Mick Dawson (Royal Marine Commando)

Last updated

Mick Dawson (born in June 1964 in Boston, Lincolnshire, England) [1] is a former Royal Marine Commando, film maker, professional sailor and adventurer. He is best known for rowing the Pacific Ocean with friend and fellow ocean rower Chris Martin in a new state of the art vessel, Bojangles, which Mick built. In 2009, they completed their 7,000 mi (11,000 km) voyage in 189 days 10 hours and 55 minutes; a world first and earning a place in the Guinness Book of records. [2]

Contents

Rowing

Mick Dawson is one of the most experienced ocean rowers in the world having rowed over 20,000 miles 20,000 mi (32,000 km) across the worlds oceans during some 524 days at sea in ocean rowing boats. [3]

Pairs Atlantic Crossing in 2001 with his brother Steve.

Completed in 70 days 10 hours and 12 minutes. [4]

Solo North Pacific attempt in 2003

Mick made his first attempt to row the Pacific Ocean solo in 2003, ended when his rudder was torn off, in severe weather, and he had to return to Japan after 12 days. [5]

Solo North Pacific attempt in 2004

The second in 2004, was halted by a freak capsize that sank his boat after 109 days at sea and having rowed over 4,500 mi (7,200 km), two thirds of the way across the route. [6]

Pairs Atlantic Crossing in 2005 with Andrew Morris.

Mick worked for the Atlantic Rowing Race organisers as a rowing consultant and safety skipper for the 2005. It was here he came to the rescue of an injured Andrew Morris and went on to complete a second crossing of the Atlantic at his side. Completed in 61 days 2 hours and 50 minutes. [7]

Pairs North Pacific Crossing in 2009 with Chris Martin

Mick, together with his friend and fellow ocean rower Chris Martin skippered the first team to successfully row, 7,000 mi (11,000 km) across the hostile north Pacific route; from Choshi in Japan to directly beneath the iconic span of the Golden Gate Bridge in San Francisco. [8] They rowed in a boat called Bojangles, which Mick built – The boat was 23 ft (7.0 m) long and 6 ft (1.8 m) wide and was manufactured from lightweight Carbon-Kevlar material. The boat was one of the most advanced ocean rowing vessels ever made. [9] Unfortunately, after months at sea and several days of adverse weather and increasing fatigue, the decision was made to resupply before their contingency ran out completely, as they hoped they would have enough supplies to make it to San Francisco unsupported. Mick and Chris completed their journey from Choshi in Japan to San Francisco on the 13 November 2009 at 16:00 GMT. They were greeted by their families and a flotilla of boats as they passed the finish line under the Golden Gate Bridge in San Francisco. [10] They completed the 7,000 mi (11,000 km) voyage in 189 days 10 hours and 55 minutes. [11]

Mick and Chris also raised money for two charities, one based in the United Kingdom and one based in Nigeria. The first is the Hearts of Gold Children's Hospice. The second charity is Hamilton Lodge School for Deaf Children. [12]

Pairs Crossing of the Pacific; California to Hawaii 2018

Mick returned to the Pacific in 2018 to take part in the Great Pacific Race from Monterey Bay to Hawaii in 2018. He rowed with Steve 'Sparky' Sparkes. The pair completed the race in 82 days, 16 hours and 54 minutes coming first in the pairs category and third overall in a highly eventful race. When the pair stepped ashore at Waikiki Yacht club 'Sparky' (Also a former Royal Marine Commando) became the first 'Blind' person to row the Pacific Ocean.

Discovery Channel charted Mick's and Chris' voyage in the documentary 'Rowing The Pacific.' [13]

Business career

Mick is a published author having written two books about his adventures in ocean rowing and working with recovering veterans. His first book; published in the US in 2017 is called Battling the Oceans in a Rowboat and in the U.K. it's published under the title; Rowing the Pacific [14]

His second book entitled; 'Never Leave A Man Behind,' which covers his work with recovering veterans and his row with blind veteran 'Sparky' across the Pacific in 2018 was published in July 2020.

Mick is also an accomplished speaker and works regularly; online and at live events, with companies and corporations across the globe. Giving insights into the ethos of great teamwork, achieving goals and adaptive leadership using his many ocean rowing adventures as a dramatic backdrop to illustrate his points.

Related Research Articles

Louis Ginglo was the first Canadian rower to cross the Atlantic Ocean single-handedly from east to west.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Ocean rowing</span> Sport of rowing across oceans

Ocean rowing is the sport of rowing across oceans. Some ocean rowing boats can hold as many as fourteen rowers; however, the most common ocean rowboats are designed for singles, doubles, and fours.

