The History of Ocean Rowing |
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Since their successful crossing a number of solo and group attempts have been made. John Fairfax became famous in the late 1960s and early 1970s for making a successful solo crossing of the Atlantic Ocean and a subsequent successful crossing of the Pacific with his partner Sylvia Cook. Another successful ocean-rower, Sir Charles Blyth, crossed the Atlantic with Captain John Ridgway whilst they were both in the Army. Blyth later introduced the Atlantic Rowing Race in 1997. The success of these courageous sports-people prompted ocean rowing to become more of a mainstream pursuit and in recent decades individuals and groups have taken up the challenge. The focus has been mainly on the Atlantic Ocean, possibly due to the fact that both sides of the Ocean are bordered by 'Western' English-speaking nations.
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Ocean rowing is a sport which has only been around for about a century, at least in it's form as a competitive pursuit. Whilst it cannot be determined if oceans were rowed prior to events that took place in the late nineteenth century, there is certainly no documentation to suggest that they may have been. For this reason, Frank Samuelsen and George Harbo could honestly claim to be the first ocean rowers after their successful crossing of the Atlantic Ocean in 1896. Departing from Manhattan in June and arriving in Le Havre (France) at the beginning of August, the Norwegian born American emigrants made the 3,250 mile trip because they wanted to make a name for themselves. This is certainly what happened, and their record for the crossing still stands.