01/09/16
Well, what a journey it’s been so far! First, we were 3 Men & A Little Lady, me and 3 male friends who were going to be the first mixed team to ever complete the Talisker Whisky Atlantic Challenge.
Looking back, it was always set to happen, I fell for the only single guy in the group. In fact, I fell madly in love with him and we got together. Thankfully the other 2 guys were totally cool with it.
Then the 2 guys in the team with a family and important jobs couldn’t commit to the training and the fundraising campaign so had to pull out.
The whole experience is really like nothing else I have ever experienced, it truly has taken over my life. Everything I do is with the rowing challenge in mind. Some call me obsessed. To that, I am complimented as only the obsessed achieve remarkable things.
Anyway, back to the story.
From 3 Men & A Little Lady, down to just 2, we then set about to find 2 new members to join our team. This is something we felt optimistic about. Who wouldn’t want to row the Atlantic and set a new race record? Surely, we’d get hundreds of applicants?
No.
We got just a handful, and despite being great athletes, they just didn’t quite fit.
So then the decision; to carry on searching for 2 more members or continue as a mixed pair? Boyfriend and girlfriend conquering the ocean together? Wow, that had a ring to it!
After much persuasion from me, we decided on the latter.
That was that. We called ourselves Monkey Nuts Adventure because that’s what a 4-year-old nephew suggested and we were ready to go!
It was always going to be a massive gamble taking on a challenge as a couple. After several happenings in both of our personal lives, it began to put a strain on matters. The things we experienced individually were enough to test the strongest of relationships, but after several things happened to both of us at the same time, it proved too much to juggle everything. To be perfectly honest, I’m surprised we lasted as long, as we did. That is what gave me hope.
As we built ourselves up again and started seeing a future, it became apparent our future was not with each other. Our goals were moving in different directions.
Both of us had been in the same career industries since we’d left school. Being the ambitious people we are, we both left our jobs at a similar time, vowing to go ahead and create the life we’d dreamt of. Sadly, it was this that was the final pull, leading us to our decision to part ways. It’s really sad; a decision so positive, to go ahead and chase our dreams, was the one which caused our team, and our relationship to fall apart.
So now, there is just one person left. One Little Lady.
I’m going to continue with my campaign to row across the Atlantic ocean. I have not raised a lot of money but I’m so far in, I cannot turn back.
I dream about being on the boat, under the stars, pulling on the oars until my hands hurt, seeing the wonders and wildlife Mother Nature has created. Existing with the minimum of items and experiencing some of the highest highs and the lowest lows. I think about it all the time. Coming into that finish line, somewhat naked, and being so happy in the finishers picture that my eyes are closed from smiling so hard.
I’m not going to do it by myself though. I wish I was mentally strong enough but I’m not. My extrovert personality would not allow me to be out there by myself.
I’m going to look for a team to join, or people crazy enough to join me to make our own team.
I have 2 visions – to find a group of 3 massively strong guys to create a new race record or to join another wildly adventurous and strong lady and complete it as a pair. I am not ruling out any other combinations but figured I’d set my intentions in here and then hopefully the universe will answer my wishes.
What does the future hold for me?
I have a passion for adventure, especially in the UK. I love exploring the beautiful country we live in and going on
In the future, I would like to promote UK adventures and hopefully I can start making plans where others come along and join the fun. I have people message me telling me they’d like to go on a
My adventures have always been about spontaneity, exploring, character building through challenge and most of all fun.
Right now, I need to concentrate on raising the funds to take part in my next big challenge to row around Great Britain next summer. There’s a lot to do. I best crack on.
Thank you for reading. And thank you for the support so far.
And, if you get an overwhelming urge to want to row across the Atlantic, first decide if you are ready to give up the next 2 years of your life to join a crazy bird, then if you are still keen, please get in touch.
Lots of love, hope, passion and dreams.
LT xxxxxxxx