A blister-inducing effort to row across the Tasman Sea awaits University of Otago student James Blake and a team of endurance ocean-farers.
Mr Blake is part of the Team Gallagher bid to be the first team of rowers to cross the Tasman from Sydney to Auckland, rounding Cape Reinga along the way.
The team unveiled its boat at Lake Rotoroa in Hamilton yesterday.
Mr Blake said recent preparations for the team included testing and training on their new 10.5m boat, while refining onboard systems in readiness for the 2500km voyage.
"We've still got a way to go and lots of things to sort out," he said of preparations for the starting day in October.
New Zealand marathon rower Rob Hamill is the land-based director of a team, which includes Andrew McCowan, of Hamilton, Martin Berka, of Wellington, and skipper Nigel Cherrie, of Auckland.
Mr Blake's involvement in the team row follows in the wake of efforts by his master-yachtsman father, Sir Peter, who used his profile to raise awareness about the world's oceans.
Mr Blake, who is studying for a master's degree in science communication, plans to use the team's transtasman exploits to highlight his personal environmental concerns.
He is setting up a project to build the world's largest artificial reef off the northern coast of Borneo and intends to launch a reef-monitoring programme.
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