An Arranmore Island mother and her two sons will officially launch their mammoth Atlantic rowing campaign this week as they prepare for one of the world’s toughest endurance challenges.
Sharon O’Donnell and her sons, Evan and Glenn, will unveil their Trasna na dTonnta campaign at Arranmore RNLI Lifeboat Station on Thursday, 6th August, from 2.30pm to 4.30pm, inviting the local community to learn more about their extraordinary journey and the cause driving it.
The family will row more than 3,000 miles across the Atlantic this December as part of The World’s Toughest Row, travelling from La Gomera in the Canary Islands to Antigua in the Caribbean in a crossing expected to take between 40 and 60 days.
The launch marks the beginning of a major fundraising and awareness campaign that will follow the family’s training, preparation and progress in the months leading up to the race.
Their chosen charity is the RNLI life-saving service.
Sharon and Evan both volunteer as crew with Arranmore RNLI, giving the family a close understanding of the lifesaving work carried out by the charity around Ireland’s coastline.
“The sea has always been part of our lives,” Sharon said.
“Living on Arranmore, you understand very quickly that the ocean can be both beautiful and unforgiving. The RNLI is a huge part of our coastal community, and for us this challenge is a way of giving something back while taking on an incredible adventure together as a family.”
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The family will row under the name Trasna na dTonnta – meaning “Across the Waves” – a tribute to their island home, their Irish language and their lifelong connection with the Atlantic. Irish is the family’s first language and they plan to communicate through Irish throughout the crossing.
The race will see the trio rowing around the clock in a strict round-the-clock rotation, with little opportunity for uninterrupted sleep as they face powerful Atlantic swells, changing weather and weeks of isolation in an open ocean rowing boat.
Team Trasna na dTonnta will row approximately 3,000 miles (4,800km) across the Atlantic Ocean, from La Gomera in the Canary Islands to Antigua, in aid of the RNLI.
Sharon, an early years educator, is no stranger to challenging conditions, having previously crossed both the Atlantic and Pacific oceans during the Clipper Round the World Yacht Race. However, she has described the upcoming row as an entirely different test.
“It will be just the three of us in the boat and it’s going to be very demanding,” she previously told Donegal Daily. “You have to be on the oars constantly to keep the boat moving.”
Supporters can attend Thursday’s launch to meet the crew, hear more about the challenge and find out how they can support the campaign in the months ahead.
Details on how to support the O’Donnells through donations and sponsorship opportunities are available here: www.trasna-na-dtonnta.ie
Read our Donegal Daily feature on the challenge here: Arranmore mum and sons in world’s toughest row