Rowing: Stripped down crew take lead

By SUZANNE McFADDEN

In the sweltering 40 deg C heat of the mid-Atlantic, the New Zealand men's crew have scorched into the lead of the transatlantic rowing challenge.

Auckland policemen Steve Westlake and Matt Goodman yesterday turned the tables on the two Australian doctors, Patrick Weinrauch and Paul McCarthy, after 20 days at sea.

In the past few days, the Australians had seemed to be pulling away from the Telecom Challenge rowboat, their lead extending to nearly 50km at one stage.

But yesterday Westlake and Goodman, rowing a more southerly course, found themselves about 30km closer to the Barbados finish-line than the Australians, although that's still 2250km away.

It was encouraging news for the New Zealanders after they had discovered that food was missing from their boat's storage compartments.

Before the race started in Tenerife, the boat was broken into. Originally they thought that a knife and a few items of food were stolen, but they have now found that their rations for several days were also taken.

The pair have another 25 days of food left, but at their present pace are expected to finish the race within 20 days.

Westlake and Goodman are drinking about 40 litres of water a day, and have been rowing naked in the heat. Each man spends two hours on the oars before retiring to the relative cool of the cabin, where it is 32 deg C.

But neither is complaining about the conditions and are revelling in the close battle with the Australians on Freedom.

"It's been a great scrap so far and we are still right in the thick of it," Westlake said.

"Who would think that after 20 days at sea just 16 nautical miles [30km] would separate us?"

The New Zealand women, Steph Brown and Jude Ellis, have also adopted a two hours on, two off system and have surprised race organisers by taking third spot in the 35-boat fleet.

Brown, who is Westlake's girlfriend, has been in pain for a lot of the trip so far and had to phone a doctor in Hamilton to get advice after her backside was rubbed raw.

The women are about 320km shy of the New Zealand men, but have a 60km lead over the Belgian brothers on Win Belgium.