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After 78 days battling
the Atlantic ocean in a 23ft rowing boat, Matt Stowers is back on dry
land.
The 32-year-old RAF squadron leader from Teignmouth arrived in Barbados
yesterday afternoon having rowed more than 3,000 miles with colleague,
flight lieutenant Mark Jacklin, in the Sir Chay Blythe Atlantic
Challenge. Matt's family, including mum and dad, Sandra and Jim Stowers,
sister Amy and wife Sharon, were all flown out to welcome him as the
testing ordeal came to an end.
Matt and Mark have endured near misses with huge supertankers, ferocious
storms and massive swells during the row which has left the pair
physically and mentally exhausted. Matt also suffered with painful
infected sores which put him out of action for 48 hours.
When the duo set off in their boat, Per Ardua, from the island of La
Gomera, off Tenerife, on October 19, they were planning to smash the
current record held by a forces team for the row - 58 days - by arriving
in Barbados within 40 days.
But the weather had other ideas, battering them with force nine winds
just two days into the row.
Storms continued to follow Per Ardua across the Atlantic, knocking them
off course and leaving them trailing in last place. Entire days of
rowing were lost when Matt and Mark were forced to seek refuge in the
boat's tiny cabin.
It soon became obvious that the 40 target was not going to be realised.
By late December, four weeks after they were due to finish, they were
still more than 400 miles off the coast of Barbados and food rations
were running dangerously low.
On December 22, Matt told the land-based support team that their food
would run out completely by yesterday.
An RAF spokesman said Matt would be receiving medical treatment
immediately upon arrival .
"He is not very well at all and will need medical treatment," said Barry
Shaw. "We don't think it's anything to worry about, just fatigue caused
by the huge amount of time they have been out at sea."
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