Latest news with #RareWhisky101PacificRow
The Independent
13-04-2025
- The Independent
Brothers aiming to break Pacific rowing record depart with haggis for dinner
Three brothers aiming to become the fastest people to row across the Pacific Ocean have departed on a 9,000-mile adventure, and their luggage includes haggis, neeps and tatties. Ewan, Jamie and Lachlan Maclean departed Lima, Peru, on a 14,000km, non-stop and unsupported row across the Pacific, expecting to arrive in Sydney, Australia, on August 2. Their boat was cheered on by hundreds of supporters and the Peruvian Navy brass band, while middle sibling Jamie played the bagpipes. The siblings from Edinburgh became the fastest and youngest trio to row the Atlantic Ocean in 2020, raising more than £200,000 for charity, and this expedition is considered one of the most remote and physically demanding open-water rows ever attempted. Custom-built carbon fibre vessel Rose Emily was launched from Yacht Club Peruano on Saturday evening with the brothers rowing in two-hour shifts, with no resupplies or safety boat on the 280kg boat, to raise £1 million for clean water projects in Madagascar. The departure was delayed more than a month by customs issues holding their boat and 500kg of food in port, including 75kg of oats and a menu of high-calorie comfort meals, for around 120 days at sea. The Rare Whisky 101 Pacific Row aims to raise more than £1 million for The Maclean Foundation — the clean water charity the brothers founded with their father, whisky writer Charles Maclean MBE. The siblings prepared for the expedition by moving to a croft in Nedd in the Highlands to train on the Minch, a strait which separates the mainland from Lewis and Harris in the Outer Hebrides. Lachlan Maclean, 26, said: '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. 'We've been like coiled springs this past month. Being stuck with our boat and food held in customs could have been incredibly stressful but the team at Yacht Club Peruano gave us a place to sleep, store our gear and stay sane. Now we're just excited to be on the water. 'It's definitely daunting, but we've prepared so long that we're desperate to get going. In many ways we're a bit weird – I'm probably happier on the water. I've never been good at replying to emails, and now I have the best excuse in the world.' The brothers packed a meal of haggis, neeps and tatties, to celebrate Lachlan's birthday in June. Ewan Maclean, 33, a former Dyson engineer, said: 'We usually forget things when we're going away for the weekend, so preparing for 120 days at sea has not been without its challenges. But here we are, and we're so happy to be on the water. 'During our last row, we started thinking about how we could spend more time at sea and help more people, and this challenge was born. The more we looked into rowing the Pacific, the more we realised why so few attempt it – you have to bring an awful lot of food to sustain yourselves for that period of time, which gets pretty heavy. And it's an awful long time. 'But if we want to raise £1 million we had to go for something big. During our visits to Madagascar, we've seen what access to clean water can do — it helps kids get an education, helps entire communities thrive. That's what drives us.' Their attempt is dedicated to their unborn sister, Rose Emily, and their mother Sheila hand-painted the name on the boat. Jamie Maclean, 31, added: 'We know this will be hard for mum and dad, having all three of us isolated 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.' The brothers trained for the voyage with elite sport performance consultant Chloe Lanthier, a performance physiologist for Nasa and professional athletes including Rafael Nadal and Paris Saint-Germain. Their route from Lima to Sydney spans roughly 9,000 miles, depending on conditions and the brothers aim to arrive before the British and Irish Lions' third test in Sydney on August 2.
