Two women, one ocean, one stroke at a time

The Pacific Ocean represents the last stop for indigestible garbage. Upon arrival, refuse that isn’t biodegradable coalesces to form an island. Estimates of the island’s magnitude range from the dimensions of Texas to half the size of the United States.

What’s a woman to do? A good start was finding a like-minded spirit. Vicki Otmani was working out at Rocky Run YMCA when she met Ariel Nelson. Both were rowers. Both love water. Together they founded “Fight the Kraken.”

The Kraken is a mythical squid-like sea monster that is said to swallow whole ships. Otmani and Nelson see the refuse in the ocean as a monster that will ultimately destroy our quality of life. Otmani spoke to the Business and Professional Association of Western Delaware County (BPA) Wednesday evening at Brandywine Prime.

Tom Bird is pictured introducing her and Anton Dell’Orefice is shown on her left.
Tom Bird is pictured introducing Otmani and Anton Dell’Orefice is shown on her left.

Her presentation was part of a tour to raise funds to support their Pacific Ocean voyage to raise awareness of the pollution sea monster. Otmani has two BPA board members in her training program, Tom Bird and Anton Dell’Orefice.

The voyage is planned as a 2,400-mile trip from California to Hawaii in an open ocean rowboat. The 24-foot vessel, the Lyon’s Pride, will be fully loaded with electronic gear, satellite communications, and video recording equipment, but there will be no support ships. Communication via VHF will be maintained with the Coast Guard.

Everything the women will consume during the 2 ½-month trip has to be carried on board. That amounts to more than 2 million calories’ worth of food.

Part of their passion is the sea life. Otmani told of a sperm whale that washed up on the shore in California with 450 pounds of undigested plastic. Nelson grew up Castine on the coast of Maine and saw the economic importance and the beauty of a healthy ocean.

Their trip will take them by the North Pacific Gyre, or as it is also known, the Great Pacific Garbage Patch. They will not try to traverse the patch for it would be fatal for a vessel the size of theirs.

Otmani sees the journey as a catalyst for change. They hope to raise $70,000 for their trip; any additional funds raised will be donated to The Ocean Conservancy.

Their planned launch from Monterey, Ca., will be in June 2016, arriving in Honolulu two months later. Several other boats will also be making the journey although they will not travel together. Initially, they expect waves near the shore to be 30 to 40 feet; however, out on the ocean, they should calm to 20 to 30 feet.

Otmani and Nelson hope to make history as the first female pair to row that route. They also hope to spotlight what the ocean looks like. The trip is planned to have zero negative impact on the environment. Finally, they hope to do something greater than themselves.

Questions from the group indicated Otmani achieved her objective to gather support for her venture. Bird said that “with her endurance and passion” Otmani is very likely to succeed.

While the speaker asserted that the problem has been created because “crap rolls down hill,” it was obvious to the audience that hope is riding high. For more information, go to http://www.FightTheKraken.org

 

About Emily Myers

Emily Myers has lived and worked in Chadds Ford for over thirty five years.  She founded the parent company of Chadds Ford Live, Decision Design Research, Inc., in 1982.  ChaddsFordLive.com represents the confluence of Myers' long time, deep involvement in technology and community. Myers was a founding member of the Chadds Ford Business Association and currently serves on its board of directors.  Her hobbies include bridge, golf, photography and Tai Chi. She lives with her husband, Jim Lebedda, in Chadds Ford Township.

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