The Atlantic Rowing Race is an ocean rowing race from the Canary Islands to the West Indies, a distance of approximately 2,550 nm. The race was founded in 1997 by Sir Chay Blyth with subsequent races roughly every two years since. The early races were run by Challenge Business Ltd. until the race was bought by Woodvale Events Ltd., managed by Simon Chalk, in October 2003. In May 2012, Atlantic Campaigns SL, managed by Carsten Heron Olsen bought the rights to the Atlantic Rowing Race, now called The "Talisker Whisky Atlantic Challenge" – The World's Toughest Row. Since 2015, the race has been held annually starting each December.

Jim Shekhdar is a British ocean rower and was the first person to complete a solo unassisted non-stop crossing of the Pacific Ocean.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Colin Angus (explorer)</span> Canadian author and adventurer

Colin Angus is a Canadian author and adventurer who is the first person to make a self-propelled global circumnavigation. Due to varying definitions of the term "circumnavigation", debate has arisen as to whether or not the route travelled fulfilled the strictest criteria. As part of the circumnavigation, Angus and his then fiancé Julie Wafaei made the first rowboat crossing of the Atlantic Ocean from mainland Europe to mainland North America, and Wafaei became the first Canadian woman to row across any ocean. Colin and Julie have two sons: Leif, born September 2010, and Oliver, born June 2014.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Roz Savage</span> English rower, writer, and speaker

Rosalind Elizabeth Adriana Savage MBE FRGS is an English ocean rower, environmental advocate, writer and speaker.

Peter Bird was a British ocean rower who, in 1983, became the first person ever to row non-stop and solo across the Pacific from east to west when he completed his journey from America to Australia.

Erden Eruç is a Turkish-American adventurer who became the first person in history to complete an entirely solo and entirely human-powered circumnavigation of the Earth on 21 July 2012 in Bodega Bay, California, United States. The journey had started from Bodega Bay a little more than five years earlier on 10 July 2007. The modes of transport included a rowboat to cross the oceans, a sea kayak for shorelines, a bicycle on the roads and hiking on trails, along with canoes for a few river crossings. The route he followed was 66,299 km (41,196 mi) long, crossed the equator twice and all lines of longitude, and passed over twelve pairs of antipodal points, meeting all the requirements for a true circumnavigation of the globe. Guinness World Records has officially recognized Eruç for the "First solo circumnavigation of the globe using human power" on a journey that lasted 5 years 11 days 12 hours and 22 minutes.

Charles Hedrich is a French sportsman, alpinist, rower and skipper. He is known for his achievements on all terrains of the world: Ocean, climbing, pole, desert, and forest.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Sarah Outen</span> British athlete and adventurer (born 1985)

Sarah Dilys Outen is a British athlete and adventurer. She is also a motivational speaker in the UK and internationally. Outen was the first woman and the youngest person to row solo across the Indian Ocean and also the Pacific Ocean from Japan to Alaska. She completed a round-the-world journey, mostly under her own power, by rowing boat, bicycle and kayak, on 3 November 2015.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Gérard d'Aboville</span> French politician and ocean rower

Gérard d'Aboville is the first man to row across two oceans solo: the Atlantic Ocean and the Pacific Ocean. He crossed the Atlantic in 1980, travelling from Cape Cod to Brittany. D'Aboville previously built boats and organized races before undertaking this 3,500 mile trip, which he completed in 72 days. In 1981, he was a recipient of the Silver Olympic Order.

Chris Martin is a British rower.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Leven Brown</span> British Ocean Rower

Leven Brown is a British Ocean Rower who has held five Guinness World Records. He along with his crew Don Lennox, Livar Nysted and Ray Carroll also held the world record for "longest distance rowed in 24h in an ocean rowing boat" at 118 miles, is the first and thus far only in the sport ever to have held North and 'Trade Winds' speed records simultaneously and to hold two speed records over two separate oceans Brown was brought up on a landlocked farm in his native Scottish Borders but was introduced to the ocean at an early age where he discovered ocean rowing. After a career with Brewin Dolphin Securities that spanned 17 years he did his first Ocean Row in 2005.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Livar Nysted</span>

