A charity rower making his way up the US east coast narrowly escaped capsizing last week when he crashed into a manatee.
Lewis Colam, 24, who left his home in River Street in Angel to row from Miami to New York, collided with the endangered 600-kg mammal.
In an interview with Islington Now, he said: “I hit it head on. The front of the boat smashed into its head. It was quite scary. I was about four miles away from the shore. It was too far for me to swim.
“It made a hell of a shudder. I was worried it would crack the boat.”
Fortunately, the manatee did not react and eventually swam off, leaving Mr Colam and his boat intact.
Mr Colam is rowing 1,400 miles solo in an effort to raise £13,000 for the Alzheimer’s Research Foundation, in memory of a close friend who suffered from the disease.
So far, £10,580 has been donated and he has rowed over 200 miles.
The incident with the manatee was not the first brush with danger on Mr Colam’s trip so far. He was caught in a storm and his boat filled with water and nearly sank. He resorted to bailing out water with a bucket.
Mr Colam embarked on his challenge with no prior rowing experience. He said: “I’ve never done an endurance event and haven’t rowed more than a couple of miles before.
“My hope was to demonstrate that it’s possible for anyone to achieve what I’m doing.”
Mr Colam’s efforts were nearly dashed when he was almost refused entry at the border.
He turned up at the airport in the US wearing his life jacket that he could not fit into his only piece of luggage. He said: “I think they thought I was a bit of mental case.”
When immigration saw stamps in his passport from Colombia, Venezuela and Cuba as well as a page written in Arabic, “they saw red”.
Mr Colam was interrogated for two hours until immigration officials verified his story with a friend he was planning to meet.
Two weeks into the challenge, and Mr Colam is finding it tough.
He said: “Rowing ten hours a day is a lot to endure. I’m beginning to fall apart, my knee is really sore. I’m taking a lot of ibuprofen and other pills for my joints.
“My hands are blistered. I’ve got a trapped nerve in my bum and it hurts a lot.”
Mr Colam is also rowing against the clock. Time is running out on his US tourist visa. His original plan was to row 30 miles a day, five days a week with two days’ rest.
Currently, he is doing 20 miles a day with no rest days.
“I’m absolutely shattered but I’m pretty sure I’ll make it. It’s literally down to the wire. I think I might get there on the day my flight leaves with no time to spare.”
To keep track of Mr Colam’s progress, visit his website.
