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Sept. 30 (Bloomberg) -- British oarsman
Oliver Hicks set foot on
dry land today after 126 days at sea. The 23-year-old became
the youngest person to row across the Atlantic Ocean from
the U.S. to Europe after crossing the line in southwest
England.
The 23-year-old crossed the official finish line at Bishop's
Rock, near Falmouth, Cornwall on Sept. 28 at 9:56 a.m. local
time, 123 days after setting out from New Jersey, according
to his expedition Web site. He completed the row to the
mainland today, with Sky News airing live footage of the
bearded oarsman setting foot on land for the first time in
four months.
``Stepping on land was very surreal; there were just so many
people,'' Hicks said today in a telephone interview from
Falmouth. ``It's a bit overwhelming after having been alone
for four months.''
Hicks becomes only the 13th person to row across the
Atlantic from west to east, and the first Briton to cross
from New York to the British mainland. Weather conditions
during the crossing hindered his bid to become the fastest
person to make the crossing, he said.
``The main cause was the unfavorable weather,'' Hicks said
citing headwinds as an example. ``Once you're in the middle,
you just have to keep going. I always knew it was going to
be long --I just didn't think it'd be that long.''
The 3,000-nautical-mile (5,500-kilometer) crossing took more
than twice as long as he had aimed for; and the record of 62
days wasn't threatened. When adjusting for deviation from
the direct course, Hicks rowed more than 4,000 nautical
miles, he said.
Hicks said he was celebrating with a beer, and he'd had a
``small crate'' of beer during the crossing, which he raided
when he was ``feeling down.''
Sharks, Storms
The oarsman used a 750-kilogram, 7.1-meter (1,650-pound,
23.4-foot) boat, which included watertight cabins for
shelter, rest and food storage. Because of the duration of
the journey, Hicks received extra supplies mid-Atlantic from
a British Navy vessel, the HMS Cumberland.
Frenchman Emmanuel Coindre, who completed the crossing last
year, was at 29 the previous youngest person to cross the
Atlantic between Europe and the U.S. Briton Sam Knight, also
23, last year crossed from Spain's Canary Islands to
Barbados.
Hicks set off from Atlantic Highlands, New Jersey, on May
27. The duration of his journey was 123 days, 22 hours and 8
minutes, according to the Web site of the London-based Ocean
Rowing Society.
`Followed By Sharks'
``He's been at sea for over a third of the year and has been
followed by sharks and coped with horrendous storms along
the way,'' Richard Branson, the chairman of Virgin Atlantic
which sponsored the effort, said today in an e-mailed
statement. He described the traverse as a ``remarkable
achievement.''
Hicks raised more than 30,000 pounds ($53,000) for the
charity Hope and Homes for Children during the crossing.
Hicks said he had a ``few ideas'' for his next challenge,
including more rowing exploits or possibly a single-handed
sailing voyage.
To contact the reporter on this story:
Alex Morales in London at amorales2@bloomberg.net.
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