An incredible group of women have begun a 2,800-mile rowing journey from Monterey to Hawaii.

Since February I have spent many hours photographing an incredible group of women. Sierra Myers, Kelsey Pfender, Kristen Hofer and Jennifer Hofer made the choice to row 2,800 miles from Monterey to Hawaii to compete in the World’s Toughest Row. 

Most people, like myself, think that this is an unthinkable choice. For them it was an opportunity and an adventure. Competing in the World’s Toughest Row starts years in advance, raising money to buy a boat (estimated to be between $40,000 to $90,000) plus training both mentally and physically.

“The financial campaigning aspect has been a huge piece, and that’s been the most challenging long-term piece that we've been working toward,” Jennifer Hofer says. “It's a huge financial commitment. You need the boat in order to get sponsors, but you can't really get the boat until you have quite a bit of financial backing. And so all of this campaigning, getting the boat, race deposits, paying those fees—all of these additional expenses that come in with just owning a boat is a money pit."

For the team, called the Hericanes, their hard work and training is now being put to the test since they rowed off from the Monterey Harbor along with several other teams on Saturday, June 8. The team has also been training on the water in the Monterey Bay, completing 24-hour rows to a 72-hour row. Now they expect to be at sea, towing two hours on and two hours off, for about 35 days. 

Photographing the team during their training has been fun and challenging, as they like to wake up super early on Saturday and Sunday morning to hit the water. I am not a morning person, especially on weekends. However I am glad I was able to tell their story through photos, which you can see in the Weekly’s cover story this week. They were incredibly good sports about being photographed, and put up with my persistently punny jokes. 

This year's World's Toughest Row sees more female teams than male teams attempting the 2,800-mile journey from California to Hawaii. Among these teams are the Hericanes, aiming not only to complete the row, but also to set a world record as the first all-woman team of four to successfully make this voyage. 

You can follow their journey here, and you can learn more about the Hericanes (and donate to support their goal, including fundraising for Planned Parenthood) here.

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Out to sea. Plus, your Sunday Paper.