Waldorf News

“Our schools gave us the strength to row the Atlantic” The MacLean brothers set three world records when they rowed across the Atlantic – and say they have their schools to thank

By Lachlan MacLean

My two brothers and I completed a 3,000-mile rowing race across the Atlantic Ocean in January, and broke three world records in doing so: the fastest and youngest trio and the first three brothers to row across the Atlantic. In all honesty, it feels quite strange writing this – we had ambitious aspirations for our crossing, but certainly didn’t expect to be fighting over who gets which world record.

A campaign to row an ocean generally takes between one and three years. We all agree, though, that our preparations started in the classroom between 15 and 21 years ago.

This might come across as quite a bold statement. How could schooling prepare us for 35 days of rowing continuously, sleeping two to three hours a day and making a total of over a million strokes?

The answer is that rowing an ocean is a test of far more than just your ability to row. I’d go as far as to say that rowing was in many ways secondary to the other skills we’ve had to develop to make it across successfully. From fundraising and hosting events to web design and writing newsletters – we have been blown away by the number of activities this project involved.

We were fortunate enough to go to schools that offered us a huge number of opportunities outside of the classroom growing up. All of us got involved as much as we could: on the sports field, in the music department and pipe band; producing art or public speaking – we were all very eager to get stuck in wherever we could.

Our first school was a Rudolph Steiner school in Edinburgh. Steiner schools are famous for a more holistic approach to learning – children don’t learn to read until seven and aren’t bogged down with the stress of exams until 14. Instead, kids are given more space to be outside climbing trees, making dens and generally exploring a more creative side of the brain. All three of us were formally taught gardening, knitting and an alternative dance called eurythmy until the age of 12. While this may sound quite controversial, it gave us a love of the outdoors and being active.

Rudolph Steiner was followed by another fantastic Edinburgh school, the Edinburgh Academy. While the relaxed Steiner approach gave us a curiosity for learning new things, the Edinburgh Academy gave us the environment in which we were able to explore and try new things out in a school with strengths across all departments: academics, music, sport, art and drama. All three of us were members of the rugby teams, pipe band, choirs. We produced artwork, jewellery and cabinets in the school’s art and design and technology departments. This array of opportunities nurtured skills which would later help with our row across the Atlantic.

On a slightly deeper level is the importance of the self-belief we got from our schooling. Having good relationships with our teachers from a young age instilled belief within us, which gave us the confidence to believe we could do something out of the ordinary.

One week into our crossing we lost the ability to charge our iPhones and listen to music and audiobooks. Needless to say, this was a huge part of our plan to pass the long hours on the oars and so was a serious blow to morale on board. In hindsight, though, this was the best thing that happened during the crossing – it forced us to talk to each other as opposed to switching off to music.

For hours we discussed all things that came to mind: our childhood growing up, who had influenced us over the years, where we’d like life to take us next…really anything we could thing of. The topic of our schools and how unbelievably grateful we were for having such amazing teachers and being offered so many opportunities came up frequently – they were, undoubtedly, a key component in getting us to the other side.

Lachlan MacLean is one of three brothers – along with Jamie and Ewan – who set three world records when they rowed across the Atlantic Ocean in 35 days at the turn of the year.

Pictures: Atlantic Campaigns

From tes.com