Canadian completes solo rowing odyssey across the Pacific

A British rower has become the first person in the world to complete a non-stop solo row across the Pacific.

In an interview with Sky News, Beeden said that each day the ocean presented him with “some massive challenge”, and that crossing was “10, 15, 100 times harder than I thought it would be”.

Beeden left San Francisco on June 1, and covered some 7,400 nautical miles across the Pacific Ocean, occasionally meeting with resupply boats along the way.

Yorkshireman John Beeden yesterday fulfilled his dream of becoming the first person to row across the Pacific Ocean solo. “I just didn’t’ realize that it was going to be so hard”.

“I’ve peered right over the edge a number of times and didn’t think I could go on and had to dig deep”.

Wife Cheryl Beeden said the family was overjoyed to be reunited in Cairns.

Beeden’s wife and daughters were dockside in Cairns to greet him, and Cheryl Beeden said she felt “great relief” that her husband had arrived safely. “Only ever do it once in your life”, he told Australian media.

“He’s an wonderful guy, he’s different than a lot of other people, he’ll always fight to get the mile when he’s having a bad day”.

John, a former member of Hallamshire Harriers and Sheffield Athletics Club, previously rowed the Atlantic from the Canary islands to Barbados and recorded the second fastest time on record – 53 days.

“I don’t think any one of us are going to let him go on anymore adventures anytime soon”, she said.

“It’s unusual, but it’s good to be back, but it was kind of good to be out there as well”, Beeden said.