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As you would imagine, routine was pivotal to Broar’s ability to excel. Jamie continues, “We would row from 6am to midnight with a ‘two on, one off’ pattern; then when we got to midnight it would be a split shift where, for example, I would go to bed for two hours, then row for two, then sleep again for two; so there would be a six-hour period where there would just be one of us on the oars, but we were always moving forward.


“It’s just about getting into that routine and it’s amazing what the body can cope with.” For even the most experienced of teams, days of tired, uncomfortable, monotonous rowing can create tensions and splinters, yet Ewan believes that knowing each other so well meant they could spot anxiety before it arrived and had a chance to take hold.


The simplicity of the diet – porridge, freeze-dried fruit and meals, nuts, dried berries, high-calorie shakes and snack bars – didn’t disguise a need for heavy calorie intake. From taking on around 3,000 calories a day in the early parts of the race to 6,000 by the end, the key was maximum energy and ease of digestion.


“For hydration, we had a desalinator on board which converted the saltwater to fresh water. We’d use that to rehydrate the meals and to add to the porridge oats in the morning,” says Jamie.


So structured was the nutrition plan that the boys became incredibly adept at recognising the limitations of their own bodies. “We were always styling, mixing and matching, here, there and everywhere; and after a while you could tell instantly if you weren’t


WE WERE ADVISED NOT TO BULK UP BEFORE WE WENT, NOR KEEP REFUELLING 24/7. IT WAS A VERY MEASURED MIX OF SLOW-BURNING CARBS THAT ARE EASILY- DIGESTIBLE, AND ULTIMATELY THAT LED US DOWN THE VEGETARIAN DIETARY ROUTE


“We already knew the ins and outs of each other’s personalities so it became easy to keep moods on a level,” says Ewan. “There was also the fact that, as brothers, we are all cut from the same cloth – we all have, roughly, the same thresholds. There were many occasions when instinctively we would all come to the same decision, whether that was to push a bit harder, ease off or anything else.”


“We also all began with the same objective,” adds Jamie, “which was, essentially, to have little expectations and to just row the race as best we could.


“When you are in a team that starts with different objectives it can put competitors under real mental pressure, fatigue and stress, and friction is understandably quicker to rise to the surface.”


Arguably, Broar’s biggest challenge was the maintaining of team strength and energy throughout the race. In the months leading up to the start, the boys had travelled to Chamonix in the French Alps to consult with Chloe Lanthier, a mastermind in tailoring energy plans for competitors of all types, and a phenomenal endurance athlete in her own right.


“On the nutritional side, Chloe subverted a lot of what we thought we would need to do,” says Jamie. “She advised us not to bulk up before we went, nor keep refuelling24/7 while on the challenge. Instead, it was a very measured mix of slow-burning carbs that are easily-digestible, and ultimately that led us down the vegetarian dietary route.


“Muscle recovery wasn’t going to be a big thing because our bodies simply wouldn’t have the time to get into that state and would constantly be in survival mode, so that meant having lots of protein wasn’t very useful as it’s extremely hard on the digestion.”


58 | SPRING / SUMMER 2020 | ONBOARD


on top of your hydration or you weren’t snacking throughout the day. It became a real exercise in listening to your body and responding, and it make a big difference to our performance.”


And on the physical side, what really appealed to the boys is the fact the Atlantic Challenge and, indeed, any ocean rowing pursuit, doesn’t offer any kind of agreed formula. “I think that everyone has different tactics,” says Jamie. “Even very experienced crews with incredible competitors can be made to look like complete novices if the tactics are wrong.”


The team knew they had to average 2.75 knots to break the record which previously sat at 41 days. “The problem is you end up doing pretty terrible maths throughout the journey because you’re so sleep-deprived,” laughs Ewan. “The numbers just get worse and worse.”


“At the heart of it though we didn’t really want a definitive target. We didn’t want a feeling of failure at the end of something so monstrous just because we hadn’t hit a certain time; ultimately we just wanted to feel a sense of achievement.”


As well as proving a point to themselves, the MacLean brothers also managed to raise £250,000 for Feedback Madagascar and Children First; and their success has set up the possibility of future challenges around the world, as well as making them household names.


“I’m not so sure about that,” laughs Ewan. “We’re household names in our own household, but then again we always were!”


Jamie, Ewan and Lachlan MacLean have set three world records after rowing the Atlantic Ocean in just 35 days, nine hours and nine minutes.


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