There was drama on the high seas on Sunday when a Teignmouth team rowing across the Atlantic capsized sending a man overboard.

Team Oar Mighty Mates 2 C, which is made up of Teignmouth water sports instructor Tim Cox and friend Andy Purvis, left La Gomera in the Canary Islands last Wednesday (December 11) in the World’s Toughest Row transatlantic challenge.

The race started a day early due to incoming bad weather and teams headed as far south as they could to avoid the worst conditions. However, as expected, the team have faced huge waves in the strong winds.

After 237 miles of rowing, drama struck. ‘We had a knockdown after being hit by a large wave and we endured a full rollover. Andy was briefly swept overboard before climbing back in,’ Tim reported.

All competitors in the event must be attached to the boat whenever they are on deck and teams train extensively in safety protocols. In fact, Tim has been providing safety instruction, as well as weather routing services, to participants in the race since 2012.

While Tim sounded a little shaken and Andy said that the swim was ‘pretty dramatic’ at the time, both competitors are safe and well. ‘It’s all part of the race,’ Tim said. ‘It’s a little different when it happens to you for real,’ he added.

Tim and Andy have deployed their para-anchor so they can tidy up, get themselves sorted and tend to their bruises.

However, communications with the boat remain intact and otherwise all seems well, the team said.

Tim and Andy have another 2404 miles left to row over the next 35-45 days.

The pair hope their endeavour will raise vital funds for two charities: Dementia UK and child bereavement charity Abigail’s Footsteps. Donations can be made via their JustGiving page: https://www.justgiving.com/page/timothy-cox-1709986111726