Two Men Row Boat From Japan to SF

http://abclocal.go.com/kgo/story?section=news/local/san_francisco&id=7117168

http://abclocal.go.com/kgo/video?id=7117222

" Eric Thomas
More: Bio, abc7news.com News Team

SAN FRANCISCO (KGO) -- Two men decided to row across the ocean, just to see if they could do it. Chris Martin and Mick Dawson rowed into San Francisco Bay on Friday after starting their journey in Choshi, Japan last April.

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It took more than half a year and approximately 5,100 miles. Sailors know transiting the North Pacific Ocean on a big ship is no picnic, and these two men did it in a 25-foot row boat.

They arrived at the Golden Gate Yacht Club on Friday morning a little skinnier, hairier and smellier than they started. They began their journey in Japan and ended it at the Golden Gate Bridge.

After that, Martin and Dawson gratefully accepted a tow to the Golden Gate Yacht Club where friends and family from Canada, England and the U.S. were anxiously waiting to welcome them back.

The two men are experienced ocean rowers, and they have crossed the Atlantic before and said that it was nothing compared to this.

"The North Pacific is the most hostile, fantastic, beautiful, worst, best place you can go to," said Dawson.

"About 15 knots winds, flat calm seas. We've seen everything from cargo ships and fish and whales charging at the boat," said Martin.

In fact, they ran into currents and winds that threatened to blow them off course and set them a few days behind. They said they almost missed San Francisco because they hit a current that pushed them south and they had to row to get back up.

They were able to get a meal afterwards, and now they are looking forward to getting some sleep. They said that on average, they would sleep about two hours every night and then take take 12-hour shifts rowing. "

 
Thats crazy!

An incredible feat, but glad I don't have to row across to know this:

"The North Pacific is the most hostile, fantastic, beautiful, worst, best place you can go to," said Dawson.

 

Nice but not enough purpose to pursue such! I better start inquiring the model they use, perhaps my brothers and sister that over the age limit petition can start rowing, hey, if Mexicans got desert to cross we got pacific ocean to row no pun intended just for laughs!!

Now THAT is gangster.

And I thought bluekayak was a nut 

No shower for 5 months!  Yike...Must be some kind of record 

Bummer they just missed RF season....

That is so psycho!  Wow!!

I want some followup - are these guys still friends or do they never want to see each other again?!  Over 6 months of rowing in 12 hour shifts...  OMG...