January 13, 2018 – Team Antigua Atlantic Rowers comprising Eli Fuller, Scott Potter, John Watt and Nico Pshoyos set a national rowing record for crossing the Atlantic Ocean in thirty (30) days, two hours (2) and twelve (12) minutes.
The team was the second team from Antigua and Barbuda to have participated in the annual Talisker Whiskey Atlantic Campaign race from La Gomera, Spain to English Harbour, Antigua.
The team rowed into English Harbour in Antigua at 10 am local time on January 13 to a hero’s welcome. They finished in second place overall, fourteen (14) hours after the race winners, the Four Oarsmen. They were one of four teams in that year’s race to break the record of thirty-five 35 days, which was set in 2016.
Of the journey, captain of the team Eli Fuller recounted “We always knew it would be difficult, but it was a lot harder than we anticipated,” said Fuller. “It was tough. You’d be really cold rowing and your fingers are numb, the water drips down your chest into your pants, and then after your shift you have to sleep in the wet. You think it can’t get any worse.”
Team members recall being motivated by the notion that they were rowing home to a fantastic welcome. They were not disappointed.
Lead organizer and captain Eli Fuller approached three longtime friends with the idea of organizing a team and they all immediately confirmed that they were interested. All with working experience in the marine environment that relies on the health of Antigua and Barbuda’s natural resources.
Recalling what initially sparked the interest, Eli recounts “John, Nico and myself were fishing together a decade ago about 30 miles east of Antigua when we saw a rowboat and two scruffy men coming in,” tells team captain, Fuller. “It sparked our adventurous interest. Since then, we have seen others make the journey including our famous team Wadadli. We followed all the teams last year (2016) without saying or admitting that we wanted to do it. It was Captain Nick (Fuller) of Team Wadadli who said that he wanted another team to continue the legacy of Antiguans rowing across the Atlantic. We were contacted by a potential sponsor in May 2016 who asked us to start a team. We didn’t need much more encouragement after that happened.” (source of quote – allatsea.net).
Caring deeply about marine conservation and environmentalism, the team members opined that each person can make a difference and that the campaign can accomplish so much to create awareness of the strengths, weaknesses, opportunities, and threats of our nation’s marine ecosystems.
They understood the dangers of the challenge but have always lived lives seeking adventure, and feel that the adventure and sacrifice is not just for them but for everyone following and more importantly, it’s for the greater good of future generations of Antiguans and Barbadians
Team Antigua had a strong environmental message and used their Atlantic rowing campaign and their successes as mechanisms to both create awareness about and raise money for environmental conservation, especially marine conservation.
