Married doctors complete Atlantic rowing challenge

Charlie Fleury and Adam Baker, both 31, are the first ever wedded couple to participate in the Talisker Whisky Atlantic Challenge.
Adam Baker and Charlie Fleury have completed the Talisker Whisky Atlantic Challenge (handout/PA)
PA Media
Rod Minchin3 February 2022

Husband and wife doctors have landed in the Caribbean after rowing 3,000 miles across the Atlantic for charity.

Charlie Fleury and Adam Baker, both 31, are the first ever married couple to participate in the Talisker Whisky Atlantic Challenge.

The couple, from Devon finished first in the mixed pairs ranking after more than seven weeks of rowing.

They have raised more than £20,000 for frontline medical charities after rowing from the Canary Islands to Antigua in a 24ft boat.

Their vessel, which is called Percy, was about a third the size of a red phone box and they took it in turns to row, swapping every two hours around the clock.

Charlie Fleury and Adam Baker celebrate after arriving in Antigua (Atlantic Campaigns/PA)

The longest the couple, who work as A&E doctors at the Royal Devon and Exeter Hospital, had rowed together before they set off was five days.

Dr Fleury said: “This has been such a tough challenge with so many highs and lows.

“There aren’t many ultra-events that last longer than seven weeks and have such a variety of weather conditions to tackle.

“The highlight of the journey was definitely seeing a pod of orcas. Three from the pod came alongside the boat and it was truly magical.”

On their journey, the pair struggled with seasickness, low energy and even hallucinations and the exhausting temperatures and weather conditions put a strain on them too.

Dr Baker said: “We’re so delighted that we’ve made it through this adventure, with all its highs and lows.

“The height of the waves was sometimes frightening, and at one point we even had a large shark follow the boat which was quite intimidating, but it was incredible to be so close to ocean wildlife.”

Create a FREE account to continue reading

eros

Registration is a free and easy way to support our journalism.

Join our community where you can: comment on stories; sign up to newsletters; enter competitions and access content on our app.

Your email address

Must be at least 6 characters, include an upper and lower case character and a number

You must be at least 18 years old to create an account

* Required fields

Already have an account? SIGN IN

By clicking Create Account you confirm that your data has been entered correctly and you have read and agree to our Terms of use , Cookie policy and Privacy policy .

This site is protected by reCAPTCHA and the Google Privacy Policy and Terms of Service apply.

Thank you for registering

Please refresh the page or navigate to another page on the site to be automatically logged in