The Maclean brothers rowing practice for Pacific Ocean voyage, The Rare Whisky 101 Pacific Row – SWNS

A trio of brothers are on a quest to row across the Pacific Ocean in a custom made boat—completing a record-breaking voyage with the goal of raising tens of thousands for charity.

Ewan, Jamie, and Lachlan Maclean are planning to row 9,000 miles from Peru to Australia (14,400-km) in a boat they designed and built to go faster than any before.

The trio from Edinburgh broke records in January 2020, when they became the first three brothers to row across any ocean, and the youngest—and fastest—trio to row across the Atlantic Ocean in their 35 day trip. (That GNN story is here)

Today, the brothers range in age from 26-32 and on their upcoming trip they hope to become the quickest to cross the Pacific—within 120 days—shaving 42 days off the current record.

They “thoroughly enjoyed” their previous ocean-crossing experience, and came up with the idea of starting a charity foundation during the long hours rowing. After setting up the Maclean Foundation, once they returned home, the brothers quickly decided to complete an even longer row to raise money.

“Even before we’d set foot back on land, we’d decided that we’d like to go on to do another challenge – but we didn’t know what that would be,” said Jamie, 30.

“Pretty soon, we came back around to the idea of doing another row. We’ll be doing a full Pacific row from South America to Australia, approximately 9,000 miles, after we add-in wiggling around islands.”

The brothers made several trips to Amsterdam to help fellow ocean rower Mark Slatts build the boat—which they described as the “lightest and strongest ocean rowing boat ever made”.

The Maclean brothers in Campbeltown practicing for The Rare Whisky 101 Pacific Row – SWNS

At just 617 lbs., it’s only slightly heavier than the three brothers themselves (280 kg) and it is only a quarter of the weight of their last boat, thanks to the ultra-light carbon fibre technology most commonly seen in Formula One cars.

“It’s a true first of its kind”, said 32-year-old Ewan, who works as a design engineer for Dyson.

“Being involved in that process—from design through to construction, sanding and painting—was an incredible experience.

“So much can go wrong when you’re at sea, so it was important for us to understand every single inch of the boat. We already feel like we’re at one with the boat, and we’ll have plenty more time to get to know it.”

Jamie explained that they want to “keep the boat moving as fast as we possibly can” for the full crossing. They’re aiming for 120 days at sea, but it could be longer because it is so dependent on the weather.

They will have limited opportunities to sleep at night, but someone will need to be on the oars to keep the boat moving 24 hours a day.

The Maclean brothers in new boat for The Rare Whisky 101 Pacific Row -SWNS

“It takes its toll on you, physically and mentally, so we started training in earnest about a month ago.”

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To prepare for the journey, the brothers have been working with a coach who specializes in injury prevention, and spending 1-3 hours in the gym each day.

The trip is partly sponsored by their father, Charlie Maclean, one of the world’s leading whisky experts, and thus has been dubbed ‘The Rare Whisky 101 Pacific Row’.

Their previous ocean crossing raised money that was used to dig four clean water wells serving 800 people in rural Madagascar.

Youngest brother Lachlan, 26, said: “Clean water is the most basic human necessity on the planet, yet 10% of people worldwide don't have access to it. We're doing something to change that.

“The more we talked uninterrupted with the clarity of being on the ocean, the more we realized this is what we wanted to do.”

“It’s incredibly inspiring to go out and see how the money raised is converted into the provision of clean water to people that don’t have it,” added Jamie.

The Maclean brothers playing instruments while on a break from rowing in Campbeltown – SWNS

For entertainment on the boat, the three musicians will each bring an instrument along for the trip. Ewan plays the guitar, Jamie plays the bagpipes, and Lachlan plays the accordion.

“For the Atlantic (voyage), I took a set of bagpipes so that I could play them out in the ocean—but also so I could pipe us into the finish line in Antigua,” Jamie told SWNS news. “I’ll be doing the same for the Pacific, because it’s a longer crossing and there will be more time to pass.

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“During the day, there are a fair few hours that you’re not on the oars, but if you’re not eating or trying to rest, it’s nice to have something to distract you.”

Set to spend nearly 3,000 hours together at sea, the three believe the challenge will bring them closer together—something the Atlantic Ocean tested, for sure.

“That was our biggest strength for the Atlantic, the fact that we’re brothers,” Jamie said. “We get on incredibly well and always have.”

“It means that we trust each other and know each other’s thresholds and breaking points. We know when each other needs a helping hand.

“When you’re thousands of miles from shore and you’re sleep deprived, you’re essentially at your worst. You need to know you’re in it with people you trust.

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“We’re overcoming a physical and mental challenge together to raise money for a cause that we wholeheartedly believe in.”

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