PICTURES: Rousing send-off as Wick rowers set off on unsupported round-Britain trip
Allan Lipp and Mhairi Ross were given a rousing send-off as they took up their oars and headed out to sea at the start of their epic round-Britain challenge.
They were led out of Wick harbour on Saturday by the local RNLI lifeboat as the Caithness Seacoast RIB followed behind with some of the couple’s family members on board.
Allan and Mhairi are aiming to become the first mixed pair to complete an unsupported circumnavigation of the British mainland by rowing boat.
Allan (44), the Wick RNLI lifeboat coxswain, and Mhairi (47), who works as a paramedic and is a lifeboat volunteer, have taken unpaid leave from their jobs to make the trip. They expect it to take about 60 days.
They hope to raise at least £30,000, to be divided between the RNLI and Scotland’s Charity Air Ambulance.
Donations to the JustGiving page for their challenge, Stormy and Steth: The Long Row Home, have already reached over £9700.
Allan and Mhairi rowed out at 11am on Saturday as friends, relatives and other well-wishers looked on. The couple’s carbon-fibre boat, Boudicea, is just seven metres long.
Young musicians Camilla Elder and Emily Morrison played a fiddle tune as the rowers passed the lifeboat station, then members of the local ambulance and coastguard teams waved them off from the edge of the outer harbour.
A group of eight family members were taken out on the Caithness Seacoast RIB, Geo Explorer.
The Wick lifeboat Roy Barker II provided an escort and the Wick Society’s historic fishing boat Isabella Fortuna also came alongside for a time.
In sunny and calm conditions, Allan and Mhairi were in good spirits as they rowed out into the Moray Firth, helped by north-westerly wind, albeit the tide was against them at that point.
The Boudicea and Geo Explorer then went their separate ways and the group on the RIB enjoyed a mini-tour of the coast before returning to Wick. Skipper William Munro gave them a close-up view of some of the cliffs, caves and seabird colonies south of the town, with crewman guide Bob Murdoch providing commentary.
Mhairi’s aunt June Ferguson had travelled up from Edinburgh to support the couple. After getting back to the harbour, she said: “I feel a bit emotional. I’m probably worried, but they’ve certainly been training really hard.
“As a family we’re all very proud of them, and Allan’s family too.”
Wick RNLI press officer John Taylor said: “On behalf of the Wick lifeboat crew and fundraising team I’d like to thank the local community for turning out in such great numbers to see them off and wishing them all the best.
“If everybody wants to follow their progress, Allan will be giving us regular updates as soon as communication is available and we’ll post it on the Wick lifeboat Facebook page so people can follow them all the way around the coast.
“It’s a very difficult challenge, but they’ve put a lot of years of training into it to try and achieve their goal.”
Speaking a few days before the start of their adventure, Allan said: “When you hear stories of folk doing expeditions or crazy, mad challenges, the hardest part is getting across the start line.”
And Mhairi said: “There’s a huge journey ahead of us, but the support that we’ve had has just been absolutely phenomenal.”
To be successful in their record attempt, the couple must be totally self-reliant for the duration of the trip, including carrying all their supplies and not landing at any point.
They have two gold sponsors – renewable energy company Boralex and the Beatrice offshore wind farm. Silver sponsorship was taken out by Zensar Technologies.
Along with essential equipment, Allan and Mhairi have taken all their food in the form of dehydrated ration packs. The boat is fitted with solar panels and has a desalination unit for turning salt water into fresh water.
