The Ocean5

Ocean5 will be rowing again in the summer of 2025. The arena this time around…the Pacific Ocean.

More information on the boat, the team, the training, the charity, all to follow in due course.

We’re so back 😎

40m Private/Charter Motor Yacht seeking Deckhand for a permanent position. 38 days leave p.a. Medical Insurance. Salary to be discussed. Male only due to cabin arrangements. Requirements as follows.

- STCW Basic Training
- ENG1
- B1B2 & Schengen
- English mother tongue

Preferably already in Florida. Will need to complete quarantine period before joining.

Please send CV’s and cover letter to:
[email protected]

On behalf of the Ocean5 team, we would like to say a massive THANK YOU to for our amazing gifts which we are going to cherish! Acme whistles joined our 250 club back in October before our Atlantic row and have been a great sponsor! They have also been manufacturing whistles for over 150 years! 👏🏻

🚨🚨Birmingham live,World Record report with Rower Sam Coxon🚨🚨

https://www.birminghammail.co.uk/news/local-news/lichfield-mans-atlantic-row-triumph-17694614

Lichfield man's Atlantic row triumph Sam Coxon was part of a 5-man team that rowed across the Atlantic Ocean recently. The Ocean 5 broke the world record and raised more than £100,000 for a good cause.

Thanks Guys!!

Last November we brought you news of The Ocean5 and their plans to row the Atlantic...And they've only gone and done it!
The 5-man team broke the record by 23 hours and came in fourth out of a total 35 boats. During the trip they hung out with a 60-strong pod of dolphins, took a naked dip in the middle of the Atlantic and, in their scariest moment, found themselves surfing a massive wave at 15+ knots which sent the boat pitch poling and rudely awoke those trying to get a little shut-eye in the cabins - who quickly found themselves lying on the ceiling.
These guys have battled phenomenal physical strain and fatigue to raise funds for the Plastic Soup Foundation.
If you bump into them in a bar, we suggest you buy them a beer and add another fiver to their fundraising efforts.
Cheers from us guys! 🍻🤩🙌

The Ocean5 Crew have really enjoyed their time in Antigua. The past 10 days have been a great time to reflect on the previous 2 years of hard work and dedication and to thank all of our families and friends/home supporters! The island really is a fantastic location and the locals are so friendly!

Once again, we would like to say a huge thankyou to all of our followers and supporters. We couldn’t of even started the row without you 🙏🏻👏🏻

The crew are all well and recovering nicely! Plenty of nice food and local beverages have been enjoyed and now it’s nearly time to get back to normal life and to start planning the next adventure 🤟🏼

The Ocean5 are World Record Holders!

As the Ocean5 supporters prepare to travel to the finish line in Antigua, we're keeping everything crossed for the achieving their goal of a new World Record!

Congratulations to the winners for 2019 Fortitude IV and those due in imminently!

If you'd like to give the rowers a boost, please consider sponsoring them through our website or our GoFundMe page.

We'd like to thank all our sponsors - we couldn't do it without you! This week, particular thanks to Southampton Freight Services Ltd, who sponsored our oars. Thanks also to Henwood Court Financial Planning Ltd and race day sponsor Marsh Fuels. Marsh Fuels kindly donated their call to St Gabriel's School so that the children could benefit. All our sponsors are helping us to reach our aim of battling ocean plastics and have a strong belief of the importance of this work.

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The Ocean5 are rowing 3000 miles across the Atlantic Ocean in the Talisker Whisky Atlantic Challenge to help combat plastics in the oceans by raising money for the Plastic Soup Foundation International

We're well into the 3rd phase of the race now. There are around 450 miles left to run so we're focused on achieving or beating the current 5-man crossing time World Record.

Until now, we hadn't paid attention to the record - we've focused on tactics for the race and learning to deal with the weather and the boat. We think we've understood both those issues now. We've pushed the boat hard and she's been fantastic.

On Wednesday we had a shock because we turned the boat over. We were fighting some big seas and going very quickly, were hit on the side by a big wave and all of a sudden we capsized.

Some rowers went into the sea and 2 were in the cabins. Because we follow the rules, we were all tethered and the cabin doors were locked shut.

We recovered very quickly and the boat was upright within a minute. We lost some kit - a couple of drinking bottles and a seat sponge. Other than that, no problems and we were moving again within 5 minutes. We didn't want to cause worry at the time but are letting you know now we've assessed the situation! It allowed us to understand just how far we can push the boat but also to have confidence that if it happens again, we can recover.

