Local rowers overjoyed despite the pain

Two men from Zug, one from Schwyz and one from Zurich were the first to reach the finish line in Antigua in the East Caribbean. They and their team can now talk about the crazy rowing race across the Atlantic.
 

They look a little tired, some of their fingers are bandaged, and their facial hair has grown longer. But they are also tanned and can't wipe the smiles off their faces. Understandably so, because Matthias Fernandez (28) and Lorenzo Henseler (28) from Zug, Julian Müller (29) from Schwyz and Luca Fayd'herbe de Maudave (24) from Zurich have achieved the goal they have been working towards for three years: they are the winners of ‘The World's Toughest Row’, a rowing race across the Atlantic.

The Swiss team beat 42 other teams and completed the 4,800 kilometre crossing from the Canary Islands to the Caribbean in 31 days, 8 hours and 8 minutes. Upon their arrival on Wednesday evening, they cheered loudly, were moved to tears and were warmly welcomed by their loved ones and the large crowd that had gathered.

There’s still some catching up to do
It is obvious that the team is satisfied with its performance. ‘We worked very well together and looked out for each other,’ says Matthias Fernandez. Nevertheless, input from outside was needed. One piece of advice that came about halfway through the race was crucial: ‘We were thinking about the finish and victory too early.’ Strategy coach Charlie Pitcher then ‘grounded’ them. It wasn't about winning yet, but about continuing to position themselves well. Because another team of four, competing under the name ‘Kiwi Fondue’, was always hot on the heels of ‘44west’. They crossed the finish line in second place. On board were two Swiss, one Dutch and one British sailor.

But success comes at a price: ‘Everything hurts,’ says Matthias Fernandez. ‘Especially our backsides and hands,’ adds Julian Müller’ For now, the four of them are taking a break and will spend ten days on the paradise island of Antigua.

Then it's back to Switzerland, where they have a lot of catching up to do. The last three years have been intense. Preparing for the race and the entire project took up a lot of time that could have been spent with friends, family, travelling and pursuing careers. They all have big ambitions that are focused more on their professional careers and less on sport. ‘It's very unlikely that any of us will row across the ocean again,’ says Lorenzo Henseler.

The beaming winners: Matthias Fernandez (top), Luca Fayd'herbe de Maudave, Lorenzo Henseler and Julian Müller (bottom, from left).
The ‘44west’ crew embrace each other after crossing the finish line.           Photos: The World's Toughest Row
The Swiss team wins the Hardest Row        Photo: Instagram screenshot

Lack of sleep was the biggest challenge
The victory was also made possible by the extended ‘44west’ team, including physiotherapist Dean Landtwing. According to him, the constant lack of sleep was the biggest challenge for the rowers. ‘Over such a long period of time, it's an enormous stress situation for the body,’ he says. And this has an impact on an athlete's physical and mental performance. This makes it all the more important, but also more difficult, to maintain routines – such as remembering to eat, which ensures the body's energy supply. The physiotherapist was in contact with the rowers via WhatsApp to answer any questions they had.

Mental coach Jan Schmutz also cites sleep deprivation – combined with high physical exertion – as a major strain on the psyche. ‘In extreme cases, this can lead to hallucinations or paranoia,’ he says. The body can also fall into a kind of self-protection mode, in which only one's own well-being and survival matter. This depletes the resources for social interaction: responses become curt, tempers flare, and the situation can escalate.

In their coaching sessions with Jan Schmutz, the four men learned how to react in such moments, and how to support each other. At least once a day, they asked the other team members how they were feeling: How are you? How exhausted are you on a scale of 1 to 10? This helped them to better understand the behaviour of the others, and to react if necessary. One thing is clear for Jan Schmutz: ‘From a mental point of view, the preparatory work was crucial to victory.’

Technically speaking, the salt water caused the biggest problems, says boatswain Andy Bahnemann. On the one hand, salt attacks the electronics, which is why you have to make sure that nothing corrodes. This also applies to the mechanical parts of the boat. But the men were lucky: ‘There were no defects,’ he reported.

Crossing the finish line marked the end of more than four intense weeks of competition, but not the end of endeavours of ‘44west’. The team name has now been developed into a brand that represents an ambitious project: the construction of a coral reef in the Philippines.

Crowdfunding to finance the project is still ongoing, and it won't take much to reach the target of CHF 45,000.

That would be another win for 44west – and for biodiversity.

A video showing their adventure can be seen on:
https://www.zugerzeitung.ch/zentralschweiz/zug/rudern-ueber-den-atlantik-44west-ueber-ihren-sieg-ld.4106082