Three Edinburgh brothers have set their sights on becoming the fastest people to row 9,000 miles across the pacific.
Ewan, Jamie and Lachlan Maclean set off from Lima in Peru at 9pm, UK time, on Saturday, April 13 with an ambitious plan to row non-stop and unsupported all the way to Sydney, Australia.
The kind-hearted trio are taking on the voyage in memory of their sister who was lost in pregnancy.
The brothers are expecting to spend more than 120 days at sea in their custom-built carbon fibre ocean rowing boat, which they had a hand in designing and building.
Lachlan Maclean, who will turn 27 at sea, said: “I’m still shaking. I can’t believe the buzz of leaving that atmosphere. I’ve never heard bagpipes alongside a brass band before, but I think it could catch on."
Ewan, 33, said the venture merges their passion for the ocean with the desire to generate funds for a noble cause. The former Dyson design engineer said: "The plan for this all started during our Atlantic row.
"We realised how at peace we felt at sea - and also how truly lucky we are. We started thinking about how we could spend more time on the water and help more people – and this daft challenge was born."
Planning to row in two hour shifts around the clock, the trio are set to make an estimated four million oar strokes while they battle extreme weather conditions, sleep deprivation and total isolation.
In 2020, they made history by setting three world records when they rowed the Atlantic Ocean in just 35 days. They became the first trio of brothers to row any ocean together, the youngest trio, and the fastest trio to ever row the 3,000-mile journey from the Canary Islands to Antigua.
The Rare Whisky 101 Pacific Row aims to raise more than £1 million for The Maclean Foundation, a clean water charity the brothers established with their father, Charles Maclean, following their record-breaking journey in 2020.
The charity, famed for providing boreholes to over 5,000 individuals in Madagascar, expects its reach to significantly expand due to the brothers' latest sea voyage.
Discussing the enormity of the task, Ewan continued: "The more we looked into rowing the full Pacific Ocean, the more we understood why so few attempt it. But if we want to raise a million pounds for a cause that means so much to us, we had to go for something pretty big."
"During our trips to Madagascar, we've seen what access to clean water can do – it helps kids get an education, helps communities thrive and saves lives. That's what drives us."
Customs delays held up their departure by over 10 days as their boat and 500kg of freeze-dried sustenance – including 75kg of oats for their world-record endeavour – were stuck at the port.
Lachlan, added: "We've been like coiled springs. We usually get on well but there's definitely been some tension this week - we've just been desperate to get going.
"We're a bit weird in that we've realised we're probably happiest at sea. Life is simpler. There's peace on the water and there's a strange enjoyment in the physical toll.
"On land, there are too many competing priorities. I get more joy from a two-hour shift rowing than two hours of emails."
The trio collaborated with Dundee-based farm Arbuckles to freeze-dry a selection of high-calorie meals made from Scottish ingredients, including Scotch beef chilli and Thai red curry, as well as a special haggis, neeps and tatties dish for Lachlan's 27th birthday in June.
The brothers will also carry bagpipes, a small guitar and a miniature accordion on their journey, providing musical entertainment during their rest periods from rowing.
They've also named the vessel Rose Emily after their sister who was lost during pregnancy. Sheila, their mum, is a watercolour artist and personally painted her daughter's name onto the hull of the boat.
Jamie, 31, a trained architect who now constructs saunas, said the voyage would "honour" the sister they never knew.
"We never got to meet our sister, but she's always been part of our family. We wanted to honour that. Our mum hand-painted her name on the back of the boat - so she'll be with us every mile.
"In the quiet moments - and there will be plenty, assuming Ewan and I can find somewhere to hide Lachlan's accordion - we'll know she's right there.
"We know this will be hard for mum and dad, having all three of us at sea, but they've been incredibly supportive. They've worked just as hard as we have to prepare, and we can't wait to see them when we row into Sydney Harbour."
