'I Repeat, Do You Have Pizza and Beer? Over'

Brothers row 9K miles across the Pacific in record time
By Newser Editors and Wire Services
Posted Aug 30, 2025 3:24 PM CDT
Brothers Row Across Pacific in Record Time
Ewan, Jamie, and Lachlan, Maclean are embraced by family after completing their record breaking row from Peru across the Pacific Ocean to Cairns, Australia, on Saturday.   (Nuno Avendano/AAP Image via AP)

Three Scottish brothers set a world record Saturday for completing the fastest unsupported row across the full Pacific Ocean. Jamie, Ewan, and Lachlan Maclean completed the journey in 139 days, arriving in Cairns, Australia. They rowed over 9,000 miles nonstop from Peru, becoming the first team to achieve the full crossing from South America to Australia, the AP reports. The trio from Edinburgh endured seasickness, injuries, and violent storms, including one that swept Lachlan overboard, while raising over nearly $1 million for clean water projects.

The brothers rowed into the Cairns Marlin Marina playing the bagpipes and waving the Scottish, Australian, and United Kingdom flags. More than 50 family members, supporters and fans, including their mother, Sheila, greeted the brothers. In the hours before their arrival, the eldest brother, Ewan, uploaded a video calling the marina ahead of their approach: "Do you have pizza and beer? I repeat, do you have pizza and beer? Over." The 33-year-old said the journey was the hardest thing he had ever done, one he would have never contemplated without his siblings. "We've shed tears of joy and laughed till our cheeks hurt," he said.

Middle brother Jamie, 31, said things began to look dire toward the end. "We seriously thought we might run out of food," he said. The Macleans said the experience gave them a new perspective on life. They plan to continue fundraising for projects that provide clean water to 40,000 people living in Madagascar through their charity, the Maclean Foundation. The previous record for the fastest full, unassisted, nonstop Pacific row was 160 days, set by Russian solo rower Fyodor Konyukhov in 2014.

Read These Next
Get the news faster.
Tap to install our app.
X
Install the Newser News app
in two easy steps:
1. Tap in your navigation bar.
2. Tap to Add to Home Screen.

X