We're now focused on moving absolutely as quickly as we can. We've had to make some sacrifices to achieve this including changing shift patterns so we're rowing for longer. We're also improving the way we hand over between shifts.
Everyone is focused on the World Record. We know the precise time we need to arrive in English Harbour and that is our new challenge we're aiming for.

Thank you to all our supporters and sponsors, especially those who provided excellent equipment as that has allowed us to focus on the job. This week, we'd particularly like to thank BWA Yachting for their support in reducing ocean plastics. We'd also like to thank Race Day Sponsor Rowan Group, who Kevin was pleased to speak to yesterday.

We hope to see you soon in Antigua as the new World Record holders!

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The Ocean5 are rowing 3000 miles across the Atlantic Ocean in the Talisker Whisky Atlantic Challenge to help combat plastics in the oceans by raising money for the Plastic Soup Foundation

Today is our skipper Chris's birthday! Happy birthday Chris! We hope the rest of the rowers share their best snacks with you today!

Chris said the thing he would miss most is a proper shower. We hope to see them soon in Antigua where they can all have a nice hot shower!

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The Ocean5 are rowing 3000 miles across the Atlantic Ocean in the Talisker Whisky Atlantic Challenge to help combat plastics in the oceans by raising money for the Plastic Soup Foundation

Day 22 update from the Ocean5 rowers:

We always had a plan for the race which broke the race into thirds. The first third was for getting used to the boat and being at sea. Unfortunately, we ran into a bad storm which somewhat disrupted our plan. The plan for the second third was to be steady and intelligent, making good progress. In the final third, we plan to use the wind and waves to our best advantage to attack aggressively and get to the front of the field.

This is currently working well and we're very pleased to be in 4th place, higher than expected and ahead of very strong team.

It has been a bit of a trial - we're now at 22 days without being able to stand up, shower, use a bathroom or have a bed. We're doing nothing but row for 2 hours, eat, sleep for an hour and repeating that 24/7.

Today we got news that we are the fastest moving boat in the fleet at the moment. We're excited that Atlantic Campaigns think its possible we could beat the record for a 5 man crossing, meaning arriving in Antigua on 18th Jan at about 11:00 local time.

Reality is a bit more disappointing. At the time of being the fastest moving boat, Kev and Will were rowing their heart out to keep the boat steady and moving forwards at 1 knot due to side wind and heavy rain. The ocean has its own mind, it changes by the minute, hour and day. We can move from flat calm to 25 knot storm in just 6 hours.

As we were fighting to make progress through the wind, Sam and Will used the rain to try to have a wash. Even through the conditions are incredibly difficult, sometimes you can use the bad weather to your advantage to have a wash!

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The Ocean5 are rowing 3000 miles across the Atlantic Ocean in the Talisker Whisky Atlantic Challenge to help combat plastics in the oceans by raising money for the Plastic Soup Foundation

We're pleased to be able to share some more photos from the team today. The team are doing really well, first in their category and holding on to 4th position overall.

Everybody is very tired - it is eat, sleep row and that's it!

If you would like to spur them on by sponsoring them, you can do so on our website or here: gofundme.com/f/the-ocean-5. Thank you to all our sponsors and supporters!

Its 3 weeks since they set sail from La Gomera.. They've been challenged by weather, getting to know the boat, how best to use it and how to adapt to life on the boat. They've been rowing, sleeping or preparing to row or preparing to sleep every minute since we set off.

They're learning a lot about the boat - the complexities of dealing with it are quite enormous. Even moving from the front cabin to the back cabin is quite difficult. Different equipment is in each cabin so they need to move around.

Even simple things are difficult - imagine trying to use the toilet (which is a bucket on the rowing deck) in the dark while the boat moves in the waves - its a challenge just to hold on!

Preparing drinking water needs to be done between rowing and other tasks, so does boiling water for hot meals each day, so there is a lot to do.

A special thank you to Southampton Freight Services Ltd this week, who are fully behind the effort to clear up our oceans and reduce the effect of plastic waste.

Thanks also to ICaaS GDPR Management, who said they were delighted to sponsor this epic adventure across the Atlantic.

We know the team are missing their home comforts while rowing across the Atlantic. Look out on Twitter next week where we'll be posting what each of them is missing the most!

