Transatlantic charity rowers George Nelson and Russ Davis are less than 500 miles away from completing their challenge to row around 3,500-miles unsupported from Portugal to the Caribbean in aid of two dementia charities.

The brothers-in-law, who hope to raise £250,000, have been at sea for more than 12 weeks, rowing in the ‘tiny’ Innovation Nottinghamshire Memory Boat.

Known as Oar Blimey, the duo set off from Portugal on 1st December. They had been aiming for Saint Maarten in the Caribbean, but because of continuing challenging weather conditions and limited food supplies, they have re-routed to aim for Antigua.

George posted on Facebook: “Right now, the heat is almost unbearable; the humidity is high and we’re both very sweaty!

“Little to no sleep is the end result, but we ain’t gonna stop now… because we’ve just smashed through the ‘500 miles to go’ marker.

“Found myself singing The Proclaimers ‘500 Miles’, tweaking the lyrics slightly to suit our situation.

George and Russ – known as Oar Blimey – set off on a three-month adventure of a lifetime on 1st December, aiming to row unsupported across the Atlantic Ocean and raise £250,000 for two dementia charities. They will each row for two hours at a time and then rest in between – and hope to complete their marathon row in mid-March.

The two men had no experience of a rowing challenge, although George did take part in the Clipper Round The World Yacht Race in 2015-16. Russ had no previous experience of being at sea.

The 3,500-mile challenge began in front of a small group of supporters in Portugal and the duo now want to reach Antigua in the Caribbean, having originally targeted Sint Maarten.

Team Oar Blimey are rowing in a Rannoch Adventure R20, which is just 6.5m long and 1.2m wide, in their bid to help Our Dementia Choir with Vicky McClure and Ladybrook Enterprises.

The rowers can be tracked at www.oarblimey.co.uk or download the YB Races app and add their race, “Oar Blimey Atlantic Ocean Challenge 2023”.

To find out more about the rowing challenge or to help support the cause, visit https://oarblimey.co.uk where you can make a donation or find them on Facebook at www.facebook.com/oarblimey