They rowed across the Atlantic

LILIAN, THE ADVENTURER

Lilian is an adventurer, a sportsman with a mentality of steel, a challenger with a thirst for challenges! But Lilian is also one of CROSSCALLs first collaborators. So it's only natural that the brand should support him in his wildest projects. After the Grand Triathlon and his tour of France by bike, Lilian set himself the challenge of crossing the Atlantic... rowing!

A MAJOR CHALLENGE ON A 7-METRE BOAT!

It took Lilian and Guilhem 47 days, 15 hours 5 minutes and over a million paddle strokes to cover almost 5000 km of the Atlantic Ocean. Over and above their physical and psychological performance, this crossing under the Race for Pure Ocean banner was designed to support ocean research and raise public awareness of the importance of protecting marine environments.

A STORMY CROSSING

To accomplish this extraordinary challenge, Lilian and Guilhem underwent extensive physical and mental preparation. And it took a lot of mental strength! With a start in rough seas with waves of up to 8m, coupled with a few technical problems (loss of GPS signal, failure of the autopilots, malfunction of the watermaker), the two adventurers did not give up. Their two golden rules - always tie up to the boat and always keep the cabin closed - enabled them to narrowly avoid a tragedy on the night of D31. Guilhem was on deck when a wave swept him overboard. Fortunately, the man was attached to the boat and was back on board within seconds!

INTERVIEW WITH LILIAN AND GUILHEM

Why this challenge?

Guilhem: The first thing that motivated me was to travel the world and measure the size of the planet by crossing an ocean by sheer strength of arms. There's also the question of carrying out such a difficult project, which forces us to draw on strengths that are buried deep within ourselves. It's only in the face of great difficulties that we manage to bring them out.

Lilian: For my part, there was also the challenge of knowing if I was capable of completing such a huge project. The desire to discover a new environment and to discover solitude, taken to its extreme. I also wanted to show my daughters, my close circle, that if you have projects, no matter how crazy they may be, if you put in the energy and the right attitude, you can see them through. It can be long, it can be hard, but with tenacity and stamina, nothing can stop us.

Your best memory?

Guilhem: I'd still put the finish as the best and greatest memory. When you set foot on land with everyone there to welcome you. There was also the moment when our loved ones were able to come and see us on the boat a few hours before the finish. Apart from that, there were 2 highlights of the trip. The first time we encountered "real" waves with 8m-high troughs, and when we were able to swim in the middle of the Atlantic, far from any land.

Lilian: The arrival in Martinique, when we were reunited with our loved ones. It was an extraordinary moment. Finally getting out of that small, uncomfortable environment (the boat) was a liberation. Otherwise, during the crossing, I remember one night when we had a perfect swell with a downwind breeze and a full moon... Everything seemed so simple. It's true that being able to swim in the middle of the ocean, without any constraints... It was a joy that we tried to repeat as often as possible.

Your worst memory?

Guilhem: The halfway point. Mentally, that was the hardest part. You tell yourself that it's taken you 25 days to get this far, and that you've still got 25 days to finish.

Lilian: I'd say the time lag. The immediacy of the situations we have to deal with, and the finish line that seems so out of reach. Then, it's not really a moment, but this permanent discomfort we're in. We're hot, we're wet, we're hungry, we miss our loved ones... The sum total of all these things means that we're in a really unpleasant situation and we want to get out of it as quickly as possible.

What has been your source of motivation in the toughest times?

Guilhem: What helped me a lot was looking back. All the distance we've covered... Thinking that we've already done all that (...) More broadly, it also helped me to look at the scope of the project and the energy we put into it. That's always been the best motivation.

Lilian: The number 1 factor is that every stroke is a stroke less to do to find my children, my wife... Looking back helped us a lot too. We were also able to reassure ourselves that we were in a "safe" environment, with enough to eat, contact with the land... All we had to do was keep going to get there.

How did Crosscall's phones and tablet help you on your adventure?

Guilhem: They were at the heart of our business. We used them for photos and videos, but also for listening to music or podcasts. It was really cool to be able to use them on deck without worrying about them getting wet. We also used them as compasses to give us our bearings. With the tablet, we could exchange e-mails and view all the messages. We mainly used it to run a navigation application.

Lilian: In the end, we used the tablet much more than the boat's GPS. It's so handy to have in our hands. With Navionics, we could measure our progress, estimate our arrival times...

One thing to remember about this experience?

Guilhem: The Atlantic Ocean is big. Big and beautiful. And then, you have to have crazy challenges in life and not be afraid to achieve them, whatever the cost in terms of time and energy.

Lilian: 100% agree with this message! If you have a desire, you have to put the means into it. Be realistic about the fact that it's not going to happen on its own, that you're going to have to put a lot of energy into it. It's not going to be easy, there are going to be obstacles, but you've got to hang in there. Never give up if you want to. You can make your dreams come true. That's what we'll both learn from this project. Apart from the fact that the Atlantic is really, really big (laughs). 

ON-BOARD EQUIPMENT

Aboard their 7.3m-long, 1.8m-wide boat, Lilian and Guilhem had to think efficiently and take the bare essentials. So they set off equipped with :  

• 300kg of food and equipment
• 1 Crosscall CORE-T4 tablet and 2 Crosscall TREKKER-X4 smartphones
• 3 satellite phones
• 2 VHF radios
• 1 AIS positioning beacon and 1 GPS tracker
• 8 pairs of wired headphones + 1 Bluetooth speaker
• 4 automatic pilots
• 2 watermakers (automatic and manual)
• 4 west-facing solar panels
• 1 floating anchor (para-anchor like an underwater parachute)
• 1 first-aid kit
• 5 buckets: 3 blue and 2 black (guess why?)