BOLTON businessmen got down to business . . . when they took to the water to prepare for a 3,000 miles row across the Atlantic.

The team will be taking part in one of the world’s most extreme rowing events next year — the Woodvale Atlantic Rowing Challenge — to raise money for Bolton Lads and Girls Club.

They met up for a special “Rowtober” at Jumbles Reservoir, Bolton. and put their rowing muscles to the test.

As well as getting their sea legs, they learned the best ways to prepare for the trip, how to train and what foods to eat.

Rowers from around the country, as well as from Sweden and Ireland, joined the event as many of them were also preparing for the same challenge.

Appliances Online content manager Finn Christo is one of the four-strong Bolton team taking on the challenge.

He said: “It was a great success.

“We’ve spent so long just by ourselves, and it’s quite easy to become insular.

“Meeting other people doing the same race and people who have already rowed the Atlantic, and other oceans, made us feel like part of a very special and select community.”

The team of businessmen now have about 400 days to train for the challenge of a lifetime as part of a bid to raise about £250,000 to fund the club’s junior mentoring project.

Mr Christo said: “It’s made us all so much more focused and excited about doing it now.

“It’s still very strange to think we have 400 days to go.

“We still have a lot to learn, a lot to prepare and also a lot of money to raise, but we’re all counting the days.”

The other members of the team are Matt Tomkin, Mark Brocklehurst and Nick Griffiths. Vincent Kelly, aged 50, from Lostock, who died in the Nepal air crash at the end of September, was due to take part in the challenge To sponsor the rowers or find out more about the challenge, go to boltonatlanticchallenge.co.uk.