A Record-Setting Race!
Jessica Oliver and Charlotte Harris just became the fastest pair ever to row a boat from California to Hawaii!
World’s Toughest Row
Jessica Oliver (left) and Charlotte Harris celebrate after smashing a world record.
A pair of best friends from England and Ireland just raced from California to Hawaii—not in a plane but in a rowboat! Jessica Oliver and Charlotte Harris triumphed over rough weather, big waves, and aches and pains. They even broke some speed records in the process.
The Pacific Challenge
Beginning on June 8, Oliver and Harris rowed 2,800 miles (4,500 kilometers) from Monterey Bay, California, to Kaua‘i, Hawaii, along with other teams in a race called the World’s Toughest Row – Pacific Challenge. Oliver and Harris’s team, called Wild Waves, was the fastest pair, completing the race in 37 days, 11 hours, and 43 minutes. They beat the existing record for a pair of rowers by two days. Overall, Wild Waves finished the race in second place, faster than most of the teams of three and four rowers!
Oliver and Harris said the race was “absolutely grueling,” which means very, very tough. Freezing cold winds caused massive waves that tossed their boat around. In the first week, the boat’s automatic steering system broke. They had to steer by hand, which meant they got little sleep. But their friendship and ability to work together helped them get through these challenges.
“We can read each other so well,” Harris told Good News Network.
Going For It!
World’s Toughest Row
Jessica Oliver (left) and Charlotte Harris in the boat they used to accomplish their record-setting row across the Pacific.
Their experience helped as well. In 2022, Oliver and Harris became the fastest pair of women ever to row 3,000 miles (4,800 kilometers) across the Atlantic Ocean. Both races raised money for charity.
It seems likely we haven’t seen the last of this pair of pals. In an interview with Authority magazine, they said they love challenges. They also gave advice to anyone who wants to try something new.
“Just go for it—whatever ‘it’ is,” they said. “You don’t have to be the best to be your best. And every day, your best is going to look a little bit different.”
World’s Toughest Row
Awesome Twosome
Here are records Team Wild Waves have broken so far:
- First team to row across both the Atlantic and Pacific oceans
- Fastest female pair to row the Atlantic Ocean*
- Fastest female pair to row the Pacific Ocean (by nine days)
- Fastest pair (male or female) to row the Pacific Ocean (by two days)
*This record was broken by another pair in 2024.
