A sea adventurer from Aberdyfi will take on the World’s Toughest Row in aid of Wales Air Ambulance in December.
Whilst most of us will be putting up the decorations and planning what to eat on Christmas Day, Ian Baylis will be somewhere in the Atlantic Ocean.
The 48-year-old father of two is taking on a solo 3,000-mile challenge setting off from San Sebastian de la Gomera, Canary Islands on 12th December 2025.
The trip is anticipated to take around six weeks to complete, with forty-three teams taking part, ending at English Harbour, Antigua.
Ian said: “I’ve sailed across the Atlantic before so I kind of know what’s ahead. Doing it self-propelled on a very small boat is a whole different ball game though”.
“Plus, my wife Nia, took on exactly the same challenge last year rowing as a pair, so I’ve been taking notes.”
Ian admits ‘there’ll be no festive gifts or special meals set aside for Christmas Day’.
He continued: “Some rowers take some luxuries like Christmas presents from home! But that’s not me. I am much more practical, and any space will be set aside for food and my essential emergency spares.
“All I care about is making sure I am well stocked and have whatever I need should something malfunction.
“We’ve got satellite phones onboard for communication and carry a backup for every critical system onboard such as the water maker, rowing and steering systems.
“All in all, including all the food required, my total luggage weight is around 150 kilos, not your average package holiday.”
Competitors must go through a thorough on and offshore training programme before being granted their place.
Ian said: “As a solo rower I had to do a minimum of 240 hours offshore training, and everyone must prove that through a tracking app.
“All teams must upload evidence to a portal so the organisers can check we’ve done everything required, including safety drills. For example, if I get severe weather, I have a big parachute anchor to put out and shut myself in the boat until the weather improves.
“We must do sea survival, first aid, navigation, all the mandatory stuff. Then the boat undergoes pre-shipping inspection, then pre-race inspection. A lot happens before the start line.”
Ian’s connection with air ambulances spans back to his childhood. His mum worked in the NHS, and her late twin sister oversaw the GHEMS air ambulance at the Royal London Hospital.
He said: “I have such fond memories of visiting my auntie Jill (Williams) at the helipad. We would meet for lunch then she would take me to see the crew and sit in the helicopter.
“I remember a doctor, who was a great friend of the family and he did the first open-heart surgery in the street, which is quite routine now.
“Back then they could not fly at night because of the power lines. They didn’t do what they can do now, it’s incredible really, that the emergency department can be with a patient day or night.”
Ian lives in the forest in Aberdyfi and says the area is a playground for water sports, climbing and off-road mountain bikers.
He said: “We are very much in the middle of nowhere, so as a community the Wales Air Ambulance is vital.
“We are involved with the local yacht club and our local the Britannia Inn does a fundraiser annually called Slip to the Brit in aid of the lifesaving service.
“So, I wanted to do something to support a cause which is close to the area’s heart.”
Wales Air Ambulance is consultant-led, taking hospital-standard treatments to the patient and, if required, transferring them directly to the most appropriate hospital for their illness or injury.
It is delivered via a unique third sector and public sector partnership. The Wales Air Ambulance Charity relies on public donations to raise the £13 million required every year to keep the helicopters in the air and rapid response vehicles on the road.
The Emergency Medical Retrieval and Transfer Service (EMRTS) supplies highly skilled NHS consultants and critical care practitioners who work on board the Charity’s vehicles.
This advanced critical care includes the ability to administer anaesthesia, deliver blood transfusions and conduct minor operations, all at the scene of an incident.
As a pan-Wales service, its dedicated crews, regardless of where they are based, will travel the length and breadth of the country to deliver emergency critical care.
Ian hopes that his participation in the World’s Toughest Row will help shine a light on the work of the service and encourage others to challenge themselves.
He admits he wasn’t the most academic at school, he left without qualifications saying it wasn’t for him. But at age 19 he signed up for a three-month Prince’s Trust personal development course, which he says changed his life. After completing it, he was invited back to volunteer at the next one.
He said: “It gave me the kickstart I needed, I borrowed money off my uncle to do a dinghy instructors course and by fate an advert for a dinghy instructor was advertised in a magazine.”
“I picked up the phone, and by the Saturday I was sitting on a plane and heading to Turkey. I did about 15 years in the yachting industry and ended up becoming a captain on privately owned and chartered sailboats.
“It’s also where I met my beautiful wife Nia, who is a Welsh-speaker and originally from Machynlleth.”
Ian added: “Fast forward to now, we are heading towards our 20th anniversary, we have two wonderful children, Louis and Summer and run our own company working in the commercial maritime industry.”
Ian’s fitness regime is not for the feint hearted. He is training several hours a day, 6 days a week on the rowing machine and in the gym. He expects to put in around 16 hours a day on the oars during the World’s Toughest Row.
He says his focus is keeping fuelled, with the most important bit of kit, his water maker providing the essential ingredient to rehydrate his food. It produces around thirty litres an hour.
The average person needs around 2,000-3,000 calories a day, Ian will need over 5,000. He said: “Most of my meals are freeze dried so that takes it to 3,500, and the rest is snacking on high calorie nut butter pouches, and high energy snacks like flapjacks.”
With six weeks on the water, Ian’s dress code is simple, sun protection, loose fitting shorts and long sleeve UV shirts, sun hats, and wet weather gear. But he won’t be packing any shoes. He said: “I’m not going to need them! I’ve got nice Welsh sheepskin foot straps on the rowing station of the boat.”
Home will be the Peanut Bubble, at around twenty-two feet ‘it looks like a Tic Tac that somebody has taken a bite of out of the middle’ according to Ian. It has a small front and back cabin, with a rowing deck at the centre.
The boat has been wrapped with the Wales Air Ambulance logo featuring alongside Ian’s sponsors. He hopes to raise as much money as he can for the lifesaving service and said:
“Everybody around Aberdyfi knows somebody who’s had a friend, neighbour or relative that has needed the air ambulance.
“I am counting on them to spread the word and the people of Wales to help me raise as much as I can for this incredible Charity. I’ll be rowing as ‘Lightship Atlantic’ and can be followed on the usual social media channels and via the World’s Toughest Row tracker, all easy to find online”.
Elaine Orr, Wales Air Ambulance, Regional Fundraising Manager for South West Wales said: “Ian is a warrior! We’ve kept up to date on his training regime, and it is unbelievable.
“The discipline it takes to pack in the hours needed to build up to this sort of challenge is extraordinary.
“We are grateful that he has chosen to use his place in the World’s Toughest Row as a platform to raise awareness about what we do and fundraise for our Charity.
“The Wales Air Ambulance family will be cheering Ian on as he crosses the Atlantic. Pob lwc!”
