ALUMNAE IN THE NEWS
Alumnae Duo Take on Boldest Challenge Yet Abby Johnston (Class of 2007 and current LEH Senior Rowing Coach) and Charlotte Irving (Class of 2008) have teamed up with Kat Cordiner, in a bid to break the record for the fastest trio to row 3,000 across the Atlantic, and all while raising funds for cancer charities. The Talisker Whisky Atlantic challenge is an endurance race like no other. In December 2021, rowers from around the world will gather in La Gomera, the Canary Islands, as they prepare to row 3,000 miles unsupported across the Atlantic Ocean to Antigua. Abby, Charlotte and Kat – known as team ExtraOARdinary - are rowing across the world’s second largest ocean in aid of three cancer charities: Cancer Research, Macmillan and The Royal Marsden. More people have summited Everest than have successfully rowed across the Atlantic and with less than 20% of all ocean rowers being female, the team hope to show girls all over the country just what can be achieved when you are prepared to push the limits. Abby and Charlotte both learned to row at the Lady Eleanor Holles School Boat Club and were part of the crew that became National Champions in 2007. They both went on to row together at Newcastle University winning various national titles and qualifying for Henley Royal Regatta, but now they are taking on the toughest rowing race in the world…
Favours the Bold” to heart, as they have both already undertaken various impressive challenges in recent years.
“extraoardinary” challenge, although perhaps their teachers did not have something so extreme in mind…
In 2016, Charlotte walked the entire length of America on the Pacific Crest Trail, carrying everything she might need on her own back. The 2,600-mile trek across deserts and mountain ranges took her almost five months to complete.
The crew will be living on a 23ft boat for up to 60 days, rowing two hours on and two hours off as they race across the world’s second largest ocean. They will battle storms, 25-foot waves, salt sores, sleep deprivation, hunger and a lack of home comforts. In fact, they will be lacking most things - including beds and a toilet! Christmas and New Year will bring little in the way of presents and pudding, delivering instead potential equipment failure, marlin attacks, shipping lanes and capsizes instead.
Then in 2018, Abby took part in the Clipper Round the World Race. On a 70ft yacht, crewed by amateur sailors (herself included) Abby sailed from Australia, up to China and then across the North Pacific. Here she faced 60ft waves, freezing temperatures and seas so rough that most boats would not dare sail in these conditions.
LEH’s ethos of encouraging students to push their boundaries might well have inspired the intrepid duo’s desire to take on their latest With a target to raise £100,000 across the three charities, a number of fundraising initiatives are underway and can be followed on the team’s website and social media. Please do follow the team on their journey to the start line of this year’s race and if you would like to get involved you can donate to their GoFundMe, or get in touch via the addresses below.
The friends really seem to have taken LEH’s School motto “Hope
Creativity issue
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With less than nine months to go before setting off on their journey, with a world-record time of 49 days, 13 hours, 49 minutes to beat, Kat, Charlotte and Abby are at the beginning of their rigorous training programme.
Holles C nnect
www.weareextraoardinary.com
Instagram: @weareextraoardinary Email: crew@weareextraoardinary.com GoFundMe: gofund.me/76c4edbc
