Three brothers bid to row across Pacific Ocean in record time after conquering Atlantic

Three brothers are hoping to set a record time for rowing across the Pacific Ocean – having already conquered the Atlantic.

Ewan, Jamie, and Lachlan Maclean, from Edinburgh, start their four-month, 9,000-mile adventure on Saturday when they leave from Lima in Peru at 9pm UK time.

They will attempt to row non-stop and unsupported to Sydney in Australia in their custom-built carbon fibre ocean rowing boat and in the process raise £1m to support their own clean water charity.

The trio are expected to spend more than 120 days at sea, covering the equivalent of 343 marathons on a journey requiring around four million oar strokes.

Rowing in two-hour shifts around the clock, they will likely face extreme weather, sleep deprivation, and complete isolation on the world’s largest ocean.

They have already conquered the Atlantic, setting three world records in the process.

After completing the 3,000-mile trip in just 35 days, they became the first three brothers to row any ocean together, the youngest trio and the fastest trio to row the journey from the Canary Islands to Antigua.

‘We feel at peace at sea’

Ewan, 33, said they got the idea to row across the Pacific while on their Atlantic voyage, where they realised “how at peace we felt at sea – and also how truly lucky we are.

“We started thinking about how we could spend more time on the water and help more people – and this daft challenge was born.”

‘Getting people access to clean water is what drives us’

The Rare Whisky 101 Pacific Row aims to raise more than £1m for The Maclean Foundation, a clean water charity the brothers launched with their father, Charles Maclean, following their 2020 record journey.

The charity has funded boreholes, helping more than 5,000 people in Madagascar, but the brothers hope their latest voyage will boost its impact significantly.

Ewan said their trips to Madagascar have shown them “what access to clean water can do – it helps kids get an education, helps communities thrive, and saves lives.

“That’s what drives us.”

The boat, which they helped design and build, is named Rose Emily in honour of their sister, who was lost during pregnancy.

Their mother Sheila, a watercolour artist, hand-painted the name onto the hull.

Jamie, 31, said the journey would “honour” the sister they never met, and “she’ll be with us every mile”.

Their 500kg of freeze-dried food includes haggis, neeps, and tatties for Lachlan’s 27th birthday in June.

They will also bring bagpipes, a small guitar, and a miniature accordion with them on the voyage to make music when they are resting from rowing.