We asked the rowers what their friends and family thought of the challenge. One memorable person asked Kevin Gaskell "What do you do at night? Do you get onto a big boat and shower and sleep?" Err, no! Matt Gaskell said his friends were supportive, although this is the first thing he's done that has scared his mum!

Chris Hodgson's dad said “Perhaps you could take up tiddlywinks instead” and the rest of his family think he is bonkers. Sam Coxon said his family and friends think the whole team are crazy but trust with our knowledge we’ll be safe.

Will Hollingshead said his family either think the row is awe inspiring or ridiculous! One comment that cropped up from all the team's family and friends is "Why?!" As well as completing the epic row, the team would like to raise money to improve awareness of plastics in the oceans and help combat this issue with Plastic Soup Foundation International.

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The Ocean5 are rowing 3000 miles across the Atlantic Ocean in the Talisker Whisky Atlantic Challenge to help combat plastics in the oceans by raising money for the Plastic Soup Foundation

A New Year message from Kevin and the Ocean5 team:

Happy new year from the Ocean5 crew to all of our friends, family, supporters, sponsors and followers.

Its 3 weeks since we set sail from La Gomera. During that time, we haven't always been where we expected to be due to the weather.

We've been challenged by getting to know the boat, how best to use it and how to adapt to life on the boat. We've been rowing, sleeping or preparing to row or preparing to sleep every minute since we set off.

Yesterday to celebrate the New Year, we gave ourselves 30 minutes off for the first time since starting the row to relax, share some gifts and cards from friends and family and talk about how we're doing and feeling. It was a really excellent time. The cards of support were appreciated but caused some emotional minutes.

The team are all positive and motivated but the toughest part is definitely waking up regularly through the night.

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The Ocean5 are rowing 3000 miles across the Atlantic Ocean in the Talisker Whisky Atlantic Challenge to help combat plastics in the oceans by raising money for the Plastic Soup Foundation

Happy New Year from the ! What a start to 2020, competing in and passing the half way point!

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The Ocean5 are rowing 3000 miles across the Atlantic Ocean in the Talisker Whisky Atlantic Challenge to help combat plastics in the oceans by raising money for the Plastic Soup Foundation

The team, along with the other boats in the fleet, currently have little to no wind. This means slow speeds and hard work for them so we hope for a good tailwind in the coming days!

Despite this, the team were pleased to speak to race day sponsor The Dire Straits Experience today. Members of Dire Straits, joined by some of the finest professional musicians, rediscover the extraordinary sound of one of the world’s greatest rock bands.

The team are grateful to all their sponsors. This week, we'd like to thank ITS Technology Group. ITS deliver gigabit capable connectivity providing clients with reliable high-speed internet connections and data networks. ITS are delighted to be supporting the data needs of The Ocean5 in the extreme and challenging environment of the Atlantic Ocean.

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The Ocean5 are rowing 3000 miles across the Atlantic Ocean in the Talisker Whisky Atlantic Challenge to help combat plastics in the oceans by raising money for the Plastic Soup Foundation

Christmas update: Ho ho ho, merry Christmas from the Ocean5 in the middle of the Atlantic Ocean. We've had a couple of days of interesting weather - Christmas Eve was flat calm and the sea looked like glass. It was very hot with no wind, so there was nothing that we could use to our advantage so we had a tough day. Overnight the weather changed and a storm came in. Kevin found it difficult to lie in bed and was flying around the cabin. Despite that, all feel safe and comfortable in the boat, which just keeps going through the lumps and bumps.

We had a brief merry Christmas between ourselves then we got back to rowing. We're still working hard to catch up with the teams in front of us. So we had a very quick Christmas then got back to work.

A big thank you to all our supporters - we can't see all your messages yet so look forward to reading them when we get back to dry land. We hope you have a wonderful day, relax, take it easy and enjoy. We'll try to do the same around rowing 12 hours per day each. Another day at sea for the Ocean5!

Merry Christmas from the ! The team have a more challenging day than usual this year but have reindeer stew to look forward to for their Christmas lunch! They wish all their supporters, friends, family and sponsors a fantastic Christmas. Thank you for your ongoing support and please keep watching on social media and encouraging your friends to follow us.

We're pleased to share an early Christmas treat with you! The guys have sent over some photos from the mid-Atlantic! Merry Christmas!

