Rowing across an ocean is an incredibly challenging endeavor. After all, it requires the rower to spend hours each day working the oars, often for weeks at a time. Isolated and alone, it takes dedication and determination to make a solo journey across a body of water that at times seems endless. There is a reason that fewer people have rowed across one of the Earth's oceans than have been in space. Quite simply, it is really tough to actually complete such a voyage.

That isn't stopping Russian adventurer Fedor Konyukhov from trying. According to ExWeb, Konyukhov intends to make a solo row across the Pacific, non-stop from Chile to Australia. Fedor believes that it will take him roughly 200 days to complete the crossing, which will cover approximately 8000 nautical miles (14,816 km).

The Russian, who is a polar skier, mountaineer, and sailor, says he'll set out on his Pacific crossing in December. Leaving from Valparaise, Chile, he'll first have to navigate through islands and atolls off the coast of South America, before he makes his way out into the deep ocean. As he approaches Brisbane, Australia, he'll encounter more islands and the massive Great Barrier Reef. In between, Fedor believes he'll have to dodge potentially nasty storms that could potentially bring an end to his voyage at any time.

In order to successfully complete this ocean crossing in 200 days, Konyukhov will need to average 40 nautical miles (74 km) per day. That doesn't sound like a lot, but considering the challenges he'll face out on the water, particular as the grind of rowing begins to take its toll, covering those distance can get extremely difficult. High winds and turbulent seas will work against him, even in the spring of the Southern Hemisphere when things are better than other times of the year. Hopefully he is well prepared for those difficult conditions, as he will be hundreds of miles away from rescue should anything go wrong.

Expect to hear more in a few weeks as Fedor gets closer to his departure.

Yesterday I shared a video from the Red Bull X Alps race, which is a very unique event it in its own right. Today I have a video from the Red Bull Elements relay race, during which competitors complete in one of four multi-sport legs. In the first leg the racers row across a lake and then carry their boat to the finish line. That kicks off the second leg, which is a running stage with a mountain top finish. The next athlete in the even then paraglides off the summit to try to hit a target area below, which in turn starts the fourth and final leg, which is mountain biking up a tough trail. This looks like a really fun and demanding event. It can't be easy putting together a team as it would be difficult to find others with all of these skills. Still, great stuff from Red Bull.

A four-man team of rowers is gearing up for an ocean going adventure in the summer of 2014 when they hope to make a crossing of a portion of the Pacific Ocean, traveling from California to Hawaii over a five-week period and covering more than 2100 nautical miles (3889 km).

The team, which consists of Fraser Hart, Sam Collins, Colin Parker and James Wight, will be taking part in the first ever New Ocean Wave Great Pacific Race in which they hope to be the fastest team to row from Monterey, CA to Honolulu, HI. Calling themselves Team Pacific Rowers, they'll hit the water next June along with all the other entrants into the event, most of whom will row in shifts for 24-hours per day as they attempt to complete the ocean crossing.

The boys are currently looking for corporate sponsorship and are even holding a contest to name their boat as they gear up for the event next summer. With eight months to go until the race, I'm sure they're also busy training, getting their gear together and prepping for five weeks at sea.

I've written about the Great Pacific Race a time or two when it was first announced. Obviously it is still some time off, but I will certainly be covering it more fully next summer once the teams all gather in California and hit the water. There is a similar race held in the Atlantic each year (in fact, it begins in a little over a month) so it'll be interesting to see how this new event goes over.