Worcester Buoys almost halfway in rowing challenge

Matt Bladen and George Farmiloe are rowing from the Canary Islands to Antigua

Two friends from Worcester who are crossing the Atlantic to raise money for a children's hospice say they have now completed about half of their journey.

George Farmiloe, 26, and Matt Bladen, 27, set off on 12 December and are rowing in two-hour shifts for the 3,000-mile (4,800 km) crossing from the Canary Islands to Antigua.

They are raising money for the Acorns Hospice which helped care for 16-year-old Jack Dyer who died in November 2020.

The teenager, who had cerebral palsy, was a neighbour of Mr Bladen and was "loved by everyone who met him," the hospice said.

The pair told BBC Radio Hereford & Worcester they were making good progress but that the weather had a big effect on morale.

Mr Bladen said: “We’ve been rowing through the night, so we’re making good progress again.

“For a while it was a bit touch and go, with the weather.”

They are rowing in memory of 16-year-old Jack Dyer

Mr Farmiloe added: “Time is very abstract out here, some days seem to take forever to go by and other times you sort of have five days go by in a flash.”

He said he was missing being able to have a full night’s sleep and home-cooked meals, but was not craving home comforts too much at the moment.

The pair, who met at the King's School are aiming to raise £100,000.