Two Devon doctors are swapping their scrubs for sailing gear to raise money for frontline medical charities.

And they tested the water last weekend with their first 24-hour training row from Exmouth to Bridport.

In December, Adam Baker and Charlie Fleury will depart from San Sebastian in La Gomera, Canary Islands, rowing around 1.5 million strokes, battling 30-foot waves and burning in excess of 5,000 calories per day to reach the finish line at English Harbour in Antigua.

Dubbed the ‘World's toughest rowing race’ the Talisker Whisky Atlantic Challenge is a gruelling 3,000 mile unaided ocean row across the Atlantic.

The couple will face huge mental and physical challenges whilst competing against 30 international teams.

Adam and Charlie, both 31, hope to raise £100,000 for frontline medical charities encompassing saving lives by air, land and sea. They have chosen Devon Air Ambulance, the RD&E Hospital Charity, and the RNLI . The mental health charity MIND will also receive a donation.

The pair will be the first married couple to enter the race and they are hoping to break the mixed pairs record of 43 days 15 hours and 23 minutes.

Charlie works in the A&E department at Royal Devon & Exeter hospital and Adam is in the A&E department at Derriford, Plymouth. They both also work with Devon Air Ambulance.

Charlie’s dream to row the Atlantic came to her during a polar expedition in Norway, camping under the Northern lights in -20°C.

Unfortunately Covid rocked the boat causing the plans to be deferred for a year due to work commitments.

However, this allowed Adam to research sea sickness cures and jump on board.

He and Charlie, who both live in Exeter, hope to use their adventure to empower others to aspire to seemingly unattainable goals.

Charlie’s MSc in Extreme Medicine focussed on a specialist interest in physiological and psychological differences between males and females in ultra-endurance events.

Both she and Adam will serve as human guinea-pigs during the row to gather more data in this area.

Adam and Charlie’s next training row will be on August 7 from Exmouth to Penzance.

To donate to the charities or campaign, go to:

https://uk.virginmoneygiving.com/fundraiser-display/showROFundraiserPage?userUrl=EmergenseaDuo&pageUrl=1

https://www.crowdfunder.co.uk/EmergenseaDuo

To find out more about the row, see: http://www.emergenseaduo.com