Scottish brothers to take on 9,000-mile record breaking row across the Pacific Ocean
They already hold three world records having tackled the Atlantic Ocean.
Three brothers are set to take on a 9,000-mile man-powered mission to row across the Pacific Ocean.
Ewan, 32, Jamie, 30, and Lachlan, 26, Maclean from Edinburgh, are embarking on the odyssey in a bid to become the first team in history to cross the Pacific Ocean non-stop and unsupported.
In addition, the Scottish trio aims to break the world record for the fastest human-powered crossing of the Pacific Ocean.
Setting off in April 2025, they hope to hit the calmest seas they can as they cross from Peru to Australia.
Already record breakers
The Maclean’s already hold three world records having tackled the Atlantic Ocean in a 3,000-mile non-stop and unsupported row in just 35 days 9 hours and 9 minutes.
Having triumphed against the Atlantic they decided to set their sights on rowing further and farther than anyone else has before.
Eldest brother Ewan, an engineer at Dyson, said: “There’s not many ‘World’s First’s left out there, but I think we’re doing it really as a fundraiser to raise money for clean water projects.
“That’s the main motivation, over the records – but the records will be a nice bonus if we get them.”
While some might see spending more that 100 days with their siblings a challenge in itself, the brothers view it as one of their greatest strengths.
"We know each other better than we know anyone else"
Jamie, who runs a small design and build practice in Glasgow, said: “It definitely helps us, when we did the Atlantic against other teams, because it was a rowing race, it was definitely our biggest strength.
“Because we know each other better than we know anyone else, we trust each other more than anyone else and we understand each other's thresholds in different environments.
“When it gets a bit hairy out there we know when to push or when to hold back and we can be open and honest with one another, probably more honest than we could be with even our closest of mates.”
The boat they will be piloting on the journey is considered one of the fastest and lightest rowing boats ever built, and Ewan (who helped build and design the boat) describes it as ‘the most high-tech rowing boat ever’ and that it is made in a similar way to Formula 1 cars.
Keeping the boat light and fast means there isn’t much room on board. Fuelling themselves over the 100-odd days was a challenge to plan.
Jamie explained: “Our primary diet is freeze dried rations – essentially space food. Which will be stuffed into every nook and cranny.
“On top of that there will be lots and lots of porridge – we’re avid porridge fans and hopefully we won’t get sick of it!”
The brothers are taking fishing equipment with them, however, having had no luck when fishing during their Atlantic adventure they are not confident they’ll catch much.
Ewan talks openly about the mental and physical toll the journey will take and admits that there are many unknowns to them.
However, the Macleans see the fundraising as their biggest challenge, Jamie smiled as he said: “The rowing is relatively simple once we’re out there – the charitable goal will be the real challenge now that we’ve set ourselves that goal and said we’re going to do this.”