
By Charminae George
A farewell party for Team Antigua Island Girls was held last night at Lucky Eddi’s Bar and Restaurant in English Harbour.
Featuring performances by well-known artists such as Claudette Peters, Tizzy and Menace, the event also aimed to raise additional funds ahead of the team’s departure on May 25 for their upcoming rowing challenge.
Thus far, approximately EC$150,000 of the EC$500,000 needed has been raised, according to one of the rowers, Kevinia Francis.
At the event last night, the team debuted one of the outfits they will wear during their challenge, which has been designed by the Amen, Amen designer of Team Nigeria’s apparel for the 2022 Olympics.
Dubbed the ‘world’s toughest row Pacific’, participating teams will row 2,800 nautical miles from Monterey Harbour, California, to Hanalei Bay in Kauai, Hawaii, departing on June 12.
Speaking on whether the Island Girls will be aiming to win, or simply complete the challenge for the experience of it, Francis responded, “We are in it to win it. Once the elements and the mechanicals continue to function as is, that’s our goal,” she stated.
She said their target is to complete the race in under 40 days.
The boat the team will use to participate in their next adventure is set to be shipped on Monday to the race’s starting point, Francis said.
She also spoke about the clothing the team will wear during the challenge.
“We have the same rash guards [long-sleeved, athletic shirts that protect the skin from sunburn]…We have some thermal wear that we put on under the rash guard.
“We also have a jacket…that we put over the rash guard. Once you start rowing and your body warms up, then you take off the outer one and keep rowing,” she explained.
The food eaten during the challenge will be dehydrated versions of select dishes found in any international cookbook. The dehydrated meals are essentially food with the liquid removed, via a dehydrator. The result is something that requires you to add water to rehydrate it. However, upon rehydration, the meal can be watery, Francis said.
When asked which is the most tolerable meal of the various dishes, Bell remarked, “So far, the chicken tikka masala. There’s also the cheese tortellini. Those two we can tolerate easier than the others.”
She added that they will be seeking to acquire other flavours of the meals during the team’s stopover in Miami.
Sightings of sharks and whales in the Pacific Ocean are highly anticipated by the team. During their last challenge, when they rowed across the Atlantic in 2018-19, they saw sea life including dolphins and Portuguese man o’ war jellyfish, Francis told Observer.
Four years ago, Team Antigua Island Girls made history when they completed the gruelling 3,000-mile row across the Atlantic as the first all-Black team to row an ocean. In addition to Francis, the team is comprised of Christal Clashing, Elvira Bell, and Samara Emmanuel.
Members of the public who wish to donate to help the team on their way can do so via a deposit into the ‘Team Island Girls’ account at any Caribbean Union Bank branch.