Dear Predrag: To lose someone we love at sea is a difficult event in our lives. Made more so than a death on land because there are no remains making closure more challenging. When we lost Peter Bird on his fifth attempt to row the Pacific we held a memorial for him at the Corinthian Yacht Club in Sausalito on the SF Bay. Many friends and family from around the world shared anecdotes about Peter's life, love and friendships; myself included. At the end of the service we took a beautiful wreath and some flower petals and tossed them into the sea. This is sort of a maritime tradition for those lost at sea. As to the why of ocean rowing???????? I share Nenad's cryptic answer. I've been meaning to spend more time with this question the last ten years but it eludes me as well. perhaps the quote below begins the answer to your difficult question: We must not cease from exploration and the end of all our exploring will be to arrive where we began and to know the place for the first time. T. S. Eliot My wife and I wish your family and Nenad's family well and our condolences for your loss. take care, Tom and Sveta Lynch American Director Ocean Rowing Society