Yahoo
13-04-2025
- Yahoo
Brothers aiming to break Pacific rowing record depart with haggis for dinner
Three brothers aiming to become the fastest people to row across the Pacific Ocean have departed on a 9,000-mile adventure, and their luggage includes haggis, neeps and tatties. Ewan, Jamie and Lachlan Maclean departed Lima, Peru, on a 14,000km, non-stop and unsupported row across the Pacific, expecting to arrive in Sydney, Australia, on August 2. Their boat was cheered on by hundreds of supporters and the Peruvian Navy brass band, while middle sibling Jamie played the bagpipes. The siblings from Edinburgh became the fastest and youngest trio to row the Atlantic Ocean in 2020, raising more than £200,000 for charity, and this expedition is considered one of the most remote and physically demanding open-water rows ever attempted. Custom-built carbon fibre vessel Rose Emily was launched from Yacht Club Peruano on Saturday evening with the brothers rowing in two-hour shifts, with no resupplies or safety boat on the 280kg boat, to raise £1 million for clean water projects in Madagascar. The departure was delayed more than a month by customs issues holding their boat and 500kg of food in port, including 75kg of oats and a menu of high-calorie comfort meals, for around 120 days at sea. The Rare Whisky 101 Pacific Row aims to raise more than £1 million for The Maclean Foundation — the clean water charity the brothers founded with their father, whisky writer Charles Maclean MBE. The siblings prepared for the expedition by moving to a croft in Nedd in the Highlands to train on the Minch, a strait which separates the mainland from Lewis and Harris in the Outer Hebrides. Lachlan Maclean, 26, said: '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. 'We've been like coiled springs this past month. Being stuck with our boat and food held in customs could have been incredibly stressful but the team at Yacht Club Peruano gave us a place to sleep, store our gear and stay sane. Now we're just excited to be on the water. 'It's definitely daunting, but we've prepared so long that we're desperate to get going. In many ways we're a bit weird – I'm probably happier on the water. I've never been good at replying to emails, and now I have the best excuse in the world.' The brothers packed a meal of haggis, neeps and tatties, to celebrate Lachlan's birthday in June. Ewan Maclean, 33, a former Dyson engineer, said: 'We usually forget things when we're going away for the weekend, so preparing for 120 days at sea has not been without its challenges. But here we are, and we're so happy to be on the water. 'During our last row, we started thinking about how we could spend more time at sea and help more people, and this challenge was born. The more we looked into rowing the Pacific, the more we realised why so few attempt it – you have to bring an awful lot of food to sustain yourselves for that period of time, which gets pretty heavy. And it's an awful long time. 'But if we want to raise £1 million we had to go for something big. During our visits to Madagascar, we've seen what access to clean water can do — it helps kids get an education, helps entire communities thrive. That's what drives us.' Their attempt is dedicated to their unborn sister, Rose Emily, and their mother Sheila hand-painted the name on the boat. Jamie Maclean, 31, added: 'We know this will be hard for mum and dad, having all three of us isolated 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.' The brothers trained for the voyage with elite sport performance consultant Chloe Lanthier, a performance physiologist for Nasa and professional athletes including Rafael Nadal and Paris Saint-Germain. Their route from Lima to Sydney spans roughly 9,000 miles, depending on conditions and the brothers aim to arrive before the British and Irish Lions' third test in Sydney on August 2.
Sky News
12-04-2025
- Sky News
Three brothers bid to row across Pacific Ocean in record time after conquering Atlantic
Three brothers are hoping to set a record time for rowing across the Pacific Ocean - having already conquered the Atlantic. Ewan, Jamie, and Lachlan Maclean, from Edinburgh, start their four-month, 9,000-mile adventure on Saturday when they leave from Lima in Peru at 9pm UK time. They will attempt to row non-stop and unsupported to Sydney in Australia in their custom-built carbon fibre ocean rowing boat and in the process raise £1m to support their own clean water charity. The trio are expected to spend more than 120 days at sea, covering the equivalent of 343 marathons on a journey requiring around four million oar strokes. Rowing in two-hour shifts around the clock, they will likely face extreme weather, sleep deprivation, and complete isolation on the world's largest ocean. They have already conquered the Atlantic, setting three world records in the process. After completing the 3,000-mile trip in just 35 days, they became the first three brothers to row any ocean together, the youngest trio and the fastest trio to row the journey from the Canary Islands to Antigua. 'We feel at peace at sea' Ewan, 33, said they got the idea to row across the Pacific while on their Atlantic voyage, where they 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." 'Getting people access to clean water is what drives us' The Rare Whisky 101 Pacific Row aims to raise more than £1m for The Maclean Foundation, a clean water charity the brothers launched with their father, Charles Maclean, following their 2020 record journey. The charity has funded boreholes, helping more than 5,000 people in Madagascar, but the brothers hope their latest voyage will boost its impact significantly. Ewan said their trips to Madagascar have shown them "what access to clean water can do - it helps kids get an education, helps communities thrive, and saves lives. "That's what drives us." The boat, which they helped design and build, is named Rose Emily in honour of their sister, who was lost during pregnancy. Their mother Sheila, a watercolour artist, hand-painted the name onto the hull. Jamie, 31, said the journey would "honour" the sister they never met, and "she'll be with us every mile". Their 500kg of freeze-dried food includes haggis, neeps, and tatties for Lachlan's 27th birthday in June. They will also bring bagpipes, a small guitar, and a miniature accordion with them on the voyage to make music when they are resting from rowing.
