Blog #21- July 22, 2023
Do you see other boats on the row?
Owen and Jayme are often asked if they see other boats or rowers while on a trans Ocean crossing or if there is a support boat following them. Here are some of the facts:
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On occasion they will see a sailboat or a cargo ship in the distance, but not very often. On July 12, they monitored 3 Brothers fishing vessel from the AIS (Automatic Identification System- used for vessel tracking) and could see them in distance for a day. The next day, Owen decided to contact them on the VHF. They were aware of Aloha Kai and wished them well. Later as the 3 Brothers were returning to the Islands, they contacted Aloha Kai to let them know the location of some large Mahi Mahi on their course to Kauai in case they were fishing!
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In an Ocean Rowing event, the rowers get spread out quickly as each team size is different and some teams participate to compete and others to complete. Generally, after the first day, they will not see another team/rowboat. On July 13, when Pacific Floaters (the other 2 person team), passed Aloha Kai they were about 7 miles south of Owen and Jayme. While they couldn’t see the Pacific Floaters, they were close enough to contact them on the VHF radio. A morale boost for both teams!
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There is a support yacht that will leave at some point during the race and sail through the fleet to take photos and check in (the rowers are also checking in with the Safety Team every 1-4 days via satellite phone). For World’s Toughest Row- Pacific, the yacht left California after the leaders had completed the row and Aloha Kai and the Flying Fish (last team) were the only 2 teams that were visited. Owen and Jayme were visited by the WTR support yacht on July 22, only 5 days before they completed the row.
Photo Credit: World's Toughest Row
Photo Credit: World's Toughest Row
Photo Credit: World's Toughest Row
Photo Credit: World's Toughest Row
