Rower nears record

Atlantic race bid

Dunblane rower Elaine Hopley is on track to complete her solo Atlantic challenge.

The 44-year-old has set her sights on becoming the fastest woman to make a solo crossing of the Atlantic.

And she has been making stunning progress over the last week, after a change in weather conditions helped her cause.

Elaine has less than 750 miles left of the near-3000 mile challenge.

Strong winds from earlier in the race have calmed, and Elaine has been covering almost 60 miles a day as she battles on.

Elaine is taking part in the Talisker Whisky Atlantic Challenge and is aiming to complete the mammoth journey in under 70 days. She set off from La Gomera on December 15.

The businesswoman, who is raising money for Alzheimer Scotland in memory of her mum Jan, has endured 40-foot waves, battled ferocious gales and relished some spectacular sights along the way including huge whales and sharks.

She has struggled with problems with her water tank this week, and the challenge is beginning to affect her body.

On Saturday, she said: “I slept for Scotland last night and need it as my body is fatiguing now. I woke up to find a ‘teenage spot’ on my knee and two dead flying fish on deck.

“Jan (the boat) is better at catching fish than I am! However after the shark sighting, I’m a bit scared to fish now.”

She has been passing the time by playing I Spy on twitter and blasting out loud music on deck, whilst keeping the boat clean.