What A Time To Finish Crossing The Ocean On A Rowboat

Sailors are a tough breed. They've survived scurvy, pirates, and mermaid herpes over hundreds of years. And Graham Walters, the 72-year-old man who's rowed a boat across the Atlantic Ocean five times, might just be the toughest of them all.

His most recent trip was set to be his last. It was his third solo trans-Atlantic row, designed to get him the world record for the oldest person to do so. Every little detail of Walters' journey just becomes more and more impressive. He built his own boat over 20 years ago for this. He made this trip in part to help raise money for a UK veterans charity. Throughout the trip, he had to repair broken equipment and dodge sharks, like some survival horror movie. This guy makes rowing seem like a cool activity, and not just a thing socialites lie about doing to get into college.

The weather attacked Walters from the very beginning, then popped back up again, like a slasher movie killer, at the end. He was aiming to finish at the English Harbor in Antigua when high winds started blowing him away off course. Remember, my dude was in a rowboat ... But, remember, my dude is also a badass and was able to sort things out.

Upon arriving, there wasn't much time for congratulations despite Walters having set three world records. He had to get briefed on the fact that the world had changed in his 96 days out to sea. Conveniently, rowing a boat across the ocean is a great way to self-isolate away from the coronavirus, but it also meant he hadn't even heard about it yet. Imagine the mental hoops people who knew Walters had to jump through there -- should they have told him, and ruined his final trip? Or let him just continue, only to surprise him at the end?

Well, they chose the latter, and Walters seems to be taking it in stride. Walters has to spend 14 days quarantined in Antigua before heading home, but at least he has a better story about missing the COVID news than Jared Leto.

Top Image: 272447/Pixabay