The latest attempt to row across the Atlantic has begun.

Scottish mariner Roy Finlay and his American colleague Colleen Cronin departed St. John’s Friday evening, given a rousing send-off by curious onlookers, passing tourists and locals who had befriended the two adventurers.

Aboard their seven-metre vessel The Celtic Crossing, the pair hopes to beat the 55-day record for rowing the west-east Atlantic route.

Not even Cronin’s sprained ankle — injured Thursday — will deter them.

The departure is later than Finlay had planned, a delay caused by the wait for the easterly winds to change to more favourable southwesterlies.

Others in the ocean rowing community have expressed concern that the Celtic Crossing and its crew have left it too late in the year to try a crossing but Finlay remains confident.

“There’s all sorts of things that can go wrong but I think we’ve addressed every conceivable problem we might experience and we’ve brought the answer,” he said.

“I think our best friend will be the sea anchor. That means if the wind does pick up, we can turn the boat into the wind, put out the sea anchor and sit and wait, ride it out and carry on our way,” he said.

Also confident is Cronin, who celebrates her 30th birthday Aug. 6. A marathon runner, Cronin admits she has little experience on the open water. But she’s worked hard to prepare herself mentally and physically.

“Physically it was basically a lot of rowing, cycling and the rowing machine,” she said. “Obviously we didn’t get a chance to go out on the water with the boat but I feel confident that it won’t be a problem.”

Finlay is also ready for the challenge.

Having served in the Royal Navy, Finlay has experience kayaking and rowing around Scotland, has crewed sailboats across the Atlantic and worked as a skipper in the Caribbean.

He’s also familiar with what happens when things go wrong at sea.

In 1998, Finlay was the captain of another record-breaking attempt. The vessel Atlantic Endeavour, with a crew of 16, was attempting to break the 35-day record for rowing the Canary Island-West Indies Atlantic route.

But the trip ended at the Cape Verde Islands when a dispute arose between captain and crew over safety equipment and personality conflicts.

This time Finlay is quietly confident that he and Cronin can handle whatever they face at sea.

“We have every conceivable item, including survival suits. In fact we’d had the coast guard down at my invitation,” he said.

The Celtic Crossing is a multi-hull vessel — a main compartment flanked by two outrigger pontoons for increased stability.

Living space is at a premium. While each rower has their own sleeping compartment — one forward, one aft — they have to share it with a 60-day supply of food and water and emergency and communications equipment.