Zara Lachlan, daughter of Motor Spirit founder Guy Lachlan, has surpassed 1000 miles in her record-breaking row across the Atlantic in aid of two charities, Team Forces and Women in Sport.
The 21-year-old aims to become the first woman and the youngest person ever to complete any mainland trans-Atlantic crossing, having departed the Portuguese town of Lagos on 27 October for French Guiana, just north of Brazil.
Now clear of the Canaries, one month in, the epic rowing effort is expected to take 90 days. Zara has been rowing for 20 hours a day, more than the initially expected 15, in a bid to beat the rough weather, sleeping for 20 minutes at a time.
“I’ve had a really tough past few days,” Zara said on a recent video from the boat. "Very long hours of rowing in slow conditions has meant not getting very far.
“This is the toughest part of the row. I knew this would be the toughest part but then hopefully the weather will come with me.
“I’m around the Canaries now and can see land. Once past the Canaries the weather is much more predictable across the Atlantic – which will be nice.”
Zara’s record attempt can be followed via a tracker on the Team Forces website, and its CEO, Major General Lamont Kirkland, has labelled Zara an inspiration, adding: “She’s not had it easy during this first and most difficult stage of the row, yet she's shown true courage and tenacity about the task in hand.
“We are so proud to be supporting her on this incredible challenge."
All of the money raised by the record attempt will be split between Team Forces and Women in Sport, further information about donating can be found on Zara's Crowdfunder page.
