“Rowing into the Son” Chronicles Historic Transatlantic Row
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By Norris Comer, Published in best4boats.com.
For harbor enthusiasts and maritime adventurers, few stories capture the raw reality of ocean rowing like Jordan Hanssen’s account of the first unassisted row from mainland USA to mainland England. The 2006 expedition, which set a Guinness World Record, offers valuable insights into seamanship, endurance, and the challenges of crossing one of the world’s most demanding ocean routes—knowledge that resonates with anyone who ventures offshore.
A recent review from Best4Boats highlights the book’s unique approach:
Jordan’s book, Rowing into the Son which I can now recommend as a great read. “Great” is a vague, umbrella descriptor, but I mean the term as it’s meant to be used. Grand. Large in scope. Positive. Rowing into the Son is all these things, yet also somehow deeply rooted as a very personal, human story that likes to bring a magnifying glass to the important little details. Elements of memoir, with a focus on Hanssen’s biological father’s tragic and untimely death, and what can only be described as a deep-seated perceptiveness in everything around him—history, marine life, seakeeping and boatbuilding, the inner workings of people around him, and more—are interwoven with the earnestly reconstructed, sometimes day-by-day account of the often-brutal, crotch rot plagued experience.
One aspect of Hanssen’s writing I really appreciate is his breadth of knowledge. A section about the nitty gritty details of who talked to who may easily flow into reflecting on a scene from The Odyssey or interesting history. I had no idea the fastest Atlantic rowing record was set by two Norwegians George Harbo and Frank Samuelson in 1896 (55 days, only to be broken in 2010 after Hanssen’s row).
The book’s technical details about boat modifications, weather navigation, and seamanship make it particularly relevant for those interested in offshore passages and harbor-to-harbor ocean crossings.
Read the full article here: Rowing into the Son by Jordan Hanssen