If you missed it, you can catch up on yesterday's interview on BBC Radio Gloucestershire here: https://www.bbc.co.uk/sounds/play/p07wndc4. They discussed Christmas, chafing and sharks! If you wanted to do as Chris suggested and sponsor the team, you can do so on our website or here: https://www.gofundme.com/f/the-ocean-5

Thank you to all our supporters and sponsors!

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The Ocean5 are rowing 3000 miles across the Atlantic Ocean in the Talisker Whisky Atlantic Challenge to help combat plastics in the oceans by raising money for the Plastic Soup Foundation

Day 11 update from the team:

They are continuing to make very good progress, having had 2 excellent days covering over 80 miles on each. To do that has been extremely hard work, everyone is very focused but it has been a slog. They can get used to 2 hours on / 2 hours off in the day but are finding it very very challenging at night. Kevin thinks he was sleeping while rowing last night!

They are pleased to have less than 2000 miles to go and to have moved up to 6th place. Also the next team are only 8 miles ahead. However, people shouldn't think they can see any other teams - they haven't seen anyone since the start line. Their horizon is only about 1 mile due to the rough seas so they don't see anyone else. They have a plan for the rest of the race - the plan for the next few days is row hard!

Their routine works well and they have settled into the boat. The Rannoch Adventure boat is excellent - safe, secure and nice and clean. They are learning and improve on preparation & efficiency every day. Morale is very good.

They saw some plastic bottles floating past in the ocean for first time today. They have already seen lots of wildlife including dolphins and a very large shark surfing down the crest of a wave. They also saw 4 or 5 sea turtles and some interesting sea birds - they think they are kestrels.

The guys will also be interviewed on BBC Gloucestershire with Nicky Price
after 5 today, make sure you listen in to hear more about how they're doing!

They wish all their supporters, friends, family and sponsors a fantastic Christmas. Thank you for your ongoing support and please keep watching on social media and encouraging your friends to follow us.

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The Ocean5 are rowing 3000 miles across the Atlantic Ocean in the Talisker Whisky Atlantic Challenge to help combat plastics in the oceans by raising money for the Plastic Soup Foundation

We've been getting a few more updates from the team over the last few days. Now on day 8, the team are all in good spirits, feeling positive and are making good progress. Skipper Chris said: "It’s really great to hear that everyone is so engaged with the race, it’s an honour to have such a great team behind us."

After some bad weather in the first couple of days of the race that slowed all teams down, they have had fairly calm conditions with little wind to push them on. They are hoping for a nice strong breeze behind them to push them on more quickly.

They have had seasickness and a few aches, pains and minor injuries as expected, which are getting better now. Matt has been tending to any blisters and Sam and Will have been keeping the jokes and giggles going! Their snacks are also turning out to be a great morale booster, with malt loaf being the current favourite.

Race day sponsor Lankelma Ltd had their call with the team from the mid-Atlantic yesterday. Their CEO, a keen sailor who will sail across the Atlantic from La Gomera this winter, said “Good luck guys and see you on the other side!"

We'd also like to thank Totalmobile UK, our Gold Partner, for their continued support throughout the race. We know they are closely following the journey!

If you're following the race online, not on the YB app, you may have noticed that the link has been disabled. Please bear with us while we update the link on our website!

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The Ocean5 are rowing 3000 miles across the Atlantic Ocean in the Talisker Whisky Atlantic Challenge to help combat plastics in the oceans by raising money for the Plastic Soup Foundation

Please note that the link on our website to track all the teams on has been disabled. Please bear with us while we get this updated. You can follow the race either by downloading the YB app or on the Talisker Whisky Atlantic Challenge website.

Update: The team are in good spirits and everything is working well. They set off on a slightly different route compared to everyone else to gain a strong ride using the edge of a storm that hit. Unfortunately, the storm turned around a little and ended up hitting them side on which was hard to deal with. This meant the first night was a baptism of fire.

Despite that, the Rannoch Adventure boat is fantastic and rowed them through the storm. All feel safe and comfortable in the boat. 3 had seasickness badly but this has passed. All are rowing hard but with the expected aches and pains. All are getting some sleep but sleep deprivation is hitting. They're pleased to be as fast as the teams of 4 and were pleased to hear that they are at the front of the fleet!

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After 2 years of hard work, training and preparation, the race is underway! The atmosphere at the start was really exciting - all who went to watch had a great time.

The Ocean5 team are off to a good start and keeping a good rowing pace at the moment. We'll keep you updated on our social media platforms with any information we get.

