Atlantic Ladies hit Shrewsbury - with video
It's going to be a long, cold trip for four women who hope to break three world records rowing the Atlantic this December.
The "Atlantic Women" were in The Square, Shrewsbury on Saturday to show off their boat, Poppy, and talk to members of the public about their charities.
Debbie Bass, Dianne Carrington, Sharon Magrath and Elaine Theaker are aiming to raise tens of thousands of pounds for Macmillan Cancer Support, Alzheimer’s Society, Motor Neurone Disease Association and Relapsing Polychondritis UK.
They will leave La Gomera, Tenerife on December 12, rowing the Atlantic ocean in two hour shifts for more than 50 days before arriving in Antigua – travelling nearly 3,000 nautical miles.
Debbie, who is a year six teacher at Castle House School in Newport, said: "I'm excited and a little bit apprehensive.
"Everybody who saw Poppy on Sunday has been amazed. I think people are shocked at the size of her, especially when you look at the buildings around The Square and think that we could be facing waves of that height."
Poppy has all the mod cons to make life safe aboard for the Atlantic Women.
Solar panels will give them power and water purifiers will mean they will have access to a clean drink from the sea.
But the movement and speed of the craft will entirely rely on the four women working together.
If they succeed, they are hoping to break three world records.
"We will be the oldest team to row any ocean, the oldest female team to row the Atlantic Ocean and have the oldest team member, because Dianne will celebrate her 62 birthday while we do it," Debbie, 56, said.
"I think our cumulative age is 225-years-old.
"We'll eat freeze dried food, we'll row for two hours on, two hours off continually and the only time we'll be able to stop is if the weather is so bad we'd have to be in the cabins on lock down.
"It's going to be challenging. Everybody said it's 90 per cent mental rather than physical. It's about preparing yourself for it physically and mentally.
"There will be times when we want to throw one another overboard, but we've all got the same aim – raising as much as possible for charity."
To learn more about the Atlantic Ladies or to sponsor them go to atlanticladies.co
