Rowing Across the Pacific

In 2022 Tom Robinson aims to become the youngest person ever to row solo across the Pacific Ocean

The journey will cover over 8,000 nautical miles, from Peru to Australia. Tom will spend up to 12 months at sea, rowing up to 12 hours a day, in a vessel he has designed and built by hand. Tom will make landfall along the way to resupply and explore the cultures of the Pacific.

"I see my voyage as a great opportunity to encourage other people, young and old, to live a more adventurous life I want to promote a more grassroots approach to voyaging than current societal norms dictate, demonstrating that anyone with the right attitude can build a simple boat, and with this they can pursue their own adventure." says Tom.

Maiwar is a 24’ ocean rowing boat designed and built by Tom Robinson, she represents the culmination of years of thought about the ideal ocean rowing vessel.

The name (pronounced may-wah), is the local indigenous name for the Brisbane River, her birthplace. Her hull lines are derived from 19th century whaleboats, especially those originating from the Beetle family. Her shape forward of the midsection is pure whaleboat, however, her after sections are fuller than typical. This was a design feature necessary to ensure that she would trim properly when fully laden, most of her stores being aft of midship. On deck she is relatively a conventional ocean rowing boat. She had a central, selfdraining cockpit, with a small footwell. Forward she has a spartan cabin with enough room for a full sized bunk with a miniature galley and navigation station. Aft of the cockpit is a single large storage compartment. She has a stern hung rudder aft and a high aspect daggerboard up forward, positioned on the starboard side of the keel. Her cabin or ‘bubble’ is as small as practical, being much lower than almost all other ocean rowing boats, meaning there is less windage, and more effort required by the oarsman.