26 November 2019

Henley River & Rowing Museum will hold fundraising event for the crews competing in the 2020 Talisker Whisky Atlantic Race, the Museum writes in a press release.

On 25 January 2020, 14 teams, who are taking part in the Talisker Whisky Atlantic Campaign 2020, will be heading to the home of rowing in the UK, the River & Rowing Museum in Henley, to complete a 24-hour rowing challenge to raise money for each of their chosen charities.

The teams will be replicating conditions they will be adopting for the Atlantic race, (excluding the extreme conditions, wind, water and waves) by rowing constantly for 24 hours using the 2 hours on, 2 hours off rowing schedule which they will be adopting for the Atlantic crossing. The crews will be training, sleeping and eating at the Museum through the night in a bid to raise money and experience the broken sleep patterns of life at sea.

Whilst in a year’s time the teams will be in competition with each other, on 25 January, they will come together. At 10 a.m. on 25 January, the teams will commence their 24-hour row at the Museum. Spectators and supporters are encouraged to backing the teams throughout the arduous challenge. All money raised during the 24-hour challenge will be divided between the 14 teams and donated to their charities.

The event is the brainchild of a team of four deep sea saturation divers, The Bubbleheads, who are one of the teams set to embark on the challenge of a lifetime by rowing across the Atlantic, the second largest ocean in the world, as they take part in The 2020 Talisker Whisky Atlantic Challenge.  The ocean race covers 3,000 miles and crews from around the world row from La Gomera in the Canary Islands to Antigua in The Caribbean.

The initial idea to enter the 2020 row came when three of the Bubbleheads witnessed the arrival of the 2018 winning boat on a trip to Antigua. The fact that the team’s rowing experience was limited to Concept2 ergs in the gym, didn’t faze them or diminish their enthusiasm.

The Bubbleheads have a very personal connection to their chosen charity and will be fundraising for the Wessex Cancer Trust, which has supported the wife of crew member James over the last eight years during her ongoing battle with a very rare form of cancer.

‘We are thrilled to be able to offer our support for this event and are deeply moved by the stories and the motivation behind the teams’ decisions to take on the Atlantic Challenge,’ says Kerri Cicirello, Marketing & Communications Assistant at the River & Rowing Museum. ‘We’re hoping that locals – and not so locals – will support this inspirational event and help us to raise money for the teams and their charities.’