We couldn't complete this epic journey without the support of our sponsors. This week we'd especially like to thank Baltic Lifejackets for providing essential, reliable equipment to help keep us safe. We'd also like to thank VYKA for their support throughout our journey with digital content.

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The Ocean5 are rowing 3000 miles across the Atlantic Ocean in the Talisker Whisky Atlantic Challenge to help combat plastics in the oceans by raising money for the Plastic Soup Foundation

And they're off! The are on their way to Antigua in ! Good luck Chris Hodgson, Kevin Gaskell, Matt Gaskell, Sam Coxon and Will Hollingshead!

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The Ocean5 will be rowing 3000 miles across the Atlantic Ocean in the Talisker Whisky Atlantic Challenge to help combat plastics in the oceans by raising money for the Plastic Soup Foundation

We've had a number of questions about the start time and tracking of the race. The start is currently scheduled for Thursday 12th December. After the race starts, all boats in the race can be tracked through the link on the homepage of our website www.theocean5.com.

For those who have asked how to donate to the team, if you would still like to, please do have a look at the "sponsor us" options on the website, which includes a link to our gofundme page www.gofundme.com/f/the-ocean-5

We'll post updates on our social media pages throughout the row. Thank you for your support!

The Ocean5 Taking on the Talisker Whisky Atlantic Challenge

After 2 years of preparation and training, including rowing over 5,000 km and lifting 2,300,000 kg in weight training, the Ocean5 team are completing their final briefings in La Gomera before they set off for Antigua in less than a week.

Despite all the preparation and training, our final briefings are vital for safety during the race. We're making small final adjustments to the boat, including adding the name, Lady Jayne. We haven't forgotten the secret ingredient of speed polish!

We are very grateful to all our sponsors who are part of the journey. This week, we'd particularly like to thank BaxterStorey, who are helping provide essential meals when its not east to pop out to a restaurant! Thanks also go to Henwood Court Financial Planning Ltd, who provide expert advice to their clients.

BWA Yachting are a valued sponsor who had this to say: “We decided to sponsor the Ocean5 team because we support good causes, and this is definitely one! It is high time we realize the harmful effects of plastic pollution in the environment and in the oceans (the environment we operate in) and contribute our bit towards bringing it down.” We also thank SLAM UK who have provided practical technical clothing to us.

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The Ocean5 will be rowing 3000 miles across the Atlantic Ocean in the Talisker Whisky Atlantic Challenge to help combat plastics in the oceans by raising money for the Plastic Soup Foundation

The Ocean5 started their Atlantic Challenge 2019 journey about 2 years ago. We have now begun our journey to La Gomera and the start line!

We're all packed, prepared and ready to go, after months of discussion about exactly what will be needed and what is essential. With limited space on the boat, and with every kilogram slowing us down, we can only take the absolute essentials which includes plenty of skin treatments but just 3 pairs of underwear each!

There are some mandatory inspections and briefings to take part in once we reach La Gomera. Then we need to apply the magic ingredient of speed polish just before we set off! We will be relying on accurate navigation at that point from David Store Navigational Management Ltd. (DSNM LTD).

We were pleased to visit BBC Radio Gloucestershire this week - listen out for our interview!

We are grateful to all our sponsors, but this week we'd especially like to thank GymPro Apparel for our training kit.

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The Ocean5 will be rowing 3000 miles across the Atlantic Ocean in the Talisker Whisky Atlantic Challenge to help combat plastics in the oceans by raising money for the Plastic Soup Foundation

The Ocean5 team have come a long way over the past 2 years. At that point, the boat was just an unnamed empty shell. Now, after 2 years of preparation and training, we are ready to row the Atlantic and excited to be able to announce the name of our boat: Lady Jayne! Have a look at our photos to see the evolution of our boat.

The team were pleased to attend events recently with our sponsor Totalmobile UK and speak about our upcoming adventure. We were also pleased to have another article about our adventure published.

Kevin managed to fit in a trip to speak about "the future of work" to a Saudi Arabian audience, although he is now preparing for a different kind of work!

We are packing all our kit ready to fly to La Gomera in a few short days. An essential part of our kit is our Dunlop sunglasses, which will protect our eyes in all weather conditions.

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The Ocean5 will be rowing 3000 miles across the Atlantic Ocean in the Talisker Whisky Atlantic Challenge to help combat plastics in the oceans by raising money for the Plastic Soup Foundation

The Ocean5