Monroe Father, Son Encounter Whales During Atlantic Ocean Race

MONROE, CT — From Monroe to the middle of the Atlantic Ocean, a father and son had a once-in-a-lifetime encounter with a group of 30-foot sperm whales during an international rowing race.

Greg Collins, 62, and his son Elliot, 29, both of Monroe, competed in the World’s Toughest Row last year, a 3,000-mile race from San Sebastián de La Gomera in Spain’s Canary Islands to Nelson’s Dockyard in Antigua.

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The pair were part of a four-person team, Get Busy Rowing, that spent more than 45 days at sea completing the journey. Near the end of the race, a family of sperm whales surfaced close to their boat.

“After more than a month at sea, each of us rowing 12 hours a day, you start to feel like you have some control over your environment,” Elliot Collins said. “When a group of 30-foot sperm whales breached right beside our boat, that illusion disappeared instantly — reminding us we’re just guests in their world.”

The team completed the race in 45 days, nine hours and 23 minutes, finishing 30th out of 43 boats.

Over the course of the journey, the crew logged more than 1.5 million oar strokes.

The team also raised money for The Matt Hampson Foundation, a charity that supports young people with serious sporting injuries.