“We turned up for the cruise and they said ‘well here it is’,” he said with a laugh pointing at the Tathra Masters’ George Bass Surfboat Marathon vessel.

Driving rains, four-metre swells and some close calls is all part of the job for a George Bass crew said Pambula-Tathra combined junior sweep Stuart Manson. 

The Ladz, as they are affectionately known, were the only under 23 team to tackle this year’s marathon - the squad’s youngest is just 17. 

Despite the lows of Thursday’s challenging leg, Mr Manson said the crew felt “absolute euphoria” to finish at the Eden Wharf on Saturday. 

“We’re all proud to have achieved this for each other, we got all eight in the boat for the finish to share that moment,” he said. 

“We are brothers, particularly after the tough times, we have a strong affiliation with Tathra and we always help each other out.”

Mr Manson said the biggest challenge was changeovers in the massive swells where four rowers wait in the water to swap and you have to navigate the boat between them – nearly impossible with poor visibility. 

Tathra Masters crew member John Sheedy from Candelo said the sport was much like golf in that technical perfection is the key.

“You have to get everything right at the same time,” he said. “These boats are so light you’ve all got to grab the water together and let go together.”

Mr Gardner said maintaining technique and rhythm through fatigue was the key to a speedy race.

“You get into it thinking it’s just about grunt, but on the day you focus on just keeping your elbows in and everything clicks,” he said.