All at sea to set a record or two...

Author George Bernard Shaw, when asked why he hadn't written his autobiography, had responded that everyone's life has a certain predictable pattern to it. You are born, you grow up, do things that grown-ups do, and then one day you die. Shaw saw no point in chronicling this mundane everyday existence that most people live. Bhavik Gandhi, by contrast, by the age of 27 years has already done and experienced enough to fill several books. Right now Gandhi, a venture capitalist and an adventure sports enthusiast, is trying to become the first Indian and Asian to row solo across the Atlantic.

Speaking via satellite, phone Gandhi says, "I'm lucky to be speaking to you right now as two days ago I was almost run over by a huge ship." This is just one of the many hurdles that the vast ocean has to offer. Having completed almost 40 days of being at sea, he hopes to complete the expedition in another 75 days.

Gandhi set off solo across the Atlantic Ocean on February 28, 2007 from La Restinga on the island of El Hierro off the coast of Spain and is expected to reach his destination, Antigua, 3,000 nautical miles away, later than the expected 90 days. "It looks like it will take a lot more time as something or the other has been slowing me down," he says.

He has already rowed for over 1,000 nautical miles, pushing the boundaries of equipment, body and mind beyond limits that would be unfathomable to most human beings, especially those surrounded by creature comforts. What prompted him to do this? "While other frontiers have been explored by many people, oceans are one of the few left to be explored fully by man. More than rowing, it was this challenge that excited me," he explains.

Gandhi, in his attempt to row across the Atlantic, has been at the mercy of the weather and has had to endure extreme conditions such as gale force winds, storms and four-storey high waves in the open ocean, not to mention the constant fear of sharks and whales. Is there a timetable that Gandhi follows? He says that he rows for about 10-12 hours a day in four-hour shifts. The rest of the time is divided between eating, cleaning and maintaining the boat, and trying to catch up on some much needed sleep.

But isn't he going insane all alone in the middle of the ocean? "Thanks to technology I am able to retain my sanity." Like many of his generation, he is completely wired with a laptop, a PDA, an iPod and a satellite phone, which is his only link with the world. He has also taken along a GPS system, an Argos tracking system and a SeeMe device that enables his boat to be picked up by the radars of large ships.

Apart from the physical and mental strain, the expedition is likely to cost him around 100,000 Euros. After completing his journey, Gandhi will become the 23rd person to row solo across the Atlantic and only the 33rd person to ever row solo across any ocean.

Gandhi is excited about crossing the infamous Bermuda Triangle. The other thing that fascinates him are the dolphins which insist on following him around. "They are really beautiful creatures," he says. And he has seen whales, sharks and other marine creatures that most of us only ever read about in books. "The day I spotted a whale, I was dumbstruck by its enormity," he adds. There are days for Gandhi when he has faced a considerable amount of trouble.

Recently, water had seeped into his boat through tight compartments and had ruined some of the supplies and had threatened to damage his satellite phone as well. "Thankfully, a major disaster was averted else I would have got disconnected from the shore completely," he says with a sigh of relief. What about food? "Some of it got ruined by the leak but I do have some in reserve."

Though the ocean is offering him some very difficult challenges and obstacles, Gandhi says he knew about the pitfalls before he set off. "On some days the ocean is calm and serene while there are days when there is rough weather and strong currents push me beyond boundaries that I never knew existed." He went into this with meticulous planning and had a team of experts to help him. Rune Larsson, one of world's greatest endurance athletes and the first Swede to row across the Atlantic, helped him a lot.

Gandhi is a management graduate from the University of London and is the founder and principal partner at the venture capital fund Development Venture Capital Group. He has founded more than half-a-dozen IT ventures in the telecommunications, retail, new media, outsourcing and non-profit sectors. "It is the challenge of doing something new which gets me really excited," he says.

While the Atlantic has been serving up the unknown almost every day, here's hoping that Gandhi sets a record and comes back safe and sound. There's always that autobiography to write. Maybe he can write a book about his adventures too.