The Challenge

Yuri and Ben are training to take on the World’s Toughest Row. Ben and Yuri are training to compete in the World’s Toughest Row. They will depart La Gomera in December 2027 for a 3,000 mile row across the Atlantic Ocean to Antigua. It is entirely self-supported and human powered; oars only, no sails or engines.

Twice as many Americans have orbited the Earth (369 astronauts a/o May 2026) than have rowed across any ocean (169 rowers a/o May 2026).

Answers to commonly asked questions:

Rowing across the Atlantic Ocean is dangerous, but not reckless.

We start in La Gomera (in the Canary Islands, off the coast of Africa) and land in Antigua in the Caribbean. It’s 3,000 miles. It should take between 30 to 45 days.  The world record for a 2-person team is just under 33 days. The duration of the crossing is largely dependent on the weather.

The race starts in mid-December. December to February is the least likely time for a hurricane in the Atlantic.

No, there isn’t a support boat following us.  We will be on our boat the entire time. The row is self-supported and we have everything we need with us.  There is a safety boat, but we will probably never see it and it may be days away. After the first day or so, we probably won’t see any other boats.

The boat is self-righting if it capsizes. Anytime we are out of the cabin, we will be tethered to the boat.

We will have on-board GPS, handheld GPS, VHF Radio, two EPIRBs (Emergency position-indicating radio beacons), one PLB (personal locator beacon) each, 4 satellite phones, a tracking beacon, starlink internet, and 2 tin cans connected by a string.   

Sharks are not typically a threat, but occasionally a marlin will pierce the hull of a boat. We will have a repair kit with us.

We will typically row 2 hours on, 2 hours off. One person will rest and eat while the other is rowing. There will be times that we both row at the same time. We anticipate that each of us will row around 14 to 16 hour a day.  The goal is that the boat does not stop moving.

We have a water desalinator, a back-up manual desalinator, and a reserve of fresh water.

We will eat mostly dehydrated food (and gut milk).

Yuri and Ben are very good friends and plan on remaining friends during and after the journey.

Our website and social media look like a hot mess because Ben made it. While Ben has a lot of disparate skills, web design, social media, and graphic design are not some of his core competencies.  If those are your core competencies and you would like to sponsor us, we’d love to talk to you. 

In a bucket.