Seasickness, 15-foot swells and a broken auto-tiller have failed to keep four intrepid rowers from their appointed rounds.
The Lat 35 quartet, which includes Santa Barbara mom Adrienne Smith, has progressed 410 nautical miles (471 regular miles, or 759 kilometers) in the first week of its quest to row from San Francisco to Hawai’i. They aim to break the all-female-crew record of 35 days, 14 hours, and 23 minutes.
Although the straight-line distance to Hawai’i is about 2,400 nautical miles — the equivalent of about 2,800 miles on land — the journey will actually be farther. Ocean and wind conditions required them to row in a southwesterly direction instead of due-west.
Smith, who operates the Power of Your Om yoga studio in downtown Santa Barbara, told Noozhawk in an email that the crew hopes to begin taking advantage of the Tradewinds by Thursday.
“We’ve had our auto-tiller break and we fixed it, plus we have spares,” she said, referring to the boat’s automated steering device. “We had some huge swell for a few days… like 15-foot waves that we just glided over. We have a long dagger board in to keep us better balanced.
“Everyone has made it through seasickness, and we are eating like champs now.”
Her three crewmates are all former collegiate rowers: Sophia “D.J.” Denison-Johnston and Libby Costello (UCLA), and Brooke Downes (USC).
A Lat 35 spokesperson noted on the crew’s Instagram account (@lat35racing) that Downes struggled the most with seasickness during the training rows. Downes, however, proclaimed proudly in a video that she has “only puked once, which is the least amount of times I’ve puked on this boat, literally ever.”
The crew posted another video demonstrating how it desalinates seawater into drinking water. The rowers also explained how they deal with such bodily functions as menstrual cycles and going to the bathroom.
The Lat 35 spokesperson said they figured out several other things during the first three days of their row.
“Day 1 they found themselves falling asleep whilst rowing,” he said. “This is fairly common; there is the initial adrenaline of starting the expedition and when that adrenaline crashes and you’re an hour into your shift at 3 a.m. in the morning, it’s easy to nod off whilst rowing.
“Quickly though, their bodies got used to the onslaught of this intense challenge, and at this stage they’re sleeping like champions, and their appetite is as good as ever.”
Smith, in fact, said she feels “super-rested” after completing the first week of what she hopes will be no longer than a five-week voyage.
“Shockingly, best sleep I’ve ever had,” she said. “It’s hard to get up and put on damp clothes but it’s a temporary discomfort.
“Night shifts are hard, but the sky has been gorgeous — lots of shooting stars. We have only seen one boat from really far away. Not much sea life. Hopefully soon.”