AWESOME oarsman Frank Rothwell is rowing towards a romantic Caribbean rendez-vous with wife Judith ahead of schedule.
Fearless Frank from Greenfield hoped to complete his 3,000 miles Talisker Whiskey Atlantic Challenge in time for a Valentine’s Day reunion.
Hopes of that February 14 date appeared to be blown off course in the early stages of 70-year-old Frank’s marathon effort to raise funds for Alzheimer’s Research UK.
But the Saddleworth pensioner, the oldest person in the race to reach Antigua, has picked up the pace despite suffering equipment failure.
At his present rate of knots Frank, who is owner of Manchester Cabins, hopes to reach land sometime on Monday, February 8.
At the time of writing, he only had 253 miles left to row and hoping to avoid any return of the rough weather.
Most recently, Frank, who has now been at sea for 57 days, snapped one of his carbon fibre oars.
“I was in strong seas, the oar got trapped under the boat and snapped,” he explained.
“Luckily I have a spare. But I managed to save it. I told Judith, I’d like to put the broken oar over the fireplace as a souvenir. She wasn’t very happy about that idea.”
Frank hopes his ocean adventure will raise £1 million for Alzheimer’s Research UK. His current total is £616,000 raised by 4,400 supporters.
To donate visit https://www.justgiving.com/fundraising/frankrothwell
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