyah and Polly from Pembrokeshire on a journey across continents from Lanzarote to Antigua.
Though it was never about breaking the record. “My age didn’t motivate me to do it, I just thought if I don’t do it now then I won’t end up doing it at all,” says Janine.
Janine sometimes found rowing tough on her body. “I’m aware that as I get older, I need more recovery time. I got extremely exhausted, it was rough at times especially rowing at night where I couldn’t see,” says Janine. “I was afraid of being quite badly injured, so I had to take some time to rest.”
“We all had salt sores, our backs hurt from sitting down so much, it was excruciatingly painful at times but being rowers, we knew how to deal with it,” says Janine.
It was not all a struggle though, Janine did find moments of bliss. One calm night, the moonlight shone on the sea, glimmering like a candlelight enough for Janine to make out her surroundings. As she took it all in, a shooting star flew past followed by the flickering of an electric storm brewing nearby.
“It was absolute magic. It is difficult to describe, it was so beautiful that it’s so impossible to think of any way that it could be replicated,” says Janine.
Day to day the team had a solid routine which involved two hours on and two hours off rowing. Whoever was not rowing would make food and check the navigation, all whilst dealing with the extreme heat, which was up to 40 degrees as they got near to Antigua.
To help lift spirits the team would have check-ins during breakfast. They would take a look at messages from friends and family and play games on the deck, like bingo and quizzes.
Janine says that having the women around her made the experience. “We are bonded for life,” says Janine. “Going through an experience that is so out of the ordinary, no one else can understand what we went through.”
“Our teamwork was spot on, we had good routines and we supported each other if anything went wrong. I could not have asked for a better team,” says Janine.
Their teamwork was tested on their journey when the boat ran out of electricity. Just before dawn the electric went off, with only one percent left on the batteries the team had to resort to hand steering with no navigation whilst they tried to fix the problem.
Janine says that this put a lot of pressure on the team. “It was a very difficult time, we didn’t know what it was or if we could get home. Worst case scenario we don’t get the electricity back which was very stressful for all of us, especially at the end of the row when our friends and family were waiting for us,” says Janine.
Luckily the sun charged the solar powered batteries and the electricity returned. So, when the team could finally see the finish point at Antigua they were overcome with emotion.
Janine says that seeing her loved ones was fulfilling. “It was really unusual that all the boats arrived within 24 hours of each other,” says Janine. “So, when we arrived, we had all the other boats and all their friends and families along with ours there, it was such an amazing welcome.”
Janine reflects on the experience with fond memories of rowing with the team. “Being in a small space with people you get to know very well and then leaving that all behind, there’s something really special about that, ” says Janine. “Although we live close together, we’ve lost that space where we had that very special connection and that is what I’ll miss the most.”