Cincinnati science teacher breaks record with solo row across Atlantic Ocean

If his students ask what he did on his summer vacation, Bryce Carlson will have quite the story.

Carlson, 37, is a high school science teacher from Cincinnati, Ohio. In late June, he set off on his own from St. John's, Newfoundland, in his 20-foot boat, Lucille, and on Saturday — 38 days, 6 hours, and 49 minutes later — he arrived at St. Mary's in the Isles of Scilly. Carlson rowed more than 2,000 miles from Canada to England, and the Ocean Rowing Society says he set a record for a solo west-to-east crossing of the Atlantic Ocean, smashing the previous record of 53 days, 8 hours, and 26 minutes.

Not only that, but he also is the first American to complete the journey, the Ocean Rowing Society said. It wasn't easy — Carlson's boat capsized multiple times, and he faced high waves and the tail end of a hurricane — but he told The Associated Press he feels like he had "a lot of luck along the way, and a lot of help. Help from my friends, my family, the community — from some higher power, I don't know."

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