Historical Blog Archive

Wonderful to hear such interesting family history - and great that so much detail has been discovered all in the name of the Indian Ocean Race!! Thanks Nigel.

Every stroke is 10yds further Every wave is 10yds more Every breeze is 10yds nearer Every day is nearer shore Every second brings you closer Every minute on the foam Every time you travel forward Every yd is nearer home ( Steve G ~ thank you Steve! July 9th ~ keep going boys,all downhill now,you can do it)

relief all round go girls! Jem

hey boys! long time since i blogged but i coldnt race back to see if anyone had let you knwo that michael jackson has died of a heart attack a week or so ago.... its so good to hear your getting ever closer to maritius and cannot wait to hear more of your news....a big whale hey? you sure that wasnt jsut me swimming around you?!!! lots of love to you and look forward to hearing from you soon. xxxx

Great to hear that you are at long last making waves in the right direction, boys. Not sure if your Mum has told you this, Guy but I check on you both every night before I go to bed (and a few times during the day too!!) just to make sure you are safe and well. It takes me back to when my girls were small and I always looked in on them each night to make sure they were tucked up cosy and warm in bed. I know that I am not alone and that there are so many of us out here, following your progress, willing you on and totally in awe of your amazing achievements so far. You are both stars. With love Jill Xx

Hurrah your para anchor has been stowed and very exciting you saw a whale. You are doing awesome. Am willing you both on. Row team row, row team row... :o)

Good news indeed, my fav ocean rowers. Just writing a wee article for the Horsham Resident and would simply love to know any extra details on the whale sighting. Quotable observations welcome xxx

Good to see you steaming along and the numbers dropping to almost imaginable distances. Good luck from all the team.

Great going chaps - good to see those miles falling away again. Hope the conditions stay favourable and you can get some good distance covered in the next few days.

Hi boys - it's great to wake up in the morning to see that you have made such great progress and at last the tide and currents are in your favour - long may it last. Any thoughts that you are able to share with us as to the first thing you want to do when you arrive in Mauritius? Love Clive and Andy

So exciting about the whale! It is just like Tom Hanks in Castaway, or was it joe vs. the Volcano? Not sure. Any way, keep rowing hard, so close and you don't want those young scallies to win! Loads of love

Guy and Andrew. We are totally in awe of what you are doing and wanted to let you know that more people than you think are supporting and thinking of you on your amazing endeavour. I hope you stocked up with bagels Guy like you did before the NY Marathon, which seemed to do the trick then. Keep up the amazing effort we are all willing you home over the final stretch. Gareth, Carole and Max (you can meet him when you get back).

Great effort guys. Blue Whale sounds amazing. Sure the wildlife will be even better as you head towards land! Good job on calling grannie bro. makes me look bad as I've yet to do it.... ahem. Looking forward to seeing the sprint off towards the end against the other lot and seeing you both for a few beers upon your return. Keep strong, Matt

Message from a top man who is in fact also my boss: From: Glyn Royles Sent: 15 July 2009 10:54 To: Tom Watts Subject: Your Dad's blog Tom I’ve just read your Dad’s blog today about Captain OM Watts. I couldn’t believe that he was related to you. When I was selling Vuarnet sunglasses we had a special lens for yachtsmen called the Vuarnet Nautilux range of glasses. They were very well respected and it made it easy to sell them in the Hamble and along the Solent. However, my best customer was Captian OM Watts on Albemarle Street in Piccadilly. They used to race through the glasses and they were a very good friendly customer. What a small world. It made me smile just thinking about it. Happy Days. Glyn

Row row tow towards the Haribo - woo hoo, come on boyyss!

Catherine and I have just checked the site. 52nm in 24 hours, brilliant! Catherine says thank you for the message the other day. Feels like the finishing line is almost in sight for you boys. Don't forget we are watching your progress every day, so keep up the good work! Love Gina, Catherine and Jacob x x x

It's going to be tight - but I have a good feeling about which boat will be the next to arrive in Mauritius - and its not SC.

Nice work boys....the progress page on woodvale site makes nice viewing. Keep the faith! Trumpet xx

Brilliant progress being made lads - keep up the amazing work and pushing on through to dry land - Mauritius preferably!!! Just want to give a big shout out to everyone working on these blogs - it's fantastic to get daily updates and to feel part of this experience - all your hard work is very much appreciated so thank you thank you thank you!!! Petit x

Hi, I'm Darren, a colleague of Tom's. Just to add a few words of support to you both and your incredible undertaking. It's difficult to put into words how much I (and everyone else) admire what you're doing and all for a brilliant cause too. Have been following the progress since the start and Tom keeps us all updated so you certainly have lots of support here. Keep up the excellent work! And think how good arriving in Mauritius will feel!!