Introducing Louise
This is my first newsletter for Liz. I’ll do my best to keep up the excellent standard she has set!
My name is Louise, I met Liz in early May 2022 when she flew from Australia to Charleston, South Carolina, to come to our rescue and skipper Maiden on her East Coast tour, we sailed the iconic racing yacht up to Canada over 4 months, stopping along the way to raise funds for The Maiden Factor Foundation. We had an instant connection and once I said I rowed the Atlantic in 2021 we had lots to talk about. It’s hard to believe this was only last year as I feel like we’ve been buddies for decades. I think it might be the yachting and adventuring that helps us get to the bare bones of a person quicker; the bonds made at sea are strong.
And here we are, 19 months later in La Gomera together. Liz gave me the role of Team Manager. As you can imagine, I’ve had very few tasks sent my way as she is so organised and on top of things. So, apart from storing and transporting Tic Tac this summer and helping pack provisions it’s been smooth sailing. Newsletters are now my main responsibility, and I hope to keep you all up to speed over the coming months, when we’ll be avidly following Liz, Barney and Javier’s little dot across the Atlantic.
It is often said that the hardest part of any challenge is getting to the start line.
Liz has done this with flying colours. Tic Tac was the first boat to be inspected by Atlantic Campaigns Safety team at 9am on the 30th December. The safety officers used Liz as a glowing example for all the other 37 teams on how to prepare and complete a proper inspection. No real surprise there to those that know Liz.
Over the next few days, all the rowers were invited to join the professional photographer for a photoshoot on the north of the island. This took place on an old shipping port. Huge pillars were used for craning cargo from ships anchored off the rocks. Unfortunately, the port was destroyed by a tidal wave in the 1950’s, all that remains are 4 huge brick pillars and a pool below them. A fascinating and stunning location for the team photos, I particularly love the one I have attached.
On launch day, each boat was docked in number order ,in front of every berth, each competitor’s Worlds Toughest Row flag flies displaying their nationality. It’s quite a spectacle to see 38 ocean rowing boats lined up smartly behind the banners. To witness this is such a highlight of travelling to La Gomera.
Every morning Liz attended the briefing in the Atlantic Campaigns(WTR) tent by the ferry terminal next to the marina. On Thursday, December 7th, due to unfavourable weather potentially arriving on the 12th (the original race start date), the teams were told there was a 90% chance of a Saturday, December 9th start date. This caused a flurry of activity, as each boat had to get out into the bay to complete a final systems check. To get all 38 boats out in time, each team had to book an hour time slot that they would share with 5 other boats. Liz booked Tic Tac’s slot for 2-3pm, as she had her head shot photo appointment at 10:50am and an electrics briefing between 12:30pm and 1:30pm.
By 2pm, when I cast off the lines the wind was blowing 20 knots offshore. Luckily, Liz had Jamie onboard in case things got worse - for instance, not being able to return to the marina against the strong breeze. She joked when they got back in - “thank goodness I had another 2 horse power with me!”. For those of you that haven’t met Jamie, he’s a gem of an Australian who any one of us would want on our team; he’s kind, thoughtful and laughs easily.
On Friday, December 8th, the 9am tent briefing produced a new start date of Wednesday, December 13th. This was good news for Liz as Micky Montoya was due in on the ferry from Tenerife, having flown over from Chicago the night before. Micky has successfully managed to source funding to film a documentary about Liz’s row, and the delay meant he would get some vital footage before the start onboard Tic Tac. Micky is providing a drone and camera equipment for her to use to document the crossing. He’s keen to get unique footage, and understand how Liz is feeling and coping mentally, given the physical and emotional demands of this endeavour.
With a delayed start date, this meant the team had a free day! So naturally, we hired a car and went exploring. During our adventure, we unintentionally drove along a track looking for a rare rock formation only to find out a couple of miles later that is was an extreme mountain bike track and not a road at all - oops! Our little 2-wheel drive VW polo did a great job as it pushed along the narrow mountain track, surrounded by spectacular ocean views.
La Gomera weather has been wonderful with the winter sun, so you can imagine how sad I am as I sit on the plane and write this, heading back to a damp and grey England.
If you’d like to follow Tic Tac on the YB tracker https://www.ybtracking.com/ . You can download the app and add Worlds Toughest Row-Atlantic, it should also be on https://www.worldstoughestrow.com/
There is live-streaming of the start on Facebook on Worlds Toughest Row page. Its very well done by Charlotte, I watch it every year.
I hope you’ve enjoyed this update, I will try and get another one out shortly after the start next week.
Stay well and thanks for your time reading this.
Fair winds and following seas.
Louise 🤓