Livar Nysted is an ocean rower and an artist, a painter. He grew up in the small village of Hvannasund in the Faroe Islands. Nysted has achieved five world records in ocean rowing. In 2010 he – together with three other rowers – successfully crossed the North Atlantic Ocean in a rowing boat, breaking a 114-year-old record. In January 2013 he went on another journey, this time the plan was to cross the South Atlantic Ocean with a boat called Avalon. The crew was eight men, they started on 18 January from Puerto de Mogán, Gran Canaria, and their plan was to row to Port Saint Charles, Barbados. They made it all the way to Barbados on 22 February 2013 after rowing for 32 days, 12 hours and 41 minutes. Later the same year Nysted went on another expedition together with two other men. Their journey started in Australia on 9 June 2013. They crossed the Indian Ocean by rowing. They arrived at Mauritius on 5 August 2013 after rowing for 57 days, 15 hours and 49 minutes, which was a new world record. Livar sat three world records after completing this journey: he and the two others were the first crew of three to cross the Indian Ocean, they were also the fastest rowing crew to row this distance, and Livar sat a new world record for having crossed two oceans in a rowing boat within the same year.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Fiann Paul</span> Icelandic explorer, athlete and artist

Fiann Paul is a Polish-Icelandic explorer known for his exploits in ocean rowing.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Angela Madsen</span> American Paralympic athlete (1960–2020)

Angela Madsen was an American Paralympian sportswoman in both rowing and track and field. In a long career, Madsen moved from race rowing to ocean challenges before switching in 2011 to athletics, winning a bronze medal in the shot put at the 2012 Summer Paralympics in London. Madsen and teammate Helen Taylor were the first women to row across the Indian Ocean. She died in June 2020 while attempting a solo row from Los Angeles to Honolulu.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Lia Ditton</span>

Aurelia Margaret Ditton, also known as Lia Ditton, is a British professional sailor, ocean rower, motivational speaker and conceptual artist.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Anders Svedlund</span>

Anders Johan Svedlund,, was a Swedish born, naturalized New Zealand ocean rowing pioneer. Anders performed 2 of 14 Historic ocean rows listed by Ocean Rowing Society, the official Guinness Adjudicator for ocean rowing. He was the first to row the Indian Ocean, the first to row on the Pacific solo, and the fastest ocean rower of his times.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Ocean Rowing Society International</span> Governing body for international ocean rowing

Ocean Rowing Society International (ORSI) (prior to 2006 known as ORS), is the governing body for international ocean rowing and official adjudicator of ocean rowing records for Guinness World Records. ORSI was founded in 1983 in California by ocean rower Peter Bird and Kenneth F.Crutchlow FRGS. Current coordinators of ORSI are Tatiana Rezvaya-Crutchlow and Chris Martin, and Fiann Paul.

Kenneth Frank Crutchlow, FRGS was a British adventurer, writer and entrepreneur. He was the founder of Ocean Rowing Society International (ORSI), the Head of ORSI and main Ocean Rowing adjudicator for Guinness World Records.

References

  1. ↑ "Golden Gate Endeavour  » Mick Dawson". Goldengatendeavour.com. Retrieved 12 October 2014.
  2. ↑ "Crew profile: Mick Dawson – Olympic Atlantic Row". Olympicatlanticrow.com. Retrieved 12 October 2014.
  3. ↑ "Mick Dawson". Linkedin.com. Retrieved 12 October 2014.
  4. ↑ "Golden Gate Endeavour  » Mick Dawson". Goldengateendeavour.com. Retrieved 12 October 2014.
  5. ↑ "Rowing the Pacific Ocean – Mick Dawson – 189 days in may – Rowing the Atlantic Ocean – Mick Dawson Rowing". 189days.com. Retrieved 12 October 2014.
  6. ↑ "Rowing the Pacific Ocean – Mick Dawson – 189 days in may – Rowing the Atlantic Ocean – Mick Dawson Rowing". 189days.com. Retrieved 12 October 2014.
  7. ↑ "Crew profile: Mick Dawson – Olympic Atlantic Row". Plympicatlanticrow.com. Retrieved 12 October 2014.
  8. ↑ "Mick Dawson". Linkedin.com. Retrieved 12 October 2014.
  9. ↑ "BBC : Rowing across the Pacific Ocean". News.bbc.co.uk. Retrieved 12 October 2014.
  10. ↑ "BBC : Rowing across the Pacific Ocean". News.bbc.co.uk. Retrieved 12 October 2014.
  11. ↑ "Rowing the Pacific Ocean – Mick Dawson – 189 days in may – Rowing the Atlantic Ocean – Mick Dawson Rowing". 189days.com. Retrieved 12 October 2014.
  12. ↑ "BBC : Rowing across the Pacific Ocean". News.bbc.co.uk. Retrieved 12 October 2014.
  13. ↑ "Mick Dawson". Linkedin.com. Retrieved 12 October 2014.
  14. ↑ "Mick Dawson". Linkedin.com. Retrieved 12 October 2014.
This page is based on this Wikipedia article
Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply.
Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.