WAVES 40 feet high, cramped sleeping quarters and 60 days at sea beckon for four “relative rookie” oarsmen, including two former Sedbergh School boys.

The team will set off on a gruelling 3,000 nautical mile journey across the Atlantic Ocean on Tuesday, December 12, from La Gomera in the Canary Islands.

They have already raised an incredible £230,000 for their two chosen good causes, the mental health charity Mind, and Spinal Research.

For one of the crew, Sedbergh-educated George Biggar, the memory of his late mother will be spurring him on as he rows across the world’s second largest ocean in the Talisker Whisky Atlantic Challenge. Well-known Dalton-in-Furness lawyer Anne Fisher fought a lifelong battle with mental health problems. She drowned in a tragic accident on January 24, 2011, near her home at Cark, aged 54.

Moved by her desire to help others, Anne had retrained as a mental health counsellor and was a trustee for Mind, making it a cause very close to her son George’s heart.

On Monday this week George, a London lawyer, visited his mum’s grave to give him “inner strength” for the journey ahead, and also called to see his grandmother, Mary Fisher, who lives in Ulverston.

Recalling his Ulverston-born mum, George told the Gazette: “She was a lovely person, a bundle of fun, energy and positivity, with heaps of friends.

“She couldn’t go far enough out of her way for anyone. She just loved helping people. We were very close with one another, and in terms of inspiration it’s just knowing and appreciating the battle she went through mentally, which meant she was able to lead this life of success and put a brave face on it all the time.”

George added: “I think a lot of the time she felt it wasn’t acceptable to her to have a down day or be down in the dumps, or upset or not coping. For us it’s really important that awareness is raised and there’s a decent amount of exposure for mental health, so people can talk about it and be open about it, because it’s so destructive when people bottle things up.”

George’s father, Mike Biggar, also attended Sedbergh School and was a lawyer as well as captain of Scotland’s rugby team in the 1970s and 80s. A severe car accident in 1993 left him in a wheelchair and with severe brain damage. George described his dad, who lives in Gloucestershire, as inspirational. He has written the four oarsmen a motivational letter to take on board – “a kind of half-time team talk”.

During the epic race across the Atlantic, George and his crewmates – Peter Robinson, Stuart Watts and former Sedbergh pupil Dicky Taylor, who now lives in Houston, Texas – can expect to endure heat stroke, exhaustion, cramp, salt sores, hallucinations, sleep deprivation and blisters upon blisters.

They will not be allowed any outside assistance until they get a helping hand off their 26-feet boat on arrival at English Harbour, on the Caribbean island of Antigua. There is a chance they may even arrive on the anniversary of Anne Fisher’s death.

Adopting a pattern of rowing for two hours and sleeping for two hours, they will face sub-zero temperatures at night followed by 40-degree heat during the day.

High-fat, energy-rich food will take up 80 per cent of their storage space, including:

- 46kg macadamia nuts

- 23kg almonds

- 11kg coconut shavings

- 720 high-calorie dry ration packs

- and 300 wet ration packs.

The team – who are all around six feet three or four tall – can expect to burn at least 6,000 calories per day.

Sea water will be processed through a solar-powered water maker to supply six gallons per day for cooking and drinking. The team will have to carry all their cooking gas, medical kit, safety kit – such as life rafts and jackets, flares, VHF radio and satellite telephone – plus waterproofs and warm layers. Much of the time they will discard clothes to help prevent chafing from dried salt.

George expects the team will “find time for a quick carol” on Christmas Day, by which time they will hopefully be one-third of the way across the Atlantic.

After all their planning and intensive physical training, the 32-year-old said the team now could not wait to set off.

“It’s been about 18 months of preparations, a huge amount to do. You set out and you think it’s a case of getting yourself into good nick, but that’s the easy bit. Aside from that it’s the fundraising and the PR and press stuff, and the admin and training courses you have to go on. It’s been absolutely wall-to-wall. To be honest we are just so ready to cast off from La Gomera and get going with the race.”

The Talisker Challenge started 20 years ago and the current record stands at 37 days, set in 2015. To sponsor the team, visit www.thefouroarsmen.com