He once rowed alone across the Atlantic Ocean at record speed and sailed around the world alone without modern aids, but his adventures are far from finished. Wassenaar contractor Mark Slats (43) is leaving next week for a new challenge: breaking his own record with a rowboat.
Together with Kai Wiedmer (25), whom he met on a quay in a harbor, Slats wants to cross the Atlantic Ocean again in a completely self-built boat. Within thirty days, his current record.
The Talisker Whiskey Atlantic Challenge departs from La Gomera, one of the Canary Islands, on December 12. Ultimately, the Dutch hope to finish first in Antigua in the Caribbean Sea, after a monster tour of 5000 kilometers.
“Last time I broke the record on my own. Now the two of us want to arrive, before all the boats rowed by four people. I expect that we can certainly achieve that within thirty days. Everything depends on the weather, of course, ”says Slats, also known as the Friendly Giant.
In a schedule of rowing 18 hours a day, the men hope to set the record. “On the way we look at what works easiest. If we have a tailwind, it is important to work more hours together, for example. We will look at such things along the way. For this we have daily contact with our manager, who is on top of the weather forecast and the route. ”
Through a rowing challenge Row4Cancer created by the rowers, people can also run miles at home and raise money for the fight against childhood cancer. This money will go to the Maarten van der Weijden Foundation.