A HEREFORDSHIRE man is celebrating reaching dry land after rowing more than 3,000 miles across the Atlantic. Martin Heseltine, 62, from Walford, near Ross-on-Wye, has spent the last 50 days all at sea as part of a four-man vegan crew rowing from Lanzarote to Antigua to raise money for men s mental health charity Humen and Chepstow animal sanctuary, the Dean Farm Trust. Not an adventure to be taken lightly, Martin and the crew rowed non-stop in alternating two-hour shifts, using muscle power alone and with no backup vessel to cover the 3,200 mile distance. The team faced storms, sleep deprivation, extreme fatigue and, at times, huge seas. They also had to cope with injury when crew member Matt Pritchard, more famously known as plant-loving prankster and chef The Dirty Vegan, tore a lateral muscle forcing him to take a break from rowing for several days, while Martin battled with painful tendonitis in his leg.
Atlantic Dash rowers culminate 50-day row in Antigua
Visitor numbers may be trending down a slippery slope due to the Covid-19 pandemic but advertising Antigua and Barbuda as an island destination is never ceasing.
Even with suppressed fanfare, the island continues to attract celebrities from around the world. Over the weekend, it welcomed the Atlantic Dash – a crew of four men including Dirty Vegan star Matt Pritchard, renowned travel Blogger Johnny Ward, skipper Billy Taylor, and the sea dog Martin Heseltine.
Within just an hour of landing at Falmouth, the men shared thoughts like: “It’s a beautiful island and the people are amazing. We are really, really happy to be here; we couldn’t ask for a better place to come into; and “the sand is white the sea is blue, it’s happy days”.
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Atlantic Ocean voyage ‘the hardest thing I’ve ever done’
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Johnny Ward is part of a four-man rowing team that has crossed the Atlantic Ocean in a single boat.
The travel blogger is originally from Kilkeel, County Down, and took on the challenge to raise awareness about mental health.
The trip - dubbed The Atlantic Dash - was a 3,200 mile journey from the Canary Islands to Antigua.
Johnny s crewmates were Billy Taylor, Martin Heseltine and BBC TV chef Dirty Vegan Matt Pritchard.
They initially set off from Lanzarote on 6 March, but the journey had to restart from Fuerteventura a week later because of seat problems.
BBC News
By James McCarthy
image captionDirty Vegan star Matt Pritchard has been rowing the Atlantic as part of a four-man crew
While most of us have spent months locked down, Dirty Vegan Matt Pritchard has completed a row of the Atlantic.
The BBC TV chef was in a team of four crossing the ocean to raise awareness about mental health - and they reached the finish line in Antigua on Sunday.
Initially setting off on the 3,200 mile trip from Lanzarote on 6 March, they had to restart from Fuerteventura a week later.
They could undertake the voyage as Covid rules allow charity events.
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