WYE oarsman Andrew Barnett launches out to row the Atlantic this Sunday, safe in the knowledge that he's better prepared than double Olympic champion James Cracknell.

"We were given a ringing endorsement by the ocean race scrutineers, who said we were the best prepared boat they'd seen so far," said the Monmouth Rowing Club man at the start in the Canary Islands.

"We had a beer with James and his crewmate, Castaway TV presenter Ben Fogle, and it sounds a bit last minute with them, like most of the other 30 boats in the race.

"They'd rushed in from doing Children In Need on TV back home, and were still getting their boat ready this week and working out how they'll tackle the Atlantic.

"My boat arrived by container ship last week and was in a bit of a state, filthy and with some hull damage, but we cleaned, mended it and polished it, and now with its livery on, and loaded with all our navigation and safety kit, it looks fantastic.

"We're ready to go, which is more than most, and all we're doing is just going out of the harbour every day, doing some training out on the ocean and then relaxing with a few beers.

"It's great to get all the panic out of the way, great to finally get out to sea and and now we're ready for lift off on Sunday, when there'll be a full marina, packed with boats to see us off."

Father-of-two, Andrew, 46, is tackling the 2,950-mile crossing from San Sebastian on La Gomera Island to Antigua in the West Indies with Guatemalan adventure racer Juan Carlos Sagastume.

And chatting with Cracknell and Fogle, the South American discovered he has a next door neighbour at home, whom Fogle also knows.

"It's a big ocean, but a small world," said Andrew. "But it was a also a great honour for me to meet James. He's a rowing legend having helped Steve Redgrave and Matthew Pinsent take gold in Sydney and then Matt in Athens. It would certainly be a feather in the cap to beat him in this challenge.

"We're really well prepared, we've worked out exactly how we're going to row it, doing four hours on, two hours off which will allow us to row together 16 hours a day with the other eight always having one person going.

"Both of us have done endurance races on land before, and we know we can cope with very little sleep, just the odd hour here and there should do us, so we can keep moving.

"It's the biggest challenge of my life, but I'm feeling confident now. All the panic of getting ready is over, and I can't wait to start on Sunday. "I've done walks across the frozen Yukon and Alaska, but this is something else. I'm going into the unknown, that's the thrill, there's a risk factor. It comes with a warning, 'don't try this at home'.

"Less than 200 people have rowed the Atlantic, compared to 2,000 climbing Everest, but the boat is very safe, self-righting and full of hi-tech equipment and we're ready."

Andrew has invested three years and £25,000 of his own money in the epic voyage.

"It's been a long time in the planning and I've had to give up my medical rep job to go. My family think I'm mad, but wife Ruth and children James and Emily are right behind me."

As a rower at Monmouth Rowing Club, he is used to rowing on rivers in two-foot wide shells, but Andrew said: "I'm not quite sure how I'll handle the ocean. I'm sure to get seasick, and the storms can be huge, with waves up to 30ft high.

"The boat is self-righting with a small cabin you can hunker down in, but you can find yourself rolling over and over. We'll have a drogue to put over the stern to hold us steady into the waves, which should keep us upright, though, hopefully."

"And on the plus side, rowers have seen whales, dolphins, flying fish, sharks and brilliant sunsets."

Their boat MayaBrit - a mixture of Juan Carlos' Mayan origins and Andrew's nationality - has to carry 150 litres of sealed water ballast in the Woodvale Ocean race, but is equipped with state-of-the-art navigation and safety equipment.

"The list of stuff we have to take is enormous," says Andrew. "We've got three GPS systems for navigation, two VHF radios, a satellite telephone, an emergency radio beacon, a radar reflector so big oil tankers can spot us, survival suits, lifejackets, a liferaft and loads of medical stuff so we're fully equipped for whatever the ocean throws at us.

"Solar panels will supply us with electricity for the water maker that converts sea water at the rate of 20 litres an hour.

"Food-wise we're going to need up to 6,000 calories a day, and we'll mostly be relying on freeze dried stuff like rice, couscous, dried fruit, nuts, cereals, though hopefully we'll catch a few fish.

"I'm expecting to lose two stone, but we should get a sun tan at least. "We've got a litre and a half of up to factor 50 suntan lotion because its going to be 35 degrees C or more.

"It's exciting to be lining up alongside Crackers, but I'm going to do everything to beat him.

"He's as hard as nails, but this is different, it's about survival in an extreme environment. I know I'm good at that after my Iceland treks.

"Even the boredom can hit the strongest characters. We've got an i-pod as our sole entertainment while we row up to 16 hours a day, and I'm hoping to get phone messages of support from home.

"But I'm good at singing to myself to keep myself going. I might have lost my voice by the time we finish."