FORMER LADY ELEANOR HOLLES PUPIL LEADS NEW OCEAN-ROWING RECORD BID
PHOTO SPECIAL
A former adventure-hungry pupil from Lady Eleanor Holles School at Hampton who broke the World Record for rowing across the Atlantic in a three-woman team is taking up another massive challenge, rowing across the Pacific Ocean from Monterey to Hawaii.
Marketing director Charlotte Irving, 33, from Hampton will be joined by two other women health spa director Taylor Winyard, 31, and designer Jess Goddard, 32 when they set off on their 2800 nautical mile challenge June 8th in their new £95.000 rowing boat called ‘Weird Barbie’ for what’s known as the ‘world’s toughest row.’
The boat was ‘christened’ Weird Barbie’ by Charlotte’s sister who thought the name ‘encapsulated’ its personality and ‘named it after the character in the Barbie Movie, who is not only totally autonomous but plays too hard.’
Charlotte met her two new rowing companions when she and two others broke the World Record for crossing the Atlantic as part of Team ExtraOARordinary in the Talisker Whisky challenge in 2022m in 42 days, smashing the existing record by a week.
The British trio hope to complete the crossing in 40 days, breaking the existing record despite the challenging conditions, especially at the start of the race where the famous ‘wall of wind’ off the Californian coast can easily capsize boats as well as dealing with the menacing presence of killer sharks and orca whales as well as giant turtles and sea lions.
Only 12 boats will be taking part in this part of the summer’s challenge which ends in Hanalei Bay on the stunning island of Kaua’i where Jurassic Park was filmed. The trio hope to make the crossing in 38 days beating the existing record by just two days and raise over £100.000 for Cancer Research and Sports Aid.
Charlotte said: “We all loved our Atlantic crossing so much and we made over £140k for our chosen charities in the process, that when the opportunity to tackle another ocean and another World Record came around, we grabbed it with six hands.”
The three women are also aiming to close the ‘gender adventure gap’ and encourage a generation of women ‘to live their wildest dreams.’
Charlotte added: “Adventure sports are male dominated, with most high profile events and expeditions featuring male athletes.
“In Ocean Rowing for example, only 25% of participants are female. This makes it much harder for women to secure sponsorship and funding, as women do not have the same level of exposure and recognition as their male counterparts.
“Fewer women receive funding for adventure sports due to a lack of visibility and representation in the industry. By increasing female representation in sport and adventure we can work towards greater gender equality across the spectrum.
“When women have equal opportunities to participate in sport and adventure, it has a ripple effect on attitudes in areas such as employment, equal pay and leadership roles.
“Greater female representation in sport and adventure has clear economic benefits. Not only can it lead to increased interest and investment in women’s sports and outdoor pursuits, but according to a study by the Women’s Sports Foundation, girls who participate in sport are more likely to have higher levels of confidence and self-esteem than those who do not, and are more likely to go after and secure leadership roles.”
To learn more about their challenge and sponsorship opportunities, go to https://www.pacifictriow.com/
To learn more about the race go to: https://www.worldstoughestrow.com/the-pacific/
