Gurkha Spirit



HK duo to splash out for charity
June 22, 2005	Sean Gallagher
Two Hong Kong entrants in this year's gruelling Atlantic Rowing Race are hoping their efforts will create a splash for charity.
Al Howard, 33, and Nick Rowe, 38, will row more than 4,700 kilometers from the Canary Islands to Antigua in the Caribbean in the 23-foot vessel Gurkha Spirit. The race begins in November and is expected to take eight weeks. The duo announced their adventure at the Royal Hong Kong Yacht Club Tuesday. ``I think these guys are adventurers,'' Kenneth Crutchlow, executive director of the Ocean Rowing Society, said. ``We need adventurers. We need people to push the envelope.'' For the past eight years, teams from around the world have participated in the Atlantic Rowing Race, which takes place every two years. Howard and Rowe, though, will not be the first participants from Hong Kong. In 2001, Christian Havrehed rowed across the Atlantic with teammate Sun Haibin from the mainland. While Howard and Rowe are eager for the challenge, they also believe in the philanthropic side of the journey. The team is raising money for the Gurkha Welfare Trust and Sight Savers International charities. Rowe said they hope to raise more than HK$700,000 for both charities. Both rowers are ex-Gurkha officers who became friends 15 years ago while stationed in Hong Kong. Howard was inspired to join the team after the tsunami disaster late last year and the international relief efforts that followed. At the time, he had been in Aceh, one of the areas worst hit. Rowe signed up because of his sense of adventure. He described the race as an ``endurance event that seems to never end.'' He said that rowing across the Atlantic is one of the few journeys that few people have embarked on. ``More people have climbed Everest,'' he said. To date, fewer than 140 people have rowed across the Atlantic successfully. While they will be competing against 40 other teams, Rowe said ``the biggest competition is the ocean.'' ``There is an inherent danger with rowing the ocean,'' added Crutchlow. Along with the heat and lack of fresh water, Rowe said that they will be totally reliant on their equipment. If something breaks, he said, the trip could come to an end. They expect to be at sea for 50 to 60 consecutive days. Howard said they will have to consume more than 7,000 calories a day in order to keep their strength up. He added, ``We [still] expect to lose 20 to 30 pounds.'' Rowe said the biggest hurdle will be the first 10 days, when their bodies have yet to adjust to life on the ocean. Howard said that the duo will have to cope with being cooped up together in close quarters surrounded by the vast, empty ocean. But Rowe said they work well as a pair. For the past six months, the team has been training around the Hong ong's islands, which Rowe described as the ``perfect environment to test ourselves.'' The team is still looking for sponsors, and a fund-raising dinner will be held tomorrow at the Royal Hong Kong Yacht Club. staff.reporter@singtaonewscorp.com