ocean rowing

Todai Ward recently commented on one of my blogs about how the book "Zen and the Art of Motorcycle Maintenance" has helped her throughout her grading year. While I currently can't say this yet (granted, I haven't finished it!), it did make me think of something that has carried me, my motivation, and self-talk quite a ways this year.

 

Ocean rowing. 

 

And by that I mean crossing an ocean only by rowing with your own (wo)man power.

In January, I came across a video of a girl in her 20s solo crossing the Atlantic Ocean in her rowboat as part of the "World's Toughest Row" which is a race, and I started following her daily video journal.

I had never heard of this before, and I can't really explain what got me so obsessed with this idea, but as I started my black belt year, I felt extremely inspired by these mostly ordinary people and their experiences.

 

When they cross the Atlantic Ocean from the Canary Islands to Antigua, they need to row roughly 4800 km. This sounds incredibly impressive if not impossible, but when you listen to what a lot of them say, it's really quite "simple," and, technically, anyone in good health and with some fitness could do it. Basically, if you can row for a couple of hours straight, you can "technically" cross an ocean! 

It's just a matter of keeping doing it, getting up and rowing. I can't help but think how much that reminds me of my requirements, specifically the 50.000s. I like thinking of them as km and I got to cross the ocean. 

What makes this so intriguing to me is the idea that you simply can't quit out there. In my living room, I have a choice because really life will go on if I do my reps or not, but sitting on a little nut shell out in the middle of the ocean with dwindling supplies and growing fatigue and probably one or two terrifying moments being exposed to the unforgiving force of nature must light an unimaginable fire under your butt.

 

I know that my grading year and my requirements are not meant to be a destination or end goal to check off. They're meant to instill the right habits, and the journey just keeps going after. 

But since this is a long-term test, I simply can't shake off the fact that there is a finish line to my test, and February 6th, 2027 is a date that concludes at least that part of my journey (and I'm eager to not be floating aimlessly in the middle of the ocean then, figuratively speaking).😅

I started listening to podcasts and interviews following these people's journeys. They talk about their challenges, like getting off the continental plates or struggling with changing currents, wind, and weather. There are health issues, often starting out with extreme seasickness to later dealing with sores, bruises, and fatigue. While some row alone, many do so as part of a team. If you row alone, you will meet more of your own demons and limitations, if you are in a team, you will have to compromise, forgive, share, and accept when it feels impossible.

The fastest team doing this specific Atlantic crossing has finished in 33 days, while there have been solo rowers that exceeded 100 days at sea. No journey could ever be the same; that's why, personally, I would never consider this a race but rather a challenge, as no boat is the same, no person, no wind, and no wave. 

 

Some days you make many miles because your energy, trade winds, and currents all align, while other days you work incredibly hard but struggle to even keep course and move forward. Other times you just have to sleep and rest, and you will literally drift into the opposite direction. You get there when you get there the wind and weather are out of your control and so are the currents. Sometimes you are forced to row a longer way to avoid that hurricane at sea, and sometimes you have to put out a paraanker (which keeps you from drifting too far in the wrong direction) for days on end, forcing you to stay put and "rest".

 

For most people, it's probably hard to see any relationship between an expedition like this and the journey of becoming a black belt. But for me, I found quite a few philosophical analogies, as well as simple but effective self-talk like: "Well, if you can't even do these 150-200 push-ups and sit-ups, how are you going to make it across the ocean?!"

As the Kao Shi team, we have accepted a challenge of requirements and a lot of repetition. The biggest challenge, though, is really the number 1 rule: "do not quit." While our grading year may not be quite as challenging and scary as an ocean crossing, it is way harder for us to not quit in the comfort of our homes than it would be floating in the middle of the ocean. 

I guess it's just a matter of priorities. Your drive to make it back to land increases the longer it takes because of very serious basic survival needs, and rowing "easily" becomes your highest priority!

For us living our routine lives, choosing to participate in a long-term challenge can blur priorities over time, and sometimes they even have to shift back and forth, and motivation can become a real drag. It's mental work to convince myself to do the work and to figure out what is a priority and even WHY. Survival instinct would speed up that decision-making process, I suppose.

Anyway, I also thought about the purpose of these kinds of expeditions and challenges and what a privilege they are. I have never been intrigued by or even in favor of many of the things I keep hearing about, like climbing Mount Everest. In fact, I always felt like these were ego-driven adventures, and I couldn't care less about why or how hard or impressive they are.

Following these ocean rowers, listening and getting invested in their journey, I still acknowledge that it is a massive privilege that only a very few can ever make happen, but I also now see so much value beyond simply thriving to show off what you have achieved at the end. With that being said, if anybody is now interested in putting together a team, i could be convinced!

For now, we are paddling out today, not crossing the Atlantic but kayaking in the Pacific for a few days and finding an island to live like Robinson Crusoe. See you when we're back!

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dkIQoIMAhOI