Rower to take on Cape Horn

Sharks and supertankers were just two of the dangers Jim Shekhdar faced when he became the first person to row solo across the Pacific last year.

Now the 55-year-old management consultant aims to become the first person to row from New Zealand to Cape Town, around Cape Horn.

Mr Shekhdar, from Northwood, north-west London, said rowing a 23ft boat 10,000 miles through hurricane force winds and 100ft waves is possible.

"I don't have a death wish. I've promised my wife that I will only go if the odds are 95 per cent survival and 85 per cent possible," he said.

The adventurer, who set out on his first trip because he was "sick of the day job", said: "There aren't many things left unchallenged and I want to be the first to do it.You don't do it for the fun of it.

"But the euphoria when I arrived made every second of that nine months worthwhile. Greeting my family in the surf in Australia was the most emotional moment of my life.

"I admit my last trip was the most selfish thing I've ever done, but it makes it easier if you've got a wonderful wife to pick up the pieces." This time he will face the Southern Ocean with its towering waves, constantly strong winds, freezing water, chaotic cross-seas and occasional icebergs.

"I plan to do a little surfing," he said. "I hope it will take six months or less, but it will be further and rougher than last time."

He intends to leave New Zealand in August 2003 and is designing a new boat to take advantage of the winds.

Mr Shekhdar will announce his trip tonight at a charity dinner in Chelsea Village to celebrate the first anniversary of his landing.

His daughters Anna, 22, and Sarah, 20, and his wife Jane, 50, seem calm about his plans.

Mrs Shekhdar said: "Of course I worry about him but I'd rather he dropped dead in the middle of the ocean doing what he really wanted than up a ladder doing DIY and grumbling."