An intrepid Battersea man is set to lead a team of four in a rowing race across the Atlantic, with the aim to raise funds for charity.
Harry Hearn, 35, will skipper for Oardacity, comprised of close friends Alex Soskin, Ed Batchelor, and Tom Phillips, in the 3,000 mile-long Talisker Whisky Atlantic Challenge in December.
The renowned race pits crews against what has been billed as the world’s toughest row, from La Gomera in the Canaries to Antigua in the Caribbean – with sleep deprivation, dehydration, and salt sores just some of the obstacles teams will have to contend with.
Mr Hearn said the challenge had been a dream of his “for many years”, having previously trekked to Everest in 2017 with crewmate Alex – joking that it took “18 months to persuade him to say yes”.
“We have no prior rowing experience at all,” he said.
“We want to instil confidence in people, especially with regard to mental wellbeing, that you can do anything you put your mind to.
“Through our own personal circumstance around mental health and the effects of it, be it in men, women and children, we wanted to give back to those affected.
“Our motto; ‘dream to live, live to inspire’ is what drives us everyday to get to the start line and then onto Antigua.”
The team will be raising money for two charities: MIND (Mental Health) and the Christina Noble Children’s Foundation (an international NGO, dedicated to serving the world’s oppressed and marginalised children).
In order for the team to take part, they still need to raise another £100,000, and have recently launched the Oardacity Supporters Club at gofundme.com/oardacity2020 to help with their fundraising efforts.
Despite the challenges posed by the coronavirus outbreak, the team has been training hard every other day with increasingly creative means – including plant pots, logs, weighted shopping bags and even using their significant others.
Mr Hearn added: “Team Oardacity are determined as ever to get to the start-line to support the men, women and children whose mental well-being is suffering each day as the wider, more hidden impacts of Covid 19.
“Be it through Anxiety, Depression, isolation, domestic violence, substance use, eating disorders, financial stress and grief, the mental health impacts of Covid will outlast the virus.”
For more information on becoming a Sponsor or Donating visit their website at: www.oardacity.com
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