Yahoo
12-04-2025
- Yahoo
Three brothers bid to row across Pacific Ocean in record time after conquering Atlantic
Three brothers are hoping to set a record time for rowing across the Pacific Ocean - having already conquered the Atlantic. Ewan, Jamie, and Lachlan Maclean, from Edinburgh, start their four-month, 9,000-mile adventure on Saturday when they leave from Lima in Peru at 9pm UK time. They will attempt to row non-stop and unsupported to Sydney in Australia in their custom-built carbon fibre ocean rowing boat and in the process raise £1m to support their own clean water charity. The trio are expected to spend more than 120 days at sea, covering the equivalent of 343 marathons on a journey requiring around four million oar strokes. Rowing in two-hour shifts around the clock, they will likely face extreme weather, sleep deprivation, and complete isolation on the world's largest ocean. They have already conquered the Atlantic, setting three world records in the process. After completing the 3,000-mile trip in just 35 days, they became the first three brothers to row any ocean together, the youngest trio and the fastest trio to row the journey from the Canary Islands to Antigua. 'We feel at peace at sea' Ewan, 33, said they got the idea to row across the Pacific while on their Atlantic voyage, where they 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." 'Getting people access to clean water is what drives us' The Rare Whisky 101 Pacific Row aims to raise more than £1m for The Maclean Foundation, a clean water charity the brothers launched with their father, Charles Maclean, following their 2020 record journey. The charity has funded boreholes, helping more than 5,000 people in Madagascar, but the brothers hope their latest voyage will boost its impact significantly. Ewan said their trips to Madagascar have shown them "what access to clean water can do - it helps kids get an education, helps communities thrive, and saves lives. "That's what drives us." The boat, which they helped design and build, is named Rose Emily in honour of their sister, who was lost during pregnancy. Read more from Sky News:MPs to debate British SteelMenendez brothers to be resentencedHow to complain at restaurants Their mother Sheila, a watercolour artist, hand-painted the name onto the hull. Jamie, 31, said the journey would "honour" the sister they never met, and "she'll be with us every mile". Their 500kg of freeze-dried food includes haggis, neeps, and tatties for Lachlan's 27th birthday in June. They will also bring bagpipes, a small guitar, and a miniature accordion with them on the voyage to make music when they are resting from rowing.
Yahoo
12-04-2025
- Yahoo
Edinburgh brothers ready for record-breaking adventure in honour of sister they never met
Three Edinburgh brothers aiming to become the fastest people to row across the Pacific Ocean are preparing to embark on their four-month, 9,000-mile adventure. Ewan, Jamie and Lachlan Maclean, will depart from Lima in Peru at 9pm UK time on Saturday in their bid to row non-stop and unsupported to Sydney in Australia. The trio is expected to spend more than 120 days at sea in their custom-built carbon fibre ocean rowing boat, as they cover a distance equivalent to 343 marathons. The boat, which they helped design and build, is named Rose Emily in honour of their sister, who was lost during pregnancy. READ MORE: Outlander star Sam Heughan spotted at Edinburgh pub he used to visit as teenager READ MORE: Raging 'wildfire' breaks out on Pentland Hills near Edinburgh as fire crews battle blaze Their mother Sheila, a watercolour artist, hand-painted the name onto the hull. READ MORE - Horrified Edinburgh residents watch as car is engulfed by flames READ MORE - Edinburgh police on scene of third collision on same road within a week Rowing in two-hour shifts around the clock, the brothers will put in an estimated four million oar strokes as they battle through extreme weather, sleep deprivation and complete isolation on the world's largest ocean. In 2020, they set three world records by rowing the Atlantic Ocean in just 35 days, becoming the first three 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 launched with their father, Charles Maclean, following their 2020 record journey. The charity has funded boreholes helping more than 5,000 people in Madagascar but the brothers hope their latest voyage will boost its impact significantly. Ewan, 33, a former Dyson design engineer, said the venture combined the brothers' love of the sea with the opportunity to raise money for a good cause. Sign up for Edinburgh Live newsletters for more headlines straight to your inbox "The plan for this all started during our Atlantic row," he said. "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. 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." The brothers had been due to set off more than 10 days ago but were delayed by customs issues, with their boat held at port along with the 500kg of freeze-dried food - including 75kg of oats - that will fuel their world-record bid. Lachlan, 26, said: "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 worked with Dundee-based farm Arbuckles to freeze-dry a menu of high-calorie dishes made using Scottish ingredients, including Scotch beef chilli and Thai red curry, plus a special haggis, neeps and tatties dish for Lachlan's 27th birthday in June. The brothers will also bring bagpipes, a small guitar and a miniature accordion with them on the voyage to make music when they are resting from rowing. Join Edinburgh Live's Whatsapp Community here and get the latest news sent straight to your messages. Jamie, 31, a trained architect who now builds saunas, said the journey would "honour" the sister they never met. "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."
