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Wind in his sails

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Nanditta Chibber New Delhi
Last Updated : Jun 14 2013 | 4:29 PM IST
How does rowing solo in a boat across the Atlantic Ocean sound? Adventurous and romantic? Definitely! But would you give it a shot to "discover yourself"? I presume the answer is likely to be "no".
 
But 32 men in the past have rowed across an ocean solo and the 33rd one is ready with his boat to pick up his oars to cut across the Atlantic in the last week of February. Bhavik Gandhi, in his late 20s, based in Sweden, is the first Indian and Asian to make such an attempt and the expedition's success could create world history for extreme endurance sports.
 
What motivates a person to row 3,000 nautical miles (5,000 kilometers) from La Gomera, Spain to Antigua, Barbados? For Gandhi, who could be called an endurance sports freak, having cycled 3,000 miles from Stockholm to Istanbul and taken part in various other challenges like distance running, mountain climbing, sailing and trekking through a lake in Siberia, "there are other things to life than just an MBA", he quips.
 
Being more profound, he adds, "The mind is like a piece of elastic that stretches to unthinkable limits where through such expeditions you discover yourself."
 
Once the goal is set, being physically and mentally prepared comes along with a host of things to make survival possible in the ocean's vastness. "It's not something you wake up and decide to do, you have to build up to it," says Gandhi whose home, once he starts rowing, will be a 23 feet boat (no sails, no motor, no support boats) for the next 100-odd days.
 
With three hours at the gym everyday to build the stamina to row continuously for 10-12 hours a day, Gandhi has spent days selecting the route (co-incidentally, Christopher Columbus's route to discover India).
 
He also listed the times, equipment required, made a project plan and drew up estimated costs, which added to ¤100,000 and arranged for sponsors. "Being one in a billion to make such an attempt did help," he confesses.
 
As Gandhi will have to weather the weather along with the ocean's currents, freak waves, icebergs, abandoned containers, hypothermia, sunburn, salt sores, whales and sharks too, his boat is made from 6mm thick marine wood coated with epoxy resin for resilience to water, and is designed to turn back upright by itself if it capsizes.
 
With a shelter in the rear cabin and food supplies underneath the rowing deck, Gandhi has to be careful to maintain the weight and balance of the boat. "As I consume food, the weight on the boat will decrease. To maintain the balance, I will have to replace the food weight with salt water," says Gandhi.
 
The high seas in a boat leave you with limited options for food. To avoid dehydration, Gandhi will need a minimum of 4,000 calories a day to row for long intervals. His special food requires water to rehydrate, "It obviously doesn't taste great but has the required calories," says Gandhi, who has a saltwater de-salinator for drinking water. And if you are wondering about a toilet, well, "it's bucket it and chuck it", he laughs.
 
It's not just rowing that will keep Gandhi busy, things will have to be fixed, like cleaning the underneath of the boat. "The greatest risk is sharks and whales coming for the smaller fish that feed off the growth on the underside of the boat, and I don't plan to attract them for a meal," Gandhi wisecracks.
 
He also has to avoid any nicks and cuts "" for the shark's radar for sensing blood is strong (remember Jaws?). Another big risk that Gandhi's small boat faces is being hit by speeding cargo ships that could fail to see his boat on their radar due to its low elevation in the water. "I do have a SeaMe device on board and I hope the big ships radar pick it up," assesses Gandhi
 
Gandhi's adventure calls for all possible precautions. He's carrying two satellite phones, a PDA, a laptop, three GPS systems, reserve food, rescue backup and an Argos tracking system. As a backup for the monotony of rowing, Gandhi has "an Apple Ipod to keep me entertained". All that we can wish Gandhi is "safe journey".

 

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First Published: Feb 11 2006 | 12:00